Enhanced data usage reporting for XRM applications

Abstract

Systems, methods, and instrumentalities are described herein related to data usage reporting associated with packet data unit (PDU) active discarding. A radio access network (RAN) may determine to drop PDUs based on application layer-forward error correction (AL-FEC) information. Enhanced data reporting may enable a charging system to account for the PDUs that were not delivered to the WTRU. A device (e.g., a RAN node) may (e.g., be configured to) perform one or more of the following. The device may receive a quality of service (QoS) profile. The QoS profile may configure the device to report data usage related to active discarding. For example, the QoS profile may include one or more of a correlation ID, a forward error correction (FEC) success ratio value, a data reporting destination, data usage reporting content, or a data usage reporting condition (e.g., a trigger for data usage reporting).

Description

ENHANCED DATA USAGE REPORTING FOR XRM APPLICATIONSCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of Provisional U.S. Patent Application No. 63 / 574,397, filed April 4, 2024, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND

[0002] Mobile communications using wireless communication continue to evolve. A fifth generation may be referred to as 5G. A previous (legacy) generation of mobile communication may be, for example, fourth generation (4G) long term evolution (LTE).SUMMARY

[0003] Systems, methods, and instrumentalities are described herein related to data usage reporting associated with PDU active discarding. A radio access network (RAN) may determine to drop PDUs based on application layer-forward error correction (AL-FEC) information. Enhanced data reporting may enable a charging system to account for the PDUs that were not delivered to the WTRU. Enhanced data reporting may incorporate communications between one or more of: a RAN node, a user plane function (UPF), a session management function (SMF), or a charging function (CHF).

[0004] A device (e.g., a RAN node) may (e.g., may be configured to) perform one or more of the following. The device may receive a quality of service (QoS) profile. The QoS profile may configure the device to report data usage related to active discarding. For example, the QoS profile may include one or more of a correlation ID, a forward error correction (FEC) success ratio value, a data reporting destination (e.g., a UPF), data usage reporting content, or a data usage reporting condition (e.g., a trigger for data usage reporting).

[0005] The device may receive packet data units (PDUs) associated with a PDU set (PS). The device may determine to perform active discarding on the PDUs, for example, based on the QoS profile. The device may perform active discarding on the PDUs. The device may update data usage information based on the performed active discarding.

[0006] The device may determine whether a data usage reporting condition is satisfied. For example, the data usage reporting condition may be the receipt of a data usage reporting request (e.g., by an SMF). For example, the data usage reporting condition may be based on the QoS profile (e.g., parameters of the QoS profile).

[0007] The device may generate, based on the determination that the data usage reporting condition is satisfied, a data usage report including the updated data usage information. The device may send the data usage report.

[0008] The device may receive the PDUs via a general packet radio service tunneling protocol user plane (GTP-U) tunnel. A GTP-U header of the PDUs may comprise a correlation ID and / or a forward error correction (FEC) success ratio value. The determination to perform active discarding on the PDUs may be based on the correlation ID.

[0009] The device may send a subset of the PDUs based on the performed active discarding. The subset of the PDUs may be sent via a GTP-U tunnel based on the QoS profile.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented.

[0011] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0012] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1 A according to an embodiment.

[0013] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example CN that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0014] FIG. 2A-2B depict an example of configuring a RAN to report data usage associated with active discarding to a user plane function (UPF).

[0015] FIG. 3 depicts an example of configuring a RAN to report data usage associated with active discarding to a session management function (SMF).

[0016] FIG. 4 depicts an example of configuring a UPF to report expected data usage considering active discarding by a RAN.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example communications system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communications system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems 100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail unique-word DFT-Spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-s OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block-filtered OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), and the like.

[0018] As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a RAN 104 / 113, a ON 106 / 115, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, though it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a “station” and / or a “STA”, may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fi device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a UE.

[0019] The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the CN 106 / 115, the I nternet 110, and / or the other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNode B, a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, a gNB, a NR NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. While the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it will beappreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0020] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104 / 113, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and / or the base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. A cell may provide coverage for a wireless service to a specific geographical area that may be relatively fixed or that may change over time. The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e. , one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0021] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0022] More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104 / 113 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High-Speed UL Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0023] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0024] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR Radio Access , which may establish the air interface 116 using New Radio (NR).

[0025] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for instance using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g., an eNB and a gNB).

[0026] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

[0027] The base station 114b in FIG. 1 A may be a wireless router, Home Node B, Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a roadway, and the like. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0028] The RAN 104 / 113 may be in communication with the CN 106 / 115, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have varying quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as differing throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, and the like. The CN 106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 / 113 and / or the CN 106 / 115 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104 / 113, whichmay be utilizing a NR radio technology, the CN 106 / 115 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0029] The CN 106 / 115 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit- switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and / or the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and / or wireless communications networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT.

[0030] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0031] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1 B, the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138, among others. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0032] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. While FIG. 1 B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0033] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0034] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is depicted in FIG. 1 B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0035] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that are to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate the signals that are received by the transmit / receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11, for example.

[0036] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receive user input data from, the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130 and / or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0037] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include oneor more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0038] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and / or determine its location based on the timing of the signals being received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by way of any suitable locationdetermination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0039] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photographs and / or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, a Virtual Reality and / or Augmented Reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors, the sensors may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor; a geolocation sensor; an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or a humidity sensor.

[0040] The WTRU 102 may include a full duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for both the UL (e.g., for transmission) and downlink (e.g., for reception) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous. The full duplex radio may include an interference management unit to reduce and or substantially eliminate self-interference via either hardware (e.g., a choke) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via processor 118). In an embodiment, the WRTU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the UL (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0041] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0042] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0043] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 C, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another over an X2 interface.

[0044] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1 C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (or PGW) 166. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0045] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0046] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNode Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter- eNode B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0047] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0048] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. Inaddition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0049] Although the WTRU is described in FIGS. 1 A-1 D as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments that such a terminal may use (e.g., temporarily or permanently) wired communication interfaces with the communication network.

[0050] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0051] A WLAN in Infrastructure Basic Service Set (BSS) mode may have an Access Point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have an access or an interface to a Distribution System (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic in to and / or out of the BSS. Traffic to STAs that originates from outside the BSS may arrive through the AP and may be delivered to the STAs. Traffic originating from STAs to destinations outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP, for example, where the source STA may send traffic to the AP and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. The traffic between STAs within a BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to- peer traffic. The peer-to-peer traffic may be sent between (e.g., directly between) the source and destination STAs with a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use an 802.11e DLS or an 802.11 z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (I BSS) mode may not have an AP, and the STAs (e.g., all of the STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may sometimes be referred to herein as an “ad- hoc” mode of communication.

[0052] When using the 802.11 ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operations, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented, for example in in 802.11 systems. For CSMA / CA, the STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0053] High Throughput (HT) STAs may use a 40 MHz wide channel for communication, for example, via a combination of the primary 20 MHz channel with an adjacent or nonadjacent 20 MHz channel to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0054] Very High Throughput (VHT) STAs may support 20MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz wide channels. The 40 MHz, and / or 80 MHz, channels may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining 8 contiguous 20 MHz channels, or by combining two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. For the 80+80 configuration, the data, after channel encoding, may be passed through a segment parser that may divide the data into two streams. Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) processing, and time domain processing, may be done on each stream separately. The streams may be mapped on to the two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above described operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to the Medium Access Control (MAC).

[0055] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.11af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.11 af and 802.11 ah relative to those used in 802.11 n, and 802.11 ac. 802.11 af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11 ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non- TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11 ah may support Meter Type Control / Machine-Type Communications, such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, for example, limited capabilities including support for (e.g., only support for) certain and / or limited bandwidths. The MTC devices may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain a very long battery life).

[0056] WLAN systems, which may support multiple channels, and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11 n, 802.11 ac, 802.11 af, and 802.11 ah, include a channel which may be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA, from among all STAs in operating in a BSS, which supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode. In the example of 802.11 ah, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for STAs (e.g., MTC type devices) that support (e.g., only support) a 1 MHz mode, even if the AP, and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or Network Allocation Vector (NAV) settings may depend on the status of the primary channel. If the primary channel is busy, for example, due to a STA (which supports only a 1 MHz operating mode), transmitting to the AP, the entire available frequency bands may be considered busy even though a majority of the frequency bands remains idle and may be available.

[0057] In the United States, the available frequency bands, which may be used by 802.11 ah, are from 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In Korea, the available frequency bands are from 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. InJapan, the available frequency bands are from 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11 ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz depending on the country code.

[0058] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 113 and the CN 115 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 113 may employ an NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 113 may also be in communication with the CN 115.

[0059] The RAN 113 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 113 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNBs 180a, 108b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum while the remaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and / or gNB 180c).

[0060] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, the OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframe or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of various or scalable lengths (e.g., containing varying number of OFDM symbols and / or lasting varying lengths of absolute time).

[0061] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without also accessing other RANs (e.g., such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c). In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as a mobility anchor point. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with / connect to gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with / connecting to another RAN such aseNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement DC principles to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In the non-standalone configuration, eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as a mobility anchor for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for servicing WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0062] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, support of network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E- UTRA, routing of user plane data towards User Plane Function (UPF) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 182a, 182b and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 D, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with one another over an Xn interface.

[0063] The CN 115 shown in FIG. 1 D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possibly a Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 115, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0064] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N2 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, support for network slicing (e.g., handling of different PDU sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, management of the registration area, termination of NAS signaling, mobility management, and the like. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b in order to customize CN support for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the types of services being utilized WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced massive mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for machine type communication (MTC) access, and / or the like. The AMF 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0065] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to an AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 115 via an N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to a UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 115 via an N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and allocating UE IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providingdownlink data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP based, Ethernetbased, and the like.

[0066] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet- switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, providing mobility anchoring, and the like.

[0067] The CN 115 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 115 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 115 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 115 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to a local Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b through the UPF 184a, 184b via the N3 interface to the UPF 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPF 184a, 184b and the DN 185a, 185b.

[0068] In view of FIGs. 1 A-1 D, and the corresponding description of FIGs. 1 A-1 D, one or more, or all, of the functions described herein with regard to one or more of: WTRU 102a-d, Base Station 114a-b, eNode- B 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNB 180a-c, AMF 182a-b, UPF 184a-b, SMF 183a-b, DN 185a- b, and / or any other device(s) described herein, may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more, or all, of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and / or to simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0069] The emulation devices may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a lab environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for purposes of testing and / or may performing testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0070] The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, including all, functions while not being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example,the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and / or a non-deployed (e.g., testing) wired and / or wireless communication network in order to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be testing equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communications via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and / or receive data.

[0071] A user plane function (UPF) may be configured to provide usage reporting. For example, the UPF may send usage reports to a session management function (SMF). A usage report may indicate how much data was sent to and / or from a WTRU. For example, a usage report may include a record or summary of how a particular resource (e.g., data, bandwidth, or time) was utilized by a WTRU within a certain period. For example, a usage report may indicate the quantity of downlink data transmitted to a WTRU that matches a particular packet detection rule (PDR). For example, a usage report may indicate how much downlink data was sent to a WTRU within a particular packet data unit (PDU) session. Reporting from the UPF may be performed for uplink data and / or downlink data.

[0072] The SMF may use the data from the usage report to determine what information to send to the charging function (CHF). For example, the SMF may use information from the charging report to determine how much downlink data was sent to the WTRU over a time period. The SMF may (e.g., may then) report the data volume and / or time information to the CHF, for example, so that the WTRU’s subscription can be charged for receiving the downlink data.

[0073] Secondary radio access technology (RAT) usage reporting may be performed. A WTRU may use dual connectivity to connect to a network, such as a 5G core network (5GC). In a dual connectivity scenario, a single radio access network (RAN) node may terminate an N2 connection that is associated with the WTRU. The single RAN node may handle the user plane connectivity (e.g., all of the user plane connectivity) to the 5GC (e.g., the N3 / N9 traffic). The single RAN node may be referred to as the master RAN node. The master RAN node may interface with a secondary RAN node. The master RAN node may use the secondary RAN node to send traffic to the WTRU. The WTRU may connect to the master RAN node and the secondary RAN node.

[0074] The master RAN node may use 5G-new radio (NR) protocols to communicate with the WTRU. The secondary RAN node may use evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) (e.g., 4G) protocols to communicate with the WTRU. The master RAN node may report how much data is sent to the WTRU and from the WTRU via the secondary RAT. The SMF may (e.g., may then) report the secondary RAT usage information to the CHF.

[0075] An operator may want to charge the subscriber of a WTRU differently, for example, based on how much data is sent and received via the master RAN node and how data is sent and received via thesecondary RAN node. The 5GC (e.g., the CHF) may know the total amount of data that was sent and received by the WTRU, for example, based on the usage report from the UPF and the 5GC (e.g., the CHF) knowing the total amount of data that was sent via a (e.g., each) RAT (e.g.,. 5G-NR and E-UTRA) based on the secondary RAT usage report.

[0076] A RAN node may be aware of application layer forward error correction (AL-FEC). For example, a RAN node may be aware of how AL-FEC is applied to downlink traffic. For example, the UPF may send downlink PDUs to the RAN node. The downlink PDUs may be sent in general packet radio service tunneling protocol user plane (GTP-U) messages, and the headers to the GTP-U may include information that the RAN node can use to detect that PDUs are part of the same group. The UPF and / or SMF may (e.g., may also) provide the RAN node with information about what percentage of PDUs from the same group need to be successfully sent to the WTRU for the WTRU to successfully decode the data that was transmitted (e.g., originally transmitted) from the application server (AS). The percentage of PDUs from the same group that need to be successfully sent to the WTRU may be called a success ratio.

[0077] For example, the AL-FEC encoding that was applied by the AS may result in 2 repair packet PDUs being sent to the WTRU for every 3 source PDUs that are sent to the WTRU. Thus, as long as 3 of 5 PDUs from the same group are delivered to the WTRU, the WTRU may (e.g., may be able to) decode and / or determine what data was transmitted (e.g., originally transmitted).

[0078] If the RAN node is able to detect that the RAN node has already successfully delivered enough PDUs from a group of PDUs for the WTRU to decode and / or determine what data was transmitted, the RAN node may discard additional PDUs. For example, if 3 of 5 PDUs from the same group are needed to recover the transmission (e.g., original transmission), then 2 PDUs (e.g., from the same group) may not be delivered after the 3 PDUs are successfully delivered (e.g., as the 2 PDUs may not contribute to improving the user experience).

[0079] The UPF may report (e.g., to the SMF) how much downlink data was sent to the WTRU, and the SMF may report to the CHF how much downlink data was sent to the WTRU (e.g., as described herein). The information from this report may (e.g., may then) be used to determine subscriber charges for the subscriber of the WTRU.

[0080] The RAN node may use AL-FEC information (e.g., a success ratio and information from the GTP- U header) to decide whether to discard PDUs (e.g., some PDUs). Discarding a PDU may mean that the RAN node decided to not transmit the PDU to the WTRU (e.g., because it is unlikely that the PDU will contribute to the user’s experience).

[0081] If the RAN node determines to drop PDUs based on AL-FEC information, the charging system may be unaware that the PDUs were not delivered to the WTRU. The amount of data that is dropped maybe significant. For example, if 3 of 5 PDUs from the same PDU group (e.g., PDU set (PS)) are needed to recover the original transmission, 40% of the data (e.g., 2 of 5 PDUs) may be dropped. The charging system may be made aware of how much data is discarded based on AL-FEC information, for example, such that a network operator may (e.g., may then) use this information to make charging decisions.

[0082] The RAN node may be configured by the SMF, for example, with active discarding. If the RAN node is configured with active discarding, the RAN node may intentionally discard PDUs of a PS, for example, if a certain portion (e.g., defined by an forward error correction (FEC) success ratio) was successfully delivered to the WTRU. The RAN node may be configured to report data usage related to active discarding. In examples, the RAN node may be configured to report a data usage report related to active discarding (e.g., an active discarding related data usage report) to the UPF (e.g., via the user plane). In examples, the RAN node may be configured to send the active discarding related data usage reports to the SMF (e.g., via the control plane).

[0083] The RAN node may be configured with reporting parameters, conditions, and / or thresholds (e.g., regardless of whether the RAN reports to the UPF and / or SMF). For example, the RAN node may be provided with such configuration information (e.g., reporting parameters, conditions, and / or thresholds) in the QoS profile, which may be provided by the SMF. The RAN node may be provided with a correlation ID, that may help the RAN node, the UPF, the SMF, and / or the CHF correlate the data usage reporting session.

[0084] Feature(s) associated with reporting data usage related to PDU active discarding are provided herein. For example, data usage related to PDU active discarding may be reported to a UPF.

[0085] A RAN node may be configured to report data usage related to PDU active discarding to a UPF. The RAN node may perform one or more of the following actions. The RAN node may be configured to report data usage related to active discarding by receiving a QoS profile. The QoS profile may include one or more of a correlation ID, a FEC success ratio value, a data reporting destination (such as the UPF), whether active discarding is enabled, data usage reporting content, or data usage reporting (e.g., condition(s) (e.g., trigger(s)).

[0086] The RAN node may receive PDUs of a PS from the UPF, for example, in GTP-U messages of a GTP-U tunnel. The GTP-U header of the GTP-U messages may include a correlation ID and / or a FEC success ratio value. The RAN node may (e.g., if active discarding is enabled) determine to activate data usage reporting associated with (e.g., related to) active discarding, and may perform active discarding based on (e.g., using) the correlation ID and quality of service (QoS) profile that is associated with the GTP-U message and associated with the PDU of the PS in the GTP-U message. The RAN node may perform active discarding on PDU(s) of the PS (e.g., and update the data usage information based on theactive discarding). The RAN node may send PDU(s) (e.g., a subset of PDUs based on the active discarding on the PDUs) to the WTRU. The RAN node may be triggered to generate and / or send a data usage report. The RAN node may send the data usage report to the UPF, for example, via a GTP-U message in the GTP-U tunnel.

[0087] The RAN node may determine a data usage reporting condition is satisfied. In examples, the data usage reporting condition may be satisfied by receiving a data usage reporting request from the UPF (e.g., as a trigger to generate and / or send a data usage report that may include the updated data usage information). In examples, the data usage reporting condition may be satisfied (e.g., to generate and / or send a data usage report that may include the updated data usage information) based on received parameters (e.g., parameters of the received QoS profile).

[0088] A UPF node may perform one or more of the following actions. The UPF node may be configured with an enhanced data usage report considering active discarding. The UPF node may receive PDUs (e.g., downlink PDUs) of a PS from an AS. The UPF node may detect that the received PDUs match a certain PDR, for example, where active discarding is enabled in a RAN. The UPF may determine to activate enhanced data usage reporting (e.g., to expect a data usage report from the RAN node). The UPF may send PDUs of the PS to the RAN, for example, via a GTP-U tunnel. For example, the UPF may include correlation ID information and / or (e.g., eventually) the FEC success ratio of the PS in the GTP-U header. The UPF may send a request to the RAN to report data usage related to active discarding (e.g., in the GTP-U tunnel). The UPF may receive a data usage report from the RAN. The UPF may use the RAN data usage report to consolidate a data usage report. The UPF may send the data usage report to the SMF.

[0089] An SMF node may perform one or more of the following actions. The SMF node may receive policy and charging control (PCC) rules from a policy control function (PCF), for example, including FEC assistance information (e.g., whether active discarding enabled) and / or an enhanced data usage report indication. The SMF node may generate N4 rules to instruct the UPF to expect / request a data usage report from a RAN. The SMF node may perform a consolidated data usage report. The SMF node may generate a QoS profile, for example, to instruct the RAN to perform data usage reporting related to active discarding. The SMF node may send the N4 rules and the QoS profile to the UPF and the RAN, respectively. The SMF node may receive a consolidated data usage report associated with (e.g., related to) PDU active discarding form the UPF. The SMF node may determine to provide a data usage report to the CHF.

[0090] Feature(s) associated with reporting data usage related to PDU active discarding are provided herein. For example, data usage related to PDU active discarding may be reported to an SMF.

[0091] A RAN node may be configured to report data usage related to PDU active discarding to the SMF. The RAN node may perform one or more of the following actions. The RAN node may be configuredto report data usage related to active discarding (e.g., by receiving a QoS profile). The QoS profile may include one or more of a correlation ID, a FEC success ratio value, a data reporting destination (e.g., the SMF), whether active discarding is enabled, data usage reporting content, or data usage reporting (e.g., condition(s) (e.g., trigger(s)). The RAN node may receive PDUs of a PS from a UPF in a GTP-U tunnel. The GTP-U header of the PDUs may include a correlation ID and a FEC success ratio value. The RAN node may (e.g., if active discarding is enabled) determine to activate data usage reporting associated with (e.g., related to) active discarding, for example, based on (e.g., using) the correlation ID and QoS profile. The RAN node may perform active discarding on the PDUs of the PS. The RAN node may update the data usage information (e.g., based on the performed active discarding). The RAN node may send PDUs (e.g., of the actively discarded PS) to the WTRU.

[0092] The RAN node may be triggered to generate and / or send a data usage report. For example, the RAN node may be triggered by a data usage reporting request from the SMF. For example, the RAN node may be triggered using parameters (e.g., parameters associated with a received QoS profiled). The RAN node may send the data usage report to the SMF, for example, via N2 as may be configured based on a received QoS profile.

[0093] A SMF node may perform one or more of the following actions. The SMF may receive PCC rules from a PCF. The PCC rules may include FEC assistance information (e.g., whether active discarding is enabled) and / or an enhanced data usage report indication. The SMF may (e.g., if active discarding is enabled) generate a QoS profile. The QoS profile may instruct a RAN to perform data usage reporting related to active discarding and to report data usage to the SMF. The SMF may send the QoS profile to the RAN. For example, the SMF may send a request to the RAN to report data usage related to active discarding via N2. The SMF may receive a data usage report related to the PDU active discarding from the RAN. The SMF may determine to provide a data usage report to the CHF.

[0094] Feature(s) associated with reporting data usage related to PDU active discarding are provided herein. For example, a UPF node may report data usage related to PDU active discarding to an SMF.

[0095] A UPF node may be configured to report data usage associated with (e.g., related to) PDU active discarding. A UPF node may perform one or more of the following actions. The UPF may be configured with an enhanced data usage report considering active discarding. The UPF may receive downlink PDUs (e.g., of an associated PS) from an AS. The UPF may detect that the PDUs match a PDR (e.g., a particular PDR) where active discarding is enabled in a RAN node. The UPF may determine to activate enhanced data usage reporting. For example, the UPF may (e.g., based on the determination to activate enhanced data usage reporting) expect a data usage report from the RAN node. The UPF may send PDUs of the PS to the RAN, for example, including in the GTP-U header correlation ID information and / or (e.g., eventually)FEC success ratio of the PDU set. The UPF may be triggered to generate a data usage report for the SMF. The UPF may use the FEC success ratio from the N4 rules and / or the PDUs received (e.g., from the AS) to generate data usage information associated with the data usage report. The UPF may send data usage reports to the SMF.

[0096] A SMF node may perform one or more the following actions. The SMF node may receive PCC rules from the PCF. The PCC rules may include FEC assistance information (e.g., whether active discarding is enabled) with an enhanced data usage report indication. The SMF node may generate N4 rules. The N4 rules may be configured to instruct the UPF to perform data usage reporting associated with (e.g., related to) active discarding and FEC related information. The N4 rules may be configured to instruct the UPF to report data usage to the SMF. The SMF may send the N4 rules to the UPF. The SMF may receive a data usage report from the UPF.

[0097] A RAN may be configured to report data usage related to PDU active discarding to a UPF.

[0098] FIG. 2A-2B depict an example of configuring a RAN node to report data usage associated with active discarding to a UPF. As shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, an SMF may configure a RAN node to report data usage information to a UPF. The data usage information may include an indication of active discarding of PDUs (e.g., how many PDUs were discarded and the subset of the PDUs sent) by the RAN node based on AL-FEC information. The UPF may (e.g., may then) generate a report about the active discarding (e.g., how many PDUs were discarded and the subset of the PDUs sent) by the RAN node based on AL-FEC information. The UPF may forward the report to the SMF. The SMF may report the information to the CHF.

[0099] As shown in FIG. 2A at 1 a, an AF may request a 5G system to reserve resources for an AF session, for example, by invoking a network exposure function (NEF) API (e.g., using the service Nnef_AFSessionwithRequiredQoS_Create). The request may include one or more parameters related to a traffic flow of interest. For example, the request may include traffic identification parameter(s), such as a traffic descriptor and the like, for a traffic flow of interest. For example, the request may include QoS parameters for the traffic flow of interest. For example, the request may include an indication that AL-FEC is being used for the traffic flow of interest. For example, the request may include FEC related information, such as an indication of whether the FEC success ratio is static or dynamic. The FEC related information may include the value of the FEC success ratio if it is static. For example, the request may include that using PDU active discarding based on AL-FEC information for this traffic flow is acceptable to the AF.

[0100] At 1 b, the NEF may authorize the AF request and forward the service parameters with FEC related information to the PCF.

[0101] At 2a, the PCF may determine policy and charging control (PCC) rule(s) for the service data flow.The PCC rule(s) may indicate service identification information, such as traffic flow descriptors. The PCCrule(s) may include charging information associated with the service data flow, such as a charging key and a service identifier. The charging information may include charging procedures (e.g., online charging) and / or measurement procedures (e.g., volume-based measurements). The PCC rule(s) may include PS control information, such as PS parameters, FEC related information, and / or an indication that active discarding may be used, FEC success ratio value(s), and so on. This information may have been received by the PCF from the AF, for example, via the NEF.

[0102] At 2b, the PCF may send the PCC rule(s) to the SMF.

[0103] At 3a, the SMF may use the PCC rule(s) received from the PCF to determine N4 rules for the UPF and / or a QoS profile for the RAN node. The SMF may use the PCC rule(s) to determine whether to include information about data usage reporting for the traffic flow of interest to the UPF and / or the RAN node.

[0104] The SMF may include a usage reporting rule (URR) for the traffic flow of interest in the N4 rules. The URR rule may be associated with a PDR that allows the UPF to detect the traffic flow (e.g., if the traffic flow description matches the flow description in the PDR). A charging key associated with (e.g., assigned to the) URR may be derived from a charging key included in the PCC rule(s) received from the PCF at 2b.

[0105] The reporting rule may include reporting trigger(s) to indicate, for example, that reporting should be performed periodically, if the measurement threshold (e.g., for data volume) is reached or exceeded, or when requested from the SMF. The URR may include one or more measurement threshold(s), depending on the reporting trigger(s), when the measurement report is to be generated. The reporting rule may include measurement procedures, such as a data volume procedure for measurement of the data usage.

[0106] The URR may include additional measurement information. This additional measurement information may indicate to the UPF to expect a measurement report from the RAN node, for example, with a reason value set to active PDU discarding. The information may (e.g., may also) indicate that the RAN node data usage report is received via the user plane, for example, via the GTP-U tunnel for the PDU session for the URR rule (e.g., and the traffic flow that may receive PDU active discarding by RAN).

[0107] The additional information may instruct the UPF to request a data usage report from the RAN via a user plane. The additional information may include request parameters and conditions associated with the request for the data usage report from the RAN. For example, the UPF may (e.g., may be required to) send a data report request to the RAN periodically (e.g., using the same or smaller period than the measurement period threshold indicated in the URR rule), as soon as a UPF data report is available, or when the data volume measurement at the UPF is approaching the reporting threshold.

[0108] The additional information may include one or more actions to perform when the UPF receives a data usage report from the RAN. For example, the UPF may forward the RAN report as-is to the SMF. Forexample, the UPF may adjunct the RAN report with the current / next available UPF report for the traffic flow. For example, the UPF may process the data usage report from the RAN node and update its own measurement report. The UPF may (e.g., may need to) wait for a period of time, after a UPF measurement report may be ready, for a data usage report from the RAN node (e.g., to provide the RAN node with some time to send a data usage report).

[0109] The SMF may determine, for example, using the active discarding indication in the PCC rule(s) received from the PCF, that active discarding aware charging may be supported. The SMF may determine to configure the RAN node for a data usage report associated with, for example, PDU active discarding.

[0110] The SMF may include data reporting information in the QoS profile for the RAN node. The QoS profile may include data usage reporting information and / or an active discarding indication. The QoS profile may associate a QoS flow identifier (QFI) value with one or more of: an FEC, an active discarding indication, FEC success ratio value, an indication to enable data usage reporting for this traffic flow, data reporting parameters, a correlation ID to help identify the data to account for in the data usage report, or reporting conditions(s) (e.g., trigger(s)). The correlation ID may be derived based on the charging key value for the service flow of interest, and / or the service identifier. The data reporting parameters may include the reporting procedure (e.g., using user plane or GTP-U tunnel) and / or may indicate the destination of the report (e.g., the UPF or UPF identifier). Reporting triggers may include a RAN data volume threshold, a RAN data reporting period, and so on. The parameters may include the content of the data report. For example, the RAN may report one or more of: the number of PDUs actively discarded; the total number of PDUs received from the UPF; the total number of PDUs sent to the WTRU; or the number of PDUs received / sent.

[0111] At 3b and 3c, the SMF may send the N4 rules (e.g., with enhanced usage reporting) to the UPF and the QoS profile (e.g., with enhanced usage reporting) to the RAN.

[0112] At 4a, the AS may send downlink PDUs to the WTRU.

[0113] At 4b, the UPF may receive the PDUs. The UPF may determine, for example, using the PDR rules, that the PDUs match the traffic descriptor of the traffic of interest. The UPF may (e.g., may further) determine to activate data usage reporting for the traffic flow (e.g., according to corresponding URR rules).

[0114] If the UPF receives the PS information with the PDUs, the UPF may encapsulate the PDUs in a GTP-U message and include in the GTP-U header information about the PS information, such as the FEC success ratio of the PS and so on. The UPF may include the correlation ID (e.g., corresponding to the service ID and / or charging key of the traffic flow) in the message.

[0115] If the FEC ratio is static for the traffic flow and was provided to the RAN by the SMF in the QoS profile information, the UPF may not include (e.g., may determine not to include) the FEC success ratio in the GTP-U header.

[0116] At 4c, the UPF may send the PDUs to the RAN in the GTP-U tunnel.

[0117] As shown in FIG. 2B at 5a, the RAN may (e.g., when the RAN receives the PDUs) use the correlation ID to determine that the PDUs are to be accounted for in the data usage report by the RAN and / or to activate data usage reporting for the PDUs.

[0118] At 5b, the RAN node may perform active discarding. The active discarding may be performed based on the FEC information on the received PDUs and / or information in the QoS profile. The RAN node may account for the PDUs received by the UPF, the PDUs discarded, and / or the PDUs that were actually sent to the WTRU to update the data usage report with this information (e.g., update data counters).

[0119] At 5c, the RAN node may send some PDUs to the WTRU and may discard other PDUs (e.g., according to active discarding). The RAN node may be triggered to send a data usage report.

[0120] At 5d, the RAN node may receive a request (e.g., if the UPF was configured in the URR rule to send a data report request to the RAN node), from the UPF via the user plane, to send a (e.g., current) data usage report to the UPF. The request may be received via a dummy packet or a PDU from the traffic flow of interest. The request may include information, such as the correlation ID, in the GTP-U header / GTP-U extension header of the PDU or in the dummy packet. The GTP-U header or the GTP-U extension header may include an indication that a usage report from the RAN node for the traffic of interest is requested (e.g., needed).

[0121] At 5e, the RAN node may determine that a reporting trigger is satisfied. The reporting trigger in the RAN node may be that a condition is satisfied / reached (e.g., when requested from the UPF at 5d), a measurement period elapsed, and / or a data volume threshold at the RAN node is reached or exceeded.

[0122] At 5f, the RAN node may send the data usage report via the GTP-U tunnel to the UPF, for example, according to the reporting parameters included in the QoS profile. The RAN node may include an indication that the message is a data usage report and / or include the correlation ID related to the traffic flow (e.g., the data usage report may include the correlation ID related to the traffic flow), for example, in a GTP- U header of a dummy packet. The RAN node may populate the dummy packet with the usage report. The data usage report may indicate how many PDUs were discarded based on AL-FEC information. The data usage report may indicate how many PDUs were discarded due to congestion. The report may make a distinction between the number of PDUs that were discarded due to network congestion and the number of PDUs that were discarded because the RAN node used AL-FEC information to determine that the PDU was not needed by the WTRU (e.g., by performing active discarding).

[0123] At 6a, when the UPF receives the data usage report from the RAN, the UPF may determine, based on the URR rule for the report data, to perform an action based on the received report. For example, the UPF may forward the report to the SMF. For example, the UPF may combine the report from RAN with the report from UPF and may send the combined report to the SMF. The UPF may update its data usage report with data from the RAN report. The UPF may (e.g., may then) send the updated UPF report to the SMF. For example, the UPF may update the total data to be accounted for charging purposes. For example, the UPF may update the total data to be accounted for charging purposes as the data volume sent to the RAN node minus the data volume of PDUs that were actively discarded by the RAN node.

[0124] The UPF may prepare its data report. The UPF’s data report may include information from the RAN node. For example, the UPF’s data report may include one or more of the number of PDUs received by the RAN node, the number of PDUs sent by the RAN node, or the number of PDUs actively discarded by the RAN node. The data report may (e.g., may also) include a timestamp for one or more of the time the RAN node generated its usage report, the time the RAN node sent the report, or the time the report was received by UPF.

[0125] At 6b, the UPF may send the report to the SMF (e.g., via an N4 message). The UPF may send a packet forwarding control protocol (PFCP) session modification request message to the SMF to send the data report. The data reporting message may include a usage reporting sequence number (UR-SEQN), for example, to indicate the report sequence number for the data reporting session of interest. The UPF may also include the tunnel ID (TEID) for the PDU session of interest, the PDR ID, and the like.

[0126] At 7, the SMF may consolidate information received from the UPF to generate a data report for the CHF. The SMF may send the data report to the CHF, for example, by performing a charging data request update to the CHF (e.g., using request services, such as Nchf_ConvergedCharging_Update request services).

[0127] A RAN may be configured to report data usage related to PDU active discarding to a SMF.

[0128] FIG. 3 depicts an example of configuring a RAN node to report data usage associated with active discarding to a SMF. As shown in FIG. 3, the SMF may configure the RAN node to report information to the SMF about how many PDUs were discarded by the RAN node based on AL-FEC information. The SMF may (e.g., may then) report the information to the CHF.

[0129] As shown in FIG. 3 at 1 , the RAN node may be configured with a QoS profile to support activating measurement and report of data usage (e.g., in relation to active discarding of PDUs). For example, the configuration represented at 1 may apply the example procedure represented in 1 a to 3c of FIG. 2A (e.g., with some modifications).

[0130] Based on the PCC rules, the SMF may determine that the RAN node may (e.g., may need to) be configured with usage reporting and may provide related parameters to the RAN (e.g., in a QoS profile). The reporting may be via the control plane, and the reporting destination may be the SMF itself.

[0131] The UPF may be configured with usage reporting rules. The UPF may be configured to include a correlation ID in the GTP-U header of PDUs for the traffic flow of interest, for example, to assist the RAN node in identifying the traffic of interest (e.g., the traffic flow to supply a usage reporting about).

[0132] At 2a, the AS may send downlink traffic to the RAN node via the UPF.

[0133] At 2b, the RAN node may receive the downlink PDUs and may use the correlation ID in the GTP- U header of the PDUs to determine to activate usage reporting for the traffic flow(s) (e.g., to start the counter and / or data measurement).

[0134] At 2c, the RAN node may perform FEC related PDU handling (e.g., PDU active discarding). The RAN node may account for the PDUs received from the UPF, the PDUs actually sent to the WTRU, and / or the PDUs that were actively discarded to update the data usage report.

[0135] At 2d, the RAN node may send some of the PDUs to the WTRU.

[0136] At 2e, the SMF may optionally trigger the RAN node to send a data usage report by sending (e.g., via the AMF) a request to the RAN node to send the current data usage report. The SMF may send an N2 message to the RAN node. The SMF may include a correlation ID in the request, for example, to allow the RAN node to identify the data usage report in question.

[0137] At 2f, the RAN node may be triggered (e.g., via 2e, or based on other configured triggers from 1) to send a data usage report to the SMF. For example, sending the data usage report may be triggered by a data volume threshold being reached and / or a measurement period elapsing.

[0138] At 2g, the RAN node may send a data usage report to the SMF via N2. The message may be an N2 SM information and include a PDU session resource modification message. In some systems, the message may be a GTP-U message including a PDU discarded at 2c. Such GTP-U messages may be sent for a (e.g., each) discarded PDU. Such GTP-U messages may include an indication (e.g., a new indication) in the GTP-U header, which may indicate that the PDU was discarded because the RAN node used AL- FEC information to determine that the PDU was not needed by the WTRU. The report may indicate how many PDUs were discarded due to congestion. The report may make a distinction between the number of PDUs that were discarded due to network congestion (e.g., at the RAN node) and the number of PDUs that were discarded because the RAN node used AL-FEC information to determine that the PDU was not needed by the WTRU.

[0139] At 3a, the SMF may use the report provided by the RAN node to consolidate a data usage report (e.g., for charging purposes). The SMF may (e.g., may eventually) use related data usage reports from the UPF to consolidate the data usage report. The report may include one or more of: the data volume sent by the AS, data volume received by the UPF, data volume received by the RAN node, data volume actively discarded by the RAN node, or the actual data eligible to be accounted for in charging (e.g., data received by the RAN node minus data volume actively discarded by the RAN node).

[0140] At 3b, the SMF may send the generated data usage report to the CHF, for example, using a charging data request (e.g., to the CHF to update a charging session).

[0141] A UPF may be configured to report data usage related to PDU active discarding.

[0142] FIG. 4 depicts an example of configuring a UPF to report expected data usage considering active discarding by a RAN node. As shown in FIG. 4, a SMF may configure a UPF to determine (e.g., detect) how many PDUs in a flow can be dropped without negatively impacting user experience (e.g., how many PDUs may be actively discarded). The UPF may determine this information based on, for example, a combination of information that is received from the SMF in the N4 rules and information that is received in the headers of the data plane traffic (e.g., the RTP headers). The information that is received in the N4 rules may include PDRs that can be used to detect whether traffic is repair data or source data and / or a success ratio (e.g., if the success ratio is static). The information that is received in the headers of the user plane traffic may be an indication of whether traffic is repair data or source data and / or a success ratio (e.g., if the success ratio is dynamic). The SMF may (e.g., may then) report information that was received from the UPF to the CHF.

[0143] By reporting how much data may be dropped based on AL-FEC information to the CHF, a network operator may be able to account for traffic that takes advantage of AL-FEC techniques. For example, the network operator may charge differently for traffic that takes advantage of AL-FEC techniques compared to traffic that does not take advantage of AL-FEC techniques.

[0144] At 1 , the UPF may be configured with enhanced data usage reporting, for example, to account for PDU active discarding with FEC related information, by the SMF. For example, the configuration represented at 1 may apply the example procedure represented in 1 a to 3c of FIG. 2A (e.g., with some modifications).

[0145] The UPF may be configured with N4 rules that include an instruction to the UPF to perform FEC related data usage reporting. The N4 reporting rules may include the FEC success ratio (e.g., if it is static for the traffic flow), or an indication that the FEC success ratio may be dynamic and may be provided by the AS to the UPF (e.g., in the RTP header of the PDUs received by the UPF).

[0146] At 2a, the AS may send downlink traffic to the UPF. The downlink PDUs have information, for example, in RTP header information, about the FEC success ratio for the PDU set.

[0147] At 2b, the UPF may be triggered, for example, when receiving the PDUs (e.g., using the correlation ID included in the GTP-U header of the received PDUs) to activate the data usage report for the corresponding flow. The UPF may update the data report with information about the PDUs. For example, a PS may be received with a size z, and the PDUs of the PS may be subject to an AL-FEC mechanism with an FEC success ratio x / z. Based on the FEC success ratio x / z, the UPF may update the data usage report to indicate that the RAN node may have chosen to send x number of PDUs, instead of the z PDUs (e.g., the PS size). The UPF may expect that since active discarding is enabled at the RAN node, that the RAN node may discard some PDUs of the PS (e.g., (z-x) PDUs may be discarded based on the previous example) and send the remaining PDUs of the PS (e.g., x PDUs) to the WTRU (e.g., since the WTRU application may be able to recover the whole PDU set from only x received PDUs of the PS). For example, a PS with size 5 and a FEC success ratio of 3 / 5 may send 3 PDUs and actively discard 2 PDUs.

[0148] The UPF may include in the data usage report one or more of the following: the number of PDUs that were received by the UPF, the number of PDUs expected to be discarded by the RAN using active discarding, or the number of PDUs that are expected to be actually sent to the WTRU after active discarding. The report may (e.g., may also) indicate how many PDUs were discarded due to congestion (e.g., at the UPF). The report may make a distinction between the number of PDUs that were discarded due to network congestion (e.g., here at the UPF) and the number of PDUs that were discarded because the RAN node used AL-FEC information to determine that the PDU was not needed by the WTRU.

[0149] At 2c, the UPF may send the PDUs to the RAN node which in turn may send the PDUs, after performing active discarding, to the WTRU.

[0150] At 2d, the UPF may be triggered to send a data usage report for the traffic flow of interest. The UPF may be triggered by a request from the SMF (not shown in FIG. 4), when a measurement period elapses, or when a data volume measurement threshold is reached or exceeded, and so on.

[0151] At 3, the UPF may send the data usage report to the SMF, using, for example, a PFCP session modification request.

[0152] At 4, after receiving the data usage report from the UPF, the SMF may combine the report with other information and may prepare a data usage report to send to the CHF (e.g., using a Nchf_ConvergedCharging Update request).

[0153] The example procedures of FIGs. 3 and 4 (e.g., particular operations of each example procedure) may be combined. For example, the procedure of FIG. 3 may be used to record how much datawas discarded by the RAN node based on AL-FEC information and the procedure of FIG. 4 may be used to record how much data could have been dropped.

[0154] In some deployment scenarios, the UPF may be part of the WTRU’s home network, and the RAN node may be part of a visited network (e.g., a roaming partner). Thus, combining the example procedures of FIGs. 3 and 4 may result in charging information being collected by two different network operators. The home network operator may use the information from two independent sources to check that the RAN node is fully taking advantage of the AL-FEC information.

[0155] Enhanced reporting may be performed using PS integrated handling aspects. In the examples described herein (e.g., as depicted in FIGS. 2A-4), the RAN node may be configured to perform data usage reporting, in the context of active discarding when FEC assistance information is provided by an AF to the 5GS. In examples, the AF may (e.g., may instead) provide the 5GS with other PS related QoS handling information, such as a PS integrated handling indication (PSI HI).

[0156] For example, in the case of PSI HI, if an all or nothing process is to be used for the PS, an error in a PDU of a PS may render the whole PS not useful to the WTRU and / or a RAN node may discard the whole PS (e.g., the remaining PDUs of the PS). The RAN may receive all the PDUs of the PS but detect an error when sending a PDU of the PS. The RAN may determine not to send the remaining of the PDUs of the PS to the WTRU (e.g., since they may not be of use to recover the PS). In such examples, it may be more accurate to report to the core, such as a 5GC (e.g., the SMF), that the RAN discarded a certain number of PDUs of the PS or the whole PS based on PSI H I , and to not account for these discarded PDUs of the PS (e.g., due to PSI H I) when charging for this traffic flow. For example, it may be beneficial to account for this discarding mechanism if it is enabled (e.g., if a PSIHI is provided by the AF and enabled in the 5GS).

[0157] Although described with respect to FEC related active discarding, the example procedures described herein (e.g., as depicted in FIGS. 2A-4) may be used to consider PSIHI (e.g., instead of FEC related active discarding).

[0158] For example, in FIGS. 2A-2B, the RAN node may be configured for data usage reporting of the PDUs that were dropped due to an error in receiving / sending a PDU of a PS and / or a determination to not send one or more of (e.g., all) the remaining PDUs of the PS to the WTRU. Referring to FIG. 2B, at 5b, the RAN may perform PDU discarding due to PSIHI. The RAN node may include the volume of PDUs discarded by the RAN due to PSIHI in the data usage report. The RAN may send the report to the UPF.

[0159] For example, in the example procedure of FIG. 3, the operations may be performed to configure the RAN to send a data usage report related to PDU handling / discarding due to PSIHI, to the SMF.

[0160] For example, in the example procedure of FIG. 4, the UPF may be configured to determine the estimated PS error rate (estimated PSER). The UPF may use the estimated PSER (e.g., with the average PS size) to report an estimate, to the SMF, of the expected data to be discarded due to PSIHI and / or the data that may be expected to be sent by the RAN node to the WTRU.

[0161] Although features and elements described above are described in particular combinations, each feature or element may be used alone without the other features and elements of the preferred embodiments, or in various combinations with or without other features and elements.

[0162] Although the implementations described herein may consider 3GPP specific protocols, it is understood that the implementations described herein are not restricted to this scenario and may be applicable to other wireless systems. For example, although the solutions described herein consider LTE, LTE-A, New Radio (NR) or 5G specific protocols, it is understood that the solutions described herein are not restricted to this scenario and are applicable to other wireless systems as well.

[0163] The processes described above may be implemented in a computer program, software, and / or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer and / or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include, but are not limited to, electronic signals (transmitted over wired and / or wireless connections) and / or computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer- readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as, but not limited to, internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and / or optical media such as compact disc (CD)-ROM disks, and / or digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, terminal, base station, RNC, and / or any host computer.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is Claimed:1 . A radio access network (RAN) node, comprising: a processor configured to: receive a quality of service (QoS) profile; receive packet data units (PDUs); perform active discarding on the PDUs; update data usage information based on the active discarding; determine a data usage reporting condition is satisfied; based on the determination that the data usage reporting condition is satisfied, generate a data usage report, wherein the data usage report includes the updated data usage information; and send the data usage report.

2. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the performance of the active discarding on the PDUs is based on the QoS profile.

3. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to: receive a data usage reporting request, wherein the data usage reporting condition is satisfied based on the data usage reporting request.

4. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the data usage reporting condition is based on the QoS profile.

5. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the QoS profile comprises at least one of: a correlation ID, a forward error correction (FEC) success radio value, a data reporting destination, or the data usage reporting condition.

6. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to: send a subset of the PDUs, wherein the subset of the PDUs is determined based on the active discarding on the PDUs.

7. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the data usage report is sent to an user plane function (UPF) in a general packet radio service tunneling protocol user plane (GTP-U) message.

8. The RAN node of claim 1 , wherein the data usage report includes at least one of: a correlation ID related to a traffic flow; an amount of PDUs that were discarded based on an application layer FEC (AL- FEC) information; or an amount of PDUs that were discarded based on congestion.

9. The RAN of claim 1, wherein the data usage report is associated with charging purposes.

10. A method associated with a radio access network (RAN) node, the method comprising: receiving a quality of service (QoS) profile; receiving packet data units (PDUs); performing active discarding on the PDUs; updating data usage information based on the active discarding; determining a data usage reporting condition is satisfied; based on the determination that the data usage reporting condition is satisfied, generating a data usage report, wherein the data usage report includes the updated data usage information; and sending the data usage report.11 . The method of claim 10, wherein the performance of the active discarding on the PDUs is based on the QoS profile.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising: receiving a data usage reporting request, wherein the data usage reporting condition is satisfied based on the data usage reporting request.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the data usage reporting condition is based on the QoS profile.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the QoS profile comprises at least one of: a correlation ID, a forward error correction (FEC) success radio value, a data reporting destination, or the data usage reporting condition.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:sending a subset of the PDUs, wherein the subset of the PDUs is determined based on the active discarding on the PDUs.

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