Network device, wireless communication system, and wireless communication method

Abstract

A network device according to the present invention comprises: a control unit that controls communication using a virtual network for each of one or more services in a network; and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to another network device.

Description

Network device, wireless communication system and wireless communication method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a network device, a wireless communication system, and a wireless communication method that are intended to utilize AIML technology in Slicing technology.

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP: registered trademark) is developing specifications for the 5th generation mobile communication system (5G, also known as New Radio (NR) or Next Generation (NG)). 3GPP is also developing specifications for the next generation, known as Beyond 5G, 5G Evolution, or 6G.

[0003] Furthermore, in 3GPP Release-19, a technology (slicing technology) for virtually separating a network for each service is being considered (for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

[0004] “Moderator's summary for Rel-19 RAN3 topic AI / ML for NG-RAN”, RP232623, 3GPP TSG RAN Meeting #101, 3GPP, September 2023

[0005] Incidentally, 3GPP Release-17 proposes a framework for RAN (Radio Access Network) realized by AI (Artificial Intelligence) (AIML (Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning) technology).

[0006] Against this background, the inventors, after careful consideration, discovered that it was anticipated that AIML technology would be utilized in Slicing technology, and that it was necessary to clarify what information should be exchanged between nodes.

[0007] Therefore, the present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a network device, a wireless communication system, and a wireless communication method that can perform appropriate communication of information predicted using AIML technology when AIML technology is utilized in Slicing technology.

[0008] The outline of the disclosure is a network device comprising: a control unit that controls communication using one or more virtual networks for each service in a network; and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

[0009] The outline of the disclosure is a wireless communication system comprising a terminal and a network device provided in a network, the network device comprising a control unit that controls communication in the network using one or more virtual networks for each service, and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

[0010] The outline of the disclosure is a wireless communication method comprising the steps of controlling communication in a network using one or more virtual networks for each service, and transmitting prediction information related to the communication to another network device.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall schematic configuration of a wireless communication system 10. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating frequency ranges used in a cellular network. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of radio frames, subframes, and slots used in a cellular network. FIG. 4 is a functional block configuration diagram of a UE 200. FIG. 5 is a functional block configuration diagram of a network device 50. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an AIML model. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 1. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 2. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 3. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 4. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 5. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 6. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating Operation Example 6. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating Modification Example 1. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating Modification Example 1. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of a gNB 100 and a UE 200. FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of a vehicle 2001.

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the same or similar reference numerals are used to designate the same functions or configurations, and descriptions thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0013] [Embodiment] (1) Overall Schematic Configuration of Wireless Communication System Fig. 1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram of a wireless communication system 10 according to an embodiment. The wireless communication system 10 includes a terminal 200 (hereinafter referred to as UE (User Equipment) 200), a first network 10A, and a second network 10B.

[0014] The first network 10A has a radio access network 20A and a core network 30A. The radio access network 20A includes a base station 100A that performs radio communication with the UE 200. Note that the first network 10A may not have the radio access network 20A but may have the base station 100A. The first network 10A may not have the core network 30A. The base station 100A may be configured by a DU (Distributed Unit) and a CU (Central Unit). The DU may perform processing of layers below the MAC layer. The CU may perform processing above the PDCP layer.

[0015] The first network 10A may be a network conforming to a new technology (6G). 6G may be referred to as Beyond 5G or 5G Evolution. The first network 10A may be a network conforming to an existing technology (5G). 5G may be referred to as 5G New Radio (NR).

[0016] The second network 10B has a radio access network 20B and a core network 30B. The radio access network 20B includes a base station 100B that performs radio communication with the UE 200. Note that the second network 10B may not have the radio access network 20B but may have the base station 100B. The second network 10B may not have the core network 30B. The base station 100B may be configured by a DU and a CU.

[0017] The second network 10B may be a network conforming to existing technology (5G), which may be referred to as 5G New Radio (NR). The second network 10B may be a network conforming to new technology (6G), which may be referred to as Beyond 5G or 5G Evolution.

[0018] Here, the first network 10A and the second network 10B may have different radio access schemes. For example, the radio access scheme may be a cellular network radio access scheme called 5G, Beyond 5G, 5G Evolution, 6G, or the like.

[0019] First, the cellular network may support multiple frequency ranges (FR) as shown in Figure 2. For example, as shown in Figure 2, the cellular network may support FR1 and FR2. The frequency bands of each FR are as follows:

[0020] ・FR1: 410 MHz to 7.125 GHz ・FR2-1: 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz ・FR2-2: Over 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz FR1 may use a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of 15, 30, or 60 kHz and a bandwidth (BW) of 5 to 100 MHz. FR2 is a higher frequency than FR1 and may use an SCS of 60 kHz or 120 kHz (including 240 kHz) and a bandwidth (BW) of 50 to 400 MHz.

[0021] Furthermore, cellular networks may also support higher frequency bands than the FR2 frequency band, specifically, frequency bands above 52.6 GHz up to 71 GHz or 114.25 GHz.

[0022] Second, the cellular network may correspond to the radio frames, subframes and slots shown in FIG.

[0023] As shown in Figure 3, one slot consists of 14 symbols, and the larger (wider) the SCS, the shorter the symbol period (and slot period). In addition to 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, and 240 kHz, the SCS may also use 480 kHz, 960 kHz, etc.

[0024] Furthermore, the number of symbols constituting one slot does not necessarily have to be 14 (for example, 28 symbols or 56 symbols). Furthermore, the number of slots per subframe may differ depending on the SCS.

[0025] The time direction (t) shown in Fig. 3 may be called a time domain, a symbol period, a symbol time, etc. The frequency direction may be called a frequency domain, a resource block, a subcarrier, a bandwidth part (BWP), etc.

[0026] (2) Functional Block Configuration of Wireless Communication System The functional block configuration of the wireless communication system 10 will be described below.

[0027] First, the functional block configuration of the UE 200 will be described.

[0028] Fig. 4 is a functional block diagram of UE 200. As shown in Fig. 4, UE 200 includes radio signal transmitting / receiving unit 210, amplifier unit 220, modem unit 230, control signal / reference signal processing unit 240, encoding / decoding unit 250, data transmitting / receiving unit 260, and control unit 270.

[0029] The radio signal transmitting / receiving unit 210 transmits and receives radio signals conforming to 5G or 6G. The radio signal transmitting / receiving unit 210 supports Massive MIMO, CA that uses a bundle of multiple CCs, and DC that simultaneously communicates between a UE and two NG-RAN nodes.

[0030] The amplifier unit 220 is configured by a PA (Power Amplifier) / LNA (Low Noise Amplifier), etc. The amplifier unit 220 amplifies the signal output from the modulation / demodulation unit 230 to a predetermined power level. The amplifier unit 220 also amplifies the RF signal output from the radio signal transmission / reception unit 210.

[0031] The modem unit 230 performs data modulation / demodulation, transmission power setting, resource block allocation, etc. for each predetermined communication destination (gNB 100 or another gNB). The modem unit 230 may apply Cyclic Prefix-Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (CP-OFDM) / Discrete Fourier Transform - Spread (DFT-S-OFDM). Furthermore, DFT-S-OFDM may be used not only for the uplink (UL) but also for the downlink (DL).

[0032] The control signal and reference signal processor 240 executes processing related to various control signals transmitted and received by the UE 200 and processing related to various reference signals transmitted and received by the UE 200 .

[0033] Specifically, the control signal / reference signal processing unit 240 receives various control signals, for example, control signals of a radio resource control layer (RRC), transmitted via a predetermined control channel from the gNB 100. In addition, the control signal / reference signal processing unit 240 transmits various control signals to the gNB 100 via a predetermined control channel.

[0034] The control signal / reference signal processing unit 240 performs processing using reference signals (RS) such as a Demodulation Reference Signal (DM-RS) and a Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PT-RS).

[0035] DM-RS is a terminal-specific reference signal (pilot signal) known between the base station and the terminal to estimate the fading channel used for data demodulation. PT-RS is a terminal-specific reference signal intended to estimate phase noise, which is an issue in high frequency bands.

[0036] In addition to DM-RS and PT-RS, the reference signals may also include a Channel State Information-Reference Signal (CSI-RS), a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), and a Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) for location information.

[0037] The channels include control channels and data channels, such as a PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), a PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel), a RACH (Random Access Channel), a Downlink Control Information (DCI) including a Random Access Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RA-RNTI), and a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH).

[0038] Furthermore, the data channel includes a PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel) and a PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel). Data refers to data transmitted via the data channel. The data channel may be interpreted as a shared channel.

[0039] Here, the control signal and reference signal processor 240 may receive downlink control information (DCI). The DCI includes existing fields for storing DCI Formats, Carrier indicator (CI), BWP indicator, FDRA (Frequency Domain Resource Assignment), TDRA (Time Domain Resource Assignment), MCS (Modulation and Coding Scheme), HPN (HARQ Process Number), NDI (New Data Indicator), RV (Redundancy Version), and the like.

[0040] The value stored in the DCI Format field is an information element that specifies the format of the DCI. The value stored in the CI field is an information element that specifies the CC to which the DCI applies. The value stored in the BWP indicator field is an information element that specifies the BWP to which the DCI applies. The BWP that can be specified by the BWP indicator is set by an information element (BandwidthPart-Config) included in the RRC message. The value stored in the FDRA field is an information element that specifies the frequency domain resource to which the DCI applies. The frequency domain resource is identified by the value stored in the FDRA field and an information element (RA Type) included in the RRC message. The value stored in the TDRA field is an information element that specifies the time domain resource to which the DCI applies. The time domain resource is identified by the value stored in the TDRA field and information elements (pdsch-TimeDomainAllocationList, pusch-TimeDomainAllocationList) included in the RRC message. The time domain resource may be identified by the value stored in the TDRA field and a default table. The value stored in the MCS field is an information element that specifies the MCS to which the DCI applies. The MCS is identified by the value stored in the MCS and an MCS table. The MCS table may be specified by an RRC message or may be determined by RNTI scrambling. The value stored in the HPN field is an information element that specifies the HARQ process to which the DCI is applied. The value stored in the NDI field is an information element for specifying whether the data to which the DCI is applied is initial transmission data. The value stored in the RV field is an information element that specifies the redundancy of the data to which the DCI is applied.

[0041] The encoding / decoding unit 250 performs data division / concatenation and channel coding / decoding for each predetermined communication destination (gNB100 or another gNB).

[0042] Specifically, the encoding / decoding unit 250 divides the data output from the data transmitting / receiving unit 260 into pieces of a predetermined size, performs channel coding on the divided data, decodes the data output from the modem unit 230, and concatenates the decoded data.

[0043] The data transmitter / receiver 260 transmits and receives Protocol Data Units (PDUs) and Service Data Units (SDUs). Specifically, the data transmitter / receiver 260 assembles and disassembles PDUs / SDUs in multiple layers (such as a Medium Access Control layer (MAC), a Radio Link Control layer (RLC), and a Packet Data Convergence Protocol layer (PDCP)). The data transmitter / receiver 260 also performs data error correction and retransmission control based on Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ).

[0044] The control unit 270 controls each functional block constituting the UE 200. In the embodiment, the control unit 270 may assume that a technology (slicing technology) for virtually separating a network for each service is adopted in the first network 10A. The control unit 270 may control communication using one or more virtual networks for each service in the first network 10A. A service or a virtual network may be referred to as a slice.

[0045] Second, the functional block configuration of the network device 50 will be described. For example, the network device 50 is provided in the first network 10A or the second network 10B. That is, the network device 50 may be the base station 100A, may be a CU that constitutes part of the base station 100A, or may be a DU that constitutes part of the base station 100A. The network device 50 may be the base station 100B, may be a CU that constitutes part of the base station 100B, or may be a DU that constitutes part of the base station 100B.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 5, the network device 50 includes a receiving unit 51 , a transmitting unit 52 , and a control unit 53 .

[0047] The receiver 51 receives various signals from the UE 200. The receiver 51 may receive a control signal (PUCCH) or a data signal (PUSCH).

[0048] The transmitter 52 transmits various signals to the UE 200. The transmitter 52 may transmit a control signal (PDCCH) or a data signal (PDSCH).

[0049] In an embodiment, when the network device 50 is provided in the first network 10A, the transmitter 52 may constitute a transmitter that transmits prediction information related to communication using a virtual network for one or more services (hereinafter, Slice-related prediction information) to other network devices.

[0050] When the network device 50 is provided in the second network 10B, the receiving unit 51 may receive the slice-related prediction information.

[0051] The control unit 53 controls each block constituting the network device 50. When the network device 50 is provided in the first network 10A, the control unit 130 controls communication of the first network 10A. The communication of the first network 10A may include communication using one or more virtual networks (slices) for each service. The communication of the first network 10A may include communication of uplink signals (PUCCH, PUSCH) transmitted from the UE 200, and may include communication of downlink signals (PDCCH, PDSCH) transmitted from the base station 100A. The communication of the first network 10A may include a reference signal (SRS) transmitted from the UE 200. The communication of the first network 10A may include communication of a synchronization signal (SSB; Synchronization Signal Block) transmitted from the base station 100A and communication of reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS, DM-RS, PT-RS, PRS, TRS (Tracking Reference Signal)) transmitted from the base station 100A. The SSB may include a PSS (Primary Synchronization Signal), an SSS (Secondary Synchronization Signal), a PBCH, and a DM-RS for PBCH.

[0052] In the embodiment, the control unit 130 may constitute a control unit that executes communication using one or more virtual networks (Slices) for each service in a network (for example, the first network 10A).

[0053] In addition, when the network device 50 is provided in the second network 10B, the control unit 130 may control communication of the second network 10B under the assumption that communication using Slices is performed in the first network 10A. The communication of the second network 10B may include communication using one or more virtual networks (Slices) for each service. The communication of the second network 10B may include communication of uplink signals (PUCCH, PUSCH) transmitted from the UE 200 and communication of downlink signals (PDCCH, PDSCH) transmitted from the base station 100B. The communication of the second network 10B may include SRS transmitted from the UE 200. The communication of the second network 10B may include communication of synchronization signals (SSB) transmitted from the base station 100B and communication of reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS, DM-RS, PT-RS, PRS, TRS) transmitted from the base station 100B. The SSB may include PSS, SSS, PBCH, and DM-RS for PBCH.

[0054] (3) Issues 3GPP Release-19 is considering a technology for virtually separating networks for each service (slicing technology). Furthermore, 3GPP Release-17 proposes a framework for a Radio Access Network (RAN) that is realized by AI (Artificial Intelligence) (AIML (Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning) technology).

[0055] Against this background, the inventors, after careful consideration, discovered that it was anticipated that AIML technology would be utilized in Slicing technology, and that it was necessary to clarify what information should be exchanged between nodes.

[0056] (4) AIML Model The AIML model will be described below. The AIML model may be used to measure (predict) the above-mentioned Slice-related prediction information.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 6, an AIML model may include functions such as data collection, model training, model interface, model management / performance monitoring, and model storage.

[0058] Data collection collects model input data used to measure (predict) predictive information. Data collection outputs input data (Training Data) to Model training. Data collection outputs input data (Monitoring Data) to Model Management / Performance monitoring. Data collection outputs input data (Interface Data) to Model Interface.

[0059] Model training performs training, validation, testing, etc. of a model used to measure (predict) predictive information based on training data. Model training may also perform pre-processing such as cleaning, formatting, and conversion of training data. Model training outputs the trained or updated model to model storage.

[0060] The Model Interface uses a model retrieved from the Model storage to output prediction information (Output) corresponding to input data (Interface Data). The Model Interface may also output the prediction information (Output) as feedback to Model Management / Performance monitoring.

[0061] Model Management / Performance Monitoring outputs information (Model Interface Control) to the Model Interface that is used to identify the model used in the Model Interface. Identification may also be referred to as activate, deactivate, select, switch, fallback, etc. Model Management / Performance Monitoring outputs information (Model training control) to Model training that is used to retrain or update the model based on input data (Monitoring Data) and prediction information (Output).

[0062] The Model storage stores the model output from Model training. The Model storage outputs the stored model to the Model Interface. The output of the model may also be referred to as Model deliver / transfer.

[0063] In this context, Data Collection and Model Interface may be provided at least in the nodes of the first network 10A (e.g., the base station 100A, the DU, etc.), while Model Training, Model Management / Performance Monitoring, and Model Storage may be provided in the nodes of the first network 10A (e.g., the base station 100A, the DU, the CU, etc.) or in the nodes of the core network 30A.

[0064] (5) Operational Example In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the following operation may be performed. In the following, assuming that communication using Slices is performed in the first network 10A, the network device 50 of the first network 10A transmits Slice-related prediction information to the second network 10B. The following operational example may be considered as an operational example.

[0065] (5-1) Operation Example 1 In Operation Example 1, direct communication between RAN Node 1 and RAN Node 2 will be described. RAN Node 1 is an example of another network device and may be a node (e.g., base station 100B) in the radio access network 20B of the second network 10B. RAN Node 2 may be a node (e.g., base station 100A) in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0066] 7 , in step S10, RAN Node 1 transmits a message (Data collection request) requesting slice-related prediction information to RAN Node 2. The Data collection request may include one or more pieces of information selected from the following: a cell ID for which slice-related prediction information is requested, an interval at which a report of slice-related prediction information is requested (Reporting periodicity), and a time at which a prediction of slice-related prediction information is requested (Requested prediction time).

[0067] The data collection request may include information (Source RAN ID) that identifies the RAN Node 1. The Source RAN ID may include information (Global 5G / 6G RAN ID) that identifies the RAN, or may include information (Selected 5GC / 6GC Tracking Area Identity (TAI)) that identifies the selected area.

[0068] The Data collection request may include information (Target RAN ID) that identifies the RAN Node 2. The Target RAN ID may include information (Global 5G / 6G RAN ID) that identifies the RAN, or may include information (Selected 5GC / 6GC TAI) that identifies the selected area.

[0069] The Data collection request may include information about a cell to report a list (Cell To report list). The Cell To report list may include information about a cell to report an item (Cell to report item). The Cell to report item may include information about a cell ID and a predicted slice to report an item (Predicted slice to report item). The Predicted slice to report item may include information identifying a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) (PLMN ID) and a list of Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI).

[0070] In step S11, RAN Node 2 transmits a message (Data collection response) including slice-related prediction information to RAN Node 1. The slice-related prediction information may include prediction information regarding the target and item requested in the Data collection request. The slice-related prediction information may include at least one of the following information:

[0071] In option 1-1, the slice-related forecast information may include predicted slice available capacity information available in the slice.

[0072] In option 1-2, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice GBR (Guaranteed Bit Rate) PRB (Physical Resource Block) usage information for DL / UL resources used in the slice that have guaranteed speed.

[0073] In options 1-3, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice non-GBR PRB usage information for resources that are not guaranteed speed in DL / UL used in the slice.

[0074] In options 1-4, the slice-related prediction information may include predicted allocation information of DL / UL resources used in the slice (Predicted total DL / UL PRB allocation).

[0075] In options 1-5, the slice-related prediction information may include information on the predicted number of UEs per slice.

[0076] In options 1-6, the slice-related predicted information may include information on the predicted number of UEs per slice group (NSAG; Network Slice As Group).

[0077] In options 1-7, the slice-related forecast information may include predicted load information per slice (Predicted load per slice).

[0078] In options 1-8, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice load statistics for each slice.

[0079] In options 1-9, the slice-related prediction information may include information on the predicted number of PDU session establishments per slice.

[0080] In options 1-10, the slice-related forecast information may include predicted slice congestion level information for each slice. Although not particularly limited, the level may be expressed as an index with an upper limit of 100, or may be a value such as 50 or 100.

[0081] The Data Collection Response may include, in addition to the Slice-related prediction information, prediction information related to MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) (hereinafter, referred to as MIMO-related prediction information). The MIMO-related prediction information may include at least one of the following pieces of information:

[0082] In option 2-1, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted resource usage information for guaranteed-rate MIMO in DL / UL (Predicted DL / UL GBR PRB usage for MIMO).

[0083] In option 2-2, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted DL / UL non-GBR PRB usage for MIMO, which is a resource usage prediction information for MIMO where the speed is not guaranteed in DL / UL.

[0084] In option 2-3, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted DL / UL total PRB usage for MIMO.

[0085] In the first operational example, if the RAN Node 2 fails to measure the prediction information requested in the Data collection request, the RAN Node 2 may transmit a message indicating that the measurement of the prediction information failed to the RAN Node 1. The RAN Node 2 may transmit a reason for the failure to measure the prediction information to the RAN Node 1.

[0086] In the first operational example, the RAN Node 2 may transmit a single Data collection response in response to a Data collection request.

[0087] In the first operational example, the RAN Node 2 may periodically transmit the data collection response. The period of the data collection response may be specified by the data collection request, may be predetermined by the wireless communication system 10, or may be determined by the implementation of the RAN Node 2.

[0088] In the first operational example, the RAN Node 2 may add a timestamp indicating the time at which the prediction information included in the data collection response is predicted to the prediction information.

[0089] As described above, in the first operational example, the RAN Node 2 transmits the Data Collection Response directly to the RAN Node 1 without going through the core network.

[0090] (5-2) Operation Example 2 In Operation Example 2, indirect communication between RAN Node 1 and RAN Node 2 will be described. RAN Node 1 is an example of another network device and may be a node (e.g., base station 100B) of the radio access network 20B of the second network 10B. RAN Node 2 may be a node (e.g., base station 100A) of the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A. An Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) may be an example of a 5GC node.

[0091] 8, in step S20, the RAN Node 1 transmits a message (Data collection request) requesting slice-related prediction information to the AMF / 6GC. The details of the Data collection request may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0092] In step S21, the AMF / 6GC sends a Data collection request to the RAN Node 2.

[0093] In step S22, the RAN Node 2 transmits a message (Data collection response) including slice-related prediction information to the AMF / 6GC. The details of the Data collection response may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0094] In step S23, the AMF / 6GC sends a Data collection response to the RAN Node 1.

[0095] As described above, in the second operation example, the RAN Node 2 indirectly transmits a Data Collection Response to the RAN Node 1 via the core network.

[0096] (5-3) Operation Example 3 In Operation Example 3, indirect communication between a 5G RAN and a 6G RAN will be described. The 5G RAN is an example of another network device and may be a node (e.g., a base station 100B) of the radio access network 20B of the second network 10B. The 6G RAN may be a node (e.g., a base station 100A) of the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0097] 9, in step S30, the 5G RAN transmits a message (Data collection request) requesting slice-related prediction information to the 5GC. The details of the Data collection request may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0098] In step S31, the 5GC sends a Data collection request to the 6GC.

[0099] In step S32, the 6GC sends a Data collection request to the 6G RAN.

[0100] In step S33, the 6G RAN transmits a message (Data collection response) including Slice-related prediction information to the 6GC. The details of the Data collection response may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0101] In step S34, the 6GC transmits a Data collection response to the 5GC.

[0102] In step S35, the 5GC sends a Data collection response to the 5G RAN.

[0103] As described above, in the third operation example, the 6G RAN indirectly transmits the data collection response to the 5G RAN via the core network.

[0104] (5-4) Operation Example 4 In Operation Example 4, indirect communication between a 6G RAN and a 5G RAN will be described. The 6G RAN is an example of another network device and may be a node (e.g., base station 100B) of the radio access network 20B of the second network 10B. The 5G RAN may be a node (e.g., base station 100A) of the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0105] 10, in step S40, the 6G RAN transmits a message (Data collection request) requesting slice-related prediction information to the 6GC. The details of the Data collection request may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0106] In step S41, the 6GC transmits a Data collection request to the 5GC.

[0107] In step S42, the 5GC sends a Data collection request to the 5G RAN.

[0108] In step S43, the 5G RAN transmits a message (Data collection response) including Slice-related prediction information to the 5GC. The details of the Data collection response may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0109] In step S44, the 5GC transmits a Data collection response to the 6GC.

[0110] In step S45, the 6GC transmits a Data collection response to the 6G RAN.

[0111] As described above, in operation example 4, the 5G RAN indirectly transmits the data collection response to the 6G RAN via the core network.

[0112] (5-5) Operation Example 5 In Operation Example 5, direct communication between RAN Node 1 and RAN Node 2 will be described. RAN Node 1 is an example of another network device and may be a node (e.g., base station 100B) in the radio access network 20B of the second network 10B. RAN Node 2 may be a node (e.g., base station 100A) in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0113] As shown in Fig. 11, RAN Node 2 sends a message regarding an update of collected information (Data collection update) to RAN Node 1. The Data collection update may include a Cell Info Result List.

[0114] First, the Cell Info Result List may include the following information:

[0115] The Cell Info Result List may include items of results of information predicted in AIML (Cell AI / ML Info Result Items).

[0116] The Cell Info Result List may include the cell ID for which the information is updated.

[0117] Second, the Cell Info Result List may include Slice-related prediction information, including at least one of the following information:

[0118] In Option 3-1, the slice-related prediction information may include capacity prediction information obtained at a slice (Predicted slice available capacity). The Predicted slice available capacity may include information for identifying a PLMN (PLMN ID) and a list of capacity prediction information obtained at a slice (Predicted S-NSSAI available capacity list). The Predicted S-NSSAI available capacity list may include the S-NSSAI, capacity prediction information obtained at a slice in the downlink (Predicted slice available capacity value downlink), and capacity prediction information obtained at a slice in the uplink (Predicted slice available capacity value uplink).

[0119] In option 3-2, the slice-related prediction information may include a list of information on the predicted number of UEs per slice (Predicted number of UEs per slice list). The Predicted number of UEs per slice list may include information for identifying a slice (Slice ID (S-NSSAI)) and information on the predicted number of UEs per slice (Predicted number of UEs per slice).

[0120] In option 3-3, the slice-related prediction information may include a list of predicted number of UEs per slice group (NSAG) list. The predicted number of UEs per slice group (NSAG) list may include information identifying the NSAG (NSAG ID) and the predicted number of UEs per slice group (NSAG).

[0121] In option 3-4, the slice-related forecast information may include predicted load information per slice (Predicted load per slice).

[0122] In options 3-5, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice load statistics for each slice.

[0123] In options 3-6, the slice-related prediction information may include information on the predicted number of PDU session establishments per slice.

[0124] In options 3-7, the slice-related forecast information may include predicted slice congestion level information for each slice. Although not particularly limited, the level may be expressed as an index with an upper limit of 100, or may be a value such as 50 or 100.

[0125] Third, the Cell Info Result List may include information on the predicted radio resource status (Predicted radio resource status). The Predicted radio resource status may include a list of predicted radio resource statuses (Predicted slice radio resource status item). The Predicted slice radio resource status item may include information for identifying a PLMN (PLMN ID) and slice prediction related information (Predicted S-NSSAI radio resource status item). The slice prediction related information may include at least one of the following information:

[0126] In option 4-1, the slice prediction related information may include information identifying the slice (Slice ID (S-NSSAI)).

[0127] In option 4-2, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice GBR PRB (Physical Resource Block) usage information for resources with guaranteed speed in DL / UL used in the slice.

[0128] In option 4-3, the slice-related predicted information may include predicted slice non-GBR PRB usage information for resources that are not guaranteed speed in DL / UL used in the slice.

[0129] In option 4-4, the slice-related prediction information may include predicted allocation information of DL / UL resources used in the slice (Predicted total DL / UL PRB allocation).

[0130] The Predicted slice radio resource status item may include MIMO-related prediction information in addition to the Slice-related prediction information. The MIMO-related prediction information may include at least one of the following information:

[0131] In option 5-1, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted resource usage information for guaranteed-rate MIMO in DL / UL (Predicted DL / UL GBR PRB usage for MIMO).

[0132] In option 5-2, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted resource usage information for MIMO where speed is not guaranteed in DL / UL (Predicted DL / UL non-GBR PRB usage for MIMO).

[0133] In option 5-3, the MIMO-related predicted information may include predicted DL / UL total PRB usage for MIMO.

[0134] As described above, in the fifth operation example, the RAN Node 2 transmits the Data Collection Update directly to the RAN Node 1 without going through the core network.

[0135] (5-6) Operation Example 6 In Operation Example 6, direct communication between a DU and a CU will be described. The DU is a node in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A. The CU is an example of another network device and may also be a node in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0136] 12, in step S60, the CU transmits a message (Data collection request) requesting slice-related prediction information to the DU. The details of the Data collection request may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0137] In step S61, the DU transmits a message (Data collection response) including slice-related prediction information to the CU. The details of the slice-related prediction information may be the same as those in the first operation example.

[0138] As described above, in the sixth operation example, the DU transmits a data collection response directly to the CU without going through the core network.

[0139] (5-7) Operation Example 7 In Operation Example 7, direct communication between a DU and a CU will be described. The DU is a node in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A. The CU is an example of another network device and may also be a node in the radio access network 20A of the first network 10A.

[0140] 13, the DU transmits a message (Data collection update) regarding the update of collected information to the CU. The details of the Data collection update may be the same as those in the fifth operation example.

[0141] As described above, in the seventh operation example, the DU transmits the data collection update directly to the CU without going through the core network.

[0142] (6) Actions and Effects In the embodiment, the network device 50 transmits slice-related forecast information to other network devices. This configuration allows the other network devices to predict the congestion status of each slice in advance based on the slice-related forecast information, thereby preventing resource congestion on a given slice. Furthermore, the construction of virtual networks (slices) can be optimized, allowing the capacity of other network devices to be effectively allocated.

[0143] In the embodiment, the network device 50 transmits the MIMO-related prediction information to the other network devices. With this configuration, the other network devices can grasp MIMO resources in advance based on the MIMO-related prediction information, and can effectively allocate the capacity of the other network devices.

[0144] (7) Modification 1 Modification 1 of the embodiment will be described below, focusing mainly on the differences from the embodiment.

[0145] In Modification 1, when an overload occurs in the core network (e.g., AMF or 6GC), a message transmitted from the core network to a RAN node provided under the core network is utilized. In Modification 1, the future load or overload of the core network may be measured (predicted) by AIML.

[0146] In such a case, the core network may include data collection, model training, and model interface, which are elements that make up the AIML model. Model training may be provided in an OAM (Operation and Management) node.

[0147] In the first modification, a node of the core network may constitute the network device 50, and a RAN node provided under the core network may constitute another network device.

[0148] First, a node of the core network (network device 50) may transmit a message including information on future loads (hereinafter referred to as "load information") measured (predicted) by AIML to a RAN node. The load information may include load information for each slice.

[0149] For example, as shown in FIG. 14, if the core network node is an AMF, in step S80, the AMF sends a message (Predicted AMF load) including load information to the RAN Node.

[0150] Second, the core network node (network device 50) may transmit a message including information about future overload measured (predicted) by AIML (hereinafter, "overload information") to the RAN node. The overload information may include at least one of the following information:

[0151] In option 6-1, the overload information may include a predicted slice overload list. The predicted slice overload list is an example of slice-related prediction information. The predicted slice overload list may include S-NSSAI and predicted load information per slice.

[0152] In option 6-2, the overload information may include a predicted slice overload response. The predicted slice overload response is an example of slice-related prediction information. The predicted slice overload response may include responses such as Reject RRC connection establishments for non-emergency MO DT, Reject RRC connection establishments for Signaling, Permit Emergency Sessions and mobile terminated services only, and Permit High Priority Sessions and mobile terminated services only.

[0153] In option 6-3, the overload information may include information indicating the probability of future overload in the core network (Predicted traffic load reduction indication). The Predicted traffic load reduction indication may include the probability of a response occurring for each response described in option 6-2.

[0154] In option 6-4, the overload information may include a timestamp indicating the future time when an overload will occur in the core network. The timestamp may include the time when the response occurs for each response described in option 6-2.

[0155] For example, as shown in FIG. 14, if the core network node is an AMF, in step S80, the AMF sends a message (Predicted AMF overload start) including overload information to the RAN node.

[0156] Third, the core network node (network device 50) may transmit a message including information (overload termination information) regarding the future end of overload measured (predicted) by AIML to the RAN node. The overload termination information may include information (timestamp) indicating the future time when the overload occurring in the core network will end.

[0157] For example, as shown in FIG. 15, if the core network node is an AMF, in step S90, the AMF sends a message (Predicted AMF overload stop) containing overload termination information to the RAN Node.

[0158] In Modification 1, a core network node (network device 50) transmits overload information including slice-related prediction information to a RAN node. With this configuration, the RAN node can prevent overload of a core network node by releasing UE 200 (RRC release) for each slice. Alternatively, the RAN node can prevent overload of a core network node by refusing access of a new UE 200 for each slice and connecting the new UE 200 to another core network node.

[0159] (8) Other Embodiments The contents of the present invention have been described above in accordance with the embodiments, but it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to these descriptions and that various modifications and improvements are possible.

[0160] The block diagrams (FIGS. 4 and 5) used to explain the above-described embodiments show functional blocks. These functional blocks (components) are realized by any combination of hardware and / or software. Furthermore, the method for realizing each functional block is not particularly limited. That is, each functional block may be realized using a single device that is physically or logically coupled, or may be realized using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are directly or indirectly connected (e.g., wired, wireless, etc.) and these multiple devices. The functional block may be realized by combining software with the single device or multiple devices.

[0161] Functions include, but are not limited to, judgment, determination, judgment, calculation, computation, processing, derivation, investigation, search, confirmation, reception, transmission, output, access, resolution, selection, election, establishment, comparison, assumption, expectation, regard, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating, mapping, and assignment. For example, a functional block (component) that performs transmission is called a transmitting unit or transmitter. As mentioned above, there are no particular limitations on how each is implemented.

[0162] Furthermore, the above-described network device 50 and UE 200 (the device) may function as a computer that performs processing of the wireless communication method of the present disclosure. Fig. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the device. As shown in Fig. 16, the device may be configured as a computer including a processor 1001, a memory 1002, a storage 1003, a communication device 1004, an input device 1005, an output device 1006, a bus 1007, etc.

[0163] In the following description, the term "apparatus" can be interpreted as a circuit, a device, a unit, etc. The hardware configuration of the apparatus may be configured to include one or more of the apparatuses shown in the drawings, or may be configured to exclude some of the apparatuses.

[0164] Each functional block of the device (see FIGS. 4 and 5) is realized by any hardware element of the computer device or a combination of the hardware elements.

[0165] In addition, each function of the device is realized by loading specified software (programs) onto hardware such as processor 1001 and memory 1002, causing processor 1001 to perform calculations, control communication via communication device 1004, and control at least one of reading and writing data in memory 1002 and storage 1003.

[0166] The processor 1001 controls the entire computer by running, for example, an operating system, and may be configured as a central processing unit (CPU) including an interface with peripheral devices, a control unit, an arithmetic unit, and registers.

[0167] The processor 1001 also reads programs (program codes), software modules, data, etc. from at least one of the storage 1003 and the communication device 1004 into the memory 1002 and executes various processes in accordance with these. The programs used are those that cause a computer to execute at least some of the operations described in the above-described embodiments. Furthermore, the various processes described above may be executed by a single processor 1001, or may be executed simultaneously or sequentially by two or more processors 1001. The processor 1001 may be implemented by one or more chips. The programs may be transmitted from a network via a telecommunications line.

[0168] The memory 1002 is a computer-readable recording medium and may be configured by at least one of, for example, a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a random access memory (RAM), etc. The memory 1002 may also be called a register, a cache, a main memory (primary storage device), etc. The memory 1002 may store a program (program code), a software module, etc., capable of executing a method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0169] Storage 1003 is a computer-readable recording medium, and may be, for example, at least one of an optical disk such as a Compact Disc ROM (CD-ROM), a hard disk drive, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk (e.g., a compact disk, a digital versatile disk, a Blu-ray disc), a smart card, a flash memory (e.g., a card, a stick, a key drive), a floppy disk, a magnetic strip, etc. Storage 1003 may also be referred to as an auxiliary storage device. The above-mentioned recording medium may be, for example, a database, a server, or other suitable medium including at least one of memory 1002 and storage 1003.

[0170] The communication device 1004 is hardware (transmission / reception device) for communicating between computers via at least one of a wired network and a wireless network, and is also called, for example, a network device, a network controller, a network card, or a communication module.

[0171] The communication device 1004 may be configured to include a high-frequency switch, a duplexer, a filter, a frequency synthesizer, etc. to realize, for example, at least one of Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) and Time Division Duplex (TDD).

[0172] The input device 1005 is an input device (e.g., a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, a switch, a button, a sensor, etc.) that receives input from the outside. The output device 1006 is an output device (e.g., a display, a speaker, an LED lamp, etc.) that outputs to the outside. Note that the input device 1005 and the output device 1006 may be integrated into one device (e.g., a touch panel).

[0173] Furthermore, each device such as the processor 1001 and the memory 1002 is connected to a bus 1007 for communicating information. The bus 1007 may be configured using a single bus, or may be configured using different buses between each device.

[0174] Furthermore, the device may be configured to include hardware such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), or a field programmable gate array (FPGA), and some or all of the functional blocks may be realized by the hardware. For example, the processor 1001 may be implemented using at least one of these pieces of hardware.

[0175] Furthermore, the notification of information is not limited to the aspects / embodiments described in the present disclosure, and may be performed using other methods. For example, the notification of information may be performed by physical layer signaling (e.g., Downlink Control Information (DCI), Uplink Control Information (UCI)), higher layer signaling (e.g., RRC signaling, Medium Access Control (MAC) signaling, broadcast information (Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB))), other signals, or a combination thereof. Furthermore, the RRC signaling may be referred to as an RRC message, and may be, for example, an RRC Connection Setup message, an RRC Connection Reconfiguration message, or the like.

[0176] Each aspect / embodiment described in the present disclosure may be applied to at least one of a system using Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, a 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), a 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), Future Radio Access (FRA), New Radio (NR), W-CDMA (registered trademark), GSM (registered trademark), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-WideBand (UWB), Bluetooth (registered trademark), or other suitable system, and a next-generation system enhanced based on these. Furthermore, a combination of multiple systems (e.g., a combination of at least one of LTE and LTE-A and 5G) may also be applied.

[0177] The order of the procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc. of each aspect / embodiment described in this disclosure may be changed unless it is consistent. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present elements of various steps using an example order, and are not limited to the particular order presented.

[0178] In the present disclosure, a specific operation described as being performed by a base station may be performed by its upper node in some cases. In a network consisting of one or more network nodes having a base station, it is clear that various operations performed for communication with a terminal may be performed by at least one of the base station and another network node other than the base station (for example, an MME or an S-GW, etc., but are not limited to these). Although the above example illustrates a case where there is one other network node other than the base station, a combination of multiple other network nodes (for example, an MME and an S-GW) may also be used.

[0179] Information, signals (information, etc.) may be output from a higher layer (or a lower layer) to a lower layer (or a higher layer), or may be input / output via multiple network nodes.

[0180] The input and output information may be stored in a specific location (for example, a memory) or may be managed using a management table. The input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or added. The output information may be deleted. The input information may be transmitted to another device.

[0181] The determination may be made based on a value represented by one bit (0 or 1), a Boolean value (true or false), or a numerical comparison (e.g., comparison with a predetermined value).

[0182] The aspects / embodiments described in this disclosure may be used alone, in combination, or switched depending on the implementation. Notification of predetermined information (e.g., notification that "X is true") is not limited to explicit notification, but may be implicit (e.g., not notifying the predetermined information).

[0183] Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0184] Software, instructions, information, etc. may also be transmitted or received over a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using wired technologies (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)), and / or wireless technologies (such as infrared, microwave), then these wired and / or wireless technologies are included within the definition of transmission media.

[0185] The information, signals, etc. described in this disclosure may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

[0186] Note that terms described in this disclosure and terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meanings. For example, at least one of a channel and a symbol may be a signal (signaling). Furthermore, a signal may be a message. Furthermore, a component carrier (CC) may be called a carrier frequency, a cell, a frequency carrier, etc.

[0187] As used in this disclosure, the terms "system" and "network" are used interchangeably.

[0188] Furthermore, the information, parameters, etc. described in the present disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a predetermined value, or other corresponding information. For example, a radio resource may be indicated by an index.

[0189] The names used for the above-described parameters are not intended to be limiting in any way. Furthermore, the mathematical expressions using these parameters may differ from those explicitly disclosed in this disclosure. The various channels (e.g., PUCCH, PDCCH, etc.) and information elements may be identified by any suitable names, and therefore the various names assigned to these various channels and information elements are not intended to be limiting in any way.

[0190] In this disclosure, terms such as "base station (BS)," "radio base station," "fixed station," "NodeB," "eNodeB (eNB)," "gNodeB (gNB)," "access point," "transmission point," "reception point," "transmission / reception point," "cell," "sector," "cell group," "carrier," and "component carrier" may be used interchangeably. Base stations may also be referred to by terms such as macrocell, small cell, femtocell, and picocell.

[0191] A base station can accommodate one or more (e.g., three) cells (also called sectors). When a base station accommodates multiple cells, the overall coverage area of ​​the base station can be divided into multiple smaller areas, and each smaller area can be provided with communication services by a base station subsystem (e.g., a small indoor base station (Remote Radio Head: RRH)).

[0192] The terms "cell" or "sector" refer to part or all of the coverage area of ​​a base station and / or base station subsystem that provides communication services within that coverage area.

[0193] In this disclosure, the terms "Mobile Station (MS)," "user terminal," "User Equipment (UE)," "terminal," etc. may be used interchangeably.

[0194] A mobile station may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0195] At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be referred to as a transmitting device, a receiving device, a communication device, etc. At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be a device mounted on a mobile object, the mobile object itself, etc. The mobile object may be a vehicle (e.g., a car, an airplane, etc.), an unmanned mobile object (e.g., a drone, an autonomous vehicle, etc.), or a robot (manned or unmanned). At least one of the base station and the mobile station may also include devices that do not necessarily move during communication operations. For example, at least one of the base station and the mobile station may be an Internet of Things (IoT) device such as a sensor.

[0196] Furthermore, a base station in the present disclosure may be read as a mobile station (user terminal, the same applies hereinafter). For example, the aspects / embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to a configuration in which communication between a base station and a mobile station is replaced with communication between multiple mobile stations (which may be called, for example, Device-to-Device (D2D) or Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X)). In this case, the mobile station may be configured to have the functions of a base station. Furthermore, terms such as "uplink" and "downlink" may be read as terms corresponding to terminal-to-terminal communication (for example, "side"). For example, terms such as an uplink channel and a downlink channel may be read as a side channel.

[0197] Similarly, a mobile station in the present disclosure may be interpreted as a base station, in which case the base station may have the functions of a mobile station.

[0198] A radio frame may be made up of one or more frames in the time domain, each of which may be called a subframe.

[0199] A subframe may further be composed of one or more slots in the time domain, and may have a fixed time length (e.g., 1 ms) that is independent of numerology.

[0200] Numerology may be communication parameters that apply to the transmission and / or reception of a signal or channel, such as subcarrier spacing (SCS), bandwidth, symbol length, cyclic prefix length, transmission time interval (TTI), number of symbols per TTI, radio frame structure, specific filtering operations performed by the transceiver in the frequency domain, and specific windowing operations performed by the transceiver in the time domain.

[0201] A slot may consist of one or more symbols in the time domain (such as Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) symbols, etc.) A slot may be a time unit based on numerology.

[0202] A slot may include multiple minislots. Each minislot may consist of one or multiple symbols in the time domain. A minislot may also be called a subslot. A minislot may consist of fewer symbols than a slot. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted in a time unit larger than a minislot may be called PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted using a minislot may be called PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type B.

[0203] The radio frame, subframe, slot, minislot, and symbol all represent time units for transmitting signals, and may be referred to by other names corresponding to the radio frame, subframe, slot, minislot, and symbol.

[0204] For example, one subframe may be referred to as a transmission time interval (TTI), multiple consecutive subframes may be referred to as a TTI, or one slot or one minislot may be referred to as a TTI. That is, at least one of the subframe and the TTI may be a subframe (1 ms) in existing LTE, a period shorter than 1 ms (e.g., 1-13 symbols), or a period longer than 1 ms. Note that the unit representing the TTI may be referred to as a slot, minislot, etc. instead of a subframe.

[0205] Here, TTI refers to, for example, the smallest time unit for scheduling in wireless communication. For example, in an LTE system, a base station schedules each user terminal to allocate radio resources (such as frequency bandwidth and transmission power that can be used by each user terminal) in TTI units. Note that the definition of TTI is not limited to this.

[0206] The TTI may be a transmission time unit for a channel-encoded data packet (transport block), a code block, a code word, etc., or may be a processing unit for scheduling, link adaptation, etc. When a TTI is given, the time interval (e.g., the number of symbols) to which a transport block, a code block, a code word, etc. is actually mapped may be shorter than the TTI.

[0207] In addition, when one slot or one minislot is called a TTI, one or more TTIs (i.e., one or more slots or one or more minislots) may be the minimum time unit for scheduling. Furthermore, the number of slots (minislots) constituting the minimum time unit for scheduling may be controlled.

[0208] A TTI having a time length of 1 ms may be called a regular TTI (TTI in LTE Rel. 8-12), normal TTI, long TTI, regular subframe, normal subframe, long subframe, slot, etc. A TTI shorter than a regular TTI may be called a shortened TTI, short TTI, partial or fractional TTI, shortened subframe, short subframe, minislot, subslot, slot, etc.

[0209] In addition, a long TTI (e.g., a normal TTI, a subframe, etc.) may be interpreted as a TTI having a time length of more than 1 ms, and a short TTI (e.g., a shortened TTI, etc.) may be interpreted as a TTI having a TTI length shorter than the TTI length of a long TTI and equal to or greater than 1 ms.

[0210] A resource block (RB) is a resource allocation unit in the time domain and the frequency domain, and may include one or more consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. The number of subcarriers included in an RB may be the same regardless of numerology, for example, 12. The number of subcarriers included in an RB may be determined based on numerology.

[0211] The time domain of an RB may include one or more symbols and may have a length of one slot, one minislot, one subframe, or one TTI. One TTI, one subframe, etc. may each be composed of one or more resource blocks.

[0212] Note that one or more RBs may also be called a physical resource block (PRB), a sub-carrier group (SCG), a resource element group (REG), a PRB pair, an RB pair, etc.

[0213] Furthermore, a resource block may be composed of one or more resource elements (REs). For example, one RE may be a radio resource region of one subcarrier and one symbol.

[0214] A Bandwidth Part (BWP) (which may also be referred to as a fractional bandwidth) may represent a subset of contiguous common resource blocks (RBs) for a given numerology on a given carrier, where the common RBs may be identified by their index relative to a common reference point of the carrier. PRBs may be defined in a given BWP and numbered within that BWP.

[0215] The BWP may include a BWP for UL (UL BWP) and a BWP for DL ​​(DL BWP). One or more BWPs may be configured for a UE within one carrier.

[0216] At least one of the configured BWPs may be active, and the UE may not expect to transmit or receive a given signal / channel outside the active BWP. Note that the terms "cell," "carrier," etc. in this disclosure may be read as "BWP."

[0217] The above-described structures of radio frames, subframes, slots, minislots, symbols, etc. are merely examples. For example, the number of subframes included in a radio frame, the number of slots per subframe or radio frame, the number of minislots included in a slot, the number of symbols and RBs included in a slot or minislot, the number of subcarriers included in an RB, the number of symbols in a TTI, the symbol length, the cyclic prefix (CP) length, etc. may be variously changed.

[0218] The terms "connected," "coupled," or any variation thereof, refer to any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are "connected" or "coupled" to each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. For example, "connected" may be read as "access." As used in this disclosure, two elements may be considered to be "connected" or "coupled" to each other using one or more wires, cables, and / or printed electrical connections, as well as electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency range, microwave range, and optical (both visible and invisible) range, as some non-limiting and non-exhaustive examples.

[0219] The reference signal may also be abbreviated as Reference Signal (RS) and may be called a pilot depending on the applicable standard.

[0220] As used in this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based only on," unless expressly stated otherwise. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based only on" and "based at least on."

[0221] The "means" in the configuration of each of the above devices may be replaced with "part," "circuit," "device," etc.

[0222] As used in this disclosure, any reference to an element using a designation such as "first," "second," etc. does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient method of distinguishing between two or more elements. Thus, a reference to a first and a second element does not imply that only two elements may be employed therein or that the first element must precede the second element in some way.

[0223] When the terms "include," "including," and variations thereof are used in this disclosure, these terms are intended to be inclusive, similar to the term "comprising." Furthermore, when the term "or" is used in this disclosure, it is not intended to be an exclusive or.

[0224] In this disclosure, where articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, the disclosure may include that the nouns following these articles are in the plural form.

[0225] As used in this disclosure, the terms "determining" and "determining" may encompass a wide variety of actions. "Determining" and "determining" may include, for example, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up, searching, inquiring (e.g., searching in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, and the like. "Determining" and "determining" may also include receiving (e.g., receiving information), transmitting (e.g., sending information), input, output, accessing (e.g., accessing data in memory), and the like. Furthermore, "judgment" and "decision" can include regarding resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, comparing, etc. as having been "judged" or "decided." In other words, "judgment" and "decision" can include regarding some action as having been "judged" or "decided." Furthermore, "judgment (decision)" can be interpreted as "assuming," "expecting," "considering," etc.

[0226] In the present disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "coupled" may also be interpreted in the same way as "different."

[0227] 17 shows an example of the configuration of a vehicle 2001. As shown in Fig. 17, the vehicle 2001 includes a drive unit 2002, a steering unit 2003, an accelerator pedal 2004, a brake pedal 2005, a shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, an axle 2009, an electronic control unit 2010, various sensors 2021 to 2029, an information service unit 2012, and a communication module 2013.

[0228] The drive unit 2002 is composed of, for example, an engine, a motor, or a hybrid of an engine and a motor.

[0229] The steering unit 2003 includes at least a steering wheel (also called a handle) and is configured to steer at least one of the front wheels and the rear wheels based on the operation of the steering wheel operated by the user.

[0230] The electronic control unit 2010 is composed of a microprocessor 2031, a memory (ROM, RAM) 2032, and a communication port (IO port) 2033. Signals are input to the electronic control unit 2010 from various sensors 2021 to 2027 provided in the vehicle. The electronic control unit 2010 may also be called an ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

[0231] The signals from the various sensors 2021 to 2028 include a current signal from a current sensor 2021 that senses the current of the motor, a rotation speed signal of the front and rear wheels obtained by a rotation speed sensor 2022, an air pressure signal of the front and rear wheels obtained by an air pressure sensor 2023, a vehicle speed signal obtained by a vehicle speed sensor 2024, an acceleration signal obtained by an acceleration sensor 2025, an accelerator pedal depression amount signal obtained by an accelerator pedal sensor 2029, a brake pedal depression amount signal obtained by a brake pedal sensor 2026, a shift lever operation signal obtained by a shift lever sensor 2027, and a detection signal for detecting obstacles, vehicles, pedestrians, etc. obtained by an object detection sensor 2028.

[0232] The information service unit 2012 is composed of various devices, such as a car navigation system, an audio system, speakers, a television, and a radio, for providing various types of information such as driving information, traffic information, and entertainment information, and one or more ECUs for controlling these devices. The information service unit 2012 uses information obtained from external devices via the communication module 2013, etc., to provide various types of multimedia information and multimedia services to the occupants of the vehicle 1.

[0233] The driving assistance system unit 2030 is composed of various devices that provide functions for preventing accidents and reducing the driver's driving burden, such as millimeter-wave radar, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), cameras, positioning locators (e.g., GNSS, etc.), map information (e.g., high-definition (HD) maps, autonomous vehicle (AV) maps, etc.), gyro systems (e.g., IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), INS (Inertial Navigation System), etc.), AI (Artificial Intelligence) chips, and AI processors, as well as one or more ECUs that control these devices. The driving assistance system unit 2030 also transmits and receives various information via the communication module 2013 to realize driving assistance functions or autonomous driving functions.

[0234] The communication module 2013 can communicate with the microprocessor 2031 and components of the vehicle 1 via the communication port. For example, the communication module 2013 transmits and receives data via the communication port 2033 to and from a driving unit 2002, a steering unit 2003, an accelerator pedal 2004, a brake pedal 2005, a shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, an axle 2009, a microprocessor 2031 and memory (ROM, RAM) 2032 in the electronic control unit 2010, and sensors 2021 to 2028, which are provided in the vehicle 2001.

[0235] The communication module 2013 is a communication device that can be controlled by the microprocessor 2031 of the electronic control unit 2010 and can communicate with an external device. For example, it transmits and receives various information to and from the external device via wireless communication. The communication module 2013 may be located either inside or outside the electronic control unit 2010. The external device may be, for example, a base station, a mobile station, or the like.

[0236] The communication module 2013 transmits, via wireless communication to an external device, a current signal from the current sensor that is input to the electronic control unit 2010. The communication module 2013 also transmits, via wireless communication to an external device, the rotation speed signals of the front and rear wheels acquired by a rotation speed sensor 2022, the air pressure signals of the front and rear wheels acquired by an air pressure sensor 2023, the vehicle speed signal acquired by a vehicle speed sensor 2024, the acceleration signal acquired by an acceleration sensor 2025, the accelerator pedal depression amount signal acquired by an accelerator pedal sensor 2029, the brake pedal depression amount signal acquired by a brake pedal sensor 2026, the shift lever operation signal acquired by a shift lever sensor 2027, and the detection signals for detecting obstacles, vehicles, pedestrians, etc. acquired by an object detection sensor 2028, all of which are input to the electronic control unit 2010.

[0237] The communication module 2013 receives various information (traffic information, traffic signal information, vehicle distance information, etc.) transmitted from external devices and displays it on an information service unit 2012 provided in the vehicle. The communication module 2013 also stores the various information received from the external devices in a memory 2032 that can be used by the microprocessor 2031. Based on the information stored in the memory 2032, the microprocessor 2031 may control the drive unit 2002, steering unit 2003, accelerator pedal 2004, brake pedal 2005, shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, axle 2009, sensors 2021 to 2028, and the like provided in the vehicle 2001.

[0238] Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it is clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the description of the present disclosure is intended to be illustrative and does not have any limiting meaning on the present disclosure.

[0239] (Additional Note) The above disclosure may be expressed as follows.

[0240] The first feature is a network device comprising a control unit that controls communication using one or more virtual networks for each service in a network, and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

[0241] A second feature is the network device of the first feature, wherein the communication-related prediction information includes one or more pieces of information selected from information on a predicted number of terminals for each of the virtual networks, information on a predicted number of terminals for each group of the virtual networks, predicted load information for each of the virtual networks, predicted load statistics information for each of the virtual networks, information on a predicted number of sessions set up for each of the virtual networks, and predicted congestion level information for each of the virtual networks.

[0242] A third feature is the network device according to the first or second feature, wherein the transmitting unit transmits the prediction information related to the communication directly to the other network device without going through a core network.

[0243] A fourth feature is the network device according to the first or second feature, wherein the transmitting unit indirectly transmits the prediction information related to the communication to the other network device via a core network.

[0244] A fifth feature is a wireless communication system including a terminal and a network device provided in a network, the network device including a control unit that controls communication using one or more virtual networks for each service in the network, and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

[0245] A sixth feature is a wireless communication method comprising the steps of controlling communication in a network using one or more virtual networks for each service, and transmitting prediction information related to the communication to another network device.

[0246] 10 Wireless communication system 10A First network 10B Second network 20A, 20B Wireless access network 30A, 30B Core network 50 Network device 51 Receiving unit 52 Transmitting unit 53 Control unit 100A, 100B Base station 200 UE 210 Wireless signal transmitting / receiving unit 220 Amplifying unit 230 Modulation / demodulation unit 240 Control signal / reference signal processing unit 250 Encoding / decoding unit 260 Data transmitting / receiving unit 270 Control unit 1001 Processor 1002 Memory 1003 Storage 1004 Communication device 1005 Input device 1006 Output device 1007 Bus 2001 Vehicle 2002 Drive unit 2003 Steering unit 2004 Accelerator pedal 2005 Brake pedal 2006 Shift lever 2007 Left and right front wheels 2008 Left and right rear wheels 2009 Axle 2010 Electronic control unit 2012 Information service unit 2013 Communication module 2021 Current sensor 2022 RPM sensor 2023 Air pressure sensor 2024 Vehicle speed sensor 2025 Acceleration sensor 2026 Brake pedal sensor 2027 Shift lever sensor 2028 Object detection sensor 2029 Accelerator pedal sensor 2030 Driving assistance system unit 2031 Microprocessor 2032 Memory (ROM, RAM) 2033 Communication port

Claims

1. A network device comprising: a control unit that controls communication using virtual networks for each of one or more services in a network; and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

2. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the prediction information related to the communication includes one or more pieces of information selected from prediction number information of terminals for each virtual network, prediction number information of terminals for each group of virtual networks, prediction load information for each virtual network, prediction load statistical information for each virtual network, prediction number information of set sessions for each virtual network, and congestion level prediction information for each virtual network.

3. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit directly transmits the prediction information related to the communication to the other network devices without going through a core network.

4. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit indirectly transmits the prediction information related to the communication to the other network devices via a core network.

5. A wireless communication system comprising: a terminal; and a network device provided in a network, wherein the network device includes: a control unit that controls communication using virtual networks for each of one or more services in the network; and a transmission unit that transmits prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

6. A wireless communication method comprising: controlling communication using virtual networks for each of one or more services in a network; and transmitting prediction information related to the communication to other network devices.

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