Information processing device and information processing method

Abstract

An information processing device according to the present disclosure is installed in a terminal device. A control unit collects one or more items of quality information relating to communication quality from one or more nodes of a cellular communication system. The control unit provides delay information relating to at least one of a current delay state and a future delay state.

Description

Information processing device and information processing method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and an information processing method.

[0002] Radio access methods and radio networks for cellular mobile communications (hereinafter also referred to as "Long Term Evolution (LTE)," "LTE-Advanced (LTE-A)," "LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro)," "5G (fifth generation)," "New Radio (NR)," "New Radio Access Technology (NRAT)," "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA)," or "Further EUTRA (FEUTRA)") are being studied by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark)). In the following description, LTE includes LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and EUTRA, and NR includes NRAT and FEUTRA. In LTE and NR, a base station device (base station) is also referred to as an eNodeB (evolved NodeB) in LTE and a gNodeB in NR, and a terminal device (mobile station, mobile station device, terminal) is also referred to as a UE (User Equipment). LTE and NR are cellular communication systems in which base stations cover multiple areas in the form of cells. A single base station may manage multiple cells.

[0003] For example, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for measuring delay and the like using a User-Plane Function (UPF).

[0004] vivo, Discussion on enhancement on PDCCH, PUCCH, PUSCH in MTRP scenario [online], 3GPP TSG RAN WG1 #102-e R1-2005364, August 8, 2020, pp. 1-12, [Retrieved: November 27, 2023], Internet <URL: https: / / www.3gpp.org / ftp / tsg_sa / WG2_Arch / TSGS2_134_Sapporo / Docs / S2-1908294.zip>

[0005] In 5G, Quality of Service (QoS) is used to manage traffic quality. For example, communication nodes in cellular communication systems, such as base stations, use QoS control to prioritize packets, thereby reducing packet delays and suppressing delay fluctuations.

[0006] The 5G standard prescribes QoS monitoring to check traffic delays. In QoS monitoring, the UPF measures and reports communication quality, including delay jitter.

[0007] Here, in order to further improve communication quality, it is necessary to control delay with higher precision.

[0008] Therefore, the present disclosure provides an information processing device and an information processing method that can control delay with higher precision.

[0009] It should be noted that the above problem or object is merely one of multiple problems or objects that can be solved or achieved by multiple embodiments disclosed in this specification.

[0010] The information processing device of the present disclosure is installed in a terminal device. The control unit collects one or more pieces of quality information related to communication quality from one or more nodes in a cellular communication system. The control unit provides delay information related to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation.

[0011] 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system according to a proposed technique of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of an application server according to a proposed technique of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of an information processing device according to a proposed technique of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of a base station according to a proposed technique of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example configuration of a wireless communication device according to a proposed technique of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a 5G architecture. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a 4G architecture. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of private / 4G usage. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an API of a 5G core network. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an API of a 5G core network. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a frame configuration in 5G. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a time frame used by a base station. FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a procedure for transmitting UL data. FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram illustrating another example of a procedure for transmitting UL data. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a first example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a second example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a third example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a fourth example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a fifth example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a sixth example of report content according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing another example of the flow of communication processing according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a third example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a fifth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of packet buffering according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0013] In this specification and drawings, similar components of the embodiments may be distinguished by adding different letters or numbers after the same reference numeral. However, if there is no need to particularly distinguish between the similar components, only the same reference numeral will be used.

[0014] One or more embodiments (including examples, modifications, and application examples) described below can be implemented independently. However, at least a portion of the embodiments described below may be implemented in appropriate combination with at least a portion of another embodiment. These embodiments may include novel features that are different from each other. Therefore, these embodiments may contribute to solving different purposes or problems and may produce different effects from each other.

[0015] Furthermore, although specific values ​​are sometimes used in the present specification and drawings, these values ​​are merely examples and other values ​​may also be applied.

[0016] <<1. Introduction>> <1.1. Issues> In 5G, QoS is used as an indicator of the quality of traffic being used. QoS monitoring is also standardized in 5G. In a 5G system, some communication quality, such as measured jitter, is reported by the UPF as QoS monitoring.

[0017] In 5G, the Network Function (NF) that reports QoS monitoring and the timing of reporting are specified. For example, the report is performed by the UPF. The timing of reporting is periodic or trigger-based.

[0018] As described above, 5G defines QoS to ensure high-quality communication. However, in B5G (Beyond 5G) and 6G, which are the next-generation mobile communication technologies following NR and 5GS (5G system), which are fifth-generation mobile communications, higher-quality communication is required. For example, higher-quality communication is required by controlling the delay generated in the communication system with higher precision.

[0019] 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system according to the proposed technology of the present disclosure. The communication system illustrated in FIG. 1 includes an application server 10, a core network CN, a base station 30, and a terminal device 400.

[0020] The communication system may support radio access technologies (RATs) such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), New Radio (NR), etc. LTE and NR are types of cellular communication technologies, and enable mobile communication of the terminal device 400 by arranging a plurality of areas covered by the base station 30 in the form of cells.

[0021] The wireless access method used by the communication system is not limited to LTE and NR, but may be other wireless access methods such as W-CDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) and cdma2000 (Code Division Multiple Access 2000).

[0022] The terminal device 400 is an information processing device such as a mobile phone, a smart device (smartphone or tablet), a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), or a personal computer.

[0023] The terminal device 400 is equipped with an application client 50 and a wireless communication device 40. The terminal device 400 communicates with the base station 30 via the wireless communication device 40, thereby functioning as a communication device.

[0024] The application client 50 receives services from the application server 10 by communicating with the application server 10 via, for example, the wireless communication device 40 .

[0025] The core network CN includes information processing devices that function as NFs.

[0026] For example, the application server 10 assigns QoS to downlink (DL) data and transmits the data to the application client 50 of the terminal device 400. The application client 50 assigns QoS to uplink (UL) data and transmits the data to the application server 10.

[0027] The wireless communication device 40, the base station 30, and the core network CN control communication in accordance with the QoS assigned to the DL data or UL data, thereby enabling the application realized by the application server 10 and the application client 50 to realize data communication of a desired quality.

[0028] As described above, higher quality communication is required in a communication system. Therefore, an information processing device according to the proposed technique of the present disclosure collects one or more pieces of QoS information related to QoS from one or more nodes in a cellular communication system. The information processing device provides delay information related to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation.

[0029] Here, the information processing device may be, for example, an information processing device included in the core network CN, or the base station 30. Specifically, the information processing device may be, for example, a UPF or the base station 30.

[0030] Furthermore, the node of the cellular communication system may be any of the terminal device 400, the base station 30, the core network, and the application server 10.

[0031] The information processing device can provide delay information to, for example, the application server 10. This allows the application server 10 to control delays in data communication based on the delay information so as to improve communication quality. In this way, by the information processing device providing the delay information, the communication system can control delays in the communication system and further improve communication quality.

[0032] In the proposed technology, the concept of a communication device includes not only portable mobile devices (terminal devices 400) such as mobile terminals, but also devices installed in structures or mobile bodies. The structures or mobile bodies themselves may be considered as communication devices. Furthermore, the concept of a communication device includes not only terminal devices but also base stations and relay stations. A communication device is a type of processing device and information processing device. Furthermore, a communication device can be referred to as a transmitting device or a receiving device.

[0033] The configuration of each device constituting the communication system will be specifically described below. Note that the configuration of each device shown below is merely an example. The configuration of each device may be different from the configuration shown below.

[0034] <<2. Configuration of Communication System>> <2.1. Configuration of Application Server> The application server 10 is an information processing device that provides application services to the terminal device 400 .

[0035] Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example configuration of an application server 10 according to the proposed technology of the present disclosure. The application server 10 includes a communication unit 11, a storage unit 12, and a control unit 13. Note that the configuration shown in Fig. 2 is a functional configuration, and the hardware configuration may be different from this.

[0036] Furthermore, the functions of the application server 10 may be statically or dynamically distributed across multiple physically separated components. For example, the application server 10 may be configured by multiple server devices.

[0037] The communication unit 11 is a communication interface for communicating with other devices. The communication unit 11 may be a network interface or a device connection interface. For example, the communication unit 11 may be a LAN (Local Area Network) interface such as a NIC (Network Interface Card), or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface configured by a USB host controller, a USB port, etc. The communication unit 11 may also be a wired interface or a wireless interface. The communication unit 11 functions as a communication means of the application server 10. The communication unit 11 communicates with the terminal device 400, etc., under the control of the control unit 13.

[0038] The storage unit 12 is a data readable / writable storage device such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 12 functions as a storage means of the application server 10.

[0039] The control unit 13 is a controller that controls each unit of the application server 10. The control unit 13 is realized by a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU), a micro processing unit (MPU), or a graphics processing unit (GPU). For example, the control unit 13 is realized by a processor executing various programs stored in a storage device inside the application server 10 using a random access memory (RAM) or the like as a work area. The control unit 13 may also be realized by an integrated circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field programmable gate array (FPGA). The CPU, MPU, GPU, ASIC, and FPGA can all be considered controllers. The control unit 13 may also be realized by a graphics processing unit (GPU) in addition to or instead of the CPU.

[0040] 2.2. Configuration of Information Processing Device The information processing device 20 is an information processing device (computer) that manages a wireless network. For example, the information processing device 20 is a management device that manages communication of the base station 30. The information processing device 20 is a device that realizes the functions (NF) of the core network CN.

[0041] The information processing device 20 may be, for example, a device having a function as an MME (Mobility Management Entity). The information processing device 20 may be a device having a function as an AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function) and / or an SMF (Session Management Function). Of course, the functions of the information processing device 20 are not limited to an MME, an AMF, and an SMF. The information processing device 20 may be a device having a function as an NSSF (Network Slice Selection Function), an AUSF (Authentication Server Function), a PCF (Policy Control Function), or a UDM (Unified Data Management). Furthermore, the information processing device 20 may be a device having a function as an HSS (Home Subscriber Server).

[0042] The information processing device 20 may have a gateway function. For example, the information processing device 20 may have a function as an S-GW (Serving Gateway) or a P-GW (Packet Data Network Gateway). The information processing device 20 may also have a UPF (User Plane Function) function. In this case, the information processing device 20 may have multiple UPFs. The information processing device 20 may also have a PNAM (Private Network Association Management) function.

[0043] The core network CN is composed of multiple network functions, and each network function may be aggregated in one physical device or distributed across multiple physical devices. That is, the information processing device 20 may be distributed across multiple devices. Furthermore, this distributed distribution may be controlled to be executed dynamically. The base station 30 and the information processing device 20 form a single network, providing wireless communication services to the terminal device 400. The information processing device 20 is connected to the Internet, and the terminal device 400 can use various services provided via the Internet via the base station 30.

[0044] The information processing device 20 does not necessarily have to be a device that constitutes the core network CN. For example, assume that the core network is a W-CDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) or cdma2000 (Code Division Multiple Access 2000) core network. In this case, the information processing device 20 may be a device that functions as an RNC (Radio Network Controller).

[0045] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example configuration of an information processing device 20 according to the proposed technology of the present disclosure. The information processing device 20 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit 23. Note that the configuration shown in FIG. 3 is a functional configuration, and the hardware configuration may be different. Furthermore, the functions of the information processing device 20 may be statically or dynamically distributed and implemented in multiple physically separated configurations. For example, the information processing device 20 may be configured by multiple server devices.

[0046] The communication unit 21 is a communication interface for communicating with other devices. The communication unit 21 may be a network interface or a device connection interface. For example, the communication unit 21 may be a LAN (Local Area Network) interface such as a NIC (Network Interface Card), or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface configured by a USB host controller, a USB port, etc. The communication unit 21 may also be a wired interface or a wireless interface. The communication unit 21 functions as a communication means of the information processing device 20. The communication unit 21 communicates with the base station 30, etc., under the control of the control unit 23.

[0047] The storage unit 22 is a data readable / writable storage device such as a DRAM, an SRAM, a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 22 functions as a storage means of the information processing device 20.

[0048] The control unit 23 is a controller that controls each unit of the information processing device 20. The control unit 23 is realized by a processor such as a CPU, an MPU, or a GPU. For example, the control unit 23 is realized by a processor executing various programs stored in a storage device inside the information processing device 20 using RAM or the like as a work area. The control unit 23 may also be realized by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. A CPU, an MPU, a GPU, an ASIC, and an FPGA can all be considered as controllers. The control unit 23 may also be realized by a GPU in addition to or instead of a CPU.

[0049] 2.3. Configuration of Base Station The base station 30 is a wireless communication device that performs wireless communication with the terminal device 400 (wireless communication device 40). The base station 30 may be configured to perform wireless communication with the wireless communication device 40 via a relay station, or may be configured to perform wireless communication directly with the wireless communication device 40.

[0050] The base station 30 is a type of communication device. More specifically, the base station 30 is a device equivalent to a radio base station (e.g., base station, Node B, eNB, gNB, etc.) or a radio access point (Access Point). The base station 30 may be a radio relay station. The base station 30 may also be an optical device called an RRH (Remote Radio Head) or an RU (Radio Unit). The base station 30 may also be a receiving station such as an FPU (Field Pickup Unit). The base station 30 may also be an IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul) donor node or an IAB relay node that provides radio access lines and radio backhaul lines using time division multiplexing, frequency division multiplexing, or space division multiplexing.

[0051] The wireless access technology used by the base station 30 may be cellular communication technology or wireless LAN technology. Of course, the wireless access technology used by the base station 30 is not limited to these and may be other wireless access technologies. For example, the wireless access technology used by the base station 30 may be low-power wide-area (LPWA) communication technology. Of course, the wireless communication used by the base station 30 may be wireless communication using millimeter waves. Furthermore, the wireless communication used by the base station 30 may be wireless communication using radio waves or wireless communication using infrared or visible light (optical wireless). Furthermore, the base station 30 may be capable of NOMA (Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access) communication with wireless communication devices. Here, NOMA communication refers to communication (transmission, reception, or both) using non-orthogonal resources. Furthermore, the base station 30 may be capable of NOMA communication with other base stations 30.

[0052] The base stations 30 may be able to communicate with each other via a base station-core network interface (e.g., NG Interface, S1 Interface, etc.). This interface may be either wired or wireless. The base stations 30 may be able to communicate with each other via an inter-base station interface (e.g., Xn Interface, X2 Interface, S1 Interface, F1 Interface, etc.). This interface may be either wired or wireless.

[0053] The concept of a base station includes not only a donor base station but also a relay base station (also called a relay station). For example, a relay base station may be any one of an RF Repeater, a Smart Repeater, and an Intelligent Surface. The concept of a base station also includes not only a structure having base station functions but also a device installed in the structure.

[0054] Examples of structures include high-rise buildings, houses, steel towers, station facilities, airport facilities, port facilities, office buildings, school buildings, hospitals, factories, commercial facilities, stadiums, and other buildings. The concept of a structure includes not only buildings, but also non-building structures such as tunnels, bridges, dams, fences, and steel pillars, as well as equipment such as cranes, gates, and wind turbines. The concept of a structure also includes not only land (ground in the narrow sense) or underground structures, but also water-based structures such as piers and megafloats, and underwater structures such as ocean observation facilities. A base station can be rephrased as an information processing device.

[0055] The base station 30 may be a donor station or a relay station (relay station). The base station 30 may also be a fixed station or a mobile station. A mobile station is a wireless communication device (e.g., a base station) configured to be mobile. In this case, the base station 30 may be a device installed in a mobile body, or may be the mobile body itself. For example, a relay station with mobility can be considered a base station 30 as a mobile station. Furthermore, devices that are inherently mobile and have base station functionality (at least part of the base station functionality), such as vehicles, UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) represented by drones, and smartphones, also fall under the category of a base station 30 as a mobile station.

[0056] Here, the mobile body may be a mobile terminal such as a smartphone or a mobile phone. The mobile body may also be a mobile body that moves on land (ground in the narrow sense) (e.g., vehicles such as automobiles, bicycles, buses, trucks, motorcycles, trains, and linear motor cars), or a mobile body that moves underground (e.g., in a tunnel) (e.g., a subway). The mobile body may also be a mobile body that moves on water (e.g., ships such as passenger ships, cargo ships, and hovercraft), or a mobile body that moves underwater (e.g., submersibles such as submarines, submarines, and unmanned underwater vehicles). The mobile body may also be a mobile body that moves within the atmosphere (e.g., aircraft such as airplanes, airships, and drones).

[0057] The base station 30 may also be a terrestrial base station (ground station) installed on the ground. For example, the base station 30 may be a base station located on a structure on the ground, or a base station installed on a mobile object moving on the ground. More specifically, the base station 30 may be an antenna installed on a structure such as a building and a signal processing device connected to the antenna. Of course, the base station 30 may also be the structure or mobile object itself. "Ground" refers not only to land (ground in the narrow sense) but also to ground, on water, and underwater. Note that the base station 30 is not limited to a terrestrial base station. For example, if the communication system is a satellite communication system, the base station 30 may be an aircraft station. From the perspective of the satellite station, an aircraft station located on Earth is a ground station.

[0058] The base station 30 is not limited to a terrestrial station. The base station 30 may be a non-terrestrial base station (non-terrestrial station) that can fly in the air or space. For example, the base station 30 may be an aircraft station or a satellite station.

[0059] A satellite station is a satellite station capable of floating outside the atmosphere. The satellite station may be a device mounted on a space vehicle such as an artificial satellite, or may be the space vehicle itself. A space vehicle is a vehicle that moves outside the atmosphere. Examples of space vehicles include artificial celestial bodies such as artificial satellites, spacecraft, space stations, and probes. Note that a satellite that serves as a satellite station may be any of a low Earth orbiting (LEO) satellite, a medium Earth orbiting (MEO) satellite, a geostationary Earth orbiting (GEO) satellite, and a highly elliptical orbiting (HEO) satellite. Of course, the satellite station may be a device mounted on a low Earth orbiting (LEO), medium Earth orbiting (MEO), geostationary satellite, or highly elliptical orbiting (HEO) satellite.

[0060] An aircraft station is a wireless communication device capable of floating in the atmosphere, such as an aircraft. The aircraft station may be a device mounted on the aircraft, or may be the aircraft itself. The concept of aircraft includes not only heavier-than-air vehicles such as airplanes and gliders, but also lighter-than-air vehicles such as balloons and airships. The concept of aircraft also includes not only heavier-than-air vehicles and lighter-than-air vehicles, but also rotorcraft such as helicopters and autogyros. The aircraft station (or an aircraft on which the aircraft station is mounted) may be an unmanned aerial vehicle such as a drone.

[0061] The concept of unmanned aerial vehicles also includes unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and tethered unmanned aerial systems (TAS). The concept of unmanned aerial vehicles also includes lighter than air UAS (LTA) and heavier than air UAS (HTA). The concept of unmanned aerial vehicles also includes high altitude unmanned aerial system platforms (HAPs).

[0062] The size of the coverage of the base station 30 may be as large as a macrocell or as small as a picocell. Of course, the size of the coverage of the base station 30 may also be extremely small, such as a femtocell. The base station 30 may also have beamforming capabilities. In this case, the base station 30 may form a cell or service area for each beam.

[0063] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example configuration of a base station 30 according to the proposed technique of the present disclosure. The base station 30 includes a wireless communication unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a control unit 33. Note that the configuration shown in Fig. 4 is a functional configuration, and the hardware configuration may be different from this. Furthermore, the functions of the base station 30 may be distributed and implemented in multiple physically separated units.

[0064] The wireless communication unit 31 is a signal processing unit for wireless communication with other wireless communication devices (for example, wireless communication devices). The wireless communication unit 31 operates under the control of the control unit 33. The wireless communication unit 31 supports one or more wireless access methods. For example, the wireless communication unit 31 supports both NR and LTE. The wireless communication unit 31 may support W-CDMA and cdma2000 in addition to NR and LTE. Furthermore, the wireless communication unit 31 may support an automatic retransmission technique such as HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest).

[0065] The wireless communication unit 31 includes a transmission processing unit 311, a reception processing unit 312, and an antenna 313. The wireless communication unit 31 may include a plurality of transmission processing units 311, a reception processing unit 312, and an antenna 313. When the wireless communication unit 31 supports a plurality of wireless access methods, each unit of the wireless communication unit 31 may be configured separately for each wireless access method. For example, the transmission processing unit 311 and the reception processing unit 312 may be configured separately for LTE and NR. The antenna 313 may also be configured with a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., a plurality of patch antennas). In this case, the wireless communication unit 31 may be configured to be capable of beamforming. The wireless communication unit 31 may be configured to be capable of polarization beamforming using vertically polarized waves (V polarization) and horizontally polarized waves (H polarization).

[0066] The transmission processing unit 311 performs transmission processing of the downlink control information and downlink data. For example, the transmission processing unit 311 encodes the downlink control information and downlink data input from the control unit 33 using a coding method such as block coding, convolutional coding, or turbo coding. Here, the encoding may be performed using polar codes or low density parity check codes (LDPC codes). The transmission processing unit 311 then modulates the coded bits using a predetermined modulation method such as BPSK, QPSK, 16QAM, 64QAM, or 256QAM. In this case, the signal points on the constellation do not necessarily need to be equidistant. The constellation may be a non-uniform constellation (NUC). The transmission processing unit 311 then multiplexes the modulation symbols of each channel and the downlink reference signal and allocates them to predetermined resource elements. The transmission processing unit 311 then performs various signal processing on the multiplexed signal. For example, the transmission processing unit 311 performs processes such as conversion to the frequency domain by fast Fourier transform, addition of a guard interval (cyclic prefix), generation of a baseband digital signal, conversion to an analog signal, quadrature modulation, up-conversion, removal of unnecessary frequency components, power amplification, etc. The signal generated by the transmission processing unit 311 is transmitted from an antenna 313.

[0067] The reception processing unit 312 processes the uplink signal received via the antenna 313. For example, the reception processing unit 312 performs downconversion, removal of unnecessary frequency components, control of amplification level, quadrature demodulation, conversion to a digital signal, removal of guard intervals (cyclic prefixes), extraction of frequency domain signals by fast Fourier transform, and the like on the uplink signal. The reception processing unit 312 then separates uplink channels such as a PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel) and a PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) and an uplink reference signal from the signal that has undergone these processes. The reception processing unit 312 also demodulates the received signal using a modulation method such as Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) or Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) for the modulation symbols of the uplink channel. The modulation method used for demodulation may be 16QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation), 64QAM, or 256QAM. In this case, the signal points on the constellation do not necessarily have to be equidistant. The constellation may be a non-uniform constellation (NUC). The reception processing unit 312 then performs decoding processing on the coded bits of the demodulated uplink channel. The decoded uplink data and uplink control information are output to the control unit 33.

[0068] The antenna 313 is an antenna device (antenna unit) that converts electric current and radio waves into each other. The antenna 313 may be composed of one antenna element (e.g., one patch antenna) or multiple antenna elements (e.g., multiple patch antennas). When the antenna 313 is composed of multiple antenna elements, the wireless communication unit 31 may be configured to be capable of beamforming. For example, the wireless communication unit 31 may be configured to generate a directional beam by controlling the directivity of a wireless signal using multiple antenna elements. The antenna 313 may be a dual-polarized antenna. When the antenna 313 is a dual-polarized antenna, the wireless communication unit 31 may use vertically polarized waves (V polarization) and horizontally polarized waves (H polarization) to transmit a wireless signal. The wireless communication unit 31 may then control the directivity of the wireless signal transmitted using the vertically polarized waves and the horizontally polarized waves. The wireless communication unit 31 may also transmit and receive spatially multiplexed signals via multiple layers composed of multiple antenna elements.

[0069] The storage unit 32 is a data readable / writable storage device such as a DRAM, an SRAM, a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 32 functions as a storage means of the base station 30.

[0070] The control unit 33 is a controller that controls each unit of the base station 30. The control unit 33 is realized by a processor such as a CPU or an MPU. For example, the control unit 33 is realized by a processor executing various programs stored in a storage device inside the base station 30 using RAM or the like as a work area. The control unit 33 may also be realized by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. A CPU, an MPU, an ASIC, and an FPGA can all be considered as controllers. The control unit 33 may also be realized by a GPU in addition to or instead of a CPU.

[0071] In the proposed technology, the concept of a base station may be composed of a collection of multiple physical or logical devices. For example, in the proposed technology, a base station may be divided into multiple devices such as a baseband unit (BBU) and a radio unit (RU). The base station may be interpreted as a collection of these multiple devices. Furthermore, a base station may be either a BBU or an RU, or both. The BBU and the RU may be connected via a predetermined interface (e.g., an enhanced Common Public Radio Interface (eCPRI)). The RU may also be referred to as a remote radio unit (RRU) or a radio DoT (RD). The RU may correspond to a gNB distributed unit (gNB-DU) described later. Furthermore, the BBU may correspond to a gNB central unit (gNB-CU) described later. Alternatively, the RU may be a radio device connected to a gNB-DU described later. The gNB-CU, gNB-DU, and RU connected to the gNB-DU may be configured to comply with O-RAN (Open Radio Access Network). Furthermore, the RU may be a device integrally formed with an antenna. The antenna of the base station (e.g., an antenna integrally formed with the RU) may employ an Advanced Antenna System and support MIMO (e.g., FD-MIMO) and beamforming. Furthermore, the antenna of the base station may have, for example, 64 transmitting antenna ports and 64 receiving antenna ports.

[0072] The antenna mounted on the RU may be an antenna panel composed of one or more antenna elements, and the RU may be equipped with one or more antenna panels. For example, the RU may be equipped with two types of antenna panels, one for horizontal polarization and one for vertical polarization, or two types of antenna panels, one for right-handed circular polarization and one for left-handed circular polarization. The RU may also form and control independent beams for each antenna panel.

[0073] It should be noted that multiple base stations may be connected to each other. One or more base stations may be included in a radio access network (RAN). In this case, the base station may simply be referred to as a RAN, a RAN node, an AN (Access Network), or an AN node. It should be noted that the RAN in LTE may be called an Enhanced Universal Terrestrial RAN (EUTRAN). The RAN in NR may be called an NGRAN. The RAN in W-CDMA (UMTS) may be called a UTRAN.

[0074] Note that an LTE base station may be referred to as an eNodeB (Evolved Node B) or eNB. In this case, the EUTRAN includes one or more eNodeBs (eNBs). Also, an NR base station may be referred to as a gNodeB or gNB. In this case, the NGRAN includes one or more gNBs. The EUTRAN may include a gNB (en-gNB) connected to a core network (EPC) in an LTE communication system (EPS). Similarly, the NGRAN may include an ng-eNB connected to a core network 5GC in a 5G communication system (5GS).

[0075] When the base station is an eNB, gNB, or the like, the base station may be referred to as a 3GPP access. When the base station is a wireless access point, the base station may be referred to as a non-3GPP access. Furthermore, the base station may be an optical extension device called an RRH (Remote Radio Head) or an RU (Radio Unit). When the base station is a gNB, the base station may be a combination of the above-mentioned gNB-CU and gNB-DU, or may be either a gNB-CU or a gNB-DU.

[0076] Here, the gNB-CU hosts multiple upper layers (e.g., RRC (Radio Resource Control), SDAP (Service Data Adaptation Protocol), PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol)) of the access stratum for communication with the UE. On the other hand, the gNB-DU hosts multiple lower layers (e.g., RLC (Radio Link Control), MAC (Medium Access Control), PHY (Physical layer)) of the access stratum. That is, among the messages / information described below, RRC signaling (semi-static notification) is generated by the gNB-CU, while MAC The CE and DCI (dynamic notification) may be generated by the gNB-DU. Alternatively, some configurations of the RRC configuration (semi-static notification), such as IE:cellGroupConfig, may be generated by the gNB-DU, and the remaining configurations may be generated by the gNB-CU. These configurations may be transmitted and received over the F1 interface described below.

[0077] Note that a base station may be configured to be able to communicate with other base stations. For example, if multiple base stations are eNBs or a combination of an eNB and an en-gNB, the base stations may be connected via an X2 interface. Also, if multiple base stations are gNBs or a combination of a gn-eNB and a gNB, the devices may be connected via an Xn interface. Also, if multiple base stations are a combination of a gNB-CU and a gNB-DU, the devices may be connected via the above-mentioned F1 interface. Messages / information (e.g., RRC signaling, MAC CE (MAC Control Element), or DCI) described below may be transmitted between multiple base stations, for example, via an X2 interface, an Xn interface, or an F1 interface.

[0078] A cell provided by a base station may be referred to as a serving cell. The concept of a serving cell includes a PCell (Primary Cell) and an SCell (Secondary Cell). When dual connectivity is configured in a UE (e.g., a wireless communication device), the PCell and zero or more SCells provided by a Master Node (MN) may be referred to as a Master Cell Group. Examples of dual connectivity include EUTRA-EUTRA Dual Connectivity, EUTRA-NR Dual Connectivity (ENDC), EUTRA-NR Dual Connectivity with 5GC, NR-EUTRA Dual Connectivity (NEDC), and NR-NR Dual Connectivity.

[0079] The serving cell may include a PSCell (Primary Secondary Cell or Primary SCG Cell). When dual connectivity is configured for a UE, the PSCell and zero or more SCells provided by a Secondary Node (SN) may be referred to as a Secondary Cell Group (SCG). Unless special configuration (e.g., PUCCH on SCell) is performed, the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) is transmitted by the PCell and PSCell but not by the SCell. In addition, radio link failure is detected by the PCell and PSCell but not by the SCell (it does not need to be detected). As such, the PCell and PSCell have special roles among serving cells and are therefore also referred to as Special Cells (SpCells).

[0080] One cell may be associated with one downlink component carrier and one uplink component carrier. Furthermore, the system bandwidth corresponding to one cell may be divided into a plurality of BWPs (Bandwidth Parts). In this case, one or a plurality of BWPs may be configured in a UE, and one BWP may be used by the UE as an active BWP. Furthermore, the radio resources (e.g., frequency band, numerology (subcarrier spacing), slot format) that can be used by a wireless communication device may differ for each cell, each component carrier, or each BWP.

[0081] 2.4. Configuration of Wireless Communication Device Next, we will explain the configuration of the wireless communication device 40. The wireless communication device 40 can also be called UE (User Equipment) 40.

[0082] The wireless communication device 40 is a communication device that wirelessly communicates with other communication devices such as the base station 30. The wireless communication device 40 is, for example, a mobile phone, a smart device (smartphone or tablet), a personal digital assistant (PDA), or a personal computer. The wireless communication device 40 may also be a device such as a commercial camera equipped with a communication function, or a motorcycle or mobile broadcast vehicle equipped with a communication device such as a field pickup unit (FPU). The wireless communication device 40 may also be an M2M (Machine to Machine) device or an IoT (Internet of Things) device.

[0083] The wireless communication device 40 may be capable of NOMA communication with the base station 30. Furthermore, the wireless communication device 40 may use an automatic repeat transmission technique such as HARQ when communicating with the base station 30. The wireless communication device 40 may be capable of sidelink communication with other wireless communication devices 40. The wireless communication device 40 may also use an automatic repeat transmission technique such as HARQ when performing sidelink communication. The wireless communication device 40 may also be capable of NOMA communication in communication (sidelink) with other wireless communication devices 40. The wireless communication device 40 may also be capable of LPWA communication with other communication devices (e.g., base stations 30 and other wireless communication devices 40). The wireless communication used by the wireless communication device 40 may be wireless communication using millimeter waves. The wireless communication (including sidelink communication) used by the wireless communication device 40 may be wireless communication using radio waves, or wireless communication using infrared or visible light (optical wireless).

[0084] The wireless communication device 40 may also be mounted on a mobile device. The mobile device is a mobile wireless communication device. For example, the wireless communication device 40 may be a vehicle that moves on a road, such as an automobile, bus, truck, or motorcycle, a vehicle that moves on rails installed on a track, such as a train, or a wireless communication device mounted on such a vehicle. The mobile device may be a mobile terminal, or a mobile device that moves on land (ground in the narrow sense), underground, on water, or underwater. The mobile device may also be a mobile device that moves within the atmosphere, such as a drone or helicopter, or a mobile device that moves outside the atmosphere, such as an artificial satellite.

[0085] The wireless communication device 40 may simultaneously connect to and communicate with multiple base stations or multiple cells. For example, when one base station supports a communication area through multiple cells (e.g., pCell, sCell), the multiple cells can be aggregated using carrier aggregation (CA), dual connectivity (DC), or multi-connectivity (MC) technology to enable communication between the base station 30 and the wireless communication device 40. Alternatively, the wireless communication device 40 can communicate with the multiple base stations 30 via cells of different base stations 30 using coordinated multi-point transmission and reception (CoMP).

[0086] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example configuration of a wireless communication device 40 according to the proposed technique of the present disclosure. The wireless communication device 40 includes a wireless communication unit 41, a storage unit 42, and a control unit 43. Note that the configuration shown in Fig. 5 is a functional configuration, and the hardware configuration may be different from this. Furthermore, the functions of the wireless communication device 40 may be distributed and implemented in multiple physically separated components.

[0087] The wireless communication unit 41 is a signal processing unit for wirelessly communicating with other wireless communication devices (e.g., the base station 30 and other wireless communication devices 40). The wireless communication unit 41 operates under the control of the control unit 43. The wireless communication unit 41 includes a transmission processing unit 411, a reception processing unit 412, and an antenna 413. The configurations of the wireless communication unit 41, the transmission processing unit 411, the reception processing unit 412, and the antenna 413 may be similar to those of the wireless communication unit 31, the transmission processing unit 311, the reception processing unit 312, and the antenna 313 of the base station 30. Furthermore, like the wireless communication unit 31, the wireless communication unit 41 may be configured to be capable of beamforming. Furthermore, like the wireless communication unit 31, the wireless communication unit 41 may be configured to be capable of transmitting and receiving spatially multiplexed signals.

[0088] The storage unit 42 is a data readable / writable storage device such as a DRAM, an SRAM, a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 42 functions as a storage means of the wireless communication device 40.

[0089] The control unit 43 is a controller that controls each unit of the wireless communication device 40. The control unit 43 is realized by a processor such as a CPU or an MPU. For example, the control unit 43 is realized by a processor executing various programs stored in a storage device inside the wireless communication device 40 using RAM or the like as a work area. The control unit 43 may also be realized by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC or an FPGA. A CPU, an MPU, an ASIC, and an FPGA can all be considered as controllers. The control unit 43 may also be realized by a GPU in addition to or instead of a CPU.

[0090] <<3. Network Overview>> <3.1. Example of 5G Network Architecture Configuration> As an example of the core network CN of a communication system, the architecture of a fifth-generation mobile communication system (5G) will be described.

[0091] 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a 5G architecture. The 5G core network CN is also called 5GC (5G Core) / NGC (Next Generation Core). Hereinafter, the 5G core network CN is also referred to as 5GC / NGC.

[0092] The core network CN is connected to a UE (User Equipment) 40 via an (R)AN 30. The UE 40 is, for example, a wireless communication device 40.

[0093] Although the core network CN shown in Fig. 6 does not include a management function (PNAM) for managing multiple private networks, the core network CN may include a PNAM as one of its network functions. Of course, the PNAM may be a network function located outside the core network CN.

[0094] The (R)AN 30 has a function that enables connection with a Radio Access Network (RAN) and connection with an Access Network (AN) other than the RAN. The (R)AN 30 includes a base station called a gNB or ng-eNB.

[0095] The core network CN mainly performs connection permission and session management when the UE 40 connects to the network. The core network CN can be configured to include a user plane function group 220 and a control plane function group 240.

[0096] The user plane function group 220 includes a User Plane Function (UPF) 221 and a Data Network (DN) 222. The UPF 221 has a function of processing the user plane. The UPF 221 includes a function of routing / forwarding data handled in the user plane. The DN 222 is, for example, an entity such as an MNO (Mobile Network Operator) that provides connection to an operator's own services, provides Internet connection, or provides connection to third-party services. In this way, the user plane function group 220 plays the role of a gateway that serves as the boundary between the core network CN and the Internet.

[0097] The control plane function group 240 includes an Access Management Function (AMF) 241, a Session Management Function (SMF) 242, an Authentication Server Function (AUSF) 243, a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF) 244, a Network Exposure Function (NEF) 245, a Network Repository Function (NRF) 246, a Policy Control Function (PCF) 247, a Unified Data Management (UDM) 248, and an Application Function (AF) 249.

[0098] The AMF 241 has functions such as registration processing, connection management, and mobility management for the UE 40. The SMF 242 has functions such as session management, IP allocation and management for the UE 40, etc. The AUSF 243 has an authentication function. The NSSF 244 has a function related to network slice selection. The NEF 245 has a function of providing network function capabilities and events to third parties, the AF 249, and edge computing functions.

[0099] The NRF 246 has a function of discovering network capabilities and maintaining network capability profiles. The PCF 247 has a function of policy control. The UDM 248 has a function of generating 3GPP AKA authentication information and processing user IDs. The AF 249 has a function of interacting with the core network to provide services.

[0100] For example, the control plane function group 240 acquires information from the UDM 248, which stores subscriber information of the UE 40, and determines whether or not the UE 40 may connect to the network. For this determination, the control plane function group 240 uses the contract information of the UE 40 and an encryption key contained in the information acquired from the UDM 248. The control plane function group 240 also generates encryption keys and the like.

[0101] That is, the control plane function group 240 determines whether or not the UE 40 can connect to the network depending on whether or not information about the UE 40 linked to a subscriber number called an IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) is stored in the UDM 248. The IMSI is stored in a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card in the UE 40, for example.

[0102] Here, Namf is a service-based interface provided by the AMF 241, and Nsmf is a service-based interface provided by the SMF 242. Furthermore, Nnef is a service-based interface provided by the NEF 245, and Npcf is a service-based interface provided by the PCF 247. Nudm is a service-based interface provided by the UDM 248, and Naf is a service-based interface provided by the AF 249. Nnrf is a service-based interface provided by the NRF 246, and Nnssf is a service-based interface provided by the NSSF 244. Nausf is a service-based interface provided by the AUSF 243. Each of these NFs (Network Functions) exchanges information with other NFs via the respective service-based interfaces.

[0103] 6, N1 is a reference point between the UE 40 and the AMF 241, and N2 is a reference point between the RAN / AN 30 and the AMF 241. N4 is a reference point between the SMF 242 and the UPF 221, and information is exchanged between these NFs (Network Functions).

[0104] As described above, the core network CN provides an interface for transmitting information and controlling functions via an application programming interface (API) called a service-based interface.

[0105] The API allows a resource to be specified, and enables operations such as GET (obtaining a resource), POST (creating a resource or adding data), PUT (creating a resource or updating a resource), and DELETE (deleting a resource) to that resource. Such functions are commonly used in, for example, web-related technical fields.

[0106] For example, when establishing a communication session, the AMF 241, the SMF 242, and the UDM 248 shown in Fig. 6 exchange information with each other using APIs. Conventionally, it has not been assumed that an application (e.g., the AF 249) would use such an API. However, by the AF 249 using such an API, the AF 249 can use information on a 5G cellular network, which is considered to further evolve the functionality of the application.

[0107] An example of the UE 40 in Fig. 6 is the wireless communication device 40 of the proposed technology. An example of the (R)AN 30 is the base station 30 of the proposed technology. Furthermore, the information processing device 20 is an example of a device having each function of the core network CN. The application server 10 may be the AF 249 in Fig. 6 or a server device connected to the core network CN via a network other than the core network CN.

[0108] In the proposed technology, for example, wireless communication is performed between the (R)AN 30 and the UE 40. To perform wireless communication, the (R)AN 30 and the UE 40 need a technique for performing modulation and demodulation.

[0109] Furthermore, in wireless communication, resource allocation, that is, allocation of limited time resources and frequency resources to the UE 40, is important.

[0110] Time resources are configured as frames. For example, in a 5G system, one frame is configured with 10 ms. Furthermore, one frame is configured with 10 subframes. Each subframe is configured with multiple Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols. The OFDM symbols include, for example, DL OFDM symbols and UL OFDM symbols.

[0111] A basic unit of a frequency band called a Component Carrier is used as a frequency resource. A Component Carrier has a bandwidth of 20 MHz. A frequency band formed by aggregating multiple Component Carriers can be used as a frequency resource.

[0112] <3.2.4G Network Architecture Configuration Example> Next, the architecture of a fourth generation mobile communication system (4G) will be described as an example of a core network CN of a communication system with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the 4G architecture.

[0113] Although the core network CN shown in Fig. 7 does not include a management function (PNAM) for managing multiple private networks, the core network CN may include a PNAM as one of its network functions. Of course, the PNAM may be a network function located outside the core network CN.

[0114] As shown in FIG. 7, the core network CN includes an eNB 30, a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 252, a Serving Gateway (S-GW) 253, a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW) 254, and a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 255.

[0115] The eNB 30 functions as a 4G base station. The MME 252 is a control node that handles control plane signals and manages the mobility state of the UE 40. The UE 40 transmits an Attach request to the MME 252 in order to attach to the cellular system.

[0116] The S-GW 253 is a control node that handles user plane signals and is a gateway device that switches the transfer path of user data. The P-GW 254 is a control node that handles user plane signals and is a gateway device that serves as a connection point between the core network CN and the Internet. The HSS 255 is a control node that handles subscriber data and performs service control.

[0117] The MME 252 corresponds to the functions of the AMF 241 and the SMF 242 in a 5G network. The HSS 255 corresponds to the function of the UDM 248.

[0118] 7, the eNB 30 is connected to the MME 252 via an S1-MME interface and to the S-GW 253 via an S1-U interface. The S-GW 253 is connected to the MME 252 via an S11 interface, and the MME 252 is connected to the HSS 255 via an S6a interface. The P-GW 254 is connected to the S-GW 253 via an S5 / S8 interface.

[0119] <3.3. Private Networks (Private 5G / 4G)> A communication system according to the proposed technology of the present disclosure is a system that realizes low-latency communication. When considering a low-latency system, a private network is one candidate.

[0120] Private networks allow communication systems to be easily customized to fit specific applications, making them a popular choice when configuring systems with low latency and / or low jitter (small latency fluctuations).

[0121] Therefore, an overview of private networks will be described below. In particular, in technologies that aim to integrate applications and cellular technologies, it may be desirable to adopt private networks from the perspective of being able to freely change the design. However, the proposed technology of this disclosure is not limited to private networks and can also be applied to public networks.

[0122] Currently, many offices and homes have LANs (Local Area Networks). LANs are composed of LAN cables, routers, and the like. Communication devices are connected to ISPs (Internet Service Providers) via the LAN. Private 5G and Private 4G are networks that are operated by placing cellular base stations 30 on these LANs. In 3GPP (registered trademark), Private 5G / 4G are called Non-Public Networks.

[0123] In private 5G / 4G, the base station 30 and the wireless communication device 40 are located, for example, in an office, factory, or private home where a LAN is installed. On the other hand, the core network CN that controls the base station 30 may be located in the LAN or in a cloud data center on the Internet. The base station 30 and the core network CN are assigned private IP addresses and can communicate with each other. For example, the base station 30 and the core network CN can communicate with each other using private IP addresses by using technology such as a virtual private network. As a result, the network connecting the base station 30 and the core network CN can be treated as a private network.

[0124] Figure 8 is a diagram showing an example of the use of private 5G / 4G. In the example of Figure 8, a plurality of user plane functions (UPFs) of the core network CN are deployed in the LAN and the cloud, and the control plane function of the core network CN is deployed in the cloud. Also, in the example of Figure 8, the base station 30 and the UE 40 are deployed in the LAN area.

[0125] Private 5G / 4G is a non-public network. In private 5G / 4G, it is often assumed that the UE 40, base station 30, core network CN, and applications are located inside a virtual private network. In this case, for example, the UE 40 and base station 30 may be located in a LAN area. Furthermore, the core network CN and applications may be located either in the LAN area or in a cloud in the Internet.

[0126] At least one UPF deployed in the LAN exists in the LAN when the control plane function is launched or when the core network CN starts operating. On the other hand, at least one UPF deployed in the cloud does not exist in the cloud when the control plane function is launched or when the core network CN starts operating. The UPF deployed in the cloud is a function that is launched after the control plane function is launched or when the core network CN starts operating, for example.

[0127] <3. Regarding API of 4.5G Core Network> For example, information may be transmitted from the application client 50 installed in the terminal device 400 via an API (Application Programming Interface) called SBI (Service Based Interface) installed in the base station 30.

[0128] In the following, as an example of this SBI, we will explain the SBI provided in the core network CN, but a similar SBI is also provided in the base station 30, and the application client 50 can communicate with the base station 30 using this SBI.

[0129] As mentioned above, the 5G core network (CN) provides an API called SBI. Communication devices transmit information and control functions via this API.

[0130] FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the API of the 5G core network. The API enables the specification of a resource, and GET (resource acquisition), POST (resource creation, data addition), PUT (resource creation, resource update), DELETE (resource deletion), and the like for that resource. Such functions are technologies commonly used in the web world. The AMF, SMF, and UDM in the diagram need to exchange information with each other when establishing a communication session. The AMF, SMF, and UDM exchange this information via the API.

[0131] Most of these APIs are not intended for use by applications. However, it is believed that by using these APIs, applications can perform more advanced information processing using cellular network information. Applications are not permitted to use APIs without permission in public networks. However, in private 5G, which is a non-public network, it is possible to use APIs, including modifying the APIs of the core network (CN).

[0132] <3.5.5G Core Network API Example> Figure 10 is a diagram for explaining the API of the 5G core network. In the example of Figure 10, the base station 30 and the core network CN are arranged in a virtual LAN (virtual LAN). The base station 30 and the core network CN communicate with the Internet outside the virtual LAN via a router. In Figure 10, UE 40A and UE 40B communicate. Note that APIs (1) to (4) described here are described in 3GPP TS23.502.

[0133] API (1): API (1) is an API through which the SMF notifies that a pre-registered UE has transitioned from a powered-off state to a powered-on state and attached to the network, and the IP address obtained at that time.

[0134] API (2): The UE is in idle mode when not communicating, and transitions to connected mode when communicating. API (2) is an API by which the AMF notifies whether the UE 40A is in idle mode or connected mode.

[0135] API (3): API (3) is an API for broadcasting a message (paging message) from the base station 30 to instruct the UE to transition from the idle mode to the connected mode.

[0136] API (4): API (4) is an API provided by the AMF for the location information of UE 40A. The AMF uses API (4) to notify UE 40A of which Tracking Area it is in, which Cell it belongs to, etc. The AMF can also use API (4) to notify UE 40A when it enters a specific area. The location information of UE 40A notified using API (4) is rough location information, unlike location information from a GPS (Global Positioning System). While location information from the TPS is treated as location information from the application layer, location information provided by the AMF is treated as location information provided by 3GPP RAN1. In this way, the AMF is provided with AIP (4) for acquiring location information from 3GPP RAN1.

[0137] <3.6. Example of API in Base Station of 5G Core Network> Generally, in a 5G network, an API of a Service Based Interface (SBI) is not output from the base station 30. However, a technique for outputting information related to a beam ID from the base station 30 is known.

[0138] In the present disclosure, the base station 30 and the wireless communication device 40 report the QoS status (an example of QoS information) to the UPF 221 of the core network CN. This QoS information and delay information are reported using, for example, an API of SBI.

[0139] <3.7. TSN> Having explained wireless networks above, we will now explain Time-Sensitive Networks (TSNs).

[0140] <3.7.1. Relationship between Industry 4.0 and TSN> Industry 4.0 is a term that refers to the fourth industrial revolution, and is a technology that realizes high-mix, low-volume production in addition to the mass production that has been practiced until now. Smart factories are one use case of Industry 4.0. Smart factories enable communication between all systems within a factory, thereby improving factory efficiency.

[0141] Digital twins are positioned as a core technology of Industry 4.0. Digital twins allow the status of systems within a factory to be understood on the network side, and this information can then be reflected in the control of actual equipment on the factory side. In recent years, digital twins have also been used in use cases such as controlling entire cities. Digital twins can be defined as a subset of Industry 4.0.

[0142] TSN is a core technology for realizing Industry 4.0. TSN is a technology that sends and receives packets on time over Ethernet (registered trademark). TSN is also used in Industry 4.0 smart factories. TSN is also used in digital twins, a core technology of Industry 4.0.

[0143] Note that IoT (Internet of Things) is used as a concept similar to Industry 4.0. In the present disclosure, IoT may be used as a concept similar to Industry 4.0 without any particular distinction.

[0144] <3.7.2. Typical use cases of TSN networks> A typical use case of TSN is the control of industrial equipment in a factory, which requires communication between controllers (C to C) and communication between end devices such as actuators and controllers (C to D).

[0145] The traffic required for C to C and C to D within a factory can be periodic or aperiodic (sporadic). The period also varies depending on the traffic. Some have a period of 1 ms or less, while others have a period of 10 ms to 50 ms. For example, in network control applications, the period can be as long as 50 ms to 1 s.

[0146] The present disclosure aims to improve, for example, the quality of TSN by having an information processing device (for example, the UPF 221 or the base station 30) report delay information.

[0147] 3.8. About XR (Extended Reality) XR is a concept that includes virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). XR is a technology that connects the real world with the virtual world.

[0148] Typically, a user enjoying an XR service wears an HMD (Head Mounted Display). The HMD (more specifically, the application client 50 mounted on the HMD, which is the terminal device 400) transmits the direction in which the user is facing via UL to an application server 10 that provides the XR service. The application server 10 can be located on, for example, a cloud.

[0149] The application server 10 creates (renders) an image that matches the direction the user is facing. The application server 10 compresses or decompresses the rendered image and transmits it to the application client 50 installed in the terminal device 400, which is an HMD, via the base station 30 and the wireless communication device 40.

[0150] This allows a user wearing an HMD to see an image in the direction they are facing.

[0151] This technology is called Cloud Rendering or Remote Rendering. With this technology, traffic sending information about the direction of the HMD via uplink triggers the provision of the service, i.e., the rendering of an image.

[0152] Therefore, it is important to reduce rendering delays that UL resources are allocated at the timing when the HMD wants to send directional information. In other words, in a communication system that provides XR services, reducing the delay in UL resource allocation improves XR performance.

[0153] 3.9. Regarding Multimodal Communication An example of a use case of the present disclosure is multimodal communication, in which various different pieces of information, such as haptic information and emotions extracted from facial images, are transmitted and received between applications located in separate locations.

[0154] When transmitting and receiving different types of information, if there is a difference in the delay time for each piece of information, the user will feel uncomfortable. As such, multimodal communication is significantly affected by delay. The proposed technology of this disclosure can improve the performance of multimodal communication by reducing delay.

[0155] <3.10. Scheduler and Resources of Base Station> Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a frame configuration in 5G. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a time frame used by the base station 30.

[0156] As described above, the frame configuration of the time frame handled by the 5G base station 30 includes subframes arranged every 1 ms. Ten subframes make up one frame. The length of one frame is 10 ms.

[0157] One subframe consists of one or more slots. In 5G, one subframe includes one, two, four, eight, or sixteen slots. Figure 11 shows a case where one subframe includes two slots.

[0158] One slot includes 14 OFDM symbols. Each OFDM symbol is assigned a DL symbol (symbol indicated by "D" in FIG. 12) or a UL symbol (symbol indicated by "U" in FIG. 12). 3GPP Rel15 TS 38.213 provides multiple combinations of DL symbols and UL symbols.

[0159] Only DL packets are transmitted in symbols assigned to DL, and only UL packets are transmitted in symbols assigned to UL.

[0160] It should be noted that the flexible symbol (the symbol indicated by "F" in FIG. 12) can be used as either DL or UL.

[0161] Thus, in a 5G network, DL symbols and UL symbols are mixed within a slot, and the ratio between them is specified for each slot. This means that the ratio between DL symbols and UL symbols can vary for each slot in each subframe. Even if the same slot format is used for all slots, DL symbols and UL symbols will appear at a predetermined rate. Thus, in a 5G network, the base station 30 may not always be able to transmit DL / UL packets. This can cause delays and jitter in the packets.

[0162] <3.11. Configured Grant> FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a procedure for transmitting UL data.

[0163] As shown in FIG. 13, in order to transmit UL data, the UE 40 transmits a Scheduling Request to the base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 13) (step S11).

[0164] Upon receiving the Scheduling Request, the base station 30 allocates UL resources and notifies the UE 40 of the allocation result (uplink resource allocation) using DL DCI (Down Control Information) (step S12).

[0165] Thereafter, the UE 40 transmits the UL data on a PUSCH (Phy Uplink Shared Channel) using the allocated UL resources (step S13).

[0166] As described above, up until 3GPP Rel15, in order for UE 40 to transmit UL data, it was necessary to transmit a Scheduling Request to base station 30. This method (Dynamic Grant) causes a large delay before UE 40 can transmit the UL data.

[0167] Therefore, a mechanism called Configured Grant was standardized in 3GPP Rel16.

[0168] FIG. 14 is a sequence diagram showing another example of a procedure for transmitting UL data.

[0169] In the example of FIG. 14, first, the base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 14) transmits a periodic uplink resource configuration to the UE 40 using RRC (step S21).

[0170] The UE 40 that has generated the UL data transmits the UL data on a PUSCH (Phy Uplink Shared Channel) using the UL resources that have already been allocated (step S22).

[0171] In this way, in the Configured Grant, the base station 30 periodically allocates UL resources in advance. At this time, the base station 30 may determine an MCS (Modulation Coding Scheme) or the like in advance. This MCS is valid for, for example, a certain period of time.

[0172] This allows the UE 40 to transmit UL data using the periodically allocated UL resources using the same MCS for a certain period of time.

[0173] However, UL resources are not necessarily allocated at the timing when UL data is generated. There is a possibility that the timing when UE 40 wants to transmit UL data and the timing when base station 30 allocates UL resources are different.

[0174] This timing discrepancy may cause a large delay in the transmission of UL data. One possible method for reducing this delay is to increase the number of UL resources allocated in advance. However, this method may result in, for example, a reduction in the number of DL resources allocated, resulting in a decrease in frequency utilization efficiency. Therefore, in the Configured Grant, UL resources are allocated periodically.

[0175] <3.12. QoS and QoS Control> In the technology proposed in this disclosure, QoS is an important point. In 5G, QoS Flow (also referred to as traffic in this disclosure) is defined. QoS Flow is associated with a QoS Identifier. In 5G, the QoS Identifier is also referred to as 5QI.

[0176] In 5G, priority control and other measures are handled differently for each of these 5QIs. That is, QoS Flows (traffic) with the same 5QI are handled in the same way, including priority control.

[0177] QoS control involves various methods of handling traffic. Examples of QoS control include reducing delay, reducing packet loss, and improving accessibility to the 5G system. For example, the difference in accessibility to the 5G system is whether or not users can access the system preferentially when access to the system increases due to a natural disaster or other reasons. 5QI affects the ease of access, the magnitude of delay, and other factors.

[0178] The proposed technology of the present disclosure focuses on QoS control for reducing delay. A 5QI is assigned to traffic (QoS Flow). In conventional 5G systems, the same 5QI is assigned to end-to-end traffic (e.g., between an application server 10 and an application client 50).

[0179] An end-to-end communication path includes various network functions. At each function, traffic is handled based on 5QI. In other words, QoS control is applied to traffic at multiple points in the communication system, not just at one point.

[0180] A specific method of QoS control for the purpose of delay control is to use a different buffer for each 5QI. For example, a node that performs QoS control (such as the UPF 221, the base station 30, or the UE 40) prepares a different buffer for each 5QI, and when traffic arrives, the traffic is input into the buffer corresponding to the assigned 5QI.

[0181] The node that performs QoS control controls the period and order in which traffic is read from each buffer by priority control, thus performing QoS control in the communication system.

[0182] <3.13. QoS Report> 3GPP TS23.501 Section 5.8.2.18 defines QoS reporting. In this standard, the function of monitoring QoS is limited to the UPF 221. In other words, conventionally, only the UPF 221 performs QoS reporting. As described above, the UPF 221 is an NF that handles user-plane packets.

[0183] The UPF 221 performs QoS reporting to the SMF 242 and the AF 249 .

[0184] Although details will be described later, in the proposed technology of the present disclosure, QoS information relating to QoS observed at, for example, multiple nodes in a communication system is collected by, for example, the UPF 221. The UPF 221 aggregates the QoS information acquired from the multiple nodes to generate delay information and notifies the application server 10 of the delay information.

[0185] In addition, in the proposed technique of the present disclosure, for example, the UPF 221 may report delay information related to a predicted QoS value. This report differs from a conventional QoS report in that it is a predicted QoS value.

[0186] Furthermore, the proposed technology of the present disclosure can report delay information regarding delay differences between traffic streams, which is important in multimodal communication. This report differs from conventional QoS reports in that it includes delay differences between traffic streams.

[0187] Detailed examples of embodiments of the present disclosure are described below.

[0188] <<4. Operation of the Communication System>> <4.1. First Embodiment> First, the operation of the communication system of the first embodiment will be described.

[0189] <4.1.1. Issues> In conventional 5G systems, there was no means for transmitting the quality of communication service (QoS) for each communication section to other NFs or AFs 249. In this disclosure, a 5G system (an example of a cellular communication system) is a system including, for example, a UE 40, a base station 30, and a core network CN. A node in the 5G system refers to each function included in the UE 40, the base station 30, and the core network CN.

[0190] When considered end-to-end, traffic in a communication system is composed of various communication sections. However, conventionally, end-to-end communication quality is measured by one location, for example, the UPF 221, and reported to the AF 249 or the like. This report does not suggest points for improving communication quality. Therefore, when the AF 249 receives this report, it does not know how to adjust the application setting parameters.

[0191] In order to improve the quality of communication, it is important for the AF 249 to acquire information such as in which section of traffic the communication quality has deteriorated. By acquiring the communication quality for each section, the AF 249 can take effective measures to improve the communication quality for each section where the communication quality has deteriorated.

[0192] For example, the communication section (communication path) between the application client 50 and the application server 10 in the communication system shown in Fig. 1 is divided into a wireless section and a priority section. Specifically, in the example of Fig. 1, the section between the terminal device 400 and the base station 30 is a wireless section. Also, the section between the base station 30 and the application server 10 is a wired section.

[0193] Note that this example is merely an example, and the communication interval may be divided into intervals other than the wireless interval and the wired interval. The wireless interval and the wired interval may be further divided into a plurality of intervals. Furthermore, each interval includes two intervals, a UL interval and a DL interval. That is, for example, the wireless interval includes a UL wireless interval and a DL wireless interval. The wired interval includes a UL wired interval and a DL wired interval.

[0194] (Causes of QoS Degradation in Wireless Sections) In wireless sections, QoS degradation (worsening) occurs due to at least the following four factors a0) to d0).

[0195] a0) Delay due to UL / DL resource cycle In a 5G system, UL and DL are allocated by TDD (Time Division Duplex). Therefore, DL data waits for the slot where DL is allocated before being transmitted. This causes a DL delay. Similarly, UL data waits for the slot where UL is allocated before being transmitted. This causes a UL delay.

[0196] b0) Delay due to UL Resource Allocation This delay occurs due to the exchange of signaling between the UE 40 and the base station 30 to allocate UL resources. For example, in Direct Grant, the UE 40 transmits a scheduling request to the base station 30, and the UL resources are allocated when the base station 30 grants permission. This procedure for allocating UL resources causes a delay in the UL.

[0197] To avoid this delay, the above-mentioned Configured Grant was defined. In the Configured Grant, UL resources are allocated periodically. However, in the Configured Grant, UE 40 must wait for the allocated UL resources before transmitting UL data, resulting in a delay of up to the UL resource allocation period. Furthermore, if the UL resource allocation period is long, the delay will vary greatly, resulting in degradation of QoS.

[0198] c0) Delay due to retransmission in wireless communication If the quality of the wireless section is poor, there is a risk that retransmissions will increase in the communication between the base station 30 and the UE 40. These retransmissions will cause delays.

[0199] d0) Delay due to congestion at the base station 30 When the traffic volume increases due to one or more UEs 40, a delay occurs. In the case of DL, for example, this delay occurs when DL data accumulates in the buffer of the base station 30. In the case of UL, for example, this delay occurs when UL resources cannot be allocated to the UE 40. In this case, UL resources are not allocated and UL data that cannot be transmitted accumulates in the buffer of the UE 40.

[0200] (Causes of QoS Degradation in Wired Sections) In wired sections, QoS degradation (worsening) occurs due to at least the following three factors e0) to g0).

[0201] e0) Delay due to VPN For example, when connecting a LAN and a cloud via a VPN, delay occurs when using an encryption called IPSec. The LAN includes a base station 30 located in, for example, an office or a factory. The cloud also includes a core network CN and an application server 10.

[0202] f0) Delay Due to Physical Distance Delay occurs due to the distance between the LAN to which the base station 30 belongs and the cloud in which the core network CN and the application server 10 are located.

[0203] g0) Delay due to congestion of the UPF 221 When traffic (data) arrives in bursts at the UPF 221, the buffer length becomes longer, causing a delay. This delay occurs because the UPF 221 outputs data at a constant rate, i.e., a constant amount that the base station 30 can process.

[0204] In this way, there are multiple factors that can cause QoS degradation in one section (wireless section or wired section). In the example described above, seven factors a0) to g0) can be listed as factors that can cause QoS degradation in a communication section (for example, the communication section between UE 40 and application server 10).

[0205] In a conventional QoS report, the UPF 221 reports numerical values ​​related to throughput and delay as indicators indicating whether the QoS is good or has deteriorated, etc. However, the UPF 221 cannot report which section has good or deteriorated QoS and why.

[0206] If the application server 10 can know in which section and for what reason the QoS is good or degraded, it can take action according to the section and / or the reason.

[0207] Therefore, it is desirable that the UPF 221 be able to report the status of QoS (communication quality) at which point in the communication section and due to what factors. Note that although the UPF 221 is assumed to provide the QoS report here, it is desirable that a node other than the UPF 221 (more specifically, a node of the communication system such as the base station 30) be able to provide the QoS report.

[0208] However, in the current 5G standard, the QoS report can only be made by the UPF 221, and the contents of the report are limited to information such as the jitter of the QoS Flow measured by the UPF 221.

[0209] <4.1.2. Solution> In this embodiment, therefore, the NF (network function that reports, hereinafter also referred to as the report function) acquires the QoS for each section and reports it to the AF 249 (or the application server 10).

[0210] To achieve this, the communication system according to this embodiment performs the following three steps: 1) The communication system divides the communication interval into multiple intervals and defines each interval. 2) The communication system defines a type of QoS for each interval. 3) The report function of the communication system reports the defined QoS as a level.

[0211] Note that 1) and 2) may be defined in advance. Also, the section 1) does not need to be defined. In this embodiment, it is important that there are various types of QoS.

[0212] For example, suppose a large delay occurs in the allocation of UL resources in a wireless section (caused by b0) above), causing a deterioration in the QoS level. In this case, even if the report does not include information about the wireless section, it is desirable that the report include information about "UL resource allocation," in other words, information related to the type of QoS.

[0213] As a result, the AF 249 that receives the report can know that a delay has occurred due to the allocation of UL resources and that the QoS level has deteriorated, and can take appropriate measures.

[0214] Below, an example of a definition of an interval and an example of a definition of QoS for each interval will be described. Also, an example of the contents of a report made by the report function and an example of an action that the AF 249 can take upon receiving the report will be described. Note that the action of the AF 249 is an example and is not limited to the following description. Also, the AF 249 does not necessarily have to take an action according to the report.

[0215] First, the sections are defined, for example, as wireless sections and wired sections. In the wireless sections, the following QoS (types of QoS) are defined as shown in a1) to d1): a1) Delay due to the cycle of UL / DL resources b1) Delay in allocation of UL resources c1) Delay due to retransmission of wireless communication d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion in the base station 30

[0216] In the wired section, the following QoS (types of QoS) are defined: e1) Delay due to VPN f1) Delay due to distance g1) Delay due to congestion of UPF 221

[0217] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS of the wireless section and an example of the action taken by the AF 249 upon receiving the report are as follows:

[0218] a1) Delay due to UL / DL resource cycle Report content: Delay time and delay variation (jitter) Example of AF249 action: AF249 assumes that jitter will occur for the time being and performs time judgment at a time granularity according to the jitter. More specifically, it does not perform time judgment below the time granularity of the jitter. For example, if the jitter is 0.3 ms, AF249 measures time in 0.5 ms increments but does not measure time in 0.1 ms increments.

[0219] b1) Delay in UL resource allocation Report content: Delay time and delay variation (jitter) Example of action of AF249: AF249 determines whether there is room to request a reduction in the delay. If there is room to request a reduction in the delay, AF249, for example, requests the base station 30 to reduce the delay. In addition, time determination is performed at a time granularity according to the jitter. More specifically, time determination is not performed at or below the time granularity of the jitter. For example, when the jitter is 0.3 ms, AF249 measures time in units of 0.5 ms but not in units of 0.1 ms.

[0220] c1) Delay due to retransmission of wireless communication Report content: Delay time and delay variation (jitter) Example of action of AF 249: AF 249 reduces throughput. For example, AF 249 reduces the amount of DL data to be output. In addition, AF 249 requests base station 30 to increase the MCS setting margin.

[0221] d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion of base station 30 Report contents: Delay time and delay variation (jitter), packet loss Example of action of AF249: AF249 reduces the throughput of traffic related to the congested base station 30. For example, AF249 reduces the DL data output to UE40 connected to the congested base station 30. AF249 also reduces the requirement for delay.

[0222] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS in the wired section and an example of the action taken by the AF 249 upon receiving the report are as follows:

[0223] e1) Delay due to VPN Report content: Delay time Example of action of AF 249: AF 249 acts as if this delay is a fixed delay that cannot be reduced. For example, AF 249 adjusts the delay offset between itself and other clients based on this delay.

[0224] f1) Delay due to distance Report content: Delay time Example of AF249 behavior: AF249 acts as if this delay is a fixed delay that cannot be reduced. For example, AF249 adjusts the delay offset between itself and other clients based on this delay.

[0225] g1) Delay due to congestion of UPF 221 Report content: Delay time and delay variation (jitter) Example of action of AF 249: AF 249 reduces the throughput of traffic related to the congested UPF 221. For example, AF 249 reduces the DL data passing through the congested UPF 221.

[0226] As described above, in this embodiment, QoSs a1) to g1) are defined, and the contents of the report are defined for each QoS. The AF 249 takes action according to the report contents for each QoS.

[0227] QoS deteriorates for different reasons depending on the section. Therefore, the action taken by the AF 249 to improve QoS differs depending on the reason for each section. In this embodiment, QoS reports are made for each reason (a1) to g1) for each section (wireless section and wired section).

[0228] By subdividing the QoS and report contents in this way, the AF 249 can take measures according to the cause of the QoS degradation for each section, thereby preventing the quality of the service provided by the AF 249 from being deteriorated due to delay characteristics, etc., and further improving the service.

[0229] The delay offset adjustment described above is performed by the AF 249 to equalize the delay between the AF 249 and another AF 249. The AF 249 with a small delay adds a pseudo delay in accordance with the delay amount of the AF 249 with a large delay and performs communication, thereby making it possible to equalize the apparent delay between a plurality of AFs 249 with different delay amounts. Note that one AF 249 may also equalize the delay between different UEs 40 in the same manner.

[0230] For example, in a game in which distant users compete for time, AF249 equalizes the delay between the users to determine which user has the shorter time, thereby preventing unfairness in the game. Alternatively, in a game in which users belonging to different AF249 compete to capture a flag in the metaverse space, each AF249 equalizes the delay between the users to determine which user captured the flag first, thereby ensuring fairness in the game.

[0231] The reports may be generated periodically at a predetermined interval, or may be generated upon meeting a predetermined trigger condition, such as upon a significant change in QoS (specifically, the report content) by a certain amount.

[0232] Below, an example of the report content for each factor will be explained.

[0233] a1) Delay due to UL / DL resource cycle The TDD configuration determines the allocation pattern of UL slots and DL slots. For example, assume that DL slots are allocated in the first 5 ms of a 10 ms frame, and UL slots are allocated in the last 5 ms.

[0234] In this case, if the DL traffic arrives at the base station 30 at the start of the UL slot, the delay will be a maximum of 5 ms. On the other hand, if the DL traffic arrives at the base station 30 at the start of the DL slot, the delay will be a minimum of 0 ms.

[0235] Therefore, in this case, the cause of a1) causes delay variations (jitter) of 0 ms to 5 ms, so it is desirable that the content of the report regarding QoS caused by a1) include the range of jitter.

[0236] 15 is a diagram illustrating a first example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating a delay range. In the example of FIG. 15, the report content includes information ([0 ms, X ms]) indicating that the jitter ranges from 0 ms to X ms. X is a value corresponding to the period in which UL / DL slots are arranged.

[0237] As mentioned above, depending on the arrival timing of the data, such as when the arrival timing of the DL / UL data is the timing of the DL / UL slot, the delay may be 0 ms. Therefore, the minimum value of jitter is 0 ms.

[0238] b1) Delay in Allocation of UL Resources For example, the reporting function reports whether or not Configured Grant is used in the communication system, and if Configured Grant is used, the reporting function reports the range of jitter caused by the UL resource allocation period.

[0239] 16 is a diagram illustrating a second example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating whether or not the Configured Grant is being used. If the Configured Grant is being used, the report content includes information indicating the range of delay.

[0240] Specifically, for example, if Configured Grant is used, the report content includes "1." If Configured Grant is not used, the report content includes "0." If Configured Grant is used, the report content includes information ([0 ms, X ms]) indicating that the jitter ranges from 0 ms to X ms, where X is the UL resource allocation period.

[0241] Note that the delay may be 0 ms depending on the arrival timing of the UL data, such as when the arrival timing of the UL data coincides with the timing at which the UL resource is allocated, etc. Therefore, the minimum value of jitter is 0 ms.

[0242] c1) Delay due to wireless retransmissions Wireless retransmissions occur when the receiver fails to receive a packet. The report function reports whether the retransmission is occurring in the DL or UL, and also reports the possible delay time due to the retransmission.

[0243] 17 is a diagram illustrating a third example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating whether retransmission occurs in the UL or DL. The report content also includes information indicating a delay time that may occur due to retransmission.

[0244] Specifically, for example, if a retransmission occurs in DL, the report content includes "1." If a retransmission occurs in UL, the report content includes "0." The report content includes information indicating the delay time (X ms) that may occur due to the retransmission.

[0245] d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion at the base station 30 DL packets arrive at the base station 30 via the core network CN. The arrival of many packets at once is called a burst. The capacity of the base station 30 to process DL packets is fixed based on the amount of frequency and time resources.

[0246] Therefore, when a burst of packets arrives at once that exceeds the DL packet processing capacity of the base station 30, the base station 30 stores the DL packets in a DL buffer and transmits them in order. This waiting in the DL buffer causes an increase in delay. This state is called congestion.

[0247] Congestion also occurs in the UL, where UL packets are stored in the UL buffer of the UE 40.

[0248] The congestion state can be predicted from the number of packets stored in the buffer (UL buffer or DL ​​buffer). That is, the report function can predict how long it will take to transmit packets from the number of packets stored in the buffer.

[0249] In addition, the report function reports whether the number of packets stored in the buffer is increasing or decreasing, so that AF249 can know whether the delay characteristics are getting worse or improving.

[0250] For example, the report function counts the number of packets stored in the buffer at a predetermined interval, and if the number of packets counted this time is greater than the number of packets counted last time (or a predetermined number of times before), reports that there is an increasing trend. On the other hand, if the number of packets counted this time is less than the number of packets counted last time (or a predetermined number of times before), reports that there is a decreasing trend. If there is no fluctuation in the number of packets, the report function determines that the buffer state is stable.

[0251] 18 is a diagram illustrating a fourth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating the buffer status. The report content also includes information indicating the current estimated delay due to congestion.

[0252] Specifically, for example, a report content of "0" indicates that the buffer status is stable. A report content of "1" indicates that the buffer status is on an increasing trend. A report content of "2" indicates that the buffer status is on a decreasing trend. A report content of "X ms" indicates the current estimated delay due to congestion, that is, the time currently predicted to be required for a packet to be transmitted (predicted delay time).

[0253] The reports may be divided into UL and DL reports, or one report may be made for UL and DL reports.

[0254] e1) Delay due to VPN The delay caused by the VPN is fixed. A fixed delay of 2 ms or 3 ms is added depending on the IPSec processing capability of the router. Since this delay is fixed, it only needs to be reported once. Alternatively, the report may be omitted.

[0255] 19 is a diagram illustrating a fifth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating the delay time due to IPSec processing capability. For example, "2 ms" in the report content indicates that the delay caused by the VPN is 2 ms. Note that the numerical value is an example, and the actual delay is not limited to 2 ms.

[0256] f1) Distance Delay The distance delay is fixed. A fixed delay is added depending on the location of the UE 40 and the location of the AF 249. Since this delay is fixed, it only needs to be reported once. Alternatively, the report may be omitted.

[0257] 20 is a diagram illustrating a sixth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating a delay time due to distance. For example, "5 ms" in the report content indicates that the delay due to distance is 5 ms. Note that the numerical value is an example, and the actual delay is not limited to 5 ms.

[0258] g1) Delay due to Congestion of UPF 221 A DL packet arrives at the UPF 221 from the AF 249. In order for the UPF 221 to send the DL packet to the base station 30, a wireless link needs to be established between the base station 30 and the UE 40.

[0259] If a radio link is not established, the base station 30 uses a paging message to cause the UE 40 to transition from the idle mode to the connected mode, thereby establishing a radio link between the base station 30 and the UE 40.

[0260] Until this wireless link establishment procedure is completed, DL packets addressed to the UE 40 wait in the buffer of the UPF 221. The packet delay time varies depending on how many packets are stored in this buffer. Also, as the number of packets addressed to the UE 40 that require the wireless link establishment procedure increases, the number of packets in the buffer increases.

[0261] As with the base station 30, congestion also occurs when the number of packets arriving exceeds the processing capacity of the UPF 221.

[0262] The buffer status of the UPF 221 can be predicted from the number of packets stored in the buffer. That is, the report function can predict how long it will take to transmit packets from the number of packets stored in the buffer.

[0263] In addition, the report function reports whether the number of packets stored in the buffer is increasing or decreasing, so that AF249 can know whether the delay characteristics are getting worse or improving.

[0264] For example, the report function counts the number of packets stored in the buffer at a predetermined interval, and if the number of packets counted this time is greater than the number of packets counted last time (or a predetermined number of times before), reports that there is an increasing trend. On the other hand, if the number of packets counted this time is less than the number of packets counted last time (or a predetermined number of times before), reports that there is a decreasing trend. If there is no fluctuation in the number of packets, the report function determines that the buffer state is stable.

[0265] 21 is a diagram illustrating a fifth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating the buffer status. The report content also includes information indicating the current estimated delay due to congestion.

[0266] Specifically, for example, a report content of "0" indicates that the buffer status is stable. A report content of "1" indicates that the buffer status is on an increasing trend. A report content of "2" indicates that the buffer status is on a decreasing trend. A report content of "X ms" indicates the current estimated delay due to congestion, that is, the time (delay time) currently predicted to be required for a packet to be transmitted.

[0267] The report contents given here are merely examples, and information other than the above-mentioned report contents may be reported to the AF 249. For example, the report contents may include throughput and packet loss.

[0268] In this embodiment, the report function reports delay and jitter according to the type of QoS in each section, which allows the AF 249 to adjust the delay characteristics according to the type of QoS in each section.

[0269] The nodes that know the delay characteristics caused by the QoS types (a1) to g1) of each section are distributed in various locations in the communication system according to the QoS type.

[0270] For example, the delay characteristics (delay time and jitter) due to a1) to d1) are known by the base station 30. The base station 30 collects these delay characteristics (delay time and jitter) as QoS information related to QoS, for example by measuring them, and reports them to a report function (for example, the UPF 221).

[0271] For example, the delay characteristics (delay times) due to e1) and f) are fixed. Therefore, for example, an operator of the communication system sets these delay characteristics (delay times) in advance. Specifically, the operator directly sets fixed values ​​as delay characteristics in a report function (e.g., UPF 221). As a result, the report function collects the fixed values ​​set by the operator as QoS information related to QoS.

[0272] For example, the delay characteristics (delay time and jitter) due to g1) are known by the UPF 221. The UPF 221 collects these delay characteristics (delay time and jitter) as QoS information related to QoS, for example by measuring them, and reports them to a report function (for example, the UPF 221).

[0273] The report made by the base station 30 or the UPF 221 may include the same content as the report made by the above-mentioned report function. Alternatively, the base station 30 or the UPF 221 may report information used by the report function to create the report content, such as the UL resource allocation period or the number of packets stored in the buffer.

[0274] Furthermore, the report function may use, for example, an API of SBI to report the delay information to the AF 249. Furthermore, the base station or the UPF 221 may use, for example, an API of SBI to report the delay information (or delay characteristics) to the report function.

[0275] (Example of communication processing) Fig. 22 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to embodiment 1 of the present disclosure. The communication processing shown in Fig. 22 can be executed, for example, at a predetermined cycle or when a predetermined trigger is satisfied.

[0276] 22, the core network CN (report function or UPF 221) acquires these delay characteristics (QoS information) by having an operator set e1) and f1) (step S101). Because e1) and f1) are fixed values, this step can be executed at any timing, regardless of the above-mentioned predetermined period or predetermined trigger.

[0277] The core network CN measures g1) (step S102). The core network CN grasps the buffer status of the UPF 221 and predicts the packet delay time.

[0278] The base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 22) measures a1), b1), c1), and d1) (step S103). The base station 30 measures the delay and jitter caused by a1), b1), and c1). The base station 30 also grasps the buffer status based on d1) and predicts packet delay time.

[0279] The base station 30 reports a1), b1), c1), and d1) to the core network CN (step S104).

[0280] The core network CN transmits reports a1), b1), c1), d1), e1), f1), and g1) to the AF 249 based on the information collected from the base station 30 (step S105).

[0281] Since e1) and f1) are fixed values ​​that do not change, the core network CN may omit reporting e1) and f1). Alternatively, the core network CN may omit subsequent transmission of reports e1) and f1) after transmitting the reports once.

[0282] The information collected from the base station 30 and the core network CN is an example of QoS information related to QoS (a1), b1), c1), d1), e1), f1), g1). The report sent by the core network CN to the AF 249 includes delay information (e.g., report content) related to at least one of the current delay situation and the future delay situation based on the QoS information.

[0283] The AF 249 changes the application settings in response to the report (step S106), and then the operation of the application service is executed between the AF 249 and the UE 40 (step S107).

[0284] Although it has been described here that a node of the core network CN, such as a reporting function or the UPF 221, transmits a report to the AF 249, the entity that transmits the report is not limited to a node of the core network CN. For example, the base station 30 may transmit the report.

[0285] Fig. 23 is a sequence diagram showing another example of the flow of communication processing according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. Of the communication processing in Fig. 23, the same processes as those in Fig. 22 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

[0286] 23 , the base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 23 ) reports the measured information a1), b1), c1), and d1) directly to the AF 249, rather than to the core network CN (step S201). In this way, the base station 30 may collect the QoS information (a1), b1), c1), and d1)) by measuring them, and report the information directly to the AF 249.

[0287] The core network CN also reports e1), f1), and g1) collected in steps S101 and S102 to the AF 249 (step S202).

[0288] Since e1) and f1) are fixed values ​​that do not change, the core network CN may omit reporting e1) and f1). Alternatively, the core network CN may omit subsequent transmission of reports e1) and f1) after transmitting the reports once.

[0289] In addition, although the core network CN reports e1), f1), and g1) to the AF 249 here, the core network CN may report to the base station 30. In this case, the base station 30 reports the collected QoS information regarding QoS (a1), b1), c1), d1), e1), f1), and g1)) to the AF 249.

[0290] In this way, the entity that reports delay information based on QoS information to the AF 249 may be a function of the core network CN, such as the UPF 221, or may be the base station 30.

[0291] (Example of Operation by AF 249) Although an example of lowering the throughput has been described above as an example of operation of AF 249 upon receiving a report, the operation of AF 249 is not limited to this. Here, an example of a means by which AF 249 changes the settings of an application will be described, including specific operations of AF 249, such as how to specifically lower the throughput.

[0292] (Image Quality) For example, image quality is an application parameter that can be changed by the AF 249. For example, the AF 249 can adjust the image quality of an image to be transmitted to the UE 40 in multiple stages from high to low image quality.

[0293] In particular, if "c1) delay due to retransmission in wireless communication" is a major cause of the delay, it is desirable that the AF 249 change the image quality of the image to be transmitted to the UE 40 to a low quality.

[0294] Furthermore, if the major cause of the delay is "d1) delay and packet loss due to congestion in the base station 30" or "g1) delay due to congestion in the UPF 221," the AF 249 can adjust the image quality depending on the length of the period during which the congestion occurs.

[0295] For example, if there is a possibility that the congestion will continue for a long time, it is desirable that the AF 249 change the image quality of the image to be transmitted to the UE 40 to low image quality. On the other hand, if the congestion is likely to end in a short time, the AF 249 does not change the image quality of the image to be transmitted to the UE 40 and keeps it at high image quality.

[0296] This allows the AF 249 to reduce the throughput while reducing the transmission of low-quality images.

[0297] The length of the period during which congestion occurs may be the number of packets stored in the buffer or the buffer status. For example, if the number of packets in the buffer is on the rise, the AF 249 changes the image quality of the image to be transmitted to the UE 40 to low quality. On the other hand, if the number of packets in the buffer is on the decline, the AF 249 keeps the image quality of the image to be transmitted to the UE 40 high quality.

[0298] (Frame Rate) For example, the frame rate is an application parameter that can be changed by the AF 249. For example, the AF 249 can adjust the frame rate of a moving image transmitted to the UE 40 in multiple stages.

[0299] The AF 249 can reduce the throughput by adjusting the frame rate, that is, the number of images drawn per second. For example, if the frame rate is 60 FPS, 60 images are drawn per second.

[0300] When the amount of delay is large and the delay situation is bad, for example, the AF 249 reduces the FPS.

[0301] More specifically, the AF 249 determines the upper limit of the FPS from, for example, "e1) delay due to VPN" and "f1) delay due to distance." From there, the AF 249 estimates the amount of jitter in packets from "a1) delay due to UL / DL resource cycle" and "b1) delay in UL resource allocation," and sets an FPS that allows more reliable rendering. For example, the AF 249 sets a smaller FPS value as the amount of jitter increases.

[0302] Unlike jitter caused by other QoS (e.g., c1), d1), g1), etc.), jitter caused by a1) and b1) is difficult to reduce unless the settings of a1) and b1) are changed. Therefore, the AF249 assumes that jitter caused by a1) and b1) cannot be eliminated, and sets the FPS based on the jitter caused by a1) and b1).

[0303] The AF 249 can adjust the FPS according to jitter caused by "c1) delay due to retransmission of wireless communication," "d1) delay and packet loss due to congestion of the base station 30," "g1) delay due to congestion of the UPF 221," etc. The AF 249 reduces the FPS when the jitter caused by c1), d1), and g1) is large, and increases the FPS when the delay caused by c1), d1), and g1) is eliminated and the jitter is reduced.

[0304] (Compression Ratio) For example, a compression ratio is an application parameter that can be changed by the AF 249. For example, the AF 249 can adjust the compression ratio of data (for example, images) to be transmitted to the UE 40 in multiple stages.

[0305] The AF 249 can reduce the amount of packets to be transmitted by increasing the data compression rate. For example, the AF 249 increases or decreases the compression rate according to the situation of "d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion in the base station 30" or "g1) Delay due to congestion in the UPF 221," which are caused by congestion.

[0306] (Delay Adjustment) For example, the amount of delay is an application parameter that can be changed by the AF 249. For example, the AF 249 adjusts the delay offset added to the packet in accordance with the delay of other clients.

[0307] For example, when the AF 249 wants to match the amount of delay with a packet from a client with a large delay, it adds a delay offset to its own packet.

[0308] A steady delay can be aligned with other application clients 50 by adding a delay offset to the packets. However, jitter causes delays to increase or decrease instantaneously, so it may be difficult to align packets with those of other clients.

[0309] For example, when the delay characteristics are constant, that is, when the jitter is constant, such as "a1) delay due to the cycle of UL / DL resources" and "b1) delay in allocation of UL resources," the AF 249 can add a delay offset to the packet to make the jitter uniform. Alternatively, the AF 249 may make the delay uniform with other clients by adding a delay offset so that the delay amount of the packet is always the maximum value of the jitter.

[0310] Here, the packets for which the delays are to be made uniform may be packets addressed to a plurality of different UEs 40 for which the AF 249 provides a service. Alternatively, the packets for which the delays are to be made uniform may be packets addressed to a UE 40 for which the AF 249 provides a service and packets addressed to a UE 40 for which another AF 249 different from the AF 249 provides a service.

[0311] (Service Interruption) For example, the AF 249 may temporarily suspend the provision of a service depending on the current delay situation and / or the future delay situation. In this case, if the AF 249 can predict the time until recovery, it may present the time to the user.

[0312] The AF 249 may temporarily suspend the service when it determines that the communication characteristics are poor and that recovery (i.e., improvement of the communication characteristics) will take time. In this way, for example, when there is no prospect of recovery from the congestion of "d1) delay and packet loss due to congestion of the base station 30" or "g1) delay due to congestion of the UPF 221," it may be better for the AF 249 to suspend the service.

[0313] (Grouping of Clients) For example, depending on the application provided, such as a game, communication occurs between multiple application clients 50. In this case, it may be desirable to group application clients 50 with the same delay characteristics into one group and have the AF 249 communicate with each group.

[0314] In this case, it is more desirable to group together application clients 50 with the same (or similar) QoS (a1) to (g1)) delay characteristics into the same group, rather than grouping together application clients 50 with the same (or similar) end-to-end delay time into the same group.

[0315] In particular, it is desirable that application clients 50 with the same "a1) delay due to UL / DL resource cycle," "b1) delay in UL resource allocation," or "f1) delay due to distance" are grouped into the same group.

[0316] <4.1.3. Effects> As described above, in the communication system according to this embodiment, a plurality of QoS types (a1) to g1) are defined for each section (for example, a wireless section and a priority section). The report function collects QoS information with different content for each QoS type. The report function reports delay information (for example, report content) including the current delay situation (delay time, jitter, etc.) and the future delay situation (predicted delay time related to packet transmission from the buffer) to, for example, the AF 249.

[0317] With conventional QoS reports, it was difficult for AF249 to take action to improve QoS, but AF249 according to this embodiment can take action to improve QoS more effectively based on reports from the report function.

[0318] Specifically, the AF 249 can obtain more detailed delay information about delays and can more accurately grasp delays and jitters in communications used in the services of the AF 249. This allows the AF 249 to adjust service parameters such as image quality and frame rate in accordance with delay characteristics such as delay and jitter, thereby further reducing degradation of service quality due to delays.

[0319] 4.2. Second Embodiment Next, the operation of the communication system according to the second embodiment will be described.

[0320] <4.2.1. Issues> In conventional 5G systems, there was a means for communicating the current QoS level to other NFs and AFs 249, but there was no means for reporting a predicted QoS value. Although there was technology for an application server 10 located outside the core network CN to estimate a predicted QoS value of the 5G system from the outside, there was no mechanism for the 5G system itself to report the predicted value to the application server 10.

[0321] If the 5G system itself can transmit the predicted QoS value to the AF 249 (application server 10), the AF 249 can optimize the setting value used to provide the service. This is thought to further improve the performance of the application.

[0322] For example, by knowing in advance that an increase in traffic volume may result in an increase in delay time, the AF 249 can suppress the traffic.

[0323] Alternatively, if the AF 249 can know in advance that communication will be unavailable for a certain period of time due to a reset of the base station 30, the AF 249 can make an action plan to avoid communication during that period.

[0324] Thus, it is desirable for the reporting function of the 5G system to report predicted QoS values.

[0325] <4.2.2. Solution> In this embodiment, therefore, the NF (network function that reports, hereinafter also referred to as the report function) acquires the QoS for each section and reports it to the AF 249 (or the application server 10).

[0326] To achieve this, the communication system according to this embodiment performs the following four steps: 1) The communication system divides the communication interval into multiple intervals and defines each interval. 2) The communication system defines a QoS type for each interval. 3) The communication system estimates a predicted value for each QoS type. 4) The report function of the communication system reports the defined QoS as a level.

[0327] Note that 1) and 2) may be defined in advance. Also, the section 1) does not need to be defined. In this embodiment, it is important that there are various types of QoS.

[0328] Furthermore, the definitions of each section and the definitions of QoS types are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore individual explanations will be omitted.

[0329] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS of the wireless section and an example of the action taken by the AF 249 upon receiving the report are as follows:

[0330] a1) Delay due to UL / DL resource cycle Report content: Planned time of TDD configuration change and predicted value of change in delay characteristics due to the change Example of action of AF249: AF249 performs time determination from the planned change time at a time granularity according to the predicted value. In addition, AF249 changes the adjustment of delay offsets of other application clients 50 (i.e., UE40) to match the planned change time.

[0331] b1) Delay in allocation of UL resources Report contents: Planned change time of Configured Grant, changed settings, and predicted change in delay characteristics due to the change Example of action of AF249: AF249 changes the adjustment of the delay offset of other application clients 50 (i.e., UEs 40) to match the planned change time.

[0332] c1) Delay due to wireless communication retransmission Report content: Estimated time until the environment in which the retransmission occurs is restored (For example, the report function predicts whether the environment in which the retransmission occurs will be restored in a short time or a long time. For example, the report function predicts that the environment will be restored in a short time if changing the MCS settings will improve the environment, and predicts that it will take a long time to restore in other cases. In other words, if the MCS can be changed from a high value to a low value, the report function predicts that the environment will be restored in a short time. Note that if the base station 30 is congested, the MCS cannot be lowered. For this reason, the report function predicts the estimated time for the environment to be restored, taking into account whether the base station 30 is congested.) Example of action of the AF249: If the environment will be restored in a short time, the AF249 maintains the status quo and does nothing. If it will take a long time to restore, the AF249 switches to communication via another route (for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark)). Alternatively, the AF249 reduces packet throughput to create room for the base station 30 to increase the MCS.

[0333] d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion in base station 30 Report content: Prediction of deterioration (worsening) or improvement of delay characteristics (The report function predicts deterioration or improvement of delay characteristics from the trend of increase or decrease in traffic. The trend of increase or decrease in traffic can be predicted based on the trend of increase or decrease in buffer. The report function predicts and reports the expected time for recovery from congestion based on the trend of increase or decrease in buffer.) Example of action of AF249: If the environment will recover in a short time, AF249 will maintain the status quo and do nothing. If it will take a long time to recover, AF249 will switch to communication via another route (for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark)). Alternatively, AF249 will reduce packet throughput to alleviate congestion in base station 30.

[0334] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS in the wired section and an example of the action taken by AF249 upon receiving the report are as follows. Note that since "e1) Delay due to VPN" and "f1) Delay due to distance" are fixed values, reports by the report function may be omitted. Therefore, explanations for these will be omitted here.

[0335] g1) Delay due to congestion of UPF 221 Report content: Prediction of deterioration (worsening) or improvement of delay characteristics (The report function predicts deterioration or improvement of delay characteristics from the trend of increase or decrease in traffic. The trend of increase or decrease in traffic can be predicted based on the trend of increase or decrease in buffer. The report function predicts and reports the expected time for recovery from congestion based on the trend of increase or decrease in buffer.) Example of action of AF 249: If the environment will recover in a short time, AF 249 will maintain the status quo and do nothing. If it will take a long time to recover, AF 249 will switch to communication via another route (for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark)). Alternatively, AF 249 will reduce packet throughput to alleviate congestion in UPF 221.

[0336] In this embodiment, the communication system can notify the AF 249 in advance of the time when a setting change such as "a1) delay due to the cycle of UL / DL resources" and "b1) delay in allocation of UL resources" will be made. This allows the AF 249 to respond to the setting change at the timing when the setting change is made, and to continue providing the service.

[0337] That is, the AF 249 can know in advance when the setting change will be made and can prepare in advance for the change of the setting of the service in accordance with the time of the setting change. Furthermore, the AF 249 can change the setting of the service in accordance with the changed setting at the time of the setting change such as "a1) Delay due to the cycle of UL / DL resources" and "b1) Delay in allocation of UL resources".

[0338] This allows AF 249 to continue providing services even when a setting change of base station 30 such as a1) or b1) occurs, and can further reduce degradation of service quality due to the setting change of base station 30. Alternatively, if there is a prospect that the quality of service provided by AF 249 can be improved by changing the setting of base station 30, AF 249 can improve the quality of service more quickly after the setting change of base station 30.

[0339] Note that the behavior example of AF249 given here is an example and is not limited to the above example. Also, it is important that the report function collects QoS information related to QoS from each node of the 5G system and reports delay information including future delay status, and the behavior of AF249 is not particularly limited.

[0340] For example, the AF 249 may perform the image quality and frame rate adjustments described in the first embodiment.

[0341] Also, similar to the first embodiment, the report function collects information required for reporting (for example, QoS information) from each node of the communication system, such as the base station 30 and the UPF 221 .

[0342] The information required for the report may be the same as the report content described above, or may be information required to create the report content, in other words, information required to calculate the predicted QoS value.

[0343] For example, the report function may collect the time of setting change, etc. from the base station 30. The report function may also periodically collect the number of packets stored in the buffer from the base station 30 or the UPF 221, and estimate the increase / decrease trend of the buffer, etc., from the collected results.

[0344] The reports may be generated periodically at a predetermined interval, or may be generated upon meeting a predetermined trigger condition, such as upon a significant change in QoS (specifically, the report content) by a certain amount.

[0345] Below, an example of the report content for each factor will be explained.

[0346] a1) Delay Due to UL / DL Resource Periodicity Figure 24 is a diagram illustrating a first example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes, for example, information indicating the absolute time at which a configuration change occurs and the predicted delay distribution (jitter) after the configuration change. In the example of Figure 24, the report content includes information ([0 ms, X ms]) indicating that the delay range (delay distribution) after the change is in the range of 0 ms to X ms. X is a value corresponding to the changed period in which UL / DL slots are allocated.

[0347] As mentioned above, depending on the arrival timing of the data, such as when the arrival timing of the DL / UL data is the timing of the DL / UL slot, the delay may be 0 ms. Therefore, the minimum value of the delay distribution is 0 ms.

[0348] b1) Delay in Allocation of UL Resources Figure 25 is a diagram illustrating a second example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating the absolute time when the configuration change occurs and whether or not a Configured Grant is used after the configuration change. Furthermore, if a Configured Grant is used, the report content includes information indicating the predicted delay distribution (jitter) after the configuration change.

[0349] Specifically, for example, if Configured Grant is used after the change, the report content includes "1." If Configured Grant is not used, the report content includes "0." If Configured Grant is used, the report content includes information ([0 ms, X ms]) indicating that the jitter after the change is in the range of 0 ms to X ms, where X is the UL resource allocation period.

[0350] Note that the delay may be 0 ms depending on the arrival timing of the UL data, such as when the arrival timing of the UL data coincides with the timing at which the UL resource is allocated, etc. Therefore, the minimum value of jitter is 0 ms.

[0351] c1) Delay due to retransmission in wireless communication Fig. 26 is a diagram illustrating a third example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating an expected time for the environment in which the retransmission occurs to improve (recover). Alternatively, the report content includes information indicating whether the expected recovery is quick (short time) or slow (long time).

[0352] d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion in the base station 30. Fig. 27 is a diagram illustrating a fourth example of report content according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating an expected time for improvement (recovery) of the congestion. Alternatively, the report content includes information indicating whether recovery is expected to occur soon (short time) or late (long time).

[0353] g1) Delay due to congestion of the UPF 221 Fig. 28 is a diagram illustrating a fifth example of report content according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. The report content includes information indicating an expected time for improvement (recovery) of the congestion. Alternatively, the report content includes information indicating whether the expected recovery is early (short time) or late (long time).

[0354] The report contents given here are merely examples, and information other than the above-mentioned report contents may be reported to the AF 249 .

[0355] In this embodiment, the report function reports predicted values ​​etc. according to the type of QoS in each section, which allows the AF 249 to adjust delay characteristics according to the type of QoS in each section.

[0356] As mentioned above, nodes that understand the delay characteristics caused by the QoS types (a1) to d1), g1) of each section are distributed throughout the communication system according to the QoS type.

[0357] For example, the delay characteristics (such as the time of setting change and the value after change) due to a1) to d1) are known by the base station 30. The base station 30 collects these delay characteristics (delay time and jitter) as QoS information related to QoS, and reports them to a report function (such as the UPF 221).

[0358] For example, the delay characteristics (such as the increase / decrease trend of the buffer) due to g1) are grasped by the UPF 221. The UPF 221 collects these delay characteristics as QoS information related to QoS, and reports them to a report function (for example, the UPF 221).

[0359] The report made by the base station 30 or the UPF 221 may include the same content as the report made by the above-mentioned report function. Alternatively, the base station 30 or the UPF 221 may report information used by the report function to create the report content, such as the time of setting change or the value after change.

[0360] (Example of communication processing) Fig. 29 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to embodiment 2 of the present disclosure. The communication processing shown in Fig. 29 can be executed, for example, at a predetermined cycle or when a predetermined trigger is satisfied.

[0361] 29, the core network CN (report function or UPF 221) predicts g1) (step S301). The core network CN grasps the increase / decrease trend of the buffer status of the UPF 221 and predicts the likelihood of recovery from congestion.

[0362] The base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 22) predicts a1), b1), c1), and d1) (step S302). The base station 30 collects the setting change times of a1) and b1) and predicts the jitter after the change. The base station 30 also predicts the recovery prospects of c1) and d1).

[0363] The base station 30 reports a1), b1), c1), and d1) to the core network CN (step S303).

[0364] The core network CN transmits reports a1), b1), c1), d1), and g1) to the AF 249 based on the information collected from the base station 30 (step S304).

[0365] Since e1) and f1) are fixed values ​​that do not change, the core network CN may omit reporting e1) and f1). Alternatively, the core network CN may omit subsequent transmission of reports e1) and f1) after transmitting the reports once.

[0366] The information collected from the base station 30 and the core network CN is an example of QoS information related to QoS (a1), b1), c1), d1), and g1). The report sent by the core network CN to the AF 249 includes delay information (e.g., report content) related to at least one of the current delay situation and the future delay situation based on the QoS information.

[0367] The AF 249 changes the application settings in response to the report (step S305), and then the operation of the application service is executed between the AF 249 and the UE 40 (step S306).

[0368] Although it has been described here that a node of the core network CN, such as a reporting function or the UPF 221, transmits a report to the AF 249, the entity that transmits the report is not limited to a node of the core network CN. For example, the base station 30 may transmit the report.

[0369] <4.2.3. Effects> As described above, in the communication system according to this embodiment, a plurality of QoS types (a1) to g1) are defined for each section (e.g., wireless section and priority section). The report function collects QoS information with different content for each QoS type. The report function reports delay information (e.g., report content) including future delay conditions (QoS prediction values) to, for example, the AF 249.

[0370] Conventional QoS reports report current or previously acquired QoS values, making it difficult for the AF 249 to take action to improve future QoS. However, the AF 249 according to this embodiment can take action to improve future QoS more effectively based on reports from the report function.

[0371] Specifically, the AF 249 can acquire more detailed delay information, such as future changes in delay and predicted values ​​of delay characteristics such as delay time and jitter, etc. This allows the AF 249 to adjust service parameters in accordance with changes in delay characteristics such as delay and jitter, thereby further reducing degradation of service quality due to delay.

[0372] 4.3. Third Embodiment Next, the operation of the communication system according to the third embodiment will be described.

[0373] <4.3.1. Issues> In the above-described second embodiment, the case where the report function reports the predicted value of QoS assuming that the current situation, including the operation of the AF 249, does not change has been described.

[0374] When the AF 249 is planning to change the settings, it is desirable for the communication system to predict how the QoS situation will change if the change is made, and to report this to the AF 249.

[0375] Conventionally, it has been difficult to predict how the quality of service will change after the AF 249 changes the application settings. For example, if the AF 249 increases the image quality of the service and decreases the compression rate, the throughput increases.

[0376] This increase in throughput may cause congestion in the base station 30, resulting in degradation of delay characteristics, etc. Conventionally, whether or not degradation of delay characteristics will occur could not be determined unless the AF 249 actually changes the settings and performs communication.

[0377] In another example, suppose that one application client 50 is added when a game is being played in the same metaverse space. In this case, conventionally, there has been no way to know the delay characteristics of the application client 50 to be added. By knowing the details of the delay characteristics of the application client 50 to be added in advance, the AF 249 can assign the application client 50 to a more appropriate group.

[0378] In particular, private 5G systems used within private premises (such as factories and offices) are systems consisting of small base stations 30 and small core networks CN. Such small-scale systems have low throughput capacity and slower calculation speeds than public network systems.

[0379] Thus, in a vulnerable 5G network, it is important for the AF 249 to know in advance how a configuration change made by the AF 249 will affect the behavior of the 5G network. Furthermore, it is important for the AF 249 to know in advance how much a configuration change made by the AF 249 will affect the performance of the service provided by the AF 249.

[0380] <4.3.2. Solution> In this embodiment, when the AF 249 changes the settings, the 5G network predicts how the QoS of each section will change, and reports this to the AF 249 via a report function.

[0381] In the above-mentioned embodiment 2, each node in the 5G system reports a predicted value of QoS quality for each type of QoS.

[0382] In this embodiment, each node in the 5G system basically reports a predicted value of QoS quality for each type of QoS. At this time, in this embodiment, each node in the 5G system reports what predicted value the QoS quality will be due to a certain traffic change. In other words, if the AF249 makes a traffic setting change, the 5G network predicts how the QoS of each section will change and reports this to the AF249 via the report function.

[0383] A plurality of assumed patterns of traffic changes may be set in advance. Alternatively, the AF 249 may notify the 5G system of how the traffic will change. In this case, or even when the AF 249 notifies, a method may be adopted in which the AF 249 specifies a pattern for which the QoS quality is to be predicted from among a plurality of assumed patterns in advance.

[0384] An example of a change in traffic that is assumed in advance will be described below.

[0385] (Variation 1) For example, in variation 1, an increase or decrease of X number of traffics (sessions) of the application client 50 is assumed as a traffic change. In this case, traffic means one session. For example, one audio stream or one image transmission is one traffic.

[0386] (Variation 2) For example, in variation 2, a traffic change is assumed to be an X% increase or decrease in throughput in specific traffic of the application client 50. In this case, for example, characteristic traffic is specified by the AF 249, and an increase or decrease in throughput in the specified traffic is assumed to be a traffic change.

[0387] (Variation 3) For example, in variation 3, an X% increase or decrease in packet size in specific traffic of the application client 50 is assumed to be a traffic change. In this case, for example, characteristic traffic is specified by the AF 249, and an increase or decrease in packet size in the specified traffic is assumed to be a traffic change.

[0388] An example of report contents for traffic changes assumed in variation examples 1 to 3 will be explained below. Here, it is assumed that the traffic volume will increase or decrease. Therefore, there may be cases where the situation (QoS) does not change as a result.

[0389] If the situation does not change, the AF 249 does not take any particular action in response to the report. That is, the AF 249 does not determine whether to change the settings based on the report content indicating that the situation does not change. Note that for QoS whose situation does not change, the report function may omit reporting.

[0390] On the other hand, if it is predicted that the situation will change, the AF 249 determines whether to change the settings according to the prediction content (report content).

[0391] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS of the wireless section and an example of the action taken by the AF 249 upon receiving the report are as follows:

[0392] a1) Delay due to UL / DL resource cycle Report content: No change

[0393] b1) UL resource allocation delay Report content: No change

[0394] c1) Delay due to retransmission of wireless communication Report content: No change

[0395] d1) Delay and packet loss due to congestion in base station 30 Report content: Improvement / Deterioration (worsening) (The report function may report the degree of improvement and deterioration in multiple stages. For example, if the QoS improves, the report function may report the degree of improvement, whether it is a large improvement or a small improvement. Similarly, if the QoS deteriorates, the report function may report the degree of deterioration, whether it is a large deterioration or a small deterioration.) Example of action of AF249: If the QoS improves, AF249 sets the assumed change. For example, AF249 increases or decreases the number of sessions by X, or increases or decreases the session throughput or packet size. On the other hand, if the QoS deteriorates, AF249 does not set the assumed change.

[0396] An example of the contents of the report made for each QoS in the wired section and an example of the action taken by AF249 upon receiving the report are as follows. Note that since "e1) Delay due to VPN" and "f1) Delay due to distance" are fixed values, reports by the report function may be omitted. Therefore, explanations for these will be omitted here.

[0397] g1) Delay due to congestion of UPF 221 Report content: Improvement / Deterioration (Worsening) (The reporting function may report the degree of improvement and deterioration in multiple stages. For example, if the QoS improves, the reporting function may report the degree of improvement, whether it is a large improvement or a small improvement. Similarly, if the QoS deteriorates, the reporting function may report the degree of deterioration, whether it is a large deterioration or a small deterioration.) Example of action of AF 249: If the QoS improves, AF 249 sets the assumed change. For example, AF 249 increases or decreases the number of sessions by X, or increases or decreases the session throughput or packet size. On the other hand, if the QoS deteriorates, AF 249 does not set the assumed change.

[0398] The AF 249 may determine whether to set the assumed change by comprehensively assessing multiple QoS prediction values, i.e., multiple report contents. For example, assume that the report content of d1) indicates a small deterioration and the report content of g1) indicates a large improvement. In this case, the AF 249 may determine to set the assumed change even if the report content of d1) indicates a deterioration.

[0399] Also, similar to the first embodiment, the report function collects information required for reporting (for example, QoS information) from each node of the communication system, such as the base station 30 and the UPF 221 .

[0400] The information required for the report may be the same as the report content described above, or may be information required to create the report content, in other words, information required to calculate the predicted QoS value.

[0401] For example, the report function may collect the number of packets stored in the buffer from the base station 30 or the UPF 221, and estimate whether the congestion will be improved based on the collected result.

[0402] The report may be generated periodically at a preset interval. Alternatively, the report may be generated upon fulfillment of a predetermined trigger condition, such as upon instruction from the AF 249. The AF 249 may request the 5G system to consider changing the configuration, i.e., to send a report, when, for example, adding a new application client 50 or changing the service content.

[0403] (Example of communication processing) FIG. 30 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0404] First, the AF 249 notifies the core network CN (reporting function or UPF 221) of a traffic modification assumption (step S401). The AF 249 notifies a pre-defined traffic change, such as an increase in the number of traffic items by X, as the traffic modification assumption.

[0405] The core network CN notifies the base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 30) of the traffic modification assumption received from the AF 249 (step S402).

[0406] The core network CN predicts g1) based on the assumptions (step S403).

[0407] The base station 30 predicts a1), b1), c1), and d1) based on the assumptions (step S404).The base station 30 reports the predicted a1), b1), c1), and d1) to the core network CN (step S405).

[0408] The core network CN reports a1), b1), c1), d1), and g1) to the AF 249 (step S406).

[0409] In response to the report, the AF 249 determines whether to make any modifications (step S407). The AF 249 changes the settings in response to the report. Then, an operation of the application service is executed between the AF 249 and the UE 40 (step S408).

[0410] Although it has been described here that a node of the core network CN, such as a reporting function or the UPF 221, transmits a report to the AF 249, the entity that transmits the report is not limited to a node of the core network CN. For example, the base station 30 may transmit the report.

[0411] <4.3.3. Effect> When an action is assumed to be taken, the AF 249 can obtain a prediction of how the action will change the QoS from the 5G system. This allows the AF 249 to determine whether or not to actually take the assumed action according to the prediction.

[0412] The 5G system predicts performance (changes in QoS) due to setting changes in AF 249 and reports it to AF 249. This allows AF 249 to avoid degradation of service quality due to setting changes.

[0413] <4.4. Fourth Embodiment> Next, the operation of the communication system according to the fourth embodiment will be described.

[0414] <4.4.1. Issues> Conventional 5G systems were unable to report information about delays between related traffic, such as multi-modal traffic.

[0415] In the future, various types of information, such as tactile information and emotions extracted from facial images, may be transmitted between applications in different locations. If there is a difference in the end-to-end delay time between these different types of information (multi-modal), users will feel uncomfortable. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain a constant delay difference between these different types of information.

[0416] It is considered important that the reporting function reports the QoS associated with this different types of information (multi-modal) to the AF 249. However, at present, such reporting is not being considered.

[0417] According to Section 6.43 of 3GPP Rel18 TS22.261, it is desirable that audio be delayed within 50 ms of tactile, and that tactile be delayed within 25 ms of audio.

[0418] Furthermore, 3GPP Rel18 TS22.261 states that in the relationship between visual (images such as displays) and tactile, the visual should be delayed within 15 ms from the tactile, and conversely, the tactile should be delayed within 50 ms from the visual.

[0419] In this way, the delay between multiple types of traffic affects the quality of communication (or quality of service). A reporting function is required to measure these QoS (quality of communication) and report them to the application.

[0420] Here, the reason why the delay difference between audio and tactile varies is that these packets are buffered in different buffers in the end-to-end communication section.

[0421] In an end-to-end network, packets are buffered at one or more locations. Buffering occurs at locations where QoS control is performed, or within switches such as routers. QoS control may also occur within switches such as routers.

[0422] Fig. 31 is a diagram illustrating an example of packet buffering according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. In the example illustrated in Fig. 31, a buffer for tactile, a buffer for audio, and a buffer for visual are prepared.

[0423] For example, traffic is input to a demultiplexer (Demux) and separated into multiple signals, which are then stored in different buffers according to the type of signal. For each buffer, QoS control is performed, for example, based on traffic characteristics and 5QI (QoS identifier). The signals read from each buffer are combined into a single signal (traffic) by a multiplexer (Mux) and transmitted to the next node.

[0424] QoS control, for example, determines which buffer a packet is output from first. As a result of this QoS control, audio packets may be output from the buffer faster than tactile packets, or conversely, they may be output later. This is thought to result in a difference in delay between different types of traffic (here, audio packets and tactile packets).

[0425] The reason why each type of traffic is treated differently is that different 5QIs are assigned to different types of traffic. 5QIs are QoS identifiers. QoS control treats different types of traffic differently based on the 5QIs.

[0426] For example, traffic assigned a high priority 5QI is subjected to priority control, such as being output earlier from a buffer for QoS control, or depending on the assigned 5QI, traffic may be output at regular intervals from a buffer for QoS control.

[0427] In multi-modal communication, different types of traffic pass through the same communication path end-to-end. Therefore, there is no delay due to differences in communication paths. In other words, there is no difference in delay due to distance between different types of traffic. In multi-modal communication, the locations where delays occur between different types of traffic are limited to locations where QoS control is performed.

[0428] One possible method for eliminating delay differences in multi-modal traffic is to assign the same 5QI (QoS identifier) ​​to all different types of traffic belonging to one application client 50. By assigning the same 5QI, different types of traffic are handled in the same way under QoS control.

[0429] For example, suppose there are two types of QoS Flows (traffic) belonging to a certain application client 50: QoS Flow 1 with audio and QoS Flow 2 with tactile. For example, suppose a new QoS identifier (e.g., 5QI for multimodal of audio and tactile) is defined to be assigned to multi-modal traffic including audio and tactile, and is assigned to the two types of traffic.

[0430] As a result, even if different types of traffic (for example, QoS Flow 1 with audio and QoS Flow 2 with tactile) are assigned the same 5QI, they are treated the same in QoS control, and delay differences are less likely to occur.

[0431] However, treating different types of traffic in the same way can degrade the performance of the entire communication system. For example, different types of traffic have different cycle lengths and burstiness. For example, it is important for audio to be transmitted at regular intervals. On the other hand, it is important for tactile traffic to have as little delay as possible.

[0432] In this way, when the required qualities are different, it is necessary to consider which required quality should be matched (prioritized) in QoS control. Furthermore, if one required quality is matched, there is a possibility that QoS control cannot be performed to satisfy the other required quality.

[0433] When the traffic is different, for example, when the input device (e.g., a sensor) from which data is acquired is different, the application client 50 may collect the different types of traffic into one packet and transmit it as one packet, thereby reducing the delay difference.

[0434] However, to achieve this, it is necessary to standardize a new packet format to aggregate multiple different traffic types into a single packet. This also reduces the flexibility of the packet. Furthermore, as in the previous case, the same QoS control is applied to different types of traffic, which may degrade the performance of the entire communication system.

[0435] Here, we will discuss the degradation of the overall performance of the communication system. For audio, there are cases where you want to maintain a constant 100 ms cycle. For tactile, you want to minimize delays when traffic occurs.

[0436] In this way, the QoS control for each type of traffic to maintain the characteristics of the different types of traffic differs depending on the characteristics of the traffic.

[0437] In order to reduce traffic delays, it is important that packets are read from the QoS control buffer with priority over other packets through priority control. For packets for which periodicity is important, such as audio, it is important that they are read from the QoS control buffer at regular intervals. As such, since QoS control differs depending on the characteristics of traffic, if the same 5QI is assigned to different traffic and the same QoS control is performed, there is a risk of degrading the performance of the entire communication system.

[0438] If multiple multi-modal traffic streams are each assigned a time tag corresponding to the traffic stream, the receiving application (e.g., AF249) can easily grasp the time difference between the multiple traffic streams.

[0439] It is thought that delay differences between multiple multi-modal traffic streams will not be a problem if the receiving application adjusts the time difference between each traffic stream. However, currently, time tags are not periodically added to different traffic streams. Even if time tags were added to traffic streams, adjusting the time difference between each traffic stream using these time tags in the receiving application would complicate the application configuration.

[0440] Furthermore, adding time tags to the packets may increase traffic overhead and cause a decrease in the throughput of the communication system.

[0441] Therefore, in this embodiment, as a better solution, an application on the sending side (for example, the AF 249 or the application client 50) is made aware of the delay difference between different types of traffic end-to-end. This allows the sending application to transmit different types of traffic (packets) taking the delay difference into consideration. As a result, the delay difference between different types of traffic on the receiving side can be further reduced.

[0442] In this embodiment, a mechanism for acquiring end-to-end delay will be described.

[0443] In a typical game, visual and audio traffic are often used. In this case, audio traffic is incorporated into the visual packet format, so there is no difference in delay between these traffic streams.

[0444] Multi-modal applications are likely to handle new types of traffic one after another. It is expected that every time a new type of traffic is handled, that traffic will be added to the application. It is not realistic to define a packet format that adds new traffic every time a new type of traffic is handled. Therefore, a method is required that can handle even new types of traffic as they are handled.

[0445] <4.4.2. Solution> In this embodiment, the report function reports delay information between traffics caused by QoS control performed at multiple locations. The report function reports delay information caused by QoS control performed at multiple locations for related traffics such as multi-modal traffic. For example, the report function reports delay information for multiple data (traffic) that share the same communication path but are assigned different QoSs.

[0446] The 5G system includes a UE 40, a base station 30, a core network CN, and a router. The router routes traffic between the core network CN and other networks. QoS control is performed by these components.

[0447] For example, the following five locations are specific examples of locations where QoS control is performed: A1) UL buffer of the UE 40 A2) UL scheduling of the base station 30 A3) downstream router A4) UPF 221 A5) DL scheduling of the base station 30

[0448] For example, in the UL buffer of the UE 40, QoS control is performed in the UL direction. Also, for example, in an underlying router, QoS control is performed in both the UL direction and the DL direction. QoS control is performed in underlying routers located at various locations in the 5G system. For example, in the UPF 221, QoS control is performed in the DL direction.

[0449] In each QoS control, the order in which different traffic is read is controlled based on the 5QI. Therefore, traffic with different 5QI (e.g., tactil, audil, visual) takes different time to pass through the QoS control buffer.

[0450] Furthermore, the policies and buffer conditions (e.g., the amount of data accumulated) differ for each QoS control point, so the time it takes for the same traffic to pass through the buffer may differ depending on the location.

[0451] For example, in the UL buffer of UE 40, a delay of 1 ms occurs for tactile traffic to pass through, and a delay of 2 ms occurs for visual traffic to pass through. In this way, delays vary depending on the type of traffic even at the same location.

[0452] In addition, in the UL scheduling of the base station 30, a delay of 3 ms occurs for tactile traffic to pass through, and a delay of 1 ms occurs for visual traffic to pass through. In this way, even for the same type of traffic, the delay varies depending on the location of the buffer.

[0453] For example, the underlying router experiences a 0.5 ms delay for tactile traffic to pass through and a 1.2 ms delay for visual traffic to pass through.

[0454] For example, in the UPF 221, tactile traffic passes through with a delay of 1 ms, and visual traffic passes through with a delay of 1.2 ms.

[0455] For example, the DL scheduling of base station 30 causes a 3 ms delay for tactile traffic to pass through and a 2 ms delay for visual traffic to pass through.

[0456] Across the 5G system, QoS control causes a total delay of 8.5 ms for tactile traffic and 7.4 ms for visual traffic.

[0457] In this way, delays vary depending on the type of traffic even at the same location, and delays vary depending on the location of the buffer even at the same type of traffic. Note that the above-mentioned delay amounts are merely examples, and the actual delay amounts may differ.

[0458] Here, in each QoS control, the node performing the QoS control can estimate the time it takes for traffic to pass through the buffer. One estimation method is to estimate the time it takes for traffic to pass through the buffer based on, for example, the current buffer length (the number of packets stored in the buffer, e.g., 10 packets) and the time it takes to read one packet on the reading side (e.g., 0.1 ms). In this case, the node performing the QoS control estimates that the time it takes for traffic to pass through the buffer is 1 ms.

[0459] The node performing QoS control reports the estimation results to the report function. This estimation is performed for each different type of traffic. That is, for each different QoS control, in other words, for each assigned 5QI, the node estimates the time it takes for the traffic to pass through the buffer and reports it to the report function. This traffic passing time is an example of QoS information related to QoS.

[0460] For example, in the example described above, UE 40 reports to the reporting function 1 ms as the time it takes for tactile traffic to pass through the buffer (hereinafter also referred to as estimated passage time) and 2 ms as the estimated passage time for visual traffic.

[0461] A report function (e.g., UPF 221) reports the estimated transit time collected from each node to a transmitting application (e.g., AF 249) as delay information on the current delay situation. The report function may use the estimated transit time of each node as delay information, or may use the sum of the estimated transit times of each node as delay information. Alternatively, the report function may use the difference in the sum of the estimated transit times (information indicating the degree of delay difference relative to the reference traffic) as delay time.

[0462] The sending application that receives the report adds a delay amount according to the delay information and transmits each traffic. The sending application adjusts the transmission timing of multiple traffic (data) with different 5QIs so that the delay difference between multiple traffics with different 5QIs, i.e., the difference in arrival time at the receiving application, is small.

[0463] For example, in the above example, the estimated transit time for tactil traffic is a total of 8.5 ms, and the estimated transit time for visual traffic is a total of 7.4 ms. Therefore, the sending application starts sending the tactil traffic 1.1 seconds earlier than the visual traffic. This allows the receiving application (e.g., application client 50) to receive the tactil traffic and visual traffic with little delay difference.

[0464] Here, the report function reports the estimated transit time to the application on the sending side, but the report function may also report the estimated transit time to the application on the receiving side.

[0465] In this case, the application on the receiving side adds a delay to the received packet according to the estimated transit time, which increases the processing load of the application on the receiving side. However, compared to the method of tagging packets with time tags, this method can suppress the increase in overhead corresponding to the time tags, and can suppress the decrease in throughput of the entire communication system.

[0466] Here, the report function reports the estimated transit time, and the application on the sending side adjusts the packet sending timing based on the estimated transit time to reduce the delay difference between different traffic flows. However, the method for reducing this delay difference is not limited to this.

[0467] For example, a node that estimates the estimated delay time may perform control to reduce the delay difference between each traffic. Alternatively, a single node in a 5G system may perform control to reduce the delay difference between each traffic based on a report from a report function. In this case, the report function reports the estimated delay time to the node that controls the delay difference. The report function may also control the delay difference.

[0468] In this embodiment, the application of the communication system is a server-client model, but the technology according to this embodiment can also be applied to applications of a peer-to-peer model.

[0469] In either model, the communication system considers the end-to-end communication path and identifies (detects) which part of the communication path is subject to QoS control. The communication system estimates the total delay due to each QoS control for each traffic with different 5QI.

[0470] This allows the application to obtain the delay difference caused by QoS control for each traffic with different QoS types. The delay difference caused by QoS control for each traffic with different QoS types becomes the delay difference between each traffic.

[0471] Here, the delay that depends on the distance of an optical fiber or the like is the same regardless of the type of traffic, regardless of the amount of delay (for example, 100 ms or 1000 ms), as long as the communication path is the same. The difference in delay between traffic of different QoS types occurs due to QoS control using a buffer.

[0472] (Communication Processing Example) Fig. 32 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the flow of communication processing according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication processing shown in Fig. 32 can be executed, for example, at a predetermined cycle or when a predetermined trigger is satisfied. An example of the predetermined trigger is a request from a sending application.

[0473] The core network CN (report function or UPF 221) estimates delay (corresponding to the estimated transit time) every 5 QIs in QoS control in A3) and A4) (step S501). A3) is a downstream router, and A4) is the UPF 221.

[0474] The base station 30 (gNodeB in FIG. 32 ) estimates delay (corresponding to the aforementioned estimated transit time) for every 5QI in QoS control at A2) and A5) (step S502), and reports the estimation results A2) and A5) to the core network CN (step S503). A2) is the UL scheduling of the base station 30, and A5) is the DL scheduling of the base station 30.

[0475] The UE 40 estimates the delay (corresponding to the estimated transit time) for every 5 QIs in the QoS control of A1) (step S504), and reports the estimated result A1) to the base station 30 (step S505). The base station 30 reports A1) to the UPF 221 (step S506). A1) is a UL buffer of the UE 40.

[0476] The core network CN reports the estimation results of A1), A2), A3), A4), and A5) collected from each node to the AF 249 (step S507).

[0477] The AF 249 adjusts the transmission timing for each 5QI traffic based on the report (step S508). After that, the operation of the application service is executed between the AF 249 and the UE 40 (step S509).

[0478] <4.4.3. Effects> By using the technology according to this embodiment, the communication system can further reduce the difference in delay between multiple traffic streams with different QoS levels without imposing a burden on the application (application server 10 and / or application client 50). Furthermore, the communication system can further reduce the difference in delay between multiple traffic streams with different QoS levels (multi-modal traffic) without complicating the multi-modal frame structure.

[0479] This allows the communication system to provide a multi-modal service that does not cause discomfort to the user.

[0480] <<5. Other Embodiments>> The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and various modifications and applications are possible. The processing according to each of the above-described embodiments may be implemented in various different forms (modifications) other than the above-described embodiments. For example, the system configuration is not limited to the above-described examples, and may be in various forms.

[0481] The application server 10, the information processing device 20, or the control device that controls the base station 30 in this embodiment may be realized by a dedicated computer system or a general-purpose computer system.

[0482] For example, a communication program for executing the above-described operations is stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as an optical disk, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic tape, or a flexible disk and distributed. Then, for example, the program is installed on a computer and the above-described processing is executed to configure a control device. In this case, the control device may be a device (e.g., a personal computer) external to the application server 10, the information processing device 20, or the base station 30. Alternatively, the control device may be a device (e.g., a control unit 13, a control unit 23, or a control unit 33) internal to the application server 10, the information processing device 20, or the base station 30.

[0483] The communication program may also be stored in a disk device provided in a server device on a network such as the Internet, and may be downloaded to a computer. The above-described functions may also be realized by a combination of an operating system (OS) and application software. In this case, the components other than the OS may be stored on a medium and distributed, or may be stored in a server device and downloaded to a computer.

[0484] Furthermore, among the processes described in the above embodiments, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically can be performed manually, or all or part of the processes described as being performed manually can be performed automatically using a known method. In addition, the information including the processing procedures, specific names, various data, and parameters shown in the above documents and drawings can be changed as desired unless otherwise specified. For example, the various information shown in each drawing is not limited to the information shown in the drawings.

[0485] Furthermore, the components of each device shown in the figure are conceptual functional units and do not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown. In other words, the specific form of distribution and integration of each device is not limited to that shown in the figure, and all or part of the devices can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit depending on various loads, usage conditions, etc. Note that this distribution and integration configuration may also be performed dynamically.

[0486] The above-described embodiments can be combined as appropriate within the scope of the processing content without causing inconsistency. The order of the steps shown in the sequence diagrams of the above-described embodiments can be changed as appropriate.

[0487] Furthermore, for example, the present embodiment can also be implemented as any configuration that constitutes an apparatus or system, such as a processor as a system LSI (Large Scale Integration), a module using multiple processors, a unit using multiple modules, a set in which other functions are added to a unit, or the like (i.e., a configuration of a part of an apparatus).

[0488] In this embodiment, a system refers to a collection of multiple components (devices, modules (components), etc.), regardless of whether all of the components are in the same housing. Therefore, multiple devices housed in separate housings and connected via a network, and a single device in which multiple modules are housed in a single housing, are both systems.

[0489] Furthermore, for example, this embodiment can have a cloud computing configuration in which one function is shared and processed jointly by a plurality of devices via a network.

[0490] <<6. Conclusion>> Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present disclosure. Furthermore, components of different embodiments and modifications may be combined as appropriate.

[0491] Furthermore, the effects of each embodiment described in this specification are merely examples and are not limiting, and other effects may also be obtained.

[0492] The present technology may also be configured as follows. (1) An information processing device including a control unit that collects one or more quality information items related to communication quality from one or more nodes in a cellular communication system, and provides delay information related to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation. (2) The information processing device according to (1), in which the control unit provides the delay information for each section of a data communication path. (3) The information processing device according to (2), in which the communication quality is defined for each section. (4) The information processing device according to (2) or (3), in which the control unit provides delay information according to the section. (5) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (4), in which the control unit provides the delay information to an application that performs data communication with a terminal device. (6) The information processing device according to (5), in which the application controls the data communication based on the delay information. (7) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (6), wherein the quality information includes information on at least one of delay due to a communication resource cycle, delay due to resource allocation, delay due to retransmission, delay due to congestion in at least one of a base station and a UPF, delay depending on distance, and delay due to a VPN. (8) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (7), wherein the delay information includes information on at least one of delay time, jitter, and packet loss. (9) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (8), wherein the control unit collects the quality information from different nodes for each section. (10) The information processing device according to any one of (1) to (7), wherein the control unit provides the application with the delay information regarding the delay situation that may occur when the application performing data communication changes settings of the data communication. (11) The information processing device according to (10), wherein the change in settings is a change related to traffic in the data communication. (12) The information processing device according to (10) or (11), wherein the control unit provides the delay information indicating whether the delay situation will improve or worsen. (13) The information processing device according to any one of (10) to (12), wherein the application changes the setting in accordance with the delay information.(14) The information processing device according to (1) or (2), wherein the control unit provides the delay information for a plurality of pieces of data that share the same communication path but are assigned different communication qualities. (15) The information processing device according to (14), wherein the control unit provides the delay information to a transmitting device that transmits the plurality of pieces of data. (16) The information processing device according to (15), wherein the transmitting device adjusts transmission timings of the plurality of pieces of data based on the delay information so as to reduce a difference in arrival times of the plurality of pieces of data at a receiving device that receives the plurality of pieces of data. (17) The information processing device according to (14), wherein the control unit provides the delay information to a receiving device that receives the plurality of pieces of data. (18) The information processing device according to (14), wherein at least one of the nodes adjusts a delay amount of the data according to the delay information. (19) An information processing method comprising: collecting one or more pieces of quality information related to communication quality from one or more nodes in a cellular communication system; and providing delay information related to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation.

[0493] 10 Application server 11, 21 Communication unit 12, 22, 32, 42 Storage unit 13, 23, 33, 43 Control unit 20 Information processing device 30 Base station 31, 41 Wireless communication unit 40 Wireless communication device 50 Application client 400 Terminal device

Claims

1. An information processing device comprising: a control unit that collects one or more quality information items relating to communication quality from one or more nodes of a cellular communication system, and provides delay information relating to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation.

2. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit provides the delay information for each section of a data communication path.

3. The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the communication quality is defined for each of the sections.

4. The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit provides delay information according to the section.

5. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit provides the delay information to an application that performs data communication with the terminal device.

6. The information processing device according to claim 5, wherein the application controls the data communication based on the delay information.

7. The information processing device of claim 1, wherein the quality information includes information regarding at least one of delay due to a communication resource cycle, delay due to resource allocation, delay due to retransmission, delay due to congestion in at least one of a base station and a UPF, delay dependent on distance, and delay due to a VPN.

8. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the delay information includes information relating to at least one of delay time, jitter, and packet loss.

9. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit collects the quality information from different nodes for each of the sections.

10. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit provides the application with the delay information relating to the delay situation that may occur when the application performing the data communication changes the settings of the data communication.

11. The information processing device according to claim 10, wherein the change in the setting is a change related to traffic in the data communication.

12. The information processing device according to claim 10, wherein the control unit provides the delay information indicating whether the delay situation is improving or worsening.

13. The information processing device according to claim 10, wherein the application changes the setting in accordance with the delay information.

14. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit provides the delay information for a plurality of data items that share the same communication path but are assigned different communication qualities.

15. The information processing device according to claim 14, wherein the control unit provides the delay information to a transmitting device that transmits the plurality of data.

16. The information processing device according to claim 15, wherein the transmitting device adjusts the transmission timing of each of the plurality of data based on the delay information so as to reduce the difference in arrival times of the plurality of data at the receiving device that receives the plurality of data.

17. The information processing device according to claim 14, wherein the control unit provides the delay information to a receiving device that receives the plurality of data.

18. The information processing device according to claim 14, wherein at least one of said nodes adjusts the amount of delay of said data in accordance with said delay information.

19. An information processing method comprising: collecting one or more quality information relating to communication quality from one or more nodes of a cellular communication system; and providing delay information relating to at least one of a current delay situation and a future delay situation.

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