Node device in wireless communication system and method performed by the same

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a 5G or 6G communication system for supporting a higher data transmission rate. The present disclosure provides a node device in wireless communication system and a method performed by the same. In an embodiment, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving second information from a first node, the second information comprising information related to at least one target cell collocated with a source cell; or receiving the second information from a third node, the second information comprising information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the third node; and accessing the target cell or the first cell according to the second information.

Description

NODE DEVICE IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND METHOD PERFORMED BY THE SAME

[0001] The disclosure relates to node device in wireless communication system and method performed by the node devic.

[0002] 5G mobile communication technologies define broad frequency bands such that high transmission rates and new services are possible, and can be implemented not only in "Sub 6GHz" bands such as 3.5GHz, but also in "Above 6GHz" bands referred to as mmWave including 28GHz and 39GHz. In addition, it has been considered to implement 6G mobile communication technologies (referred to as Beyond 5G systems) in terahertz bands (for example, 95GHz to 3THz bands) in order to accomplish transmission rates fifty times faster than 5G mobile communication technologies and ultra-low latencies one-tenth of 5G mobile communication technologies.

[0003] At the beginning of the development of 5G mobile communication technologies, in order to support services and to satisfy performance requirements in connection with enhanced Mobile BroadBand (eMBB), Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC), there has been ongoing standardization regarding beamforming and massive MIMO for mitigating radio-wave path loss and increasing radio-wave transmission distances in mmWave, supporting numerologies (for example, operating multiple subcarrier spacings) for efficiently utilizing mmWave resources and dynamic operation of slot formats, initial access technologies for supporting multi-beam transmission and broadbands, definition and operation of BWP (BandWidth Part), new channel coding methods such as a LDPC (Low Density Parity Check) code for large amount of data transmission and a polar code for highly reliable transmission of control information, L2 pre-processing, and network slicing for providing a dedicated network specialized to a specific service.

[0004] Currently, there are ongoing discussions regarding improvement and performance enhancement of initial 5G mobile communication technologies in view of services to be supported by 5G mobile communication technologies, and there has been physical layer standardization regarding technologies such as V2X (Vehicle-to-everything) for aiding driving determination by autonomous vehicles based on information regarding positions and states of vehicles transmitted by the vehicles and for enhancing user convenience, NR-U (New Radio Unlicensed) aimed at system operations conforming to various regulation-related requirements in unlicensed bands, NR UE Power Saving, Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) which is UE-satellite direct communication for providing coverage in an area in which communication with terrestrial networks is unavailable, and positioning.

[0005] Moreover, there has been ongoing standardization in air interface architecture / protocol regarding technologies such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) for supporting new services through interworking and convergence with other industries, IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul) for providing a node for network service area expansion by supporting a wireless backhaul link and an access link in an integrated manner, mobility enhancement including conditional handover and DAPS (Dual Active Protocol Stack) handover, and two-step random access for simplifying random access procedures (2-step RACH for NR). There also has been ongoing standardization in system architecture / service regarding a 5G baseline architecture (for example, service based architecture or service based interface) for combining Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN) technologies, and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) for receiving services based on UE positions.

[0006] As 5G mobile communication systems are commercialized, connected devices that have been exponentially increasing will be connected to communication networks, and it is accordingly expected that enhanced functions and performances of 5G mobile communication systems and integrated operations of connected devices will be necessary. To this end, new research is scheduled in connection with eXtended Reality (XR) for efficiently supporting AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality), MR (Mixed Reality) and the like, 5G performance improvement and complexity reduction by utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), AI service support, metaverse service support, and drone communication.

[0007] Furthermore, such development of 5G mobile communication systems will serve as a basis for developing not only new waveforms for providing coverage in terahertz bands of 6G mobile communication technologies, multi-antenna transmission technologies such as Full Dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antennas and large-scale antennas, metamaterial-based lenses and antennas for improving coverage of terahertz band signals, high-dimensional space multiplexing technology using OAM (Orbital Angular Momentum), and RIS (Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface), but also full-duplex technology for increasing frequency efficiency of 6G mobile communication technologies and improving system networks, AI-based communication technology for implementing system optimization by utilizing satellites and AI (Artificial Intelligence) from the design stage and internalizing end-to-end AI support functions, and next-generation distributed computing technology for implementing services at levels of complexity exceeding the limit of UE operation capability by utilizing ultra-high-performance communication and computing resources.

[0008] In order to meet the increasing demand for wireless data communication services since the deployment of 4G communication systems, efforts have been made to develop improved 5G or pre-5G communication systems. Therefore, the 5G or pre-5G communication system is also called "beyond 4G network" or "post LTE system".

[0009] Wireless communication is one of the most successful innovations in modern history. Recently, a number of subscribers of wireless communication services has exceeded 5 billion, and it continues growing rapidly. The demand of wireless data traffic is rapidly increasing due to the increasing popularization of smart phones and other mobile data devices (e.g., tablet computers, notebook computers, netbooks, e-book readers, machine-type devices) among the consumers and enterprises. In order to meet the high growth in mobile data traffic and support new applications and deployments, it is critical to improve wireless interface efficiency and coverage range.

[0010] With the gradual mature of 5G business networks (new radio access network, NR), research and standardization work on non-terrestrial networks (NTN) has been conducted.

[0011] In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving second information from a first node, the second information comprising information related to at least one target cell collocated with a source cell; or receiving the second information from a third node, the second information comprising information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the third node; and accessing the target cell or the first cell according to the second information.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one target cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the target cell; a public land mobile network identity of the target cell; information related to a tracking area of the target cell; an identity of the target cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the source cell.

[0013] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one second cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the second cell; a public land mobile network identity of the second cell; information related to a tracking area of the second cell; an identity of the second cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the first cell.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second information is generated based on the establishment / setup of the third node.

[0015] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fifth node as described above. The fifth node may be a user equipment.

[0016] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a third node in a wireless communication network, comprising: generating application layer protocol-related information of an interface with a fourth node; and transmitting first information to the fourth node, the first information comprising first related information about the collocation of the third node with a first node.

[0017] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the first related information comprises at least one of: a global radio access network node identity of the first node; a global base station identity of the first node; a radio access network node name of the first node; or information related to at least one access and mobility management function which has established an interface with the first node.

[0018] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one access and mobility management function comprises at least one of: a name of the access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0019] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the third node as described above. The third node may be a base station or a central unit of the base station, or a control plane part of the central unit of the base station.

[0020] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a second node in a wireless communication network, comprising: transmitting third information to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and receiving fourth information from the fourth node, the fourth information comprising at least one of: a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: transmitting the fourth information to the first node, the fourth information being used for the first node to update or modify the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the first node.

[0022] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the second node as described above. The second node may be a core network device, e.g., an access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0023] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a first node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving sixth information from a fourth node; and transmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node. The sixth information comprises at least one of: second node-related information; a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0024] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of: information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment; information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice; a security key; a mobility restriction list; information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority; authorization-related information; information related to quality of service; or information related to quality of experience configuration.

[0025] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one of: an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session; information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; or information related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.

[0026] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second node-related information comprises at least one of: a name of an access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0027] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: directly releasing, by the first node, the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information which is related to the interface with the first node, without any interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.

[0028] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the first node as described above. The first node may be a base station or a central unit of the base station, or a control plane part of the central unit of the base station.

[0029] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fourth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving third information from a second node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and transmitting fifth information to the second node, wherein the fifth information comprises at least one of: information related to completion of context establishment / setup of the fourth node with the first node; or information about release of the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node and stored by the second node.

[0030] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the fifth information is used for the second node to release the stored user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0031] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fourth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fourth node as described above.

[0032] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising:

[0033] receiving a radio resource control reconfiguration message transmitted by a first node; and

[0034] transmitting a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node;

[0035] wherein third information is transmitted by a second node to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node; and

[0036] fourth information is transmitted by the fourth node to the second node, the fourth information comprising at least one of:

[0037] a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node;

[0038] user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0039] packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0040] information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0041] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising:

[0042] receiving a radio resource control reconfiguration message transmitted by a first node;

[0043] transmitting a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node;

[0044] transmitting sixth information to the first node by a fourth node; and

[0045] transmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node by the first node,

[0046] wherein the sixth information comprises at least one of:

[0047] second node-related information;

[0048] a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node;

[0049] user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0050] packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0051] information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0052] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fifth node as described above.

[0053] FIG. 1 is an example of an exemplary system architecture according to various embodiments;

[0054] FIGS. 2A-2C are an example of base station structures according to an embodiment;

[0055] FIGS. 3A-3C illustrates example method of interaction between non-terrestrial network nodes according to various embodiments;

[0056] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0057] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a network node in a wireless communication system according to the present disclosure.

[0058] The embodiments described in the disclosure, and the configurations shown in the drawings, are only examples of embodiments, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure.

[0059] Before undertaking the disclosure below, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document. The term "couple" and its derivatives refer to any direct or indirect communication between two or more elements, whether or not those elements are in physical contact with one another. The terms "transmit," "receive," and "communicate," as well as derivatives thereof, encompass both direct and indirect communication. The terms "include" and "comprise," as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation. The term "or" is inclusive, meaning and / or. The phrase "associated with," as well as derivatives thereof, means to include, be included within, connected to, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connected to or with, coupled to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, have a relationship to or with, or the like. The term "controller" means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation. Such a controller may be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software and / or firmware. The functionality associated with any particular controller may be central or distributed, whether locally or remotely. The phrase "at least one of," when used with a list of items, means that different combinations of one or more of the listed items may be used, and only one item in the list may be needed. For example, "at least one of: A, B, and C" includes any of the following combinations: A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, and A and B and C. For example, "at least one of: A, B, or C" includes any of the following combinations: A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, and A and B and C.

[0060] Moreover, various functions described below can be implemented or supported by one or more computer programs, each of which is formed from computer-readable program codes and embodied in a computer-readable medium. The terms "application" and "program" refer to one or more computer programs, software components, sets of instructions, procedures, functions, objects, classes, instances, related data, or a part thereof adapted for implementation in a suitable computer-readable program code. The phrase "computer-readable program code" includes any type of computer code, including source code, object code, and executable code. The phrase "computer-readable medium" includes any type of medium capable of being accessed by a computer, such as read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), a hard disk drive, a compact disc (CD), a digital video disc (DVD), or any other type of memory. A "non-transitory" computer-readable medium excludes wired, wireless, optical, or other communication links that transport transitory electrical or other signals. A non-transitory computer-readable medium includes media where data can be permanently stored and media where data can be stored and later overwritten, such as a rewritable optical disc or an erasable memory device.

[0061] Terms used herein to describe the embodiments of the present disclosure are not intended to limit and / or define the scope of the present disclosure. For example, unless otherwise defined, the technical terms and scientific terms used in the present disclosure have the same meaning as commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs.

[0062] It should be understood that the words such as "first," "second," and the like used in the present disclosure do not express any order, quantity or importance, but are only used to distinguish different constituent parts. The singular forms "a," "an," and "the" and similar words do not indicate limitation of the quantity, but indicate an existence of at least one, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0063] As used herein, any reference to one example or an example, one embodiment or an embodiment means that particular elements, features, structures or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment are included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrases "in an embodiment" or "in an example" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

[0064] As use herein, "a part of" a certain thing means "at least some of" the thing, thus it may mean less than the whole of the thing or all of the thing. Therefore, "a part of" the thing includes the whole thing as a special case, i.e., the whole thing is an example of a part of the thing.

[0065] It is to be further understood that the words such as the term "including" or "comprising" means that the element or thing preceding the word covers the elements or things and the like listed after the word, rather than excluding the other elements and things. Terms such as "connected" or "connected with" are not limited to be physical or mechanical connections, but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. "Up", "down", "left", "right", etc. are only used to indicate relative positional relationships, when the absolute position of the object being described changes, then the relative positional relationship may also change accordingly.

[0066] As described below, various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosure in are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged wireless communication system. For example, although the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be directed to LTE and 5G communication systems, those skilled in the art can understand that the main points of the present disclosure can also be applied to other communication systems with similar technical backgrounds and channel formats with slight modifications without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to various communication systems. For example, the communication systems may include a global system for mobile communications (GSM) system, a code division multiple access (CDMA) system, a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (GPRS), a long term evolution (LTE) system, a LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, a LTE time division duplex (TDD), a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, a 5th generation (5G) system or new radio (NR), and the like. In addition, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to future communication technologies. In addition, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to future communication technologies.

[0067] The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of various embodiments of the present disclosure as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of various embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

[0068] The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of various embodiments of the present disclosure is provided for the purpose of illustration only and not for the purpose of limiting the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0069] It is to be understood that the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to "a component surface" includes reference to one or more of such surfaces.

[0070] The term "include" or "may include" refers to the existence of a corresponding disclosed function, operation or component which can be used in various embodiments of the present disclosure and does not limit one or more additional functions, operations, or components. The terms such as "include" and / or "have" may be construed to denote a certain characteristic, number, step, operation, constituent element, component or a combination thereof, but may not be construed to exclude the existence of or a possibility of addition of one or more other characteristics, numbers, steps, operations, constituent elements, components or combinations thereof.

[0071] The term "or" used in various embodiments of the present disclosure includes any or all of combinations of listed words. For example, the expression "A or B" may include A, may include B, or may include both A and B.

[0072] Unless defined differently, all terms used herein, which include technical terminologies or scientific terminologies, have the same meaning as that understood by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. Such terms as those defined in a generally used dictionary are to be interpreted to have the meanings equal to the contextual meanings in the relevant field of art, and are not to be interpreted to have ideal or excessively formal meanings unless clearly defined in the present disclosure.

[0073] FIGS. 1 through 5, discussed below, and various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present disclosureare by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the present disclosure. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged system or device.

[0074] FIG. 1 is an exemplary system architecture 200 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Other embodiments of the system architecture 200 can be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. A user equipment (UE) 201 is a terminal device used for receiving data. A next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) 202 is a radio access network in which base stations (gNBs or eNBs connected to 5G core network (5GC), and the eNBs connected to the 5GC are also termed ng-gNBs) for providing an access radio network interface for the UE are included. An access control and mobility management function entity (AMF) 203 is responsible for managing mobility context and security information of the UE. A user plane function entity (UPF) 204 mainly provides functions of user plane. A session management function entity (SMF) 205 is responsible for session management. A data network (DN) 206 includes, for example, services of operators, access of Internet and service of third parties.

[0075] In a NR system, in order to support network function virtualization and more efficient resource management and scheduling, the base station (gNB / ng-eNB) providing a radio network interface for the terminal (UE) may be further divided into a central unit (gNB central unit / ng-eNB central unit, gNB-CU / ng-eNB-CU) and a distributed unit (gNB distributed unit / ng-eNB distributed unit, gNB-DU / ng-eNB-DU) (simply referred to as CU and DU in the present disclosure), as shown in FIG. 2A. The gNB-CU has radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layers, etc., and the ng-eNB-CU has RRC and PDCP layers. The gNB-DU / ng-eNB-DU has radio link control protocol (RLC), medium access control (MAC) and physical layers, or the like. There is a standardized common interface F1 between the gNB-CU and the gNB-DU, and there is a standardized common interface W1 between the g-eNB-CU and the ng-eNB-DU. The F1 interface is divided into a control plane F1-C and a user plane F1-U. The transport network layer for the F1-C is transported based on IP. For more reliable signaling transmission, a SCTP protocol is added over the IP. The protocol for the application layer is F1 interface application protocol (F1AP), see 3GPP TS38.473. The SCTP may provide a reliable application layer message transmission. The transport layer for the F1-U is UDP / IP, and GTP-U is used to carry user plane protocol data units (PDUs) over the UDP / IP. Further, for the gNB-CU, as show in FIG. 2B, the gNB-CU may include a gNB-CU-CP (a control plane part of the central unit of the base station) and a gNB-CU-UP (a user plane part of the central unit of the base station). The gNB-CU-CP contains the function of the control plane of the base station and has RRC and PDCP protocol layers, and the gNB-CU-UP contains the function of the user plane of the base station and has SDAP and PDCP protocol layers. There is a standardized common interface E1 with an E1AP protocol between the gNB-CU-CP and the gNB-CU-UP (see 3GPP TS38.463). The interface between the control plane part of the central unit of the base station and the distributed unit of the base station is a F1-C interface, i.e., the control plane interface of the F1, and the interface between the user plane part of the central unit of the base station and the distributed unit of the base station is a F1-U interface, i.e., the user plane interface of the F1. In addition, in the NR system, the base station that accesses the 5G core network and provides the E-UTRA user plane and control plane is referred to as ng-eNB. In order to support virtualization, such a base station (ng-eNB) may also be further divided into a central unit (gNB central unit / ng-eNB central unit, ng-eNB-CU) and a distributed unit (gNB distributed unit / ng-eNB distributed unit, ng-eNB-DU) (simply referred to as CU and DU in the present disclosure), as shown in FIG. 2C. The ng-eNB-CU has RRC and PDCP layers. The gNB-DU / ng-eNB-DU has radio link control protocol (RLC), medium access control (MAC) and physical layers, or the like. There is a standardized common interface W1 between the ng-eNB-CU and the ng-eNB-DU. The W1 interface is divided into a control plane W1-C and a user plane W1-U. The transport network layer for the W1-C is transported based on IP. For more reliable signaling transmission, a SCTP is added over the IP. The protocol for the application layer is W1AP, see 3GPP TS37.473. The transport layer for the W1-U is UDP / IP, and GTP-U is used to carry user plane protocol data units (PDUs) over the UDP / IP.

[0076] Non-terrestrial network technology focuses on the research of transparent payload (i.e., communication between the terminal and the base station is carried out by a satellite with transparent mode), and the research on regenerative payload (i.e., the base station is on the satellite) is in its infancy. The present disclosure mainly relates to interactions between the non-terrestrial network nodes in a regenerative payload scenario, so as to address the issue of user equipment mobility caused by the movement of the base station with the satellite due to the base station being on the satellite. In various embodiments of the disclosure, various methods for interaction between non-terrestrial network nodes and an apparatus thereof are provided.

[0077] The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0078] The text and drawings are provided as examples only to help understand the present disclosure. They should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present disclosure in any way. Although some embodiments and examples have been provided, based on the contents disclosed herein, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments and examples as shown may be changed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0079] Before describing the specific content, some assumptions and definitions of the present disclosure are gave below.

[0080] -The message names in the present disclosure are only examples, and other message names can be used.

[0081] -The "first", "second," etc. included in the message names of the present disclosure are only examples of the messages, and do not represent the execution order.

[0082] -Detailed explanations about operations or steps unrelated to the present disclosure may be omitted in the present disclosure.

[0083] -In the present disclosure, the steps or operations in each process may be combined with each other, and may be performed separately. The steps performed in each process are only examples, and do not preclude other possible execution orders.

[0084] -In the present disclosure, the base station may be a 5G base station (e.g., a gNB, or an ng-eNB), may also be a 4G base station (e.g., an eNB), may also be a 6G base station, and may also be other types of access nodes.

[0085] - In the present disclosure, the data transmission refers to the reception or transmission of the data.

[0086] The nodes or network nodes involved in the present disclosure are as follows:

[0087] -a first node: a first base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a control plane part of a central unit of a base station;

[0088] -a second node: a first core network device or a first access and mobility management function (AMF);

[0089] -a third node: a second base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a control plane part of a central unit of a base station;

[0090] -a fourth node: a second core network device or a second access and mobility management function;

[0091] -a fifth node: a user equipment (UE); and

[0092] -a sixth node: a satellite.

[0093] The sixth node in the present disclosure may include the first node, and may also include the first node and the third node. If the third node is present, the third node is collocated with the first node.

[0094] A control plane interface has been established between the first node and the second node of the present disclosure (i.e., interface application layer-related information has been interacted / exchanged).

[0095] The present disclosure provides a method for interaction between the non-terrestrial network nodes. As compared with conventional methods, the method of the present disclosure reduces the amount of interactive signaling, thereby reducing the transmission overhead.

[0096] FIG. 3A illustrates an example method for interaction between the non-terrestrial network nodes according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0097] Referring to FIG. 3A, at operation 300, a sixth node or a first node determines to establish a third node, and completes the establishment / setup of the third node.

[0098] It is to be noted that the sixth node includes the first node and the third node after the operation 300 is finished.

[0099] At operation 301, the third node transmits first information for interacting / exchanging interface application layer-related information to a fourth node.

[0100] The first information includes first related information about the collocation of the third node with the first node.

[0101] The first related information comprises at least one of:

[0102] ­a global radio access network node identity of the first node;

[0103] ­a global base station identity of the first node;

[0104] ­a radio access network node name of the first node; or

[0105] ­information related to at least one AMF which has established an NG interface with the first node.

[0106] The AMF-related information included in the information related to at least one AMF which has established an NG interface with the first node comprises at least one of:

[0107] ­a name of the AMF;

[0108] ­an identity of the at least one AMF; or

[0109] ­a name of at least one spare / backup AMF.

[0110] The first information can be included in an NG application protocol (NGAP) message, such as an NG establishment / setup request message and a radio access network configuration update message, and can also be included in other NGAP messages.

[0111] The fourth node identifies that the third node is collocated with the first node according to the first related information.

[0112] It is to be noted that in one implementation, if the fourth node has previously interacted / exchanged the interface application layer-related information with the first node, the fourth node can directly use a part of or whole of the interface application layer-related information related to the first node already stored (e.g., information such as the supported tracking areas) as the interface application layer-related information related to the third node.

[0113] In another implementation, if the fourth node has not previously interacted / exchanged the interface application layer-related information with the first node, the fourth node can make further interaction with the second node according to the information related to at least one AMF (e.g., the second node) which has established an NG interface with the first node included in the received first information, and acquires a part of or whole of the interface application layer-related information related to the first node (e.g., information such as the supported tracking areas) as the interface application layer-related information related to the third node.

[0114] At operation 302, optionally, the third node interacts / exchanges the interface application layer-related information with the first node to establish an interface (e.g., an Xn interface) between the third node and the first node.

[0115] It is to be noted that since the third node is collocated with the first node and both are included in the sixth node, the third node and the first node can establish an interface by an interface message, and can also establish an interface by internal interactions.

[0116] At operation 303, optionally, the first node triggers / initiates a handover preparation process for the fifth node, and performs related interactions with the third node for the handover preparation.

[0117] It is to be noted that in the example of FIG. 3A, the first node prepares to hand over the fifth node from a source cell of the first node to a target cell of the third node.

[0118] At operation 304, the first node or the third node transmits second information to the fifth node. The second information is used to provide the fifth node with information related to cell collocation.

[0119] In one implementation, the first node transmits the second information to the fifth node.

[0120] The second information includes information related to at least one target cell collocated with the source cell.

[0121] The target cell-related information included in the information related to at least one target cell collocated with the source cell comprises at least one of:

[0122] ­a physical cell identity of the target cell;

[0123] ­a public land mobile network identity of the target cell;

[0124] ­information related to a tracking area of the target cell;

[0125] ­an identity of the target cell (a global identity of the target cell); or

[0126] ­related indication information about the collocation with the source cell.

[0127] The second information may be included in a radio resource control (RRC) message, such as a RRC reconfiguration message or other RRC messages; and may also be included in a medium access control (MAC) control unit, named as collocation information and the like.

[0128] The fifth node identifies that the target cell is collocated with the source cell according to the second information, therefore in subsequent access to the target cell, there may be no need for additional timing advance adjustments.

[0129] In another implementation, the first node or the third node transmits the second information to the fifth node.

[0130] The second information includes information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the first node or the third node.

[0131] The second cell-related information included in the information related to at least one second cell collocated with the first cell comprises at least one of:

[0132] ­a physical cell identity of the second cell;

[0133] ­a public land mobile network identity of the second cell;

[0134] ­information related to a tracking area of the second cell;

[0135] ­an identity of the second cell (a global identity of the target cell); or

[0136] ­related indication information about the collocation with the first cell.

[0137] The second information may be included in a radio resource control (RRC) message, such as a system information, a system information block and other RRC messages.

[0138] The fifth node identifies that the second cell is collocated with the first cell according to the second information, therefore in subsequent access to the second cell, there may be no need for additional timing advance adjustments.

[0139] It is to be noted that in such an implementation, if the first node transmits the second information to the fifth node, there is no strict sequential ordering between the operation 304 and all other operations.

[0140] It is worth mentioning that due to the base station being on the satellite, a part of the interface between the base station and the core network needs to be carried by a feeder link. Since the feeder link is a radio link, it is relatively less reliable than a wired link. Thereby, in order to guarantee the overall reliability of signaling interactions, it is necessary to minimize the transmission of messages on the interface between the base station and the core network. By means of such a method in FIG. 3A, the number of message transmissions of the interface between the base station and the core network is reduced by using the way of transmitting signaling via the wired link as much as possible, so that the reliability of signaling interactions is improved. On the other hand, by the way of providing information related to the collocation between different cells to the user equipment by the base station, the operation of the user equipment to perform the timing advance adjustments is reduced, so that the operational complexity of the user equipment is reduced.

[0141] FIG. 3B illustrates an example method for interaction between the non-terrestrial network nodes according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0142] Referring to FIG. 3B, it is to be noted that in an initial state, a fifth node is connected to a first node as an access node, and the fifth node is connected to a second node as a core network node through the first node.

[0143] At operation 401, the second node transmits third information to a fourth node according to ephemeris information or other information, and the third information is used to provide the fourth node with information related to re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node.

[0144] The third information comprises at least one of:

[0145] ­related information or related indication information about the re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node;

[0146] ­user equipment context-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0147] ­packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0148] The fourth node identifies current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the third information.

[0149] At operation 402, after receiving the third information, the fourth node transmits fourth information to the second node according to the content of the third information, and the fourth information is used to provide the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0150] It is to be noted that in one implementation, the fourth node prepares the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the related indication information about the re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node included in the third information. In another implementation, the fourth node generates the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node with reference to the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node included in the third information.

[0151] The fourth information comprises at least one of:

[0152] ­the fourth node-related information for identifying the fourth node;

[0153] ­the second node-related information for indicating the old AMF (the second node);

[0154] ­a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node, for identifying the user equipment on the interface;

[0155] ­a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node, for indicating old user equipment-related identity (between the second node and the first node);

[0156] ­user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0157] ­packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0158] ­related information or related indication information about release of the current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0159] The fourth node-related information or the second node-related information comprises at least one of:

[0160] ­a name of the AMF;

[0161] ­an identity of the at least one AMF; or

[0162] ­a name of at least one spare / backup AMF.

[0163] The user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node or the user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node comprises at least one of:

[0164] ­an AMF user equipment NG application protocol identity; or

[0165] ­a radio access network user equipment NG application protocol identity .

[0166] The user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of:

[0167] ­information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment;

[0168] ­information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice;

[0169] ­a security key;

[0170] ­a mobility restriction list;

[0171] ­information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority;

[0172] ­authorization-related information;

[0173] ­information related to quality of service; or

[0174] ­information related to quality of experience configuration.

[0175] The packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one packet data unit session-related information, and the included packet data unit session-related information comprises at least one of:

[0176] ­an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session;

[0177] ­information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; or

[0178] ­information related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.

[0179] At operation 403, after receiving the fourth information, the second node transmits the fourth information to the first node to update the user equipment context-related information and packet data unit session-related information of the first node.

[0180] The fourth information transmitted by the second node to the first node may be included in an NG application protocol message, named as a user equipment context modification request message; and may also be included in other NG application protocol messages.

[0181] The first node identifies the AMF to be re-allocated for the fifth node according to the fourth node-related information.

[0182] The first node identifies the AMF to which the fifth node is currently connected according to the second node-related information.

[0183] The first node identifies the user equipment-related identity allocated to the fifth node by the AMF re-allocated for the fifth node, according to the user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node.

[0184] The first node identifies the fifth node to which the fourth information is directed, according to the user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node.

[0185] The first node updates the currently stored user equipment context-related information, according to the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node.

[0186] The first node updates the currently stored packet data unit session-related information, according to the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0187] The first node releases the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the related indication information about the release of the current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0188] It is to be noted that in one implementation, after receiving the fourth information from the second node, the first node modifies or updates the current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information according to the content of the fourth information, and use the updated related information as the related information between the fourth node and the first node. Afterward, the first node directly transmits a user equipment context modification response message including packet data unit session-related response information to the fourth node (i.e., operation 404).

[0189] In one embodiment, the operation 404 may be followed by the following operations:

[0190] operation 405: the first node transmits a radio resource control reconfiguration message to the fifth node; and

[0191] operation 406: the fifth node transmits a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node.

[0192] Further, it is to be noted that in one implementation, when the above operations are completed, the first node directly releases the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, without any further interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.

[0193] It is worth mentioning that due to the base station being on the satellite, a part of the interface between the base station and the core network needs to be carried by a feeder link. Since the feeder link is a radio link, it is relatively less reliable than a wired link. Thereby, in order to guarantee the overall reliability of signaling interactions, it is necessary to minimize the transmission of messages on the interface between the base station and the core network. By means of such a method in FIG. 3B, the number of message transmissions of the interface between the base station and the core network is reduced by using the way of transmitting signaling via the wired link as much as possible, so that the reliability of signaling interactions is improved.

[0194] FIG. 3C illustrates an example method for interaction between the non-terrestrial network nodes according to the present disclosure.

[0195] Referring to FIG. 3C, it is to be noted that in an initial state, a fifth node is connected to a first node as an access node, and the fifth node is connected to a second node as a core network node through the first node.

[0196] At operation 501, the second node transmits third information to a fourth node according to ephemeris information or other information, and the third information is used to provide the fourth node with information related to re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node.

[0197] The third information comprises at least one of:

[0198] ­related information or related indication information about the re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node;

[0199] ­user equipment context-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0200] ­packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0201] The fourth node identifies current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the third information.

[0202] At operation 502, after receiving the third information, the fourth node transmits sixth information to the second node according to the content of the third information, the sixth information is used to provide the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0203] It is to be noted that in one implementation, the fourth node prepares the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the related indication information about the re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node included in the third information. In another implementation, the fourth node generates the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node with reference to the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node included in the third information.

[0204] The sixth information comprises at least one of:

[0205] ­the fourth node-related information for identifying the fourth node;

[0206] ­the second node-related information for indicating the old AMF (the second node);

[0207] ­a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node, for identifying the user equipment on the interface;

[0208] ­a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node, for indicating old user equipment-related identity (between the second node and the first node);

[0209] ­user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0210] ­packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0211] ­related indication information about release of the current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0212] The fourth node-related information or the second node-related information comprises at least one of:

[0213] ­a name of the AMF;

[0214] ­an identity of the at least one AMF; or

[0215] ­a name of at least one spare / backup AMF.

[0216] The user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node or the user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node comprises at least one of:

[0217] ­an AMF user equipment NG application protocol identity; or

[0218] ­a radio access network user equipment NG application protocol identity.

[0219] The user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of:

[0220] ­information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment;

[0221] ­information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice;

[0222] ­a security key;

[0223] ­a mobility restriction list;

[0224] ­information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority;

[0225] ­authorization-related information;

[0226] ­information related to quality of service; or

[0227] ­information related to quality of experience configuration.

[0228] The packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one packet data unit session-related information, and the included packet data unit session-related information comprises at least one of:

[0229] ­an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session;

[0230] ­information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; or

[0231] ­information related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.

[0232] The sixth information may be included in an NG application protocol message, named as an initial context establishment / setup request message; and may also be included in other NG application protocol messages.

[0233] The first node identifies the AMF to be re-allocated to the fifth node according to the fourth node-related information.

[0234] The first node identifies the AMF to which the fifth node is currently connected according to the second node-related information.

[0235] The first node identifies the user equipment-related identity allocated to the fifth node by the AMF re-allocated to the fifth node, according to the user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node.

[0236] The first node identifies the fifth node to which the sixth information is directed, according to the user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node.

[0237] The first node performs the establishment / setup of the user equipment context-related information, according to the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node.

[0238] The first node performs the establishment / setup of the packet data unit session-related information, according to the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0239] The first node releases the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, according to the related indication information about the release of the current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0240] It is to be noted that in one implementation, when the above operations are completed, the first node directly releases the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, without any further interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.

[0241] At operation 503, the first node transmits an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node.

[0242] At operation 504, after receiving the initial context establishment / setup response message, the fourth node identifies that the initial context establishment / setup is completed and transmits fifth information to the second node. The fifth information is used to indicate the second node to release the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0243] The fifth information comprises at least one of:

[0244] ­related information or related indication information about completion of context establishment / setup of the fourth node with the first node; or

[0245] ­related information or related indication information about release of the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node and stored by the second node.

[0246] After receiving the fifth information, the second node releases the stored user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0247] In one embodiment, the operation 504 may be followed by the following operations:

[0248] operation 505: the first node transmits a radio resource control reconfiguration message to the fifth node; and

[0249] operation 506: the fifth node transmits a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node.

[0250] It is worth mentioning that due to the base station being on the satellite, a part of the interface between the base station and the core network needs to be carried by a feeder link. Since the feeder link is a radio link, it is relatively less reliable than a wired link. Thereby, in order to guarantee the overall reliability of signaling interactions, it is necessary to minimize the transmission of messages on the interface between the base station and the core network. By means of such a method in FIG. 3C, the number of message transmissions of the interface between the base station and the core network is reduced by using the way of transmitting signaling via the wired link as much as possible, so that the reliability of signaling interactions is improved.

[0251] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a fifth node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0252] Referring to FIG. 4, the fifth node according to the disclosure may be a user equipment which may comprise a transceiver 410 and a processor 420, where the transceiver 410 is coupled with the processor 420. Optionally, the network node may further include a memory 430. The transceiver 410, the processor 420 and the memory 430 are configured to perform the operations of methods and / or embodiments of the present disclosure. Although the transceiver 410, the processor 420 and the memory 430 are shown as separate entities, they may be realized as a single entity like a single chip. The transceiver 410, the processor 420 and the memory 430 may be electrically connected or coupled to each other. The transceiver 410 may transmit and receive signals to and from other network nodes, where the other network nodes may for example be other UEs, base stations, or core network devices (e.g., the AMFs), and the like. The processor 420 may include one or more processing units and may control the UE to perform the operations and / or functions according to one of the above embodiments. The memory 430 may store instructions for implementing the operations and / or functions according to one of the above embodiments.

[0253] A method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication network comprises: receiving second information from a first node, the second information comprising information related to at least one target cell collocated with a source cell; or receiving the second information from a third node, the second information comprising information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the third node; and accessing the target cell or the first cell according to the second information.

[0254] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one target cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the target cell; a public land mobile network identity of the target cell; information related to a tracking area of the target cell; an identity of the target cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the source cell.

[0255] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one second cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the second cell; a public land mobile network identity of the second cell; information related to a tracking area of the second cell; an identity of the second cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the first cell.

[0256] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second information is generated based on the establishment / setup of the third node.

[0257] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a network node in a network according to the present disclosure.

[0258] The network node in the network may be used to implement the first node, the second node, the third node or the fourth node etc. in the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 5, the network node according to the disclosure may comprise a transceiver 510 and a processor 520, where the transceiver 510 is coupled with the processor 520. Optionally, the network node may further include a memory 530. The transceiver 510, the processor 520 and the memory 530 are configured to perform the operations of methods and / or embodiments of the present disclosure. Although the transceiver 510, the processor 520 and the memory 530 are shown as separate entities, they may be realized as a single entity like a single chip. The transceiver 510, the processor 520 and the memory 530 may be electrically connected or coupled to each other. The transceiver 510 may transmit and receive signals to and from other network nodes, the other network nodes may for example be UEs, other base stations, a part of a base station or core network devices (e.g., the AMFs), and the like. The processor 520 may include one or more processing units and may control the network node to perform the operations and / or functions according to one of the above embodiments. The memory 530 may store instructions for implementing the operations and / or functions according to one of the above embodiments.

[0259] A method performed by a third node in a wireless communication network comprises: generating application layer protocol-related information of an interface with a fourth node; and transmitting first information to the fourth node, the first information comprising first related information about the collocation of the third node with a first node.

[0260] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the first related information comprises at least one of: a global radio access network node identity of the first node; a global base station identity of the first node; a radio access network node name of the first node; or information related to at least one access and mobility management function which has established an interface with the first node.

[0261] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one access and mobility management function comprises at least one of: a name of the access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0262] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a second node in a wireless communication network, comprising: transmitting third information to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and receiving fourth information from the fourth node, the fourth information comprising at least one of: a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0263] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: transmitting the fourth information to the first node, the fourth information being used for the first node to update or modify the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the first node.

[0264] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a first node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving sixth information from a fourth node; and transmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node. The sixth information comprises at least one of: second node-related information; a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0265] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of: information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment; information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice; a security key; a mobility restriction list; information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority; authorization-related information; information related to quality of service; or information related to quality of experience configuration.

[0266] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one of: an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session; information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; or information related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.

[0267] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second node-related information comprises at least one of: a name of an access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0268] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: directly releasing, by the first node, the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, without any interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.

[0269] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fourth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving third information from a second node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and transmitting fifth information to the second node, wherein the fifth information comprises at least one of: information related to completion of context establishment / setup of the fourth node with the first node; or information about release of the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node and stored by the second node.

[0270] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the fifth information is used for the second node to release the stored user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0271] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, there is further provided a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, that when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to perform any one of the above methods according to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Examples of the computer-readable storage medium include a read-only memory (ROM), a random access programmable read-only memory (PROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a random access memory (RAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a flash, a non-volatile memory, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD+R, a CD-RW, a CD+RW, a DVD-ROM, a DVD-R, a DVD+R, a DVD-RW, a DVD+RW, a DVD-RAM, a BD-ROM, a BD-R, a BD-R LTH, a BD-RE, a BlueRay or optical storage disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state disk (SSD), a memory card (such as a multimedia card, a secure digital (SD) card or an extreme digital (XD) card), a magnetic tape, a floppy disk, a magneto-optical data storage, an optical data storage, a hard disk, a solid-state disk, and any apparatus configured to store computer programs as well as any associated data, data files and data structures in a non-transitory manner and provide the computer programs as well as any associated data, data files and data structures to a processor of a computer so that the processor or the computer performs the computer programs. The instructions or computer programs in the computer-readable storage medium may be executed in an environment where computer devices such as a client, a host, an agent apparatus and a server are deployed. Further, in one example, the computer programs as well as any associated data, data files and data structures are distributed on networked computer systems, so that the computer programs as well as any associated data, data files and data structures are stored, accessed and executed by one or more processors or computers in a distributed manner.

[0272] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the foregoing illustrative embodiments are described herein and are not intended to be restrictive. It is to be understood that any two or more of the embodiments disclosed herein may be combined in any combination. In addition, other embodiments can be utilized and other changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matters presented herein. It will be easily understood that aspects of the present disclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, can be arranged, substituted, combined, separated, and designed in a wide variety of different configurations, all of which are contemplated herein.

[0273] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, circuits and operations may be realized as hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability between hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and operations are generally described above in the form of their functional sets. Whether such function sets are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. Technicians may implement the described functional sets in different ways for each specific application, but such design decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of this application.

[0274] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in this application may be implemented or performed by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logics, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors cooperating with a DSP core, or any other such configurations.

[0275] The operations of the method or algorithm described in this application may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination thereof. A software module may reside in RAM memories, flash memories, ROM memories, EPROM memories, EEPROM memories, registers, hard disks, removable disks, or any other form of storage mediums known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read and write information from / to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integrated into the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal. In an alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside in a user terminal as discrete components.

[0276] In one or more exemplary designs, the functions may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, each function may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium or delivered through it. The computer-readable medium includes both a computer storage medium and a communication medium, the latter including any medium that facilitates the transfer of computer programs from one place to another. The storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

[0277] In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving second information from a first node, the second information comprising information related to at least one target cell collocated with a source cell; or receiving the second information from a third node, the second information comprising information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the third node; and accessing the target cell or the first cell according to the second information.

[0278] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one target cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the target cell; a public land mobile network identity of the target cell; information related to a tracking area of the target cell; an identity of the target cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the source cell.

[0279] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one second cell comprises at least one of: a physical cell identity of the second cell; a public land mobile network identity of the second cell; information related to a tracking area of the second cell; an identity of the second cell; or related indication information about the collocation with the first cell.

[0280] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second information is generated based on the establishment / setup of the third node.

[0281] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fifth node as described above. The fifth node may be a user equipment.

[0282] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a third node in a wireless communication network, comprising: generating application layer protocol-related information of an interface with a fourth node; and transmitting first information to the fourth node, the first information comprising first related information about the collocation of the third node with a first node.

[0283] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the first related information comprises at least one of: a global radio access network node identity of the first node; a global base station identity of the first node; a radio access network node name of the first node; or information related to at least one access and mobility management function which has established an interface with the first node.

[0284] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information related to at least one access and mobility management function comprises at least one of: a name of the access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0285] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the third node as described above. The third node may be a base station or a central unit of the base station, or a control plane part of the central unit of the base station.

[0286] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a second node in a wireless communication network, comprising: transmitting third information to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and receiving fourth information from the fourth node, the fourth information comprising at least one of: a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0287] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: transmitting the fourth information to the first node, the fourth information being used for the first node to update or modify the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the first node.

[0288] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the second node as described above. The second node may be a core network device, e.g., an access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0289] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a first node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving sixth information from a fourth node; and transmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node. The sixth information comprises at least one of: second node-related information; a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node; user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node; packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0290] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of: information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment; information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice; a security key; a mobility restriction list; information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority; authorization-related information; information related to quality of service; or information related to quality of experience configuration.

[0291] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one of: an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session; information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; or information related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.

[0292] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the second node-related information comprises at least one of: a name of an access and mobility management function; an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; or a name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.

[0293] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprises: directly releasing, by the first node, the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information which is related to the interface with the first node, without any interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.

[0294] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the first node as described above. The first node may be a base station or a central unit of the base station, or a control plane part of the central unit of the base station.

[0295] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fourth node in a wireless communication network, comprising: receiving third information from a second node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; and transmitting fifth information to the second node, wherein the fifth information comprises at least one of: information related to completion of context establishment / setup of the fourth node with the first node; or information about release of the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node and stored by the second node.

[0296] According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the fifth information is used for the second node to release the stored user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information which is related to the interface with the first node.

[0297] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fourth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fourth node as described above.

[0298] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising:

[0299] receiving a radio resource control reconfiguration message transmitted by a first node; and

[0300] transmitting a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node;

[0301] wherein third information is transmitted by a second node to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of the first node to the fourth node; and

[0302] fourth information is transmitted by the fourth node to the second node, the fourth information comprising at least one of:

[0303] a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node;

[0304] user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0305] packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0306] information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0307] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising:

[0308] receiving a radio resource control reconfiguration message transmitted by a first node;

[0309] transmitting a radio resource control reconfiguration complete message to the first node;

[0310] transmitting sixth information to the first node by a fourth node; and

[0311] transmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node by the first node,

[0312] wherein the sixth information comprises at least one of:

[0313] second node-related information;

[0314] a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node;

[0315] user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;

[0316] packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; or

[0317] information related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.

[0318] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a fifth node in a wireless communication system, comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit and receive signals; and a processor coupled with the transceiver and configured to perform the method performed by the fifth node as described above.

[0319] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of embodiments of the present disclosure clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure are described clearly and completely below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are merely some embodiments of the present disclosure and are not all embodiments. According to the descried embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments derived by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0320] The above description is only an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure, and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present disclosure, which is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1.A method performed by a fifth node in a wireless communication network, comprising:receiving second information from a first node, the second information comprising information related to at least one target cell collocated with a source cell; orreceiving the second information from a third node, the second information comprising information related to at least one second cell collocated with a first cell under the third node; andaccessing the target cell or the first cell according to the second information.2.The method of claim 1, wherein the information related to at least one target cell comprises at least one of:a physical cell identity of the target cell;a public land mobile network identity of the target cell;information related to a tracking area of the target cell;an identity of the target cell; orrelated indication information about the collocation with the source cell.3.The method of claim 1, wherein the information related to at least one second cell comprises at least one of:a physical cell identity of the second cell;a public land mobile network identity of the second cell;information related to a tracking area of the second cell;an identity of the second cell; orrelated indication information about the collocation with the first cell.4.The method of claim 1, wherein the second information is generated based on the establishment / setup of the third node.5.A method performed by a third node in a wireless communication network, comprising:generating application layer protocol-related information of an interface with a fourth node; andtransmitting first information to the fourth node, the first information comprising first related information about the collocation of the third node with a first node.6.The method of claim 5, wherein the first related information comprises at least one of:a global radio access network node identity of the first node;a global base station identity of the first node;a radio access network node name of the first node; orinformation related to at least one access and mobility management function which has established an interface with the first node.7.The method of claim 6, wherein the information related to at least one access and mobility management function comprises at least one of:a name of the access and mobility management function;an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; ora name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.8.A method performed by a second node in a wireless communication network, comprising:transmitting third information to a fourth node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; andreceiving fourth information from the fourth node, the fourth information comprising at least one of:a user equipment-related identity between the fourth node and the first node;user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; orinformation related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.9.The method of claim 8, further comprising,transmitting the fourth information to the first node, the fourth information being used for the first node to update or modify the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the first node.10.A method performed by a first node in a wireless communication network, comprising:receiving sixth information from a fourth node; andtransmitting an initial context establishment / setup response message to the fourth node,wherein the sixth information comprises at least one of:second node-related information;a user equipment-related identity between the second node and the first node;user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node;packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node; orinformation related to release of current user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information.11.The method of claim 8 or 10, wherein the user equipment context-related information of the fourth node which is related to an interface with the first node comprises at least one of:information related to an aggregate maximum bit rate for a user equipment;information related to an allowed slice and / or a partially allowed slice and / or a target slice;a security key;a mobility restriction list;information related to a radio access type / manner or a frequency selection priority;authorization-related information;information related to quality of service; orinformation related to quality of experience configuration.12.The method of claim 8 or 10, wherein the packet data unit session-related information of the fourth node which is related to the interface with the first node comprises at least one of:an aggregate maximum bit rate for a packet data unit session;information related to an uplink data plane transport network layer, comprising information about the uplink data plane transport network layer to be established or modified or released / removed; orinformation related to a quality of service flow, comprising information about the quality of service flow to be established or modified or released / removed.13.The method of claim 10, wherein the second node-related information comprises at least one of:a name of an access and mobility management function;an identity of the at least one access and mobility management function; ora name of at least one spare / backup access and mobility management function.14.The method of claim 10, further comprising:directly releasing, by the first node, the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node, without any interactions with the second node or the fourth node in relation to this release.15.A method performed by a fourth node in a wireless communication network, comprising:receiving third information from a second node, the third information comprising information related to re-allocation of a first node to the fourth node; andtransmitting fifth information to the second node, wherein the fifth information comprises at least one of:information related to completion of context establishment / setup of the fourth node with the first node; orinformation about release of the user equipment context-related information and / or packet data unit session-related information of the second node which is related to the interface with the first node and stored by the second node.

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