Devices and methods for energy consumption information exposure in a radio access network of a mobile network

Abstract

A radio access network, RAN, entity (120; 120a,b), such as a gNB, is disclosed for providing communication services to a user equipment, UE, (110) in a mobile network (100). The RAN entity (120; 120a,b) is configured to receive from a management plane, MP, entity (130) or a control plane, CP, entity (140) of the mobile network (100) a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE (110) via the RAN entity (120; 120a,b). The request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120) for obtaining, e.g. measuring the EC and / or EE information. Moreover, the RAN entity (120; 120a,b) is configured to obtain the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) and to provide the EC and / or EE information to the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) or to a target entity.

Description

[0001] DEVICES AND METHODS FOR ENERGY CONSUMPTION INFORMATION EXPOSURE IN A RADIO ACCESS NETWORK OF A MOBILE NETWORK

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present disclosure relates to wireless communications. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to devices and methods for energy consumption information exposure in a radio access network, RAN, of a mobile network, in particular a 3GPP network.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] Technological advancements and digitization have transformed the landscape of the modem society with widespread ubiquitous connectivity. This has resulted in the underlying networks assuming the role of the backbone of the modem society. Telecommunication networks play a key role in today’s economy as they not only provide the necessary infrastructure which equips their customers with a reliable means to establish communication, especially during emergency, but they also shoulder the responsibility of ensuring their customers can conduct business reliably over the network. Naturally, scale of the telecommunication infrastructure and maintaining a reliable operational network round the clock has resulted in increased energy consumption and associated OPEX for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). Moreover, advanced applications and services like Al, AR / VR, autonomous vehicles, digital twin, and the like, that mobile communication technologies like 5G and 6G are expected to support, could result in an exponential increase in the network energy consumption and ergo, the carbon- footprint of mobile networks. According to a report from GSMA, 25% of MNO’s costs are due to OPEX and 90% of the costs are due to energy consumption. Most of this energy expenditure comes from the Radio Access Networks (RAN) while the data centers hosting the Core Network (CN) and the physical transport via fiber optic cables account for a smaller share.

[0006] Even though, mobile technologies from the past have constituted efforts towards reducing radio power consumption, and newer technologies (like 5G, 6G) are developed to be more energy efficient radio technologies, the ongoing digitization of the society means that it will increasingly rely on the use of telecommunication networks. Hence, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) services will consume more energy which consequently will result in increased CO2 emission. Therefore, network energy savings has become an important topic in the ongoing standardization efforts of 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) due to the pervasive deployment of 5G networks and the expected surge in the use of ICT services. In order to expose energy consumption, EC, and / or energy efficiency, EE, information to vertical customers, the mobile networks need to monitor the overall energy consumed by the various different participating entities and services at various granularities not only in the Core Network, but especially, also in the RAN.

[0007] SUMMARY

[0008] It is an objective of the present disclosure to provide improved devices and methods for energy consumption information exposure in a radio access network, RAN, of a mobile network, in particular a 3GPP network.

[0009] The foregoing and other objectives are achieved by the subject matter of the independent claims. Further implementation forms are apparent from the dependent claims, the description and the figures.

[0010] According to a first aspect a radio access network, RAN, entity (also referred to as RAN node) is provided for providing communication services to a user equipment, UE, in a mobile 'network. The RAN entity is configured to receive from a management plane, MP, entity or a control plane, CP, entity of the mobile network a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE via the RAN entity. The request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information. Moreover, the RAN entity according to the first aspect is configured to obtain the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity or the CP entity and to provide the obtained EC and / or EE information to the MP entity or the CP entity requesting the EC and / or EE information or to a target entity for reporting the EC and / or EE information. Thus, the RAN entity according to the first aspect allows providing EC and / or EE information in a mobile network at a wide range of granularities definable by the one or more instructions and / or configurations provided by the MP entity or the CP entity in the mobile network.

[0011] In a further possible implementation form, the RAN entity according to the first aspect is configured to use the one or more instructions and / or configurations for obtaining the EC and / or EE information for measuring EC and / or EE data and generating the EC and / or EE information based on the EC and / or EE data. Thus, the RAN entity according to the first aspect allows measuring the EC and / or EE data and generating the EC and / or EE information in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations provided by the MP entity or the CP entity in the mobile network.

[0012] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity according to the first aspect received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise UE context information. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the UE context the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0013] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity according to the first aspect received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an identifier of an access management function, AMF, e.g. an AMF UE NGAP ID. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the AMF responsible for the UE the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0014] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a RAN ID, e.g. RAN UE NGAP ID. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the RAN and / or RAN entity the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0015] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a PDU session ID. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the PDU session the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0016] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a QOS Flow ID. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the QOS Flow the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0017] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an indication of an EC and / or EE data measurement granularity. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the EC and / or EE data measurement granularity the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0018] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an indication of a type of traffic for the EC and / or EE information measurement. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to easily identify the traffic type the EC and / or EE information is requested for.

[0019] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprises a reporting frequency and / or an expiration time of the monitoring request of the EC and / or EE information. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to provide the requested EC and / or EE information with a desired monitoring frequency and / or for a desired monitoring period ending with the expiration time.

[0020] In a further possible implementation form, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity received from the MP entity or the CP entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprises measurement details on how to obtain the EC and / or EE information, such as to measure the EC and / or EE directly or to estimate the measurement based on one or more traffic metrics like the traffic data volume. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect measuring the EC and / or EE data and generating the EC and / or EE information in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations provided by the MP entity or the CP entity in the mobile network.

[0021] In a further possible implementation form, the RAN entity is configured to obtain, e.g. measure the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity or the CP entity for uplink traffic, downlink traffic and / or a bidirectional traffic served by the RAN entity. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to provide the requested EC and / or EE information with a desired granularity concerning the traffic flow direction.

[0022] In a further possible implementation form, the RAN entity is configured to obtain, e.g. measure the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity or the CP entity for a defined traffic data volume, traffic data rate and / or traffic time period. This allows the RAN entity according to the first aspect to provide the requested EC and / or EE information with a desired granularity concerning different metrics of the traffic flow.

[0023] In a further possible implementation form, the mobile network is a 5G or 6G mobile network, wherein the CP entity is an Access Management Function, AMF, of the mobile network. Thus, the RAN entity according to the first aspect may be seamlessly integrated into current or future 3GPP mobile networks.

[0024] According to a second aspect a method is provided of operating a radio access network, RAN, entity for providing communication services to a user equipment, UE, in a mobile network. The method according to the second aspect comprises: receiving from a management plane, MP, entity or a control plane, CP, entity of the mobile network a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE via the RAN entity, wherein the request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity for obtaining the EC and / or EE information; obtaining, e.g. measuring the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity or the CP entity; and providing the obtained EC and / or EE information to the MP entity or the CP entity or to a respective target entity.

[0025] The method according to the second aspect allows providing EC and / or EE information in a mobile network at a wide range of granularities definable by the one or more instructions and / or configurations provided by the MP entity or the CP entity in the mobile network. The method according to the second aspect can be performed by the RAN entity according to the first aspect. Thus, further features of the method according to the second aspect result directly from the functionality of the RAN entity according to the first aspect as well as its different implementation forms described above and below. According to a third aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer-readable storage medium for storing program code which causes a computer or a processor to perform the method according to the second aspect, when the program code is executed by the computer or the processor.

[0026] Details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims.

[0027] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] In the following, embodiments of the present disclosure are described in more detail with reference to the attached figures and drawings, in which:

[0029] Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram illustrating a mobile network including a RAN entity according to an example for providing RAN EC and / or EE information in a mobile network;

[0030] Fig. 2 shows a signalling diagram illustrating interactions between a RAN entity according to an example and further entities of a mobile network for providing RAN EC information in the mobile network;

[0031] Fig. 3 shows a schematic diagram illustrating the architecture of a 3GPP mobile network, including a RAN entity according to an example for providing RAN EC and / or EE information in the mobile network; and

[0032] Fig. 4 shows a flow diagram illustrating a method of operating a RAN entity according to an example for providing RAN EC and / or EE information in a mobile network.

[0033] In the following, identical reference signs refer to identical or at least functionally equivalent features.

[0034] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0035] In the following description, reference is made to the accompanying figures, which form part of the disclosure, and which show, by way of illustration, specific aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure or specific aspects in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be used. It is understood that embodiments of the present disclosure may be used in other aspects and comprise structural or logical changes not depicted in the figures. The following detailed description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

[0036] For instance, it is to be understood that a disclosure in connection with a described method may also hold true for a corresponding device or system configured to perform the method and vice versa. For example, if one or a plurality of specific method steps are described, a corresponding device may include one or a plurality of units, e.g. functional units, to perform the described one or plurality of method steps (e.g. one unit performing the one or plurality of steps, or a plurality of units each performing one or more of the plurality of steps), even if such one or more units are not explicitly described or illustrated in the figures. On the other hand, for example, if a specific apparatus is described based on one or a plurality of units, e.g. functional units, a corresponding method may include one step to perform the functionality of the one or plurality of units (e.g. one step performing the functionality of the one or plurality of units, or a plurality of steps each performing the functionality of one or more of the plurality of units), even if such one or plurality of steps are not explicitly described or illustrated in the figures. Further, it is understood that the features of the various exemplary embodiments and / or aspects described herein may be combined with each other, unless specifically noted otherwise. Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram illustrating a mobile network 100 configured to provide mobile communication services. In an embodiment, the mobile network 100 may be a current or future 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) mobile network 100, for instance, a 5G or a 6G network. As illustrated in figure 1 and will be described in more detail in the following, the mobile network comprises one or more radio access network, RAN, entities 120; 120a, b for providing communication services to one or more user equipments, UEs, 110 in the mobile network 100, for instance, for communicating with one or more application service providers, ASPs, 150a (located in a data network 180 as illustrated in figure 3) via one or more User Plane Functions, UPFs, 170 implemented in the core network, CN, of the mobile network. As will be appreciated and illustrated in figure 1, in a 3GPP mobile network 100 the Radio Access Network (RAN) is composed of a set of Radio Access Technology (RAT) nodes 120 like eNBs, gNBs, and the like. The 3GPP RAN architecture defined in the technical specification TS 38.401 is based on Control Units (CUs) 120a and Data Units (DUs) 120b. In 5G for example, the RAN nodes 120 are gNBs and each gNB 120 may consist of a gNB-CU 120a and one or more gNB-DUs 120b. The gNB-DUs 120b are connected to gNB-CU via the Fl interface. It should be noted that one gNB-DU 120b is generally connected to exactly one gNB-CU 120a. Moreover, the RAN nodes 120 like gNBs 120 are connected with an interface, namely NG to the 5GC, more specifically to the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) with the NG-C interface and to the User Plane Function with the NG-U interface, as described in the technical specification TS 23.501. As defined in the technical specification 3GPP TS 38.401, the gNBs 120 are connected with each other through Xn interface and the protocols over the Uu and NG interface are divided into user plane protocols and control plane protocols. The user plane protocols implement the PDU session service over the access stratum while the control plane protocols control the PDU session and the connectivity between the UE 110 and the network.

[0037] In a first stage illustrated in figure 1 the ASP 150a (or a different entity) may request from a control plane entity, such as aNEF 164, and / or an AF 150, RAN EC and / or EE information. In an embodiment, the request from the ASP 150a may be a subscription request defining a reporting frequency and / or a reporting period. In a second stage illustrated in figure 1 , a further control plane entity 140, in particular an AMF 140, sends the respective request to the RAN entity 120; 120a, b, wherein the request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity 120; 120a, b for obtaining the EC and / or EE information. In an embodiment, the RAN entity 120; 120a, b is configured to use the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the AMF 140 for obtaining the EC and / or EE information by measuring EC and / or EE data and generating the EC and / or EE information based on the EC and / or EE data in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the AMF 140. In other words, in an embodiment, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity 120; 120a, b received from the AMF 140 for obtaining the RAN EC and / or EE information comprises measurement details on how to obtain the RAN EC and / or EE information. Although in the embodiment shown in figure 1 , the one or more instructions and / or configurations for obtaining the RAN EC and / or EE information are provided by the AMF 140, i.e. a core network control plane entity, according to further embodiments the one or more instructions and / or configurations for obtaining the RAN EC and / or EE information may be provided by a management plane, MP, entity 130 of the mobile network 100 as well.

[0038] In a third stage illustrated in figure 1 , the RAN entity 120; 120a, b is configured to provide the RAN EC and / or EE information obtained in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations back to the AMF 140. The AMF 140 forwards the RAN EC and / or EE information received from the RAN entity 120; 120a, b to the control plane entity, such as the SMF 161, the NEF 164, and / or the AF 150, that received the original request from the ASP 150a for providing the RAN EC and / or EE information to the ASP 150a (as illustrated in stage 4 of figure 1 ).

[0039] Thus, as will be appreciated, embodiments disclosed herein provide mechanisms for allowing the RAN entity 120; 120a, b to be instructed on what RAN EC and / or EE information should be measured and how to produce the measurement data as per the requirement of Core Network and / or external third parties who are interested in consuming this information as per their various needs. In an exemplary scenario one or more UEs 110 may be using the service A of an external service provider 150a over the mobile network 100. The service provider 150a is interested in knowing the energy consumption of his service in the mobile network 100 at various granularities, e.g., for a group of UEs, for a geographical location, for a specific time period, and the like, and the service provider 150a would like the energy consumption to be measured e.g., directly in the network entities, or estimated based on the data volume, or other traffic related parameters, such that the service provider 150a can take informed decisions on controlling the energy consumption resulting from his service in the end-to-end network 100. This is made possible by embodiments disclosed herein, which provide: specific energy consumption measurement configurations; service procedures in RAN to receive configurations; instructions on what energy consumption data should be measured; and / or instructions on how to produce and deliver the requested energy consumption information.

[0040] According to embodiments disclosed herein, the one or more instructions and / or configurations for obtaining the RAN EC and / or EE information may comprise one or more of the following parameters: UE context information, AMF ID, RAN ID, PDU session ID, QOS Flow ID, granularity of measurement (UE, PDU session, QoS Flow, Service, for an Application (APP ID), for a type of traffic / traffic class (IP traffic, non-IP traffic, Up Link, Down Link, Signaling traffic, Data traffic, loT traffic, ISAC traffic, MP traffic, signaling traffic, Administration-related traffic, GBR traffic, non-GBR traffic), Slice, NF / vNF / gNB / BS, RAN site level, RAN network), reporting frequency (Total EC, periodic, at a specific time, for a duration like between tl and t2, threshold, current), how the measurement should be performed (Direct, Indirect, based on DV, based on Data Rate, based on DV and Data Rate, average EC, Statistical, based on modelling, AI / ML based EC measurement).

[0041] In an embodiment, an Application Service Provider (ASP) 150a may request information about the RAN EC and / or EE resulting from all the UEs 110 that are using its service, in which case the instruction and configurations for the EC and / or EE measurement received by the RAN entity may look like (service ID, AMF UE ID, Signaling traffic, Data traffic, from time tl to t2, Direct and Indirect).

[0042] In an embodiment, the RAN entity 120, 120a, b, based on the received instructions and configurations may send direct EC and / or EE measurement information or indirect EC-related information collected by the RAN entity 120, 120a, b from which the EC and / or EE information can be derived e.g., by means of statistical analysis.

[0043] According to a further embodiment, a parameter named "How..." may be included in the one or more instructions and / or configurations of the request. This indicates specifically how the RAN entity must obtain the requested EC and / or EE information. Thus, in case no direct EC measurement are needed (e.g., no high accuracy requested), RAN can deliver the EC data based on indirect measurement as described in 3GPP TS 23700-66.

[0044] Figure 2 shows a signalling diagram illustrating interactions between the RAN entity 120, 120a,b according to an embodiment and further entities of the mobile network 100 for providing RAN EC information in the mobile network 100. Similar signalling is also possible for providing EE information. In the embodiment shown in figure 2 the EC information is provided via one or more suitable CN functions of the mobile network 100, namely the AMF 140, the SMF 161, the NEF 164, and the AF 150 to the ASP 150a. As will be appreciated, in further embodiments, this functionality may be provided by different CN functions or a different combination of CN functions of the mobile network.

[0045] In steps 1 to 12 of figure 2 the mobile network 100 establishes a PDU session for the UE 110 as defined by the 3GPP standard specification TS 23.502, which is fully incorporated by reference herein.

[0046] After the establishment of the PDU session in step 13 of figure 2, the ASP 150a (or another third party entity) sends a request to obtain the EC resulting from its service and the consumption of its service by the UEs 110 in the RAN 120. In step 14 of figure 2, the Application Function, AF, 150 forwards the request of the ASP 150a via the NEF 164 or directly to the responsible network function in the Core Network Control Plane, such as the AMF 140.

[0047] In step 15 of figure 2, the AMF 140 then creates the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity 120, 120a, b and forwards it to RAN entity 120, 120a, b.

[0048] In step 16 of figure 2, the one or more UEs 110 transmit UP link traffic towards the ASP 150a via the network 100.

[0049] In step 17a of figure 2 the RAN entity 120, 120a, b measures the EC information as instructed by the Core Network and produces the requested EC information. In step 17b of figure 2 the RAN entity 120, 120a, b continues serving the UE traffic whilst measuring the resulting EC.

[0050] In step 18 of figure 2 the RAN entity 120, 120a, b delivers the produced EC information to the Core Network Control Plane, in particular the AMF 140.

[0051] In step 19 of figure 2 the Core Network Control Plane, in particular the AMF 140, forwards the received EC information to the NEF 164.

[0052] In step 20 of figure 2, the NEF 164 forwards the EC information to the AF 150 that requested this information.

[0053] In step 21 of figure 2, the AF 150 delivers the received EC information to the ASP 150a.

[0054] Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram illustrating the architecture of the mobile network 100 implemented as a 3GPP mobile network 100 with the RAN entity 120, 120a, b according to an embodiment for providing RAN EC and / or EE information in the mobile network 100. In the embodiment shown in figure 3 the RAN entity 120, 120a, b is configured to receive the instructions and / or configurations for measuring the EC and / or EE from the MP 130. As already described in detail above, the further functionalities of the RAN entity 120, 120a, b comprise that the RAN entity 120, 120a, b measures the EC as per the instructions and produces the EC data / information and that the RAN entity 120, 120a, b delivers the EC data / information to the requesting or a target entity either via CN or via MP. In addition to the RAN entity 120, 120a, b the mobile network 100 illustrated in figure 3 may further comprise the NRF 165, a PCF 162, the AF 150, the AMF 140, the SMF 161, the NEF 164 and a UDM 163 and further network functions.

[0055] Figure 4 shows a flow diagram illustrating a method 400 of operating the RAN entity 120; 120a, b configured to provide communication services to the UE 110 in the mobile network 100. The method 400 comprises a step 401 of receiving from a MP entity 130 or a CP entity 140 of the mobile network 100 a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE 110 via the RAN entity 120, 120a, b. As already described above, the request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity 120; 120a, b for obtaining, e.g. measuring the EC and / or EE information. Moreover, the method 400 comprises a step 403 of obtaining, e.g. measuring the EC and / or EE information based on, i.e. in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity 130 or the CP entity 140 and a step 405 of providing the EC and / or EE information obtained in accordance with the one or more instructions and / or configurations back to the MP entity 130 or the CP entity 140 or to a target entity.

[0056] The method 400 can be performed by the RAN entity 120; 120a, b. Thus, further features of the method 400 result directly from the functionality of the RAN entity 120; 120a, b as well as the different embodiments thereof described above and below. The person skilled in the art will understand that the "blocks" ("units") of the various figures (method and apparatus) represent or describe functionalities of embodiments of the present disclosure (rather than necessarily individual "units" in hardware or software) and thus describe equally functions or features of apparatus embodiments as well as method embodiments (unit = step).

[0057] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus, and method may be implemented in other manners. For example, the described embodiment of an apparatus is merely exemplary. For example, the unit division is merely a logical function division and may be another division in an actual implementation. For example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not performed. In addition, the displayed or discussed mutual couplings or direct couplings or communication connections may be implemented by using some interfaces. The indirect couplings or communication connections between the apparatuses or units may be implemented in electronic, mechanical, or other forms.

[0058] The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one position, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the embodiments.

[0059] In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the disclosure may be integrated into one processing unit, or each of the units may exist alone physically, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A radio access network, RAN, entity (120; 120a, b) for providing communication services to a user equipment, UE, (110) in a mobile network (100), wherein the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) is configured to: receive from a management plane, MP, entity (130) or a control plane, CP, entity (140) of the mobile network (100) a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE (110) via the RAN entity (120; 120a, b), wherein the request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information; obtain the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140); and provide the EC and / or EE information to the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140).

2. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of claim 1, wherein the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) is configured to use the one or more instructions and / or configurations for obtaining the EC and / or EE information for measuring EC and / or EE data and generating the EC and / or EE information based on the EC and / or EE data.

3. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of claim 1 or 2, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise UE context information.

4. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an identifier of an access management function, AMF.

5. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a RAN ID.

6. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a PDU session ID.

7. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise a QOS Flow ID.

8. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an indication of an EC and / or EE data measurement granularity.

99. The RAN entity ( 120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprise an indication of a type of traffic for the EC and / or EE information.

10. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprises a reporting frequency and / or an expiration time of the monitoring request of the EC and / or EE information.

11. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information comprises measurement details on how to obtain the EC and / or EE information.

12. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) is configured to obtain the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140) for uplink traffic, downlink traffic and / or bidirectional traffic served by the RAN entity (120; 120a, b).

13. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) is configured to obtain the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity ( 130) or the CP entity ( 140) for a traffic data volume, a traffic data rate and / or a traffic time period.

14. The RAN entity (120; 120a, b) of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the mobile network (100) is a 5G mobile network (100) and wherein the CP entity (140) is an Access Management Function, AMF, (140) of the mobile network (100).

15. A method (400) of operating a radio access network, RAN, entity (120; 120a, b) for providing communication services to a user equipment, UE, (110) in a mobile network (100), wherein the method (400) comprises: receiving (401) from a management plane, MP, entity (130) or a control plane, CP, entity (140) of the mobile network (100) a request for Energy Consumption, EC, and / or Energy Efficiency, EE, information associated with traffic to and / or from the UE (110) via the RAN entity (120; 120a, b), wherein the request comprises one or more instructions and / or configurations for the RAN entity (120; 120a, b) for obtaining the EC and / or EE information; obtaining (403) the EC and / or EE information based on the one or more instructions and / or configurations received from the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140); and providing (405) the EC and / or EE information to the MP entity (130) or the CP entity (140).

16. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium for storing program code which causes a computer or a processor to perform the method (400) of claim 15 when the program code is executed by the computer or the processor.

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