Quality of service flows in a communication network

Abstract

A core network node (14-2) in a communication network (10) transmits, to a radio network node (14-1) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30). In some embodiments, the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

Description

[0001] Quality of Service Flows in a Communication Network

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application relates generally to a communication network, and relates more particularly to quality of service (QoS) flows in such a network.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] Figure 1 illustrates Quality of Service (QoS) handling in a communication network (e.g., a 5G network). QoS handling may be performed by entities that are established end-to-end, creating consistent packet forwarding treatment between a communication device 12 (e.g., user equipment (UE)) and a peer 7. Since the Core Network (CN) is responsible for managing packet treatment among many network users, the QoS behavior of each communication device 12 is needed. Based on configured or standardized profiles that hold QoS information, network equipment determines a treatment of the packet that is consistent with the intended network behavior for the specific communication device 12. To orchestrate the end-to-end system, several components, such as a packet data unit (PDU) session 20, a QoS flow 30, and a data radio bearer (DRB) 40 are defined. These are illustrated in Figure 1.

[0006] A PDU Session 20 is an association between the communication device 12 and a Data Network (DN) 5 that provides a PDU connectivity service, where PDUs are exchanged between the communication device 12 and DN 5. The type of association can be Internet Protocol (IP), Ethernet or unstructured. A communication device 12 may have multiple simultaneous PDU sessions 20.

[0007] The QoS flow 30 is the finest granularity of QoS differentiation in a PDU session 20. Figure 1 shows an example where a PDU session includes QoS flows 30-1 through 30-5. QoS flows are unique within a given PDU session, and a QoS Flow Identifier (QFI) may be assigned to each QoS flow. Non-Access Stratum (NAS) QoS flow is marked in a core network node 14U on the user plane, e.g., implementing a user plane function (UPF). User Plane traffic with the same QFI within a PDU session 20 receives the same traffic forwarding treatment.

[0008] Specific traffic types can be grouped as QoS Flows 30. One criteria for mapping specific IP flows to QoS flows 30 is that the packet treatment for this specific group of IP flows should be similar. In the core network, the QoS Treatment of the QoS Flow 30 is preserved by associating QoS parameters with the QoS Flow 30. The packet treatment is again preserved in the radio access network (RAN) by understanding the QoS parameters and binding the QoS flows 30 that require similar treatment to a DRB 40. This way, the DRB 40 holds information about the packet treatment characteristics. The DRB information is used again to make RAN scheduling decisions on a per packet basis. This will, in the end, guarantee that the packets are sent in the correct order and that the required QoS level is reached.

[0009] However, the introduction of extended Reality (XR) services and / or other so-called multi-modal services challenges the ability of the existing QoS model to properly handle those services. A multi-modal service in this regard is a communication service that consists of multiple data flows that relate to each other and that are subject to application coordination. The data flows can transfer different types of data (for example audio, video, positioning, and / or haptic data) and may come from different sources (e.g., a single communication device, a single device or multiple devices connected to the single communication device, or multiple communication devices). The single communication device case may be referred to as intra-UE multi-modality. For the single communication device case, it is expected that those data flows are closely related and require strong application coordination for the proper execution of the multi-modal service.

[0010] For example, an XR service may involve multiple PDU sessions 20 and / or multiple QoS flows 30, e.g. with Video, Audio, pose, multiple dimensional spaces, e.g., Degrees of freedom (3-DoF or 6-DoF) of movement of a user equipment (UE). There may be interrelation among the data flows constituting a multi-modal service that are mapped on PDU sessions / QoS flows.

[0011] Problematically, though, one PDU session resource heretofore may contain different QoS flows, and each has its own QoS requirements. That is, each QoS Flow is treated individually. For example, one video service mapped on QoS flow QFI 1 can be related to a second audio service mapped on QoS Flow QFI 2, and to another QoS flow QFI 3 on pose service, each with different QoS requirements, in e.g., downlink (DL) and / or uplink (UL). The separate QoS requirements and individual treatment of QoS flows means that the radio access network (RAN) heretofore lacks the ability to account for the inter-relatedness of the QoS flows at the application level.

[0012] There is also the issue that multiple PDU Sessions may be handled within the same Session Management Function (SMF), or by different SMFs, thus creating an issue of network interoperability if each SMF and / or the NG-RAN belongs to a separate network vendor.

[0013] SUMMARY

[0014] Some embodiments herein introduce signaling to indicate an association between multiple QoS flows, between multiple PDU sessions, between multiple DRBs, or between multiple PDU sets. The association may for instance be based on the multiple QoS flows, PDU session, DRBs, or PDU sets being for (i.e. , carrying data for) the same application layer service, e.g., a multi-modal service. The signaling in some embodiments herein may advantageously enable the communication network to exploit multiple different PDU sessions, QoS flows, DRBs, or PDU sets as needed for differentiated QoS handling (e.g., of different data flows or data types), yet still account for the association between the PDU sessions, QoS flows, DRBs, or PDU sets. For example, the signaling may enable the RAN to admit, set up, and / or otherwise handle associated QoS flows accordingly, e.g., by admitting or setting up the QoS flows collectively as a group. These and other embodiments may thereby improve the QoS of the application layer service, despite its multi-modal nature.

[0015] More particularly, embodiments herein include a method performed by a core network node in a communication network. The method comprises transmitting, from the core network node to a radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0016] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0017] In some embodiments, the core network node implements an Access and Mobility Function, AMF.

[0018] In some embodiments, the information is included in a message sent from the core network node to the radio network node as part of a procedure between the core network node and the radio network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a protocol data unit, PDU, Session Resource Setup procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message. In other embodiments, the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE. In some embodiments, the information is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

[0019] Other embodiments herein include a method performed by a radio network node in a communication network. The method comprises receiving, from a core network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0020] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0021] In some embodiments, the core network node an Access and Mobility Function, AMF. In some embodiments, the information is included in a message sent from the core network node to the radio network node as part of a procedure between the core network node and the radio network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a protocol data unit, PDU, Session Resource Setup procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message. In other embodiments, the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE. In some embodiments, the information is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

[0022] In some embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting the information from the radio network node to another radio network node in the communication network

[0023] In some embodiments, the method further comprises handling the multiple QoS flows based on the information.

[0024] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information, accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup. In other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, setting up the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group to another radio network node. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node.

[0025] Other embodiments herein include a method performed by a first radio network node in a communication network. The method comprises transmitting, from the first radio network node to a second radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service

[0026] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0027] In some embodiments, the communication network has a split radio network architecture. In some embodiments, the first radio network node is a first radio network node central unit and the second radio network node is a second radio network node central unit. In other embodiments, the first radio network node is a radio network node central unit and the second radio network node is a radio network node distributed unit.

[0028] In some embodiments, the information is included in a message sent from the first radio network node to the second radio network node as part of a procedure between the first radio network node and the second radio network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a handover procedure. In other embodiments, the procedure is a dual connectivity procedure. In yet other embodiments, the procedure is a procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device. In some embodiments, the communication device is a user equipment, UE. In some embodiments, the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure, and the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message or a UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE. In some embodiments, the information is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

[0029] Other embodiments herein include a method performed by a second radio network node in a communication network. The method comprises receiving, at the second radio network node, from a first radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0030] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0031] In some embodiments, the communication network has a split radio network architecture. In some embodiments, the first radio network node is a first radio network node central unit and the second radio network node is a second radio network node central unit. In other embodiments, the first radio network node is a radio network node central unit and the second radio network node is a radio network node distributed unit.

[0032] In some embodiments, the information is included in a message sent from the first radio network node to the second radio network node as part of a procedure between the first radio network node and the second radio network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a handover procedure. In other embodiments, the procedure is a dual connectivity procedure. In yet other embodiments, the procedure is a procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device. In some embodiments, the communication device is a user equipment, UE. In some embodiments, the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure, and the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message or a UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE. In some embodiments, the information is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

[0033] In some embodiments, the method further comprises handling the multiple QoS flows based on the information.

[0034] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information, accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup. In other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, setting up the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group to another radio network node. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises alternatively or additionally, based on the information, during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node.

[0035] Other embodiments herein include a method performed by a communication device configured for use in a communication network. The method comprises transmitting, to the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0036] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0037] Other embodiments herein include a core network node of a communication network, the core network node configured to transmit, from the core network node to a radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0038] In some embodiments, the core network node is configured to perform the steps described above for a core network node in a communication network.

[0039] Other embodiments herein include a radio network node of a communication network, the radio network node configured to receive, from a core network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0040] In some embodiments, the radio network node is configured to perform the steps described above for a radio network node in a communication network.

[0041] Other embodiments herein include a first radio network node of a communication network, the first radio network node configured to transmit, from the first radio network node to a second radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0042] In some embodiments, the first radio network node is configured to perform the steps described above for a first radio network node in a communication network. Other embodiments herein include a second radio network node of a communication network, the second radio network node configured to receive, at the second radio network node, from a first radio network node in the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0043] In some embodiments, the second radio network node is configured to perform the steps described above for a second radio network node in a communication network.

[0044] Other embodiments herein include a communication device configured for use in a communication network, the communication device configured to transmit, to the communication network, information indicating an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In some embodiments, the information indicates the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows are each associated. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0045] In some embodiments, the communication device is configured to perform the steps described above for a communication device configured for use in a communication network.

[0046] In some embodiments, a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a network node, causes the network node to perform the steps described above for a network node in a communication network.

[0047] In some embodiments, a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a network node, causes the network node to perform the steps described above for a communication device configured for use in a communication network.

[0048] In some embodiments, a carrier containing the computer program is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium

[0049] Embodiments herein also include corresponding apparatus, computer programs, and carriers of those computer programs.

[0050] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0051] Figure 1 illustrates Quality of Service (QoS) handling in a communication network according to certain embodiments.

[0052] Figure 2 illustrates a block diagram of a communication network according to certain embodiments.

[0053] Figure 3A illustrates a block diagram of exemplary multiple Packet Data Unit (PDU) sessions (simultaneously) established between a communication device and a data network according to certain embodiments. Figure 3B illustrates a block diagram of exemplary multiple QoS flows (simultaneously) established between the communication device and the communication network according to certain embodiments.

[0054] Figure 3C illustrates a block diagram of exemplary multiple data radio bearers (DRBs) (simultaneously) established between the communication device and the communication network according to certain embodiments.

[0055] Figure 3D illustrates a block diagram of exemplary multiple data PDU sets are defined according to certain embodiments.

[0056] Figure 4 a block diagram of the communication of information indicating any one or more of the associations according to certain embodiments.

[0057] Figure 5 depicts overall 5G RAN (NG-RAN) architecture according to certain embodiments.

[0058] Figure 6 depicts the gNB with the split architecture according to certain embodiments.

[0059] Figure 7 illustrates Dual Connectivity (DC) according to some embodiments.

[0060] Figure 8 illustrates a logic flow diagram of signalling of modality ID of grouped QoS flows / PDU session IDs in NG-RAN according to some embodiments.

[0061] Figure 9 illustrates a logic flow diagram of PDU session resource setup according to some embodiments.

[0062] Figure 10 illustrates a logic flow diagram of initial context setup according to some embodiments.

[0063] Figure 11 illustrates a logic flow diagram of handover resource allocation according to some embodiments.

[0064] Figure 12 illustrates a logic flow diagram of PDU session resource modify procedure according to some embodiments.

[0065] Figure 13 illustrates a logic flow diagram of UE context setup request procedure according to some embodiments.

[0066] Figure 14 depicts a method performed by a communication device configured for use in a communication network in accordance with particular embodiments.

[0067] Figure 15 depicts a method performed by a network node in a communication network in accordance with other particular embodiments.

[0068] Figure 16 illustrates a communication device as implemented in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0069] Figure 17 illustrates a network node as implemented in accordance with one or more embodiments.

[0070] Figure 18 is a block diagram of a communication system in accordance with some embodiments.

[0071] Figure 19 is a block diagram of a user equipment according to some embodiments. Figure 20 is a block diagram of a network node according to some embodiments.

[0072] Figure 21 is a block diagram of a host according to some embodiments.

[0073] Figure 22 is a block diagram of a virtualization environment according to some embodiments.

[0074] Figure 23 is a block diagram of a host communicating via a network node with a UE over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some embodiments.

[0075] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0076] Figure 2 shows a communication network 10 according to some embodiments, e.g., in the form of a 5G or 6G network. The communication network 10 provides communication service (e.g., a wireless communication service) to a communication device 12, e.g., a user equipment (UE). The communication network 10 in one or more such embodiments provides the communication device 12 with access to a data network 5, e.g., the Internet.

[0077] The communication device 12 in some embodiments operates based on a protocol stack 12S that includes an application layer 12A, e.g., at the top of the protocol stack 12S and / or above a physical layer 12P. The communication device 12 may transmit and / or receive application layer data at this application layer as part of an application layer service, e.g., associated with an application executed at the communication device 12. Where for example the application layer service is an extended Reality (XR) service, the communication device 12 may take the form of a gaming headset (as shown) or any other type of device suitable for an XR service.

[0078] Generally, though, the application layer service in some embodiments is a multi-modal service. As such, the multi-modal service consists of multiple data flows (at the application layer 12A) that relate to each other and that are subject to application coordination. The data flows in some embodiments carry different types of data, e.g., audio, video, positioning, and / or haptic data.

[0079] To improve quality of service (QoS) handling in the communication network 10, e.g., for better supporting such a multi-modal service, some embodiments herein facilitate the association of multiple components or constructs (of a certain type) that are defined in the communication network 10 for QoS handling. Different types of such components or constructs include for example Packet Data Unit (PDU) sessions, QoS flows, data radio bearers (DRBs), and / or PDU sets.

[0080] Figure 3A shows one example where multiple Packet Data Unit (PDU) sessions 20 are (simultaneously) established between the communication device 12 and the data network 5, shown as PDU sessions 20-1...20-X. In some embodiments, the multiple PDU sessions 20 carry data for the same application layer service at the communication device 12. For example, at least some of the different PDU sessions 20 may carry different types of data (e.g., different data flows) for the same application layer service. In these and other embodiments, then, the multiple PDU sessions 20 are associated with one another. That is, there is an association 20A between the multiple PDU sessions 20, e.g., because each of the PDU sessions 20 is associated with the same application layer service.

[0081] Alternatively or additionally, Figure 3B shows another example where multiple QoS flows 30 are (simultaneously) established between the communication device 12 and the communication network 10, e.g., between the communication device 12 and a core network node 14U on a user plane. These multiple QoS flows 30 are shown as QoS flows 30-1 ...30-Y. Figure 3B shows that in some embodiments these multiple QoS flows 30 are within the same PDU session 20 and / or within the same data radio bearer (DRB). In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows 30 carry data for the same application layer service at the communication device 12. For example, at least some of the different QoS flows 30 may carry different types of data (e.g., different data flows) for the same application layer service. In these and other embodiments, then, the multiple QoS flows 30 are associated with one another. That is, there is an association 30A between the multiple QoS flows 30, e.g., because each of the QoS flows 30 is associated with the same application layer service.

[0082] Alternatively or additionally, Figure 3C shows another example where multiple data radio bearers (DRBs) 40 are (simultaneously) established between the communication device 12 and the communication network 10, e.g., between the communication device 12 and a radio network node 14R in a radio access network of the communication network 10. These multiple DRBs 40 are shown as DRBs 40-1 ...40-Z. Figure 3C shows that in some embodiments these multiple DRBs 40 are within the same PDU session 20. In some embodiments, the multiple DRBs 40 carry data for the same application layer service at the communication device 12. For example, at least some of the different DRBs 40 may carry different types of data (e.g., different data flows) for the same application layer service. In these and other embodiments, then, the multiple DRBs 40 are associated with one another. That is, there is an association 40A between the multiple DRBs 40, e.g., because each of the DRBs 40 is associated with the same application layer service.

[0083] Alternatively or additionally, Figure 3D shows another example where multiple data PDU sets 50 are defined, e.g., shown as PDU set 50-1...50-N. In some embodiments, each PDU set 50 comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one unit of information generated at the application layer 12A. Figure 3D shows that in some embodiments these PDU sets 50 are within the same PDU session 20 and / or within the same QoS flow 30. In some embodiments, the multiple PDU sets 50 carry data for the same application layer service at the communication device 12. For example, at least some of the different PDU sets 50 may carry different types of data (e.g., different data flows) for the same application layer service. In these and other embodiments, then, the multiple PDU sets 50 are associated with one another. That is, there is an association 50A between the multiple PDU sets 50, e.g., because each of the PDU sets 50 is associated with the same application layer service.

[0084] Some embodiments herein introduce signaling in the communication network 10 to indicate any one or more of these associations 20A, 20B, 20C, or 20D. Introducing such an indication advantageously enables the communication network 10 to exploit multiple different PDU sessions 20, QoS flows 30, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 as needed for differentiated QoS handling (e.g., of different data flows or data types), yet still account for the association 20A, 20B, 20C, or 20D between the PDU sessions 20, QoS flows 30, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50. For example, the indication may enable the communication network 10 to, in some aspects, treat the PDU sessions 20, QoS flows 30, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 collectively as a group on account of the associations 20A, 20B, 20C, or 20D. These and other embodiments may thereby improve the QoS of an application layer service, despite its multi-modal nature.

[0085] Figure 4 more particularly in this regard shows that some embodiments enable the communication of information 16 indicating any one or more of the associations 20A, 20B, 20C, or 20D. The information 16 in some embodiments may be communicated between the communication network 10 and the communication device 12. Alternatively or additionally, the information 16 may be communicated between network nodes 14-1, 14-2 in the communication network 10. Network node 14-1 may be a radio network node in a radio access network of the communication network 10 or a core network node in a core network of the communication network 10. Similarly, network node 14-2 may be a radio network node or a core network node.

[0086] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates multiple QoS flows 30 for the communication device 12 are each associated with the same application layer service. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates multiple PDU sessions 20 for the communication device 12 are each associated with the same application layer service. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates multiple DRBs 40 for the communication device 12 are each associated with the same application layer service. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates multiple PDU sets 50 for the communication device 12 are each associated with the same application layer service.

[0087] In one or more such embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are each associated. This identity may be referred to as a modality ID. As one example, in some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, an identity of the application layer service with which the QoS flow, PDU session, or DRBs 40 is associated. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or the PDU Set for the same application layer service.

[0088] More generally, though, in some embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of a group to which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 each belong. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, the identity of the group to which the QoS flow, PDU session, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 belongs.

[0089] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that belong to the same group as the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0090] In any event, the information 16 in some embodiments explicitly or implicitly indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be handled by the communication network 10 collectively as a group. For example, in some embodiments, the information 16 explicitly or implicitly indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be accepted or rejected collectively as a group by the communication network 10. As another example, the information 16 may indicate that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be set up, handed over, and / or transferred collectively as a group by the communication network 10.

[0091] The communication device 12 and / or communication network 10 may handle the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 accordingly based on this information 16. The communication device 12 may for example use the received information 16 for scheduling of uplink transmissions from the communication device 12 to the communication network 10. Alternatively or additionally, the communication network 10 may accept or reject the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In other embodiments, the communication network 10 sets up the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the communication network 10 hands over or transfers the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the communication network 10 allocates transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the communication network 10 schedules transmissions on the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group.

[0092] Consider now some specific examples of some embodiments herein for communicating the information 16 in a 5G network, e.g., for handling extended Reality (XR) traffic. XR traffic characteristics

[0093] XR applications typically generate traffic flows which are in principle periodic, e.g., video traffic with 30, 60, 90, or 120 frames per second (fps). However, the traffic arrival moment at the radio access network (RAN) is affected by jitter around the periodicity value, due to processing of the frames at the application (e.g., for compression) and the capabilities of the platform used by the application, as well as transmission through the Core Network (CN). This is modelled in 3GPP TR 38.838 V17.0.0, by assuming that each data frame arriving at the RAN has a random jitter of [-4; +4] ms (optionally [-5; +5] ms) around the main periodicity. The probability of the jitter value within this interval is given by a truncated Gaussian distribution with mean 0 ms and standard deviation 2 ms.

[0094] However, it is expected that XR traffic is more dynamic. In response to events, e.g., network events (congestion indications) or application / user triggered events, XR traffic is likely to adapt / change its traffic pattern. For example, an application may react to congestion notification and may react by lowering the transferred video quality, lowering the bitrate. In another example, the application may react by lowering the frame rate, for example from 90fps to 30 fps, and such adaptation is likely to impact the characteristics of the traffic pattern e.g., periodicity.

[0095] XR traffic has strict delay requirements, in terms of packet delay budget (PDB). This is the maximum tolerable delay for a packet to be transmitted from a gNB to a user equipment (UE). The PDB value depends on the XR traffic type and is overall between 5 ms and 30 ms. 5G RAN Architecture

[0096] The overall 5G RAN (NG-RAN) architecture is depicted in Figure 5.

[0097] The gNB with the split architecture is depicted in Figure 6.

[0098] A gNB Central Unit (CU) (gNB-CU) hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC) and the control plane (CP) part of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP). The gNB Distributed Unit (DU) (gNB-DU) hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC) and the physical layer.

[0099] The gNB-CU is divided into a gNB-CU-CP and one or more gNB-CU user plane (UP)s and interconnected via the E1 interface. A gNB-CU-UP is connected to the gNB-DU through the F1- U interface. GTP-Uv1 as specified in TS 29.281v16.0.0 is used on the N3 / NG-U interface between the User Plane Function (UPF) (not shown) and the NG-RAN / CU-UP as well as on the F1-U interface between the CU-UP and the DU and the CU-UPs configured with different NG-RAN / gNBs where Xn-U is established.

[0100] Figure 7 illustrates Dual Connectivity (DC) according to some embodiments. In Dual Connectivity, a Master Node (MN) and Secondary Node (SN) host separate RRC in Control plan and MAC layer in User plane.

[0101] Some embodiments herein concern enhancement on XR user cases, e.g., gaming.

[0102] A multi-modal service is a communication service that consists of multiple data flows that relate to each other and that are subject to application coordination. The data flows can transfer different types of data (for example audio, video, positioning, and / or haptic data) and may come from different sources (e.g., a single UE, a single device or multiple devices connected to the single UE, or multiple UEs). The single UE case may be referred to as intra-UE multi-modality.

[0103] For the single UE case, it is expected that those data flows are closely related and require strong application coordination for the proper execution of the multi-modal service, and therefore, all those data flows are expected to be transmitted in a single Protocol Data Unit (PDU) Session.

[0104] The Nnef_AFsessionWithQoS service allows an Application Function (AF) to provide, at the same time, for each data flow that belongs to a multi-modal service, a Multi-modal Service ID, the service requirements, and the quality of service (QoS) monitoring requirements.

[0105] The Multi-modal Service ID is an explicit indication that data flows are related to a multimodal service. The Policy Control Function (PCF) may use this information to derive the correct Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rules and to apply appropriate QoS policies for the data flows that are part of a specific multi-modal application.

[0106] The AF may provide QoS monitoring requirements for data flows associated to a multimodal service to the PCF. The PCF generates the authorized QoS Monitoring policy for each data flow.

[0107] In order to start the QoS monitoring for the data flows associated to a multi-modal service within a certain period of time, the PCF needs to receive the QoS monitoring requirements for those data flows from AF within a single request or, in case of multiple requests, within a short period of time.

[0108] In addition to the features that are provided for the case that the data flows are associated with a single UE, the following features are provided for the case where the data flows are associated with more than one UE. The same Data Network Name (DNN) I Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI) combination for the multi-modal service should be selected by each of the involved UEs. The UE Route Selection Policy (URSP) Rule evaluation framework is used to ensure that the same DNN / S-NSSAI is selected. The AF should use the same Multi-modal Service ID in the interactions with the PCF(s) for all the involved UEs that relate to a multi-modal service. The PCF may take this information into account (e.g. to apply a specific QoS policy) when processing each AF request independently. The data flows contribute to the service experience, but are still valid stand-alone, as they are transmitted over separate PDU Sessions to / from the involved UEs. If multiple PCFs are involved, the PCFs take policy decisions according to the input provided by the AF. There is heretofore no support for policy coordination among the multiple PCFs. Policy decisions are heretofore taken by each PCF separately on a per PDU Session basis.

[0109] Heretofore, one PDU session resource may contain different QoS flows, and each has its own QoS requirements.

[0110] For the purpose of multi-modality, some coordination between flows to and from the same UE is needed. For example, one video service mapped on QoS flow QFI 1 can be related to a second audio service mapped on QoS Flow QFI 2, and to another QoS flow QFI 3 on pose service, each with different QoS requirements, in e.g., downlink (DL) and / or uplink (UL). Without knowing of the linkage between these different QoS flows, the RAN may not admit, set up and handle the list of related QoS flows accordingly.

[0111] XR service may involve multiple PDU sessions and / or multiple QoS flows, e.g. with Video, Audio, pose, multiple dimensional spaces, e.g., Degrees of freedom (3-DoF or 6-DoF) of movement of the UE. There may be interrelation among the data flows constituting a multimodal service that are mapped on PDU sessions / QoS flows. Heretofore, each QoS Flow is treated individually.

[0112] There is also the issue that multiple PDU Sessions may be handled within the same Session Management Function (SMF), or by different SMFs, thus creating an issue of network interoperability if each SMF and / or the NG-RAN belongs to a separate network vendor.

[0113] Certain aspects of the disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. Some embodiments herein propose three solutions to support multimodality XR services:

[0114] QoS level association solutions: When the network (NW) needs to cope with traffic for an XR service consisting of multiple flows with the same or different QoS requirements and / or characteristics, the NW is made aware of this and configures the bearers and / or scheduling resources accordingly to support multi-modality / multi-flow.

[0115] The CN provides some assistance information on how the QoS Flows are associated and that can be used for QoS Flows to bearer mapping for UL and DL. This assistance information may include one or more of the following:

[0116] 1) For the sake of admission control, at handover and PDU session setup, the CN provides “QoS multi-modality information” consisting of a list of QoS Flows to be admitted collectively; 2) Alternatively or additionally, the CN may provide a list of QoS flows that must be accepted to guarantee the multi-modal service minimum requirements, and a further list of QoS flows indicating those that could be accepted in a best effort way, depending on the resources capacity limitation in gNB.

[0117] Alternatively or additionally, some embodiments enable notification from the RAN to CN when one or more QoS flows among the multi-modality QoS flow list can no longer be supported. The RAN indicates that the multi-modality service can no longer be supported by sending a new indication (e.g., in the notification control).

[0118] In some embodiments, the NG-RAN makes a decision if the associated QoS flows may be mapped to the same data radio bearer (DRB), or different DRBs (e.g., one-to-one, one-to- many, etc), The association among these DRBs is provided to gNB-Dll and UE, for better LIL / DL scheduling.

[0119] PDU Session level association solutions: the network is made aware of the PDU sessions for the UE (within the same SMF or different SMFs) which are associated in order to provide resources for the multi-modality XR service. When different SMFs are involved, the UE or a CN entity in higher layer (e.g. AF) may provide the association information to CN, e.g. the PCFs. The PCFs provide this information to the SMFs, which will relay it to RAN together with the PDU Session information. The AF may ensure that this information uniquely identifies the interdependent PDU Sessions. If a single PCF is used, then this PCF can allocate a unique identity that it relays to RAN via the SMFs that set up the PDU Session resources in RAN. Alternatively, AF indicates to each involved PCF that a session is interdependent to other sessions setup via other PCFs. The PCFs are configured to derive unique identities that are provided to RAN, e.g., taking UE identity and other parameters into consideration.

[0120] In some embodiments, RAN may be aware of the different PDU session groups and that they are associated for multimodality communication, in order to be mapped accordingly. PDU Session level association may contain QoS-flow level association information, i.e., extending the scope of the QoS flow level association information from a single PDU session to multiple PDU sessions.

[0121] Some embodiments provide related association and coordination among UE context to support an XR service consists of multiple PDU sessions provided to different (collaborating) UEs.

[0122] Multiple PDU Sets in one PDU in one QoS flow: the application may choose to multiplex different service data flows into multiple XR PDU sets in a single QoS flow. The Multiple PDU sets QoS parameters, and the identifiers of each PDU Set are signaled to RAN. Each set of PDU Set QoS maps to an XR service component.

[0123] Figure 8 shows signalling of modality ID of grouped QoS flows / PDU session IDs in NG- RAN according to some embodiments. Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). Some embodiments ensure Multi-modality XR support in NG-RAN with transmission of linked flows for multi-modal service. Alternatively or additionally, some embodiments help RAN to identify the multi-modality flows via CN signaling to RAN and / or UE and satisfy the UE demands for multi modal QoS.

[0124] UE-side embodiments

[0125] In one embodiment, association of multiple QoS flows to the same XR service is managed by introducing a “Modality ID”, i.e. all DRBs associated with a “Modality ID” belong to the same XR multimodal “group” and should be handled accordingly: e.g., to be admitted collectively, scheduled accordingly and / or, if some timing offsets are applied, identical offsets are to be applied to ensure synchronization. This association is provided to the UE and applied in the NW.

[0126] In another embodiment, association of QoS flows are managed by providing a list of respective DRBs and provided to the UE and applied in the NW.

[0127] NG-RAN node embodiments

[0128] In one embodiment, the NG-RAN node, upon the reception of the QoS flows / PDU sessions with new association indication (e.g., Modality ID), understands that the associated QoS flows / PDU sessions should be set up successfully together. During Handover and Dual Connectivity operations, the NG-RAN node ensures that the associated QoS flows / PDU sessions are accepted by the target RAN (handover), or are set up successfully at the same NG-RAN node) (dual connectivity: MN or SN).

[0129] In one embodiment, the association indication of QoS flows (e.g., Modality ID) is signalled over Xn interface, from gNB-CU to another gNB-CU, during e.g., handover or dual connectivity procedures (between MN and SN).

[0130] In one embodiment, CN may further provide assistance information on how the associated QoS flows / PDU sessions should be handled in RAN. E.g., should be scheduled accordingly to guarantee the multimodal service requirements or should keep certain timing offset on a consistent manner. NG-RAN node acts accordingly.

[0131] In one embodiment, NG-RAN node may set up the associated QoS flows within the same DRB. If the QoS flows are mapped to different DRBs, the association among the DRBs are indicated to e.g. gNB-DU (via F1AP) and UE (via RRC), refer to Table 2.

[0132] In one embodiment, the association indication of QoS flows (e.g., Modality ID) is signalled over E1 interface, e.g., from gNB-CU to gNB-DU via bearer context management procedure.

[0133] In one generic embodiment, the association information is signalled either by adding a modality ID associated to QoS Flow Identifier (QFI) in the list of QoS flows to be setup over NG, Xn, F1 , and E1 interfaces. Or by adding a list of associated QoS flows with their common Modality / group ID in the list of QoS flows communicated in NG, Xn, F1 and E1 interfaces (see Table 1).

[0134] In one generic embodiment, the gNB receives the modality ID signalled per PDU session ID.

[0135] In one embodiment, NG-RAN node may set up resources for the QoS flows in different PDU sessions (within different DRBs) and the respective association among those DRBs are indicated to gNB-DU and UE in a similar manner.

[0136] In one embodiment, the NG-RAN node (in disaggregated NG-RAN architecture: the gNB-CU-CP) may deduce, from e.g. 5QI, traffic characteristics, etc., that the QoS flows / PDU sessions should be associated and handled accordingly. The gNB-CU may further signal its deductions to the gNB-DU during UE Context setup / modify procedure, i.e. , when the DRBs are set up / modified.

[0137] In one embodiment, the NG-RAN during PDU Session setup procedure indicates the list of grouped QoS flows with PDU Set IDs that were successfully admitted, and the list of modality QoS flows with PDU Set IDs that were not. During notification control, the NG-RAN indicates whether the modality QoS flows can no longer be admitted with new modality indication.

[0138] CN node embodiments

[0139] In one embodiment, CN, e.g. the PCF directly or via the via the Network Exposure Function (NEF), receives from the AF a “modality ID7”group ID” associated with multi-modality service that consists of multiple data flows described by the AF session.

[0140] In one embodiment, the PCF provides the “modality ID7”group ID” in the PCC rule(s) to the SMF.

[0141] In one embodiment, CN (e.g. SMF) indicates to NG-RAN node the list of QoS flows, or PDU sessions that are associated, by adding a tagged indication, e.g., with a “modality ID7”group ID”, or by including separately the associated the QoS flow IDs / PDU Session IDs in the QoS flow / PDU session. Assistance information may be included to indicate that the QoS flows should be set up collectively, or can be removed, refer to Table 1.

[0142] In one embodiment, the CN provides a list of PDU Set QoS parameters within a QoS flow, each PDU set of the modality is characterized by an ID and specific PDU Set QoS parameters representing the modality service parameters. For example, PDU Set QoS parameters with PDU Set ID 1 corresponds to XR Pose service, PDU Set ID 2 with its PDU Set QoS parameters is for video, etc.

[0143] In one embodiment, the CN may also indicate a priority level for acceptance of each PDU Set ID by RAN. For example, if PDU Set ID 1 has the same priority level as PDU Set ID 2, but higher priority level than PDU Set ID 3, then this for example can indicate that PDU Set IDs 1 and 2 must be admitted collectively, and that PDU Set ID 3 can be admitted in a best effort way, e.g., based on sync effort and resource capacity by RAN. In one embodiment, the CN sets up the PDU Set priority levels based on knowing in advance the sync level in RAN node.

[0144] Consider now some specific embodiments in the context of a 5G network.

[0145] Example 1 : PDU Session Resource Setup

[0146] Consider a first example in the context of PDU Session Resource Setup as otherwise specified by TS 38.413, Chapter 8.2.

[0147] An NG-RAN node is either:

[0148] - a gNB, providing NR user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE; or

[0149] - an ng-eNB, providing E-UTRA user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE.

[0150] 8.2.1 PDU Session Resource Setup

[0151] 8.2.1.1 General

[0152] The purpose of the PDU Session Resource Setup procedure is to assign resources on Uu and NG-U for one or several PDU sessions and the corresponding QoS flows, and to setup corresponding DRBs for a given UE. The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

[0153] Figure 9 illustrates successful operation of PDU session resource setup.

[0154] 8.2.1.2 Successful Operation

[0155] The AMF initiates the procedure by sending a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message to the NG-RAN node.

[0156] The PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message shall contain the information required by the NG-RAN node to setup the PDU session related NG-RAN configuration consisting of at least one PDU session resource and include each PDU session resource to setup in the PDU Session Resource Setup Request List IE.

[0157] Upon reception of the PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, if resources are available for the requested configuration, the NG-RAN node shall execute the requested NG-RAN configuration and allocate associated resources over NG and over Uu for each PDU session listed in the PDU Session Resource Setup Request List IE.

[0158] If the RAN Paging Priority IE is included in the PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, the NG-RAN node may use it to determine a priority for paging the UE in RRCJNACTIVE state.

[0159] For each requested PDU session, if resources are available for the requested configuration, the NG-RAN node shall establish at least one DRB and associate each accepted QoS flow of the PDU session which is not associated with an MBS QoS flow to a DRB established. For each PDU session successfully established the NG-RAN node shall pass to the UE the PDU Session NAS-PDU IE, if included. The NG-RAN node shall not send to the UE the PDU Session NAS PDUs associated to the failed PDU sessions.

[0160] If the NAS-PDU IE is included in the PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, the NG-RAN node shall pass it to the UE.

[0161] PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST

[0162] 9.2.1.1 PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST

[0163] This message is sent by the AMF and is used to request the NG-RAN node to assign resources on Uu and NG-U for one or several PDU session resources.

[0164] Direction: node

[0165] According to this example, the PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer IE is revised as follows. Here, the Modality ID and / or the associated QoS flow list is an example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between QoS flows 30, where the information 16 is communicated from a core network node to a radio network node.

[0166] Proposed Revisions to TS 38.413, Chapter 9.3.4.1

[0167] PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer

[0168] Example 2: Initial UE Context Setup

[0169] Consider a second example for Initial UE Context Setup as otherwise specified by TS 38.413, Chapter 8.

[0170] 8.3 UE Context Management Procedures

[0171] 8.3.1 Initial Context Setup

[0172] 8.3.1.1 General

[0173] The purpose of the Initial Context Setup procedure is to establish the necessary overall initial UE context at the NG-RAN node, when required, including PDU session context, the Security Key, Mobility Restriction List, UE Radio Capability and UE Security Capabilities, etc. The AMF may initiate the Initial Context Setup procedure if a UE-associated logical NG- connection exists for the UE or if the AMF has received the RAN UE NGAP ID IE in an INITIAL UE MESSAGE message or if the NG-RAN node has already initiated a UE-associated logical NG-connection by sending an INITIAL UE MESSAGE message via another NG interface instance. The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

[0174] For signalling only connections and if the UE Context Request IE is not received in the Initial UE Message, the AMF may be configured to trigger the procedure for all NAS procedures or on a per NAS procedure basis depending on operator’s configuration.

[0175] Figure 10 shows successful operation of initial context setup.

[0176] 8.3.1.2 Successful Operation

[0177] In case of the establishment of a PDU session the 5GC shall be prepared to receive user data before the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message has been received by the AMF. If no UE-associated logical NG-connection exists, the UE-associated logical NG- connection shall be established at reception of the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message.

[0178] If the PDU Session Resource Setup Request List IE is contained in the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, the NG-RAN node shall behave the same as defined in the PDU Session Resource Setup procedure. The NG-RAN node shall report to the AMF in the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message the result for each PDU session resource requested to be setup as defined in the PDU Session Resource Setup procedure.

[0179] INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST

[0180] This message is sent by the AMF to request the setup of a UE context.

[0181] Direction: node

[0182]

[0183] According to Example 2, the PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer IE is revised as shown above in Example 1. Here, the Modality ID and / or associated QoS flow list is another example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between QoS flows 30, where the information 16 is communicated from a core network node to a radio network node.

[0184] Example 3: Handover

[0185] Consider a third example for Handover as otherwise specified by TS 38.413 Section 8.4

[0186] 8.4.2 Handover Resource Allocation

[0187] 8.4.2.1 General

[0188] The purpose of the Handover Resource Allocation procedure is to reserve resources at the target NG-RAN node for the handover of a UE. The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

[0189] Figure 11 shows successful operation of handover resource allocation.

[0190] 8.4.2.2 Successful Operation

[0191] The AMF initiates the procedure by sending the HANDOVER REQUEST message to the target NG-RAN node.

[0192] If the Masked IMEISV IE is contained in the HANDOVER REQUEST message the target NG-RAN node shall, if supported, use it to determine the characteristics of the UE for subsequent handling.

[0193] Upon receipt of the HANDOVER REQUEST message the target NG-RAN node shall

[0194] - attempt to execute the requested PDU session configuration and associated security;

[0195] - store the received UE Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate in the UE context, and use the received UE Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate for all Non-GBR QoS flows for the concerned UE as specified in TS 23.501 [9];

[0196] - store the received Mobility Restriction List in the UE context;

[0197] - store the received UE Security Capabilities in the UE context;

[0198] - store the received Security Context in the UE context and take it into use as defined in TS 33.501

[0013] ; if supported, store the received UE Slice Maximum Bit Rate List in the UE context and use the received UE Slice Maximum Bit Rate List for each S-NSSAI for the concerned UE as specified in TS 23.501 [9],

[0199] HANDOVER REQUEST This message is sent by the AMF to the target NG-RAN node to request the preparation of resources.

[0200] Direction: node.

[0201] According to Example 3, the PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer IE contained in the Handover Request Transfer IE is revised as shown above in Example 1. Here, the Modality ID and / or associated QoS flow list is another example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between QoS flows 30, where the information 16 is communicated from a core network node to a radio network node.

[0202] Example 4: In a fourth example, a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE included in a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer IE in a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, or a HANDOVER REQUEST message is revised as shown below. Here, the inclusion of associated PDU Sets in the PDU Set QoS Parameter list is example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between PDU sets 50, where the information 16 is communicated from a core network node to a radio network node. The embodiments in this example may be separate from or combinable with Examples 1-3.

[0203] TS 38.413, Chapter 9.3.1.12 QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters (including the agreed Rel-18 Changes).

[0204] QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters

[0205] TS 38.413 Chapter 9.3.1.12 QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters

[0206] This IE defines the QoS parameters to be applied to a QoS flow.

[0207] Table 3: Example of Revision to NGAP TS 38.413 Chapter 9.3.1.12 QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters (including the agreed Rel-18 Changes), where one QoS flow is associated with multiple PDU Sets, based on the to-be-finally-approved NGAP CR1025r4 in RP-23830 / R3- 238126.

[0208] Example 5: Consider a fifth example for a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure.

[0209] PDU Session Resource Modify

[0210] 8.2.3.1 General The purpose of the PDU Session Resource Modify procedure is to enable configuration modifications of already established PDU session(s) for a given UE. It is also to enable the setup, modification and release of the QoS flow for already established PDU session(s). The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

[0211] Figure 12 shows successful operation of a PDU session resource modify procedure. 8.2.3.2 Successful Operation

[0212] The AMF initiates the procedure by sending a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message to the NG-RAN node.

[0213] The PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message shall contain the information required by the NG-RAN node, which may trigger the NG-RAN configuration modification for the existing PDU sessions listed in the PDU Session Resource Modify Request List IE.

[0214] Upon reception of the PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message, if the NG-RAN configuration is triggered to be modified and if resources are available for the modified NG-RAN configuration, the NG-RAN node shall execute the configuration modification for the requested PDU session.

[0215] PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST

[0216] This message is sent by the AMF and is used to request the NG-RAN node to enable modifications of already established PDU session resources for a given UE.

[0217] Direction: node

[0218] In this example, the PDU Session Resource Modify Request Transfer IE contained in the PDU Session Resource Modify Request Transfer IE is revised as shown above in Examples 1- 3. Here, the Modality ID and / or associated QoS flow list is another example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between QoS flows 30, where the information 16 is communicated from a core network node to a radio network node.

[0219] Example 6: Consider a sixth example for UE Context Setup.

[0220] 8.3 UE Context Management procedures

[0221] 8.3.1 UE Context Setup

[0222] 8.3.1.1 General

[0223] The purpose of the UE Context Setup procedure is to establish the UE Context including, among others, SRB.DRB, BH RLC channel, Uu Relay RLC channel, PC5 Relay RLC channel, and SL DRB configuration. The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

[0224] Figure 13 shows successful operation of a UE Context Setup Request procedure.

[0225] 8.3.1.2 Successful Operation

[0226] The gNB-CU initiates the procedure by sending UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message to the gNB-DU. If the gNB-DU succeeds to establish the UE context, it replies to the gNB-CU with UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE.

[0227] Proposed Revision to 9.2.2.1 UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST

[0228] This message is sent by the gNB-CU to request the setup of a UE context.

[0229] Direction: gNB-CU gNB-DU.

[0230]

[0231]

[0232] Here, in this example, the DRB Modality ID is an example of information 16 in Figure 4 indicating an association between DRBs 40, where the information 16 is communicated from a first radio network node to a second radio network node.

[0233] In view of the modifications and variations herein, Figure 14 depicts a method performed by a communication device 12 configured for use in a communication network 10 in accordance with particular embodiments. The method includes transmitting or receiving information 16 (Block 1400). In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association 30A between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows 30. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association 20A between multiple protocol data unit, PDU, sessions 20. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association 40A between multiple data radio bearers, DRBs 40. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association 50A between multiple PDU Sets 50.

[0234] In some embodiments, the method further comprises using the received information 16 for scheduling of uplink transmissions from the communication device 12 to the communication network 10 (Block 1410).

[0235] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple QoS flows 30 are each associated with the same application layer service. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple PDU sessions 20 are each associated with the same application layer service. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple DRBs 40 are each associated with the same application layer service. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple PDU sets 50 are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are each associated. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, an identity of the application layer service with which the QoS flow, PDU session, or DRBs 40 is associated. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or the PDU Set for the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service. In some embodiments, the application layer service is an extended Reality, XR, service. In some embodiments, at least some of the multiple QoS flows 30, multiple PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources. In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service.

[0236] In some embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of a group to which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 each belong. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, the identity of the group to which the QoS flow, PDU session, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 belongs.

[0237] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that belong to the same group as the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0238] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0239] In some embodiments, said transmitting or receiving comprises transmitting the information 16 to a core network node in the communication network 10. In some embodiments, the core network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF.

[0240] In some embodiments, said transmitting or receiving comprises receiving the information 16 from a network node in the communication network 10. In some embodiments, the method further comprises using the received information 16 for scheduling of uplink transmissions from the communication device 12 to the communication network 10. In some embodiments, the method further comprises generating a buffer status report using the received information 16, and transmitting the buffer status report to the communication network 10.

[0241] In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the PDU sets 50 are QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 for the communication device 12.

[0242] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be handled by the communication network 10 collectively as a group.

[0243] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be accepted or rejected collectively as a group by the communication network 10. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally set up collectively as a group by the communication network 10. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally handed over or transferred between network nodes collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally allocated transmission resources collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally scheduled for transmission collectively as a group.

[0244] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates which of the QoS flows 30, which of the PDU sessions 20, which of the DRBs 40, or which of the PDU sets 50 are required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements. In some embodiments, the information 16 alternatively or additionally indicates which of the QoS flows 30, which of the PDU sessions 20, which of the DRBs 40, or which of the PDU sets 50 are not required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements.

[0245] Figure 15 depicts a method performed by a network node 14 in a communication network 10 in accordance with other particular embodiments. In some embodiments, the network node 14 is the network node 14-1 or network node 14-2 in Figure 4. Regardless, the method comprises transmitting or receiving information 16 (Block 1500). In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple protocol data unit, PDU, sessions. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple data radio bearers, DRBs 40. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple PDU sets 50.

[0246] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, handling the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 (Block 1510).

[0247] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple QoS flows 30 are each associated with the same application layer service. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple PDU sessions 20 are each associated with the same application layer service. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple DRBs 40 are each associated with the same application layer service. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates the multiple PDU sets 50 are each associated with the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are each associated. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or the PDU Set for the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, or the multiple DRBs 40, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, or DRBs 40 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, or DRB for the same application layer service. In some embodiments, the application layer service is a multi-modal service. In some embodiments, the application layer service is an extended Reality, XR, service. In some embodiments, at least some of the multiple QoS flows 30, multiple PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources. In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service.

[0248] In some embodiments, the information 16 includes an identity of a group to which the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 each belong. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, the identity of the group to which the QoS flow, PDU session, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 belongs.

[0249] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50, a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that belong to the same group as the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0250] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 a list of one or more other QoS flows 30, PDU sessions 20, DRBs 40, or PDU sets 50 that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0251] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be handled by the communication network 10 collectively as a group.

[0252] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be accepted or rejected collectively as a group by the communication network 10. In other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally set up collectively as a group by the communication network 10. In yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally handed over or transferred between network nodes collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally allocated transmission resources collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the information 16 indicates that the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 are to be alternatively or additionally scheduled for transmission collectively as a group.

[0253] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates which of the QoS flows 30, which of the PDU sessions 20, which of the DRBs 40, or which of the PDU sets 50 are required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements. In other embodiments, the information 16 alternatively or additionally indicates which of the QoS flows 30, which of the PDU sessions 20, which of the DRBs 40, or which of the PDU sets 50 are not required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements.

[0254] In some embodiments, the information 16 is transmitted to or received from a communication device 12.

[0255] In some embodiments, the information 16 is communicated between a first network node 14-1 and a second network node 14-2. In some embodiments, the network node 14 is the first network node or the second network node. In some embodiments, at least one of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node. In some embodiments, each of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node. In some embodiments, the first network node implements an Application Function, AF, and the second network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF. In some embodiments, the first network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF, and the second network node implements a Session Management Function, SMF. In some embodiments, the information 16 is included in Policy Control and Charging, PCC, rules. In some embodiments, one of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node, and the other of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node. In some embodiments, the core network node implements a Session Management Function, SMF, or an Access and Mobility Function, AMF. In some embodiments, the information 16 is included in a message sent from the core network node to the radio network node as part of a procedure between the core network node and the radio network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a PDU session resource setup procedure. In some embodiments, the PDU session resource setup procedure is a procedure for assigning resources for one or more PDU sessions 20 and one or more corresponding QoS flows 30, and to set up one or more corresponding DRBs 40 for a given communication device 12. In some embodiments, the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information 16 element that indicates the information 16. In some embodiments, the procedure is an Initial UE Context Setup procedure for establishing an initial UE context at the radio network node. In some embodiments, the message is an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information element that indicates the information 16. In some embodiments, the procedure is a handover resource allocation procedure for reserving resources at the radio network node for handover of a communication device 12. In some embodiments, the message is a HANDOVER REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the HANDOVER REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information element that indicates the information 16. In some embodiments, the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure for enabling configuration modifications of one or more already established PDU sessions 20 for a communication device 12 and / or for enabling setup, modification, or release of a QoS flow for one or more already established PDU sessions 20. In some embodiments, the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows 30. In some embodiments, the message includes the multiple QoS flows 30 in a list of QoS flows 30 requested to be setup. In some embodiments, for each of the QoS flows 30 in the list, the message includes a modality ID that indicates a modality ID of the QoS flow. In some embodiments, the multiple QoS flows 30 that are associated have the same modality ID, and the information 16 indicating the association between the multiple QoS flows 30 comprises the respective modality IDs included in the message for the multiple QoS flows 30. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows 30. In some embodiments, the message includes the multiple QoS flows 30 in a list of QoS flows 30 requested to be setup. In some embodiments, for each of the QoS flows 30 in the list, the message includes a list of one or more other QoS flows 30 that are associated with the QoS flow, and the information 16 indicating the association between the multiple QoS flows 30 comprises the respective lists of one or more other QoS flows 30 included in the message for the multiple QoS flows 30. In some embodiments, for each of the one or more other QoS flows 30 in a list of one or more other QoS flows 30 that are associated with a QoS flow, the message indicates a priority level of the other Qos flow. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the association between the multiple PDU sets 50. In some embodiments, the message includes a list of PDU Set QoS Parameters. In some embodiments, the list of PDU Set QoS Parameters includes, for each of the multiple PDU sets 50, QoS parameters. In other embodiments, the list of PDU Set QoS Parameters alternatively or additionally includes, for each of the multiple PDU sets 50, characterizing the PDU(s) of the PDU Set a priority level for acceptance of the PDU Set by a radio access network of the communication network 10. In some embodiments, the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, a HANDOVER REQUEST message, or a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message. In some embodiments, at least one of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node. In some embodiments, each of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node. In some embodiments, the information 16 is included in a message sent from the first network node to the second network node as part of a procedure between the first network node and the second network node. In some embodiments, the procedure is a handover procedure or a dual connectivity procedure. In some embodiments, the communication network 10 has a split radio network architecture. In some embodiments, the first network node is a first radio network node central unit, and the second network node is a second radio network node central unit. In some embodiments, the communication network 10 has a split radio network architecture. In some embodiments, the first network node is a radio network node central unit and the second network node is a radio network node distributed unit. In some embodiments, the first network node is a radio network node distributed unit and the second network node is a radio network node central unit. In some embodiments, the procedure is a bearer context management procedure. In some embodiments, the procedure is a procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device 12. In some embodiments, the communication device 12 is a user equipment, UE, and the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure. In some embodiments, the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple DRBs 40. In some embodiments, the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes the multiple DRBs 40 in a list of DRBs 40 to be setup, wherein, for each of the DRBs 40 in the list, the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes a DRB modality ID that indicates a modality group to which the DRB belongs, and the information 16 indicating the association between the multiple DRBs 40 comprises the respective DRB modality IDs included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message for the multiple DRBs 40. In some embodiments, the procedure is performed when setting up or modifying the multiple DRBs 40. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between multiple QoS flows 30, and wherein the information 16 further indicates QoS parameters to be applied to each of the multiple QoS flows 30.

[0256] In some embodiments, the information 16 further indicates a list of QoS flows 30 with PDU Set IDs successfully admitted by the communication network 10. In some embodiments, the information 16 further alternatively or additionally indicates a list of modality QoS flows 30 with PDU Set IDs not successfully admitted by the communication network 10.

[0257] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates an association between the multiple PDU sets 50. In some embodiments, a PDU Set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one unit of information 16 generated at an application level. In some embodiments, the one or more PDUs of a PDU Set are transmitted within the same QoS flow and / or within the same PDU session. In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates PDU Set information for each of the multiple PDU sets 50. In some embodiments, the PDU Set information includes, for each of one or more PDU sets 50, QoS parameters characterizing the PDU(s) of the PDU Set. In other embodiments, the PDU Set information alternatively or additionally includes, for each of one or more PDU sets 50, a priority level for acceptance of the PDU Set by the communication network 10. In some embodiments, different PDU sets 50 carry different types of data for the same application layer service.

[0258] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, handling the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50.

[0259] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows 30 collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup. In yet other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally setting up the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group to another radio network node. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group. In still yet other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 collectively as a group.

[0260] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, scheduling the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 to guarantee minimum service requirements.

[0261] In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, setting up the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 together. In other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group. In yet other embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, alternatively or additionally during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows 30, the multiple PDU sessions 20, the multiple DRBs 40, or the multiple PDU sets 50 to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node.

[0262] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows 30. In some embodiments, the method further comprises, based on the information 16, mapping the multiple QoS flows 30 to one or more DRBs 40. In some embodiments, said mapping comprises, based on the information 16, mapping the multiple QoS flows 30 to the same DRB.

[0263] In some embodiments, the information 16 indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows 30, and the method further comprises, based on the information 16, configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows 30.

[0264] In some embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting or receiving a notification, wherein the notification is communicated from a radio network node to a core network node. In some embodiments, the network node is the radio network node or the core network node. In some embodiments, the notification notifies the core network node that one or more of the multiple QoS flows 30, one or more of the multiple PDU sessions 20, one or more of the multiple DRBs 40, or one or more of the multiple PDU sets 50 can no longer be supported by the radio network node.

[0265] In some embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting or receiving a notification, wherein the notification is communicated from a radio network node to a core network node, wherein the network node is the radio network node or the core network node, wherein the notification notifies the core network node that the application layer service can no longer be supported. Embodiments herein also include corresponding apparatuses. Embodiments herein for instance include a communication device 12 configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the communication device 12.

[0266] Embodiments also include a communication device 12 comprising processing circuitry and power supply circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the communication device 12. The power supply circuitry is configured to supply power to the communication device 12.

[0267] Embodiments further include a communication device 12 comprising processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the communication device 12. In some embodiments, the communication device 12 further comprises communication circuitry.

[0268] Embodiments further include a communication device 12 comprising processing circuitry and memory. The memory contains instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the communication device 12 is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the communication device 12.

[0269] Embodiments moreover include a user equipment (UE). The UE comprises an antenna configured to send and receive wireless signals. The UE also comprises radio front-end circuitry connected to the antenna and to processing circuitry, and configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna and the processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the communication device 12. In some embodiments, the UE also comprises an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information 16 into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry. The UE may comprise an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information 16 from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry. The UE may also comprise a battery connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.

[0270] Embodiments herein also include a network node 14 configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the network node 14.

[0271] Embodiments also include a network node 14 comprising processing circuitry and power supply circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the network node 14. The power supply circuitry is configured to supply power to the network node 14.

[0272] Embodiments further include a network node 14 comprising processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the network node 14. In some embodiments, the network node 14 further comprises communication circuitry. Embodiments further include a network node 14 comprising processing circuitry and memory. The memory contains instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the network node 14 is configured to perform any of the steps of any of the embodiments described above for the network node 14.

[0273] More particularly, the apparatuses described above may perform the methods herein and any other processing by implementing any functional means, modules, units, or circuitry. In one embodiment, for example, the apparatuses comprise respective circuits or circuitry configured to perform the steps shown in the method figures. The circuits or circuitry in this regard may comprise circuits dedicated to performing certain functional processing and / or one or more microprocessors in conjunction with memory. For instance, the circuitry may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory may include program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and / or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein, in several embodiments. In embodiments that employ memory, the memory stores program code that, when executed by the one or more processors, carries out the techniques described herein.

[0274] Figure 16 for example illustrates a communication device 12 as implemented in accordance with one or more embodiments. As shown, the communication device 12 includes processing circuitry 1610 and communication circuitry 1620. The communication circuitry 1620 (e.g., radio circuitry) is configured to transmit and / or receive information 16 to and / or from one or more other nodes, e.g., via any communication technology. Such communication may occur via one or more antennas that are either internal or external to the communication device 1600. The processing circuitry 1610 is configured to perform processing described above, e.g., in Figure 14, such as by executing instructions stored in memory 1630. The processing circuitry 1610 in this regard may implement certain functional means, units, or modules.

[0275] Figure 17 illustrates a network node 14 as implemented in accordance with one or more embodiments. The network node 14 may be any network node herein, e.g., network node 14-1 or 14-2 in Figure 4. As shown, the network node 14 includes processing circuitry 1710 and communication circuitry 1720. The communication circuitry 1720 is configured to transmit and / or receive information 16 to and / or from one or more other nodes, e.g., via any communication technology. The processing circuitry 1710 is configured to perform processing described above, e.g., in Figure 15, such as by executing instructions stored in memory 1730. The processing circuitry 1710 in this regard may implement certain functional means, units, or modules. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that embodiments herein further include corresponding computer programs.

[0276] A computer program comprises instructions which, when executed on at least one processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to carry out any of the respective processing described above. A computer program in this regard may comprise one or more code modules corresponding to the means or units described above.

[0277] Embodiments further include a carrier containing such a computer program. This carrier may comprise one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.

[0278] In this regard, embodiments herein also include a computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable (storage or recording) medium and comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform as described above.

[0279] Embodiments further include a computer program product comprising program code portions for performing the steps of any of the embodiments herein when the computer program product is executed by a computing device. This computer program product may be stored on a computer readable recording medium.

[0280] Figure 18 shows an example of a communication system 1800 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0281] In the example, the communication system 1800 includes a telecommunication network 1802 that includes an access network 1804, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network 1806, which includes one or more core network nodes 1808. The access network 1804 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 1810a and 1810b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 1810), or any other similar 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points. Moreover, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunication network 1802 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a node in the telecommunication network 1802 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any node in the telecommunication network 1802, including one or more network nodes 1810 and / or core network nodes 1808.

[0282] Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (0-Rll), an open distributed unit (0-Dll), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O-CU- CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification). The network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an A1, F1, W1, E1 , E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN access node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment (described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies. The network nodes 1810 facilitate direct or indirect connection of user equipment (UE), such as by connecting UEs 1812a, 1812b, 1812c, and 1812d (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 1812) to the core network 1806 over one or more wireless connections.

[0283] Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 1800 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 1800 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0284] The UEs 1812 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 1810 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 1810 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 1812 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 1802 to enable and / or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and / or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 1802.

[0285] In the depicted example, the core network 1806 connects the network nodes 1810 to one or more hosts, such as host 1816. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 1806 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 1808) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and / or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 1808. Example core network nodes include functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (ALISF), Subscription Identifier De-concealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and / or a User Plane Function (UPF).

[0286] The host 1816 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 1804 and / or the telecommunication network 1802, and may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host 1816 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

[0287] As a whole, the communication system 1800 of Figure 18 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and / or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, LiFi, and / or any low- power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.

[0288] In some examples, the telecommunication network 1802 is a cellular network that implements 3GPP standardized features. Accordingly, the telecommunications network 1802 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunication network 1802. For example, the telecommunications network 1802 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) / Massive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0289] In some examples, the UEs 1812 are configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 1804 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 1804. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0290] In the example, the hub 1814 communicates with the access network 1804 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 1812c and / or 1812d) and network nodes (e.g., network node 1810b). In some examples, the hub 1814 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 1814 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 1806 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 1814 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 1810, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 1814. As another example, the hub 1814 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 1814 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub 1814 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 1814 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 1814 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0291] The hub 1814 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 1810b. The hub 1814 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub 1814 and UEs (e.g., UE 1812c and / or 1812d), and between the hub 1814 and the core network 1806. In other examples, the hub 1814 is connected to the core network 1806 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub 1814 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network 1804 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 1810 while still connected via the hub 1814 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 1814 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to / from the UEs from / to the network node 1810b. In other embodiments, the hub 1814 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node 1810b, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels. Figure 19 shows a UE 1900 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, a UE refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and / or other UEs. Examples of a UE include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless cameras, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), smart device, wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE), vehicle, vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded / integrated wireless device, etc. Other examples include any UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB- loT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

[0292] A UE may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), or vehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, a UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

[0293] The UE 1900 includes processing circuitry 1902 that is operatively coupled via a bus 1904 to an input / output interface 1906, a power source 1908, a memory 1910, a communication interface 1912, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain UEs may utilize all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 19. The level of integration between the components may vary from one UE to another UE. Further, certain UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0294] The processing circuitry 1902 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory 1910. The processing circuitry 1902 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 1902 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs). In the example, the input / output interface 1906 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into the UE 1900. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

[0295] In some embodiments, the power source 1908 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used. The power source 1908 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source 1908 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of the UE 1900 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Delivering power may be, for example, for charging of the power source 1908. Power circuitry may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from the power source 1908 to make the power suitable for the respective components of the UE 1900 to which power is supplied.

[0296] The memory 1910 may be or be configured to include memory such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory 1910 includes one or more application programs 1914, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data 1916. The memory 1910 may store, for use by the UE 1900, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0297] The memory 1910 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as tamper resistant module in the form of a universal integrated circuit card (IIICC) including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIMs), such as a IISIM and / or ISIM, other memory, or any combination thereof. The IIICC may for example be an embedded IIICC (elllCC), integrated IIICC (illlCC) or a removable IIICC commonly known as ‘SIM card.’ The memory 1910 may allow the UE 1900 to access instructions, application programs and the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory 1910, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0298] The processing circuitry 1902 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network using the communication interface 1912. The communication interface 1912 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna 1922. The communication interface 1912 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another UE or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 1918 and / or a receiver 1920 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter 1918 and receiver 1920 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna 1922) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0299] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface 1912 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication, LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Communications may be implemented in according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards, such as IEEE 802.11 , Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, transmission control protocol / internet protocol (TCP / IP), synchronous optical networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), QUIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

[0300] Regardless of the type of sensor, a UE may provide an output of data captured by its sensors, through its communication interface 1912, via a wireless connection to a network node. Data captured by sensors of a UE can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another UE. The output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

[0301] As another example, a UE comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, the UE may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0302] A UE, when in the form of an Internet of Things (loT) device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, city wearable technology, extended industrial application and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a TV, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door / window sensor, a flood / moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a head-mounted display for Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR), a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. A UE in the form of an loT device comprises circuitry and / or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the UE 1900 shown in Figure 19.

[0303] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, a UE may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another UE and / or a network node. The UE may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the UE may implement the 3GPP NB-loT standard. In other scenarios, a UE may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship and an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0304] In practice, any number of UEs may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first UE might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second UE that is a remote controller operating the drone. When the user makes changes from the remote controller, the first UE may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and / or the second UE can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, a UE might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0305] Figure 20 shows a network node 2000 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and / or with other network nodes or equipment, in a telecommunication network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)), O-RAN nodes or components of an O-RAN node (e.g., O-RU, O-DU, O-CU).

[0306] Base stations may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units, distributed units (e.g., in an O-RAN access node) and / or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0307] Other examples of network nodes include multiple transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cel l / multicast coordination entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and / or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

[0308] The network node 2000 includes a processing circuitry 2002, a memory 2004, a communication interface 2006, and a power source 2008. The network node 2000 may be composed of multiple physically separate components (e.g., a NodeB component and a RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in which the network node 2000 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair, may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node 2000 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memory 2004 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna 2010 may be shared by different RATs). The network node 2000 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 2000, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within network node 2000.

[0309] The processing circuitry 2002 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and / or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 2000 components, such as the memory 2004, to provide network node 2000 functionality.

[0310] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 2002 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 2002 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 2012 and baseband processing circuitry 2014. In some embodiments, the radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 2012 and the baseband processing circuitry 2014 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 2012 and baseband processing circuitry 2014 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0311] The memory 2004 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry 2002. The memory 2004 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and / or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry 2002 and utilized by the network node 2000. The memory 2004 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry 2002 and / or any data received via the communication interface 2006. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 2002 and memory 2004 is integrated.

[0312] The communication interface 2006 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data between a network node, access network, and / or UE. As illustrated, the communication interface 2006 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) 2016 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. The communication interface 2006 also includes radio front-end circuitry 2018 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, the antenna 2010. Radio front-end circuitry 2018 comprises filters 2020 and amplifiers 2022. The radio front-end circuitry 2018 may be connected to an antenna 2010 and processing circuitry 2002. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 2010 and processing circuitry 2002. The radio front-end circuitry 2018 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 2018 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 2020 and / or amplifiers 2022. The radio signal may then be transmitted via the antenna 2010. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 2010 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 2018. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry 2002. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0313] In certain alternative embodiments, the network node 2000 does not include separate radio front-end circuitry 2018, instead, the processing circuitry 2002 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna 2010. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 2012 is part of the communication interface 2006. In still other embodiments, the communication interface 2006 includes one or more ports or terminals 2016, the radio front-end circuitry 2018, and the RF transceiver circuitry 2012, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface 2006 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry 2014, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0314] The antenna 2010 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna 2010 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry 2018 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna 2010 is separate from the network node 2000 and connectable to the network node 2000 through an interface or port.

[0315] The antenna 2010, communication interface 2006, and / or the processing circuitry 2002 may be configured to perform any receiving operations and / or certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 2010, the communication interface 2006, and / or the processing circuitry 2002 may be configured to perform any transmitting operations described herein as being performed by the network node. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0316] The power source 2008 provides power to the various components of network node 2000 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source 2008 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node 2000 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node 2000 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid, an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source 2008. As a further example, the power source 2008 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0317] Embodiments of the network node 2000 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 20 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 2000 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node 2000 and to allow output of information from the network node 2000. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node 2000.

[0318] Figure 21 is a block diagram of a host 2100, which may be an embodiment of the host 1816 of Figure 18, in accordance with various aspects described herein. As used herein, the host 2100 may be or comprise various combinations hardware and / or software, including a standalone server, a blade server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server, a virtual machine, container, or processing resources in a server farm. The host 2100 may provide one or more services to one or more UEs.

[0319] The host 2100 includes processing circuitry 2102 that is operatively coupled via a bus 2104 to an input / output interface 2106, a network interface 2108, a power source 2110, and a memory 2112. Other components may be included in other embodiments. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the devices of previous figures, such as Figures 19 and 20, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of host 2100.

[0320] The memory 2112 may include one or more computer programs including one or more host application programs 2114 and data 2116, which may include user data, e.g., data generated by a UE for the host 2100 or data generated by the host 2100 for a UE. Embodiments of the host 2100 may utilize only a subset or all of the components shown. The host application programs 2114 may be implemented in a container-based architecture and may provide support for video codecs (e.g., Versatile Video Coding (VVC), High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), Advanced Video Coding (AVC), MPEG, VP9) and audio codecs (e.g., FLAG, Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), MPEG, G.711), including transcoding for multiple different classes, types, or implementations of UEs (e.g., handsets, desktop computers, wearable display systems, heads-up display systems). The host application programs 2114 may also provide for user authentication and licensing checks and may periodically report health, routes, and content availability to a central node, such as a device in or on the edge of a core network. Accordingly, the host 2100 may select and / or indicate a different host for over-the-top services for a UE. The host application programs 2114 may support various protocols, such as the HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) protocol, Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP), Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP), Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (MPEG-DASH), etc.

[0321] Figure 22 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 2200 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments 2200 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as a network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized. In some embodiments, the virtualization environment 2200 includes components defined by the O-RAN Alliance, such as an O-Cloud environment orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an O-2 interface.

[0322] Applications 2202 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0323] Hardware 2204 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and / or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input / output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 2206 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VMs 2208a and 2208b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as VMs 2208), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer 2206 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to the VMs 2208.

[0324] The VMs 2208 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 2206. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance 2202 may be implemented on one or more of VMs 2208, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

[0325] In the context of NFV, a VM 2208 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of the VMs 2208, and that part of hardware 2204 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more VMs 2208 on top of the hardware 2204 and corresponds to the application 2202.

[0326] Hardware 2204 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware 2204 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware 2204 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 2210, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications 2202. In some embodiments, hardware 2204 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system 2212 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0327] Figure 23 shows a communication diagram of a host 2302 communicating via a network node 2304 with a UE 2306 over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some embodiments. Example implementations, in accordance with various embodiments, of the UE (such as a UE 1812a of Figure 18 and / or UE 1900 of Figure 19), network node (such as network node 1810a of Figure 18 and / or network node 2000 of Figure 20), and host (such as host 1816 of Figure 18 and / or host 2100 of Figure 21) discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to Figure 23.

[0328] Like host 2100, embodiments of host 2302 include hardware, such as a communication interface, processing circuitry, and memory. The host 2302 also includes software, which is stored in or accessible by the host 2302 and executable by the processing circuitry. The software includes a host application that may be operable to provide a service to a remote user, such as the UE 2306 connecting via an over-the-top (OTT) connection 2350 extending between the UE 2306 and host 2302. In providing the service to the remote user, a host application may provide user data which is transmitted using the OTT connection 2350.

[0329] The network node 2304 includes hardware enabling it to communicate with the host 2302 and UE 2306. The connection 2360 may be direct or pass through a core network (like core network 1806 of Figure 18) and / or one or more other intermediate networks, such as one or more public, private, or hosted networks. For example, an intermediate network may be a backbone network or the Internet.

[0330] The UE 2306 includes hardware and software, which is stored in or accessible by UE 2306 and executable by the UE’s processing circuitry. The software includes a client application, such as a web browser or operator-specific “app” that may be operable to provide a service to a human or non-human user via UE 2306 with the support of the host 2302. In the host 2302, an executing host application may communicate with the executing client application via the OTT connection 2350 terminating at the UE 2306 and host 2302. In providing the service to the user, the UE's client application may receive request data from the host's host application and provide user data in response to the request data. The OTT connection 2350 may transfer both the request data and the user data. The UE's client application may interact with the user to generate the user data that it provides to the host application through the OTT connection 2350.

[0331] The OTT connection 2350 may extend via a connection 2360 between the host 2302 and the network node 2304 and via a wireless connection 2370 between the network node 2304 and the UE 2306 to provide the connection between the host 2302 and the UE 2306. The connection 2360 and wireless connection 2370, over which the OTT connection 2350 may be provided, have been drawn abstractly to illustrate the communication between the host 2302 and the UE 2306 via the network node 2304, without explicit reference to any intermediary devices and the precise routing of messages via these devices.

[0332] As an example of transmitting data via the OTT connection 2350, in step 2308, the host 2302 provides user data, which may be performed by executing a host application. In some embodiments, the user data is associated with a particular human user interacting with the UE 2306. In other embodiments, the user data is associated with a UE 2306 that shares data with the host 2302 without explicit human interaction. In step 2310, the host 2302 initiates a transmission carrying the user data towards the UE 2306. The host 2302 may initiate the transmission responsive to a request transmitted by the UE 2306. The request may be caused by human interaction with the UE 2306 or by operation of the client application executing on the UE 2306. The transmission may pass via the network node 2304, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. Accordingly, in step 2312, the network node 2304 transmits to the UE 2306 the user data that was carried in the transmission that the host 2302 initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In step 2314, the UE 2306 receives the user data carried in the transmission, which may be performed by a client application executed on the UE 2306 associated with the host application executed by the host 2302.

[0333] In some examples, the UE 2306 executes a client application which provides user data to the host 2302. The user data may be provided in reaction or response to the data received from the host 2302. Accordingly, in step 2316, the UE 2306 may provide user data, which may be performed by executing the client application. In providing the user data, the client application may further consider user input received from the user via an input / output interface of the UE 2306. Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was provided, the UE 2306 initiates, in step 2318, transmission of the user data towards the host 2302 via the network node 2304. In step 2320, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure, the network node 2304 receives user data from the UE 2306 and initiates transmission of the received user data towards the host 2302. In step 2322, the host 2302 receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the UE 2306.

[0334] One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of OTT services provided to the UE 2306 using the OTT connection 2350, in which the wireless connection 2370 forms the last segment.

[0335] In an example scenario, factory status information may be collected and analyzed by the host 2302. As another example, the host 2302 may process audio and video data which may have been retrieved from a UE for use in creating maps. As another example, the host 2302 may collect and analyze real-time data to assist in controlling vehicle congestion (e.g., controlling traffic lights). As another example, the host 2302 may store surveillance video uploaded by a UE. As another example, the host 2302 may store or control access to media content such as video, audio, VR or AR which it can broadcast, multicast or unicast to UEs. As other examples, the host 2302 may be used for energy pricing, remote control of non-time critical electrical load to balance power generation needs, location services, presentation services (such as compiling diagrams etc. from data collected from remote devices), or any other function of collecting, retrieving, storing, analyzing and / or transmitting data.

[0336] In some examples, a measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve. There may further be an optional network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection 2350 between the host 2302 and UE 2306, in response to variations in the measurement results. The measurement procedure and / or the network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection may be implemented in software and hardware of the host 2302 and / or UE 2306. In some embodiments, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with other devices through which the OTT connection 2350 passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or supplying values of other physical quantities from which software may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. The reconfiguring of the OTT connection 2350 may include message format, retransmission settings, preferred routing etc.; the reconfiguring need not directly alter the operation of the network node 2304. Such procedures and functionalities may be known and practiced in the art. In certain embodiments, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling that facilitates measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency and the like, by the host 2302. The measurements may be implemented in that software causes messages to be transmitted, in particular empty or ‘dummy’ messages, using the OTT connection 2350 while monitoring propagation times, errors, etc.

[0337] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and / or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0338] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.

[0339] Some embodiments herein include those enumerated below.

[0340] Group A Embodiments

[0341] A1. A method performed by a communication device configured for use in a communication network, the method comprising: transmitting or receiving information indicating: an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows; an association between multiple protocol data unit, PDU, sessions; an association between multiple data radio bearers, DRBs; or an association between multiple PDU Sets.

[0342] A2. The method of embodiment A1 , wherein the information indicates: the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service; the multiple PDU sessions are each associated with the same application layer service; the multiple DRBs are each associated with the same application layer service; or the multiple PDU Sets are each associated with the same application layer service.

[0343] A3. The method of embodiment A2, wherein the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are each associated.

[0344] A4. The method of any of embodiments A2-A3, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, an identity of the application layer service with which the QoS flow, PDU session, or DRBs is associated.

[0345] A5. The method of any of embodiments A2-A3, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or the PDU Set for the same application layer service.

[0346] A6. The method of any of embodiments A2-A5, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0347] A7. The method of any of embodiments A2-A6, wherein the application layer service is an extended Reality, XR, service. A8. The method of any of embodiments A2-A7, wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows, multiple PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

[0348] A9. The method of any of embodiments A2-A8, wherein the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service.

[0349] A8. The method of embodiment A1 , wherein the information includes an identity of a group to which the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets each belong.

[0350] A9. The method of embodiment A8, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, the identity of the group to which the QoS flow, PDU session, DRBs, or PDU Sets belongs.

[0351] A10. The method of embodiment A1 , wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that belong to the same group as the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0352] A11. The method of embodiment A1 , wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0353] A12. The method of any of embodiments A1-A11 , wherein said transmitting or receiving comprises transmitting the information to a core network node in the communication network.

[0354] A13. The method of embodiment A12, wherein the core network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF.

[0355] A14. The method of any of embodiments A1-A11 , wherein said transmitting or receiving comprises receiving the information from a network node in the communication network. A15. The method of embodiment A14, further comprising using the received information for scheduling of uplink transmissions from the communication device to the communication network.

[0356] A16. The method of embodiment A14, further comprising generating a buffer status report using the received information, and transmitting the buffer status report to the communication network.

[0357] A17. The method of any of embodiments A1-A16, wherein the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the PDU Sets are QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets for the communication device.

[0358] A18. The method of any of embodiments A1-A17, wherein the information indicates that the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are to be handled by the communication network collectively as a group.

[0359] A19. The method of any of embodiments A1-A18, wherein the information indicates that the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are to be: accepted or rejected collectively as a group by the communication network; set up collectively as a group by the communication network; handed over or transferred between network nodes collectively as a group; allocated transmission resources collectively as a group; and / or scheduled for transmission collectively as a group.

[0360] A20. The method of any of embodiments A1-A19, wherein the information indicates: which of the QoS flows, which of the PDU sessions, which of the DRBs, or which of the PDU Sets are required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements; and / or which of the QoS flows, which of the PDU sessions, which of the DRBs, or which of the PDU Sets are not required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements.

[0361] AA. The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising: providing user data; and forwarding the user data to a host computer via the transmission to a base station.

[0362] Group B Embodiments

[0363] B1. A method performed by a network node in a communication network, the method comprising: transmitting or receiving information indicating: an association between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows; an association between multiple protocol data unit, PDU, sessions; an association between multiple data radio bearers, DRBs; or an association between multiple PDU Sets.

[0364] B2. The method of embodiment B1 , wherein the information indicates: the multiple QoS flows are each associated with the same application layer service; the multiple PDU sessions are each associated with the same application layer service; the multiple DRBs are each associated with the same application layer service; or the multiple PDU Sets are each associated with the same application layer service.

[0365] B3. The method of embodiment B2, wherein the information includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are each associated.

[0366] B4. The method of any of embodiments B2-B3, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or the PDU Set for the same application layer service.

[0367] B5. The method of any of embodiments B2-B3, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, or the multiple DRBs, a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, or DRBs that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, or DRB for the same application layer service.

[0368] B6. The method of any of embodiments B2-B5, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

[0369] B7. The method of any of embodiments B2-B6, wherein the application layer service is an extended Reality, XR, service.

[0370] B8. The method of any of embodiments B2-B7, wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows, multiple PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources. B9. The method of any of embodiments B2-B8, wherein the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service.

[0371] B8. The method of embodiment B1 , wherein the information includes an identity of a group to which the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets each belong.

[0372] B9. The method of embodiment A8, wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, the identity of the group to which the QoS flow, PDU session, DRBs, or PDU Sets belongs.

[0373] A10. The method of embodiment B1 , wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets, a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that belong to the same group as the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0374] B11. The method of embodiment B1 , wherein the information indicates, for each of the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets a list of one or more other QoS flows, PDU sessions, DRBs, or PDU Sets that are associated with the QoS flow, PDU session, DRB, or PDU Set.

[0375] B12. The method of any of embodiments B1-B11 , wherein the information indicates that the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are to be handled by the communication network collectively as a group.

[0376] B13. The method of any of embodiments B1-B12, wherein the information indicates that the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets are to be: accepted or rejected collectively as a group by the communication network; set up collectively as a group by the communication network; handed over or transferred between network nodes collectively as a group; allocated transmission resources collectively as a group; and / or scheduled for transmission collectively as a group.

[0377] B14. The method of any of embodiments B1-B13, wherein the information indicates: which of the QoS flows, which of the PDU sessions, which of the DRBs, or which of the PDU Sets are required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements; and / or which of the QoS flows, which of the PDU sessions, which of the DRBs, or which of the PDU Sets are not required for guaranteeing minimum service requirements.

[0378] B15. The method of any of embodiments B1-B14, wherein the information is transmitted to or received from a communication device.

[0379] B16. The method of any of embodiments B1-B14, wherein the information is communicated between a first network node and a second network node, wherein the network node is the first network node or the second network node.

[0380] B17. The method of embodiment B16, wherein at least one of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node.

[0381] B18. The method of embodiment B17, wherein each of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node.

[0382] B19. The method of embodiment B18, wherein the first network node implements an Application Function, AF, and the second network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF.

[0383] B20. The method of embodiment B18, wherein the first network node implements a Policy Control Function, PCF, and the second network node implements a Session Management Function, SMF.

[0384] B21. The method of embodiment B20, wherein the information is included in Policy Control and Charging, PCC, rules.

[0385] B22. The method of embodiment B17, wherein one of the first network node and the second network node is a core network node, and the other of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node.

[0386] B23. The method of embodiment B22, wherein the core network node implements a Session Management Function, SMF, or an Access and Mobility Function, AMF.

[0387] B24. The method of any of embodiments B22-B23, wherein the information is included in a message sent from the core network node to the radio network node as part of a procedure between the core network node and the radio network node.

[0388] B25. The method of embodiment B24, wherein the procedure is a PDU session resource setup procedure, wherein the PDU session resource setup procedure is a procedure for assigning resources for one or more PDU sessions and one or more corresponding QoS flows, and to set up one or more corresponding DRBs for a given communication device.

[0389] B26. The method of any of embodiments B24-B25, wherein the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message.

[0390] B27. The method of embodiment B26, wherein the PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information element that indicates the information.

[0391] B28. The method of embodiment B24, wherein the procedure is an Initial UE Context Setup procedure for establishing an initial UE context at the radio network node.

[0392] B29. The method of embodiment B28, wherein the message is an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message.

[0393] B30. The method of embodiment B29, wherein the INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information element that indicates the information.

[0394] B31. The method of embodiment B24, wherein the procedure is a handover resource allocation procedure for reserving resources at the radio network node for handover of a communication device.

[0395] B32. The method of embodiment B31 , wherein the message is a HANDOVER REQUEST message.

[0396] B33. The method of embodiment B32, wherein the HANDOVER REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer information element that indicates the information.

[0397] B34. The method of embodiment B24, wherein the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure for enabling configuration modifications of one or more already established PDU sessions for a communication device and / or for enabling setup, modification, or release of a QoS flow for one or more already established PDU sessions.

[0398] B35. The method of embodiment B34, wherein the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message.

[0399] B36. The method of any of embodiments B34-B35, wherein the PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message includes a PDU Session Resource Setup Request Transfer

[0400] B37. The method of any of embodiments B24-B36, wherein the information indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows, wherein the message includes the multiple QoS flows in a list of QoS flows requested to be setup, wherein, for each of the QoS flows in the list, the message includes a modality ID that indicates a modality ID of the QoS flow, wherein the multiple QoS flows that are associated have the same modality ID, and wherein the information indicating the association between the multiple QoS flows comprises the respective modality IDs included in the message for the multiple QoS flows.

[0401] B38. The method of any of embodiments B24-B36, wherein the information indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows, wherein the message includes the multiple QoS flows in a list of QoS flows requested to be setup, wherein, for each of the QoS flows in the list, the message includes a list of one or more other QoS flows that are associated with the QoS flow, and wherein the information indicating the association between the multiple QoS flows comprises the respective lists of one or more other QoS flows included in the message for the multiple QoS flows.

[0402] B39. The method of embodiment B38, wherein, for each of the one or more other QoS flows in a list of one or more other QoS flows that are associated with a QoS flow, the message indicates a priority level of the other Qos flow.

[0403] B40. The method of any of embodiments B24-B36, wherein the information indicates the association between the multiple PDU Sets, wherein the message includes a list of PDU Set QoS Parameters, wherein the list of PDU Set QoS Parameters includes, for each of the multiple PDU Sets:

[0404] QoS parameters characterizing the PDU(s) of the PDU Set; and / or a priority level for acceptance of the PDU Set by a radio access network of the communication network. B41. The method of embodiment B40, wherein the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message, an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, a HANDOVER REQUEST message, or a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message.

[0405] B42. The method of embodiment B17, wherein at least one of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node.

[0406] B43. The method of embodiment B42, wherein each of the first network node and the second network node is a radio network node.

[0407] B44. The method of embodiment B43, wherein the information is included in a message sent from the first network node to the second network node as part of a procedure between the first network node and the second network node.

[0408] B45. The method of embodiment B44, wherein the procedure is a handover procedure or a dual connectivity procedure.

[0409] B46. The method of any of embodiments B44-B45, wherein the communication network has a split radio network architecture, wherein the first network node is a first radio network node central unit, and wherein the second network node is a second radio network node central unit.

[0410] B47. The method of any of embodiments B44-B46, wherein the communication network has a split radio network architecture, and wherein either: the first network node is a radio network node central unit and the second network node is a radio network node distributed unit; or the first network node is a radio network node distributed unit and the second network node is a radio network node central unit.

[0411] B48. The method of embodiment B47, wherein the procedure is a bearer context management procedure.

[0412] B49. The method of embodiment B47, wherein the procedure is a procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device.

[0413] B50. The method of embodiment B49, wherein the communication device is a user equipment, UE, and the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure.

[0414] B51. The method of embodiment B50, wherein the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message.

[0415] B52. The method of embodiment B51, wherein the information indicates an association between multiple DRBs, wherein the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes the multiple DRBs in a list of DRBs to be setup, wherein, for each of the DRBs in the list, the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message includes a DRB modality ID that indicates a modality group to which the DRB belongs, and wherein the information indicating the association between the multiple DRBs comprises the respective DRB modality IDs included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message for the multiple DRBs.

[0416] B53. The method of any of embodiments B44-B52, wherein the procedure is performed when setting up or modifying the multiple DRBs.

[0417] B54. The method of any of embodiments B1-B53, wherein the information indicates an association between multiple QoS flows, and wherein the information further indicates QoS parameters to be applied to each of the multiple QoS flows.

[0418] B55. The method of any of embodiments B1-B54, wherein the information further indicates: a list of QoS flows with PDU Set IDs successfully admitted by the communication network; and / or a list of modality QoS flows with PDU Set IDs not successfully admitted by the communication network.

[0419] B56. The method of any of embodiments B1-B55, wherein the information indicates an association between the multiple PDU Sets, wherein a PDU Set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one unit of information generated at an application level, wherein the one or more PDUs of a PDU Set are transmitted within the same QoS flow and / or within the same PDU session.

[0420] B57. The method of embodiment B56, wherein the information indicates PDU Set information for each of the multiple PDU Sets, wherein the PDU Set information includes, for each of one or more PDU Sets:

[0421] QoS parameters characterizing the PDU(s) of the PDU Set; and / or a priority level for acceptance of the PDU Set by the communication network. B56. The method of any of embodiments B54-B55, wherein different PDU Sets carry different types of data for the same application layer service.

[0422] B57. The method of any of embodiments B1-B56, further comprising, based on the information, handling the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets.

[0423] B58. The method of any of embodiments B1-B57, further comprising, based on the information: accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets collectively as a group; accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup; setting up the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets collectively as a group; handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets collectively as a group to another radio network node; allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets collectively as a group; and / or scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets collectively as a group.

[0424] B59. The method of any of embodiments B1-B58, further comprising, based on the information, scheduling the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets to guarantee minimum service requirements.

[0425] B60. The method of any of embodiments B1-B59, further comprising, based on the information: setting up the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets together; during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group; and / or during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows, the multiple PDU sessions, the multiple DRBs, or the multiple PDU Sets to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node. B70. The method of any of embodiments B1-B60, wherein the information indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows, wherein the method further comprises, based on the information, mapping the multiple QoS flows to one or more DRBs.

[0426] B71. The method of embodiment B70, wherein said mapping comprises, based on the information, mapping the multiple QoS flows to the same DRB.

[0427] B72. The method of any of embodiments B1-B71 , wherein the information indicates the association between the multiple QoS flows, and wherein the method further comprises, based on the information, configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows.

[0428] B73. The method of any of embodiments B1-B72, further comprising transmitting or receiving a notification, wherein the notification is communicated from a radio network node to a core network node, wherein the network node is the radio network node or the core network node, wherein the notification notifies the core network node that one or more of the multiple QoS flows, one or more of the multiple PDU sessions, one or more of the multiple DRBs, or one or more of the multiple PDU Sets can no longer be supported by the radio network node.

[0429] B74. The method of embodiment B2, further comprising transmitting or receiving a notification, wherein the notification is communicated from a radio network node to a core network node, wherein the network node is the radio network node or the core network node, wherein the notification notifies the core network node that the application layer service can no longer be supported.

[0430] BB. The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising: obtaining user data; and forwarding the user data to a host computer or a communication device.

[0431] Group C Embodiments

[0432] C1. A communication device configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0433] C2. A communication device comprising processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments. C3. A communication device comprising: communication circuitry; and processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0434] 04. A communication device comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments; and power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the communication device.

[0435] 05. A communication device comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the communication device is configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0436] 06. The communication device of any of embodiments 01-05, wherein the communication device is a wireless communication device.

[0437] 07. A user equipment (UE) comprising: an antenna configured to send and receive wireless signals; radio front-end circuitry connected to the antenna and to processing circuitry, and configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna and the processing circuitry; the processing circuitry being configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments; an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry; an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; and a battery connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.

[0438] 08. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a communication device, causes the communication device to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0439] 09. A carrier containing the computer program of embodiment 07, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.

[0440] C10. A network node configured to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments.

[0441] C11 . A network node comprising processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments.

[0442] C12. A network node comprising: communication circuitry; and processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments.

[0443] 013. A network node comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments; power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the network node.

[0444] 014. A network node comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the network node is configured to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments.

[0445] 015. The network node of any of embodiments 010-014, wherein the network node is a base station.

[0446] 016. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a network node, causes the network node to perform the method of any of the Group B embodiments.

[0447] 017. The computer program of embodiment 016, wherein the network node is a base station.

[0448] 018. A carrier containing the computer program of any of embodiments 016-017, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method performed by a core network node (14U) in a communication network (10), the method comprising: transmitting, from the core network node (14-2) to a radio network node (14-1) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows, (30) wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multiple QoS flows (30) each carry one or more data flows (30) for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows (30) carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

3. The method of any of claims 1-2, wherein the core network node (14-2) implements an Access and Mobility Function, AMF.

4. The method of any of claims 1-3, wherein the information (16) is included in a message sent from the core network node (14-2) to the radio network node (14-1) as part of a procedure between the core network node (14-2) and the radio network node (14-1), wherein either: the procedure is a protocol data unit, PDU, Session Resource Setup procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message; or the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE, wherein the information (16) is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

6. A method performed by a radio network node (14-1) in a communication network (10), the method comprising: receiving, from a core network node (14-2) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoSflows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the multiple QoS flows (30) each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows (30) carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

8. The method of any of claims 9-7, wherein the core network node (14-2) an Access and Mobility Function, AMF.

9. The method of any of claims 6-8, wherein the information (16) is included in a message sent from the core network node (14-2) to the radio network node (14-1) as part of a procedure between the core network node (14-2) and the radio network node (14-1), wherein either: the procedure is a protocol data unit, PDU, Session Resource Setup procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE SETUP REQUEST message; or the procedure is a PDU Session Resource Modify procedure, and the message is a PDU SESSION RESOURCE MODIFY REQUEST message.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE, wherein the information (16) is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

11. The method of any of claims 6-10, further comprising transmitting the information (16) from the radio network node (14-1) to another radio network node in the communication network (10).

12. The method of any of claims 6-11 , further comprising handling the multiple QoS flows (30) based on the information (16).

13. The method of any of claims 6-12, further comprising, based on the information (16): accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup; setting up the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group toanother radio network node; allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows (30); scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows (30) to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group; and / or during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows (30) to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node.

14. A method performed by a first radio network node (14-2) in a communication network (10), the method comprising: transmitting, from the first radio network node (14-2) to a second radio network node (14-1) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the multiple QoS flows (30) each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows (30) carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

16. The method of any of claims 14-15, wherein the communication network (10) has a split radio network architecture, wherein either: the first radio network node (14-2) is a first radio network node central unit and the second radio network node (14-1) is a second radio network node central unit; or the first radio network node (14-2) is a radio network node central unit and the second radio network node (14-1) is a radio network node distributed unit.

17. The method of any of claims 14-16, wherein the information (16) is included in a message sent from the first radio network node (14-2) to the second radio network node (14-1) as part of a procedure between the first radio network node (14-2) and the second radio network node (14-1), wherein the procedure is: a handover procedure; a dual connectivity procedure; ora procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device (12).

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the communication device (12) is a user equipment, UE, wherein the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure, and wherein the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message or a UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message.

19. The method of any of claims 17-18, wherein the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE, wherein the information (16) is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

20. A method performed by a second radio network node (14-1) in a communication network (10), the method comprising: receiving, at the second radio network node (14-1), from a first radio network node (14- 2) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the multiple QoS flows (30) each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows (30) carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

22. The method of any of claims 20-21, wherein the communication network (10) has a split radio network architecture, wherein either: the first radio network node (14-2) is a first radio network node central unit and the second radio network node (14-1) is a second radio network node central unit; or the first radio network node (14-2) is a radio network node central unit and the second radio network node (14-1) is a radio network node distributed unit.

23. The method of any of claims 20-22, wherein the information (16) is included in a message sent from the first radio network node (14-2) to the second radio network node (14-1) as part of a procedure between the first radio network node (14-2) and the second radio network node (14-1), wherein the procedure is:a handover procedure; a dual connectivity procedure; or a procedure to establish, setup, or modify a context for a communication device (12).

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the communication device (12) is a user equipment, UE, wherein the procedure is a UE Context setup or modify procedure, and wherein the message a UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message or a UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message.

25. The method of any of claims 23-24, wherein the message includes a QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters information element, IE, wherein the information (16) is included in the QoS Flow Level QoS Parameters IE.

26. The method of any of claims 20-25, further comprising handling the multiple QoS flows (30) based on the information (16).

27. The method of any of claims 20-26, further comprising, based on the information (16): accepting or rejecting the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group at handover and / or PDU session setup; setting up the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; handing over or transferring the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group to another radio network node; allocating transmission resources to the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; configuring radio bearers and / or scheduling resources for the multiple QoS flows (30); scheduling transmissions on the multiple QoS flows (30) collectively as a group; during handover, controlling the multiple QoS flows (30) to be accepted by a target radio network node collectively as a group; and / or during dual connectivity operation, controlling the multiple QoS flows (30) to be accepted by a target radio network node to be setup at the same radio network node.

28. A method performed by a communication device (12) configured for use in a communication network (10), the method comprising: transmitting, to the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) areeach associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the multiple QoS flows (30) each carry one or more data flows for the same application layer service and / or wherein at least some of the multiple QoS flows (30) carry different types of data for the application layer service and / or carry data for the application layer service to or from different data sources.

30. A core network node (14-2) of a communication network (10), the core network node (14-2) configured to: transmit, from the core network node (14-2) to a radio network node (14-1) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

31. The core network node (14-2) of claim 30, configured to perform the method of any of claims 2-5.

32. A radio network node (14-1) of a communication network (10), the radio network node (14-1) configured to: receive, from a core network node (14-2) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

33. The radio network node (14-1) of claim 32, configured to perform the method of any of claims 7-13.

34. A first radio network node (14-2) of a communication network (10), the first radio network node (14-2) configured to: transmit, from the first radio network node (14-2) to a second radio network node (14-1) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association(30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

35. The first radio network node (14-2) of claim 34, configured to perform the method of any of claims 15-19.

36. A second radio network node (14-1) of a communication network (10), the second radio network node (14-1) configured to: receive, at the second radio network node (14-1), from a first radio network node (14-2) in the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

37. The second radio network node (14-1) of claim 36, configured to perform the method of any of claims 21-27.

38. A communication device (12) configured for use in a communication network (10), the communication device (12) configured to: transmit, to the communication network (10), information (16) indicating an association (30A) between multiple quality of service, QoS, flows (30), wherein the information (16) indicates the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated with the same application layer service, wherein the information (16) includes an identity of the application layer service with which the multiple QoS flows (30) are each associated, wherein the application layer service is a multi-modal service.

39. The communication device (12) of claim 38, configured to perform the method of claim 29.

40. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a network node (14-1, 14-2), causes the network node (14-1 , 14-2) to perform the method of any of claims 1-27.

41. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of a communication device (12), causes the communication device (12) to perform the method of any of claims 28-29.

42. A carrier containing the computer program of any of claims 40-41 , wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.

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