Enhancements for beyond 5g communication systems

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to enhancements in communications for beyond 5G (e.g., 6G) communication system. In one embodiment, the present disclosure discloses a method which comprises for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE). The retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity. The method further comprises facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

Description

[0001] ENHANCEMENTS FOR BEYOND 5G COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION (S)

[0003]

[0001] This application claims priority to Indian non-provisional application No.

[0004] 202441054250, filed on July 16, 2024, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0005] FIELD

[0006]

[0002] The present disclosure relates to enhancements in communications for beyond 5G (e.g., 6G) communication system.

[0007] BACKGROUND

[0008]

[0003] The information disclosed in this background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the disclosure and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

[0009]

[0004] Mobile telecommunications industry is experiencing tremendous growth in recent decades, driven by ever-increasing demand for connectivity and data services. To cater the ever-increasing demand of connectivity and data services, the technology is being constantly advanced and the advances in the technology have resulted in rapid growth in the field of wireless communication technology. The latest advancement in wireless communication technology is the development of next generation wireless communication systems (e.g.. 5thGeneration or 5G wireless communication systems). The 5G wireless communication systems aim to provide high reliability and throughput, lower latency, and support for a large number of devices compared to earlier wireless communication systems (e.g., 4G or 3G). The 5G wireless communication systems also aim at improved support of machine-to-machine communication (i.e., Internet of things) at lower cost and lower network energy consumption compared to the earlier wireless communication systems.

[0010]

[0005] In a typical 5G wireless communication system, a user equipment (UE) may be provided communication services of the 5G network using a 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) and a 5G Core Network (CN). The 5G RAN may comprise at least one base station (also referred to as a “gNodeB” or a “gNB”). In a disaggregated architecture, the gNB may be partitioned into different logical network entities such as one or more central unit entities (CUs) and one or more distributed unit entities (DUs) which may be inter-connected with each other. Each CU may be further partitioned into one or more control-plane entities (CU-CP) and one or more user-plane entities (CU-UPs) that handle the control-plane and user-plane processing of the CU, respectively.

[0011]

[0006] On top of the disaggregated architecture, the 5G wireless communication systems include further enhancements such as a Service-Based Architecture (SBA) in which various network functions (NFs) of the CN communicate through a standardized Service-Based Interface (SBI), which facilitates seamless information exchange between NFs in the core network. However, the concept of SBA is not suitable for communications between the RAN and the CN and traditional communication protocols are used for communications between RAN and CN to meet the stringent performance and latency requirements. Therefore, further enhancements are needed for the existing 5G communication systems and for beyond 5G communication systems. SUMMARY

[0012]

[0007] The present disclosure discloses techniques for reducing computational load and overall latency of any communication procedure which involves multiple message transactions between multiple logical network entities in a communication system. In the proposed techniques, stateless and Service based architecture (SBA) concepts are not applied on each message transaction of a communication procedure, instead these concepts are applicable at procedure level, example at the beginning and completion of the communication procedure. The present disclosure avoids invoking service discovery' and / or repetitive retrieval and storage of UE state data for each message transaction within the communication procedure to reduce overall latency and computational load.

[0013]

[0008] In one non-limiting embodiment, the present disclosure discloses a method which comprises, for each logical network entity providing and / or consuming a sendee and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality' of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE). The retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity. The method further comprises facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the vieyvpoint of the logical network entity’.

[0014]

[0009] In one non-limiting embodiment, the present disclosure discloses an apparatus which is configured to facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of a plurality' of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), for each logical network entity providing and / or consuming a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises the plurality of logical network entities. The apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity. The apparatus is further configured to facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity7.

[0015]

[0010] In one non-limiting embodiment, the present disclosure discloses a non-lransitory computer readable media storing one or more computer executable instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of a plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises the plurality7of logical network entities. The instructions cause the apparatus to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity7. The instructions further cause the apparatus to facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0016] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] [OH] Features, aspects, and advantages of embodiments of the disclosure will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals denote like elements, and wherein:

[0018]

[0012] FIG. 1 illustrates a high-level block diagram illustrating a disaggregated architecture of an example communication system 100 (e.g., a 5G wireless communication system).

[0019]

[0013] FIG. 2 illustrates a high-level block diagram of an exemplary 5G communication system 200 employing a Service-Based Architecture.

[0014] FIG. 3 illustrates a high-level block diagram of an exemplary' communication system 300 employing end-to-end SBA, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020]

[0015] FIG. 4 illustrates a signaling chart of the RRC setup communication procedure 400 involving El and Fl interfaces, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0016] FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus 500, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0021]

[0017] FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart illustrating an example method 600 for enhancing communication in a communication system, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0022] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023]

[0018] The following detailed description of example embodiments refers to the accompanying drawings. The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementations to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the implementations. Further, one or more features or components of one embodiment may be incorporated into or combined with another embodiment (or one or more features of another embodiment). Additionally, the flowchart and description of operations provided below relate to one of the various embodiments. It should be noted that it is possible to make other embodiments that do not exactly match the flowchart and its description. It is understood that in other embodiments one or more operations may be omitted, one or more operations may be added, one or more operations may be performed simultaneously (at least in part).

[0019] It will be apparent that systems and / or methods, described herein may be implemented in different forms of hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. The actual specialized control hardware or software code used to implement these systems and / or methods is not limiting of the implementations. Thus, the operation and behavior of the systems and / or methods are described herein without reference to specific software code. It is understood that software and hardware may be designed to implement the systems and / or methods based on the description herein.

[0024]

[0020] Even though particular combinations of features are recited in the claims and / or disclosed in the specification, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of implementations. In fact, many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and / or disclosed in the specification. Although each dependent claim listed below may directly depend on only one claim, the disclosure of implementations includes each dependent claim in combination with every other claim in the claim set.

[0025]

[0021] No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed as critical or essential unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, the articles “a” and "an" are intended to include one or more items, and may be used interchangeably with “one or more.” Also, as used herein, the terms “has,” “have,” “having,” “include,” “including,” or the like are intended to be open-ended terms. Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on” unless explicitly stated otherwise. Furthermore, expressions such as “at least one of [A] and [B],” “[A] and / or [B],” or “at least one of [A] or [B]” are to be understood as including only A. only B, or both A and B.

[0026]

[0022] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementations to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the implementations.

[0027]

[0023] In the present disclosure, the terms like ‘‘communication system"’, “system’", and “wireless communication system” have been used interchangeably throughout the specification. The terms like “CU-CP” and “CU-CP entity ” may be used interchangeably throughout the description. The terms like “CU-UP” and “CU-UP entity” may be used interchangeably throughout the description. The terms like “UE context data” and “UE state data” may be used interchangeably throughout the description. The terms like “message transaction” and “message exchange” may be used interchangeably throughout the description.

[0028]

[0024] In the context of present disclosure, a Service-Based Architecture (SBA) refers to a network architecture which uses paradigms such as software defined networking and network function virtualization. In the SBA, system functionality is achieved by7a set of Network Functions (NFs) providing services to other authorized NFs to access their services. Each NF exposes a set of services through a Service Based Interface (SBI) that is consumed by other authorized NFs. The service framework operates on three core principles: service registration, service authorization, and service discovery.

[0029]

[0025] The Service registration involves a service registry which is a database containing available services and their accessibility information (such as addresses or names). Services are registered in this registry when activated and deregistered upon deactivation. Service authorization controls access to services, ensuring only authorized services can be invoked. In service discover}7, a service consumer searches the service registry for a specific service. The service registry then responds with a list of available services and their addresses.

[0030]

[0026] In the context of SBA illustrated in the present disclosure, a “Communication State” refers to Subscriber related data (e.g., UE context or state data), which derives out of subscriber profiles, policy data, and session related information. The UE state data may describe context information corresponding to a user equipment which has established one or more PDU sessions with the network.

[0031]

[0027] In the context of present disclosure, a network entity may refer to any network element of any communication system (whether logical and / or physical). In the context of present disclosure, the term “logical network entity” includes both logical network entities of RAN (e.g., CU, DU, CU-CP, CU-UP, etc.) and network functions of CN (e.g., AMF, UPF, SMF, etc.).

[0032]

[0028] In the context of present disclosure, a “Data Service” such as a RAN Database (RAN DB) refers to a service that keeps and maintains the communication states. A “Stateless Sendee” is a virtual instance that requests communication states from the Data Service. The Stateless Service then processes, manipulates, and updates these communication states, and then communicates the modified communication states back to the Data Service.

[0033]

[0029] In the context of present disclosure, the Data Sendee provides a unified way of accessing various types of UE or session data. There are various types of UE data such as UE subscription data, policy information, mobility’ management data, session management context information, and any UE context used exclusively by a single service. These data types can be either dynamic or static. The Data Service employs a unified access framework with distributed storage, ensuring that data is located close to the sendees that access it. The Data Service exposes a single interface for any authorized consumer, allowing the consumer to create, read, update, and delete their own data, as well as subscribe to notifications upon data changes.

[0034]

[0030] The Data Service supplies necessary information to control plane services, offering flexibility by avoiding tight coupling between services. The fundamental idea is to keep communication states out of the service instance itself. A communication state encompasses all UE state-related information mentioned earlier. Instead of maintaining these states within a service, the states may be stored in a Data Service such as the RAN DB whose role is to keep and manage communication states and user-related context information.

[0035]

[0031] When a service becomes active and needs to process communication states, the sendee retrieves the information related to communication states from the Data Service. During processing, the affected data (or communication states) is locked, preventing other services from modifying it. Only the current service instance can store, change, or manipulate the locked communication states. After the service completes the task, the updated communication states are stored back in the Data Service and unlocked, making them accessible to other services. This mechanism ensures that communication states are not lost if a service fails, thereby preventing interruptions in end-user communication. Additionally, the mechanism supports updating, exchanging, and removal of services during their lifecycle. The Data Sen ice can use a service framework with a distributed manner so that data can be close to the services that access the data.

[0036]

[0032] FIG. 1 shows a block diagram illustrating disaggregated architecture of an example communication system 100 comprising a Radio Access Network (RAN) or a base station (gNB) 102 configured to serve a geographical area or cell 104. The cell 104 may comprise at least one UE 106 and the base station 102 may be configured to provide wireless services to the at least one UE 106 served by the associated cell 104. The at least one UE 106 may be any mobile or non-mobile computing device including, but not limited to, a phone (e.g., a cellular phone or smart phone), a pager, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a wireless handset, a portable communication device, a portable computing device (e.g.. a personal data assistant), an entertainment device (e.g., a music or video device, or a satellite radio), a global positioning system device, or any other suitable computing device including a wired or wireless communications interface. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the at least one UE 106 may be Intemet-of-Things (loT)-enabled device including, but not limited to, vehicles configured to communicate with the base station or a core network. In the present disclosure, the terms RAN and gNB have been used interchangeably.

[0037]

[0033] In a disaggregated architecture, the base station 102 may be implemented as a 5G NR gNB 102 and may be partitioned into multiple logical network entities. For instance, the gNB 102 may be partitioned into a central unit (gNB-CU or CU) 108 and one or more distributed units (gNB-DUs or DUs) 110. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the CU 108 may be further partitioned into a central unit control-plane entity 114 (gNB-CU-CP or CU-CP) and one or more central unit user-plane entities 116 (CU-UPs) that may handle the control-plane and userplane processing of the CU 108, respectively. Such split enables the implementation of the CU- CP 114 and the CU-UP 116 entities in different locations.

[0038]

[0034] The gNB 102 may comprise one or more physical entities such as Radio Units (RUs) 112 including one or more antennas 118 for serving the at least one UE 106 in the associated cell. The CU 108 may be communicatively coupled with the one or more DUs 110 via an Fl interface. The DU 110 is communicatively coupled with at least one RU 112 via a fronthaul interface 120. The CU-CP 114 is communicatively coupled with each of the CU-UPs 116 via an El interface and if further coupled with each of the DUs 110 via an Fl-C interface. Each of the DUs 110 may be communicatively coupled to each of the CU-UPs 116 via an Fl-U interface, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0039]

[0035] In one non-limiting embodiment, each DU 110 may host multiple cells. As an example, the DU 110 may host a maximum of 512 cells. The CU-CP 114 may host one or more DUs 110 and one or more CU-UPs 116. In one example deployment, there may be only one CU-CP 114 in a gNB 102, and each DU 110 may be served by multiple CU-UPs 116. The CU-CP 114 is responsible for managing control plane protocols and procedures. For instance, the CU-CP 114 may host Packet Data Convergence Protocol - Control Plane (PDCP-C) layer and Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, while the CU-UP 116 may host Packet Data Convergence Protocol - User Plane (PDCP-U) and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layers. The DU 110 may host lower layers such as Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC), and Physical (PHY) layers. The scheduling operation, which involves allocating radio resources to various UEs based on their requirements, current network conditions, and traffic demands, takes place at the DU 110.

[0040]

[0036] The CU 108 may be configured to communicate with a core network 122 using a backhaul network 124. In one non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, the core network 122 may be a 5G core network which may utilize cloud-aligned, service-based architecture that spans across all 5G functions and interactions including authentication, security, session management etc.

[0041]

[0037] As the technology is advancing beyond 5G wireless communication systems (e.g., towards 6G wireless communication systems), several important enhancements are being considered on top of existing wireless communication systems (e g., 5G wireless communication system 100) to improve network performance, efficiency, and functionality. One important enhancements may include Service-Based Architecture (SBA) including stateless Control plane (C-plane) in the RAN. Other enhancements may include RAN-Core Convergence (i.e., creating a seamless integration between the RAN and the core network w hich are traditionally distinct parts of a network). Inter DU Interface (introducing an interface between different DUs for better coordination and resource management within the RAN). RAN Database (provisioning a centralized or distributed database within the RAN to store and manage network and user data), Network Function Virtualization and Cloud Computing.

[0038] FIG. 2 illustrates a high-level block diagram of an exemplary 5G wireless communication system 200 employing a Service-Based Architecture. The communication system 200 may comprise a CN (which may be represented as CN 122), a RAN 102, and at least one UE 106. The CN 122 orchestrates the various netw ork functions and services. The CN 122 employs virtualized netw ork functions (VNFs) and softw are-defined networking (SDN) principles to provide flexible and scalable connectivity services. The CN 122 manages functions such as session management, mobility7management, and service provisioning. The RAN 102 may serve as a bridge betw een the CN 122 and the at least one UE 106 and may include at least one DU 110, a CU-CP 114, at least one CU-UP 116, and a RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) 202.

[0042]

[0039] The communication system 200 (specifically, each of the RAN 102 and the CN 122) may comprise a user plane (U-plane or UP) and a control plane (C -plane or CP). The U-plane may be configured to cany7data corresponding to the users. In other words, the U-plane handles actual transmission of data packets between the at least one UE 106 and different network entities. The C-plane, on the other hand, is responsible for managing and controlling the communication system 200. The C-plane may be configured to carry controlling traffic such as signaling traffic associated with the communication system 200. The U-plane of the RAN 102 may comprise the CU-UP 116 while the C-plane 204 of the RAN 102 (also referred to as “RAN CP” 204) may comprise the at least one DU 110, the CU-CP 114, the at least one CU- UP 116, and the RIC 202.

[0043]

[0040] The U-plane of the CN 122 may comprise a User Plane Function (UPF) 206. which is a network function that forms a part of the 5G core network (5GC). The at least one UE 106 may connect to the UPF 206 via the RAN 102. The communication system 100 may further comprise at least one Data Network (DN) 208 which represents external networks or that interacts with the CN. The DN 208 may include Internet, private networks, cloud services, or other similar communication systems.

[0044]

[0041] The C-plane 210 of the CN 122 (also referred to as CN CP 210) may comprise various network functions such as: one or more instances of a Unified Data Repository (UDR) 212, an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 214, a Session Management Function (SMF) 216, a Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF) 218, a Unified Data Management (UDM) 220, a Policy Control Function (PCF) 222, and other network functions (NFs) 224. The other network functions may include one or more instances of a Network Exposure Function (NEF), an Energy Management Function (EMF), a Network Repository' Function (NRF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), but not limited thereto.

[0045]

[0042] The CN 122 is based on the SBA which is a system architecture in which system functionalities are achieved by a set of NFs providing services to other authorized NFs to access their sendees. In such architecture, the various network entities of the communication system 200 may be connected together or the interfaces between the network entities may be represented as: Service Based Interfaces (SBIs) or C-plane interfaces, U-plane interfaces, and UE control signals, as represented in FIG. 2. A SBI represents a set of services provided or exposed by a particular NF. This is the interface where the NF service operations are invoked.

[0043] In the communication system shown in FIG. 2, the CU-CP 114 is responsible for managing control plane functions at RAN side such as signaling, mobility management, and connection management. Likewise, AMF 214 handles UE registration, connection, and mobility management within the CN 122. The CU-CP 114 connects to the AMF 214 via an NG-C interface (which is a point-to-point or peer-to-peer (P2P) interface) to communicate with other NFs in the CN 122. Similarly, signaling from the UE 106 travels through the DU 110 to the CU-CP 114 and then to the AMF 214 before reaching to other NFs of the CN 122. In such communication system, the need for signaling to pass through a series of P2P connections or anchor points (e.g.. the CU-CP 114 and AMF) creates unnecessary transmission overhead and makes placement of other NFs dependent on locations of the CU-CP 114 and the AMF 214, thereby limiting deployment flexibility and efficiency.

[0046]

[0044] To address these and other related issues, an end-to-end Service-Based Architecture (SB A) is proposed where the RAN 102 can communicate with other NFs via the SBI which is a common interface for control plane entities, as shown in FIG. 3.

[0047]

[0045] FIG. 3 illustrates a high-level block diagram of an exemplary communication system 300 employing end-to-end SBA (for beyond 5G wireless networks e.g., 6G wireless networks). In such communication system, the control plane (C -plane) of the RAN and the CN maybe combined to form a converged or unified C-plane 302, which is integrated using a common SBI and comprises various control plane entities (e.g., NF1 to NF6) of the communication system 300. In such architecture, the various network entities may be connected together or the interfaces between the network entities may be represented as: the SBIs or C-plane interfaces, U-plane interfaces, and UE control signals, as represented in FIG. 3.

[0048]

[0046] In the CP design of such SBA architecture, the RAN (e.g., enhanced DU or eDU 304) may communicate with other NFs via an SBI which is a common interface of all CP entities. The CP entities within the communication system 300 are connected through a single SBI interface communications. This design allows any CP entity of RAN or CN to be located independently of the physical locations of other NFs, thus enhancing deployment flexibility. In future distributed cloud environments (e.g.. 6G), which incorporate various types of clouds such as central cloud, edge cloud, and on-premise cloud, this flexibility becomes particularly advantageous to enable more efficient utilization of cloud resources.

[0047] In one such example architecture, instead of maintaining a clear distinction between user plane functionalities of RAN and CN Network Functions (as can be seen in the communication system 200 of FIG. 2), the communication system 300 of FIG. 3 introduces a unit of UP function called a sub-function (SF). These SFs collectively compose a UP NF, referred to as a 6G-UP (denoted as UP 308 in FIG. 3). Each 6G-UP is formed by combining multiple SFs as needed, irrespective of their traditional classification as RAN or CN functionalities in the 5G architecture. The communication system 300 further comprises a specialized type of 6G-UP know n as merged UP (M-UP) 306. The M-UP integrates both RAN- related SFs (especially higher-layer functionalities of the RAN) and CN-related SFs within a single NF. The UP architecture based on the M-UP 306 may include interfaces to both the data network and the eDU 304 which contains the lower-layer UP functionalities of the RAN.

[0049]

[0048] In the communication system 300 employing the SBA and stateless solutions, there may be multiple instances of network entities like CU-UPs, DUs, etc. each referred to as a “handle” or “service handle”. The handle is a read instance of a process that carries out specific functions. Each handle is associated w i th a finite set of resources, meaning the handle can only serve a limited number of UEs. Therefore, the handles are load balanced to ensure efficient service distribution among different UEs. In a stateless architecture, a handle that has the least load may take up a request and access RAN database to retrieve necessary UE context. Once the request is processed, the handle may store updated UE context back into the RAN database and release the session. This approach means that a subsequent request from the same UE might be handled by a different handle (depending on load), highlighting the stateless nature of the communication system.

[0050]

[0049] In contrast to the traditional communication systems (e.g., 4G or 5G where state data (e.g.. UE context data in RAN) is stored locally within the handle), in the communication system 300 depicted in Figure 3, the state data is not stored in the handle. Instead, the state data is stored in a central or localized data repository called RAN DB from where the handle retrieves the state data each time upon receiving a request and stores it back after serving the request. Thus, when applying stateless principles to a communication procedure, the state data must be retrieved from and stored back into the RAN database for each message transfer. Such constant read / write is computationally expensive and significantly impacts overall latency of the communication procedure. Each interaction with the RAN database incurs additional time, thereby increasing the latency.

[0051]

[0050] The communication procedure in a communication network like RAN and / or CN may include any procedure including a plurality of message exchanges among different network entities (i.e., logical network entities and network functions) of the RAN 102 and / or the CN 122. In the communication procedure, multiple logical network entities may be involved and there may exist an anchor network entity (or anchor logical network entity) around which the entire communication procedure revolves. For instance, the communication procedure may include Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup communication procedure.

[0052]

[0051] FIG. 4 illustrates a signaling chart of the RRC setup communication procedure 400 involving El and Fl interfaces. As shown in FIG. 4, the communication procedure 400 involves interactions between a UE 106 and multiple entities of the RAN 102 and the CN 122 including a CU-CP 114, a CU-UP 116, a DU 110, and an AMF 214. In the communication procedure 400, the CU-CP 114 may act as the anchor network entity (or anchor logical network entity) which is responsible for success or failure of the RRC setup communication procedure 400. The various message exchanges involved in the RRC setup communication procedure are illustrated below.

[0053]

[0052] Step 1: The UE 106 may send an “RRC Connection Request” message to the DU 110.

[0053] Step 2: The DU 110 may receive the “RRC Connection Request’' message. The DU 110 may include the “RRC Connection Request” message and corresponding low layer configuration for the UE 106 (if the UE 106 is admitted) in an “Initial UL RRC message” and transfer the “Initial UL RRC message” to the CU-CP 114. The “Initial UL RRC message” may include Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) allocated by the DU 110. Specifically, in Step 2, the DU 110 may create UE context or state data, perform service discovery' of the CU-CP 114 and send the UE’s “RRC Connection Request” message in an Fl container to CU-CP 114 via a service request. After sending the “Initial UL RRC message”, the DU 110 may access the RAN DB and write the UE state data into the RAN DB. Post writing the state data into the RAN DB, the DU 110 does not keep the state data with itself.

[0054]

[0054] Step 3: Upon receiving the “Initial UL RRC message”, the CU-CP 114 may create and / or retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB, allocate an F1AP ID to the UE 106, and generate a “RRC Connection Setup” message towards the UE 106. The “RRC Connection Setup” message is encapsulated in a “DL RRC Message Transfer” message which is sent to the DU 110. Specifically, the CU-CP 114 may reply to the service request received from the DU 110 after processing the “Initial UL RRC message” and may send “RRC Connection Setup” in an Fl container to the DU 110. After sending the “DL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may access the RAN DB and write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0055] Step 4: Upon receiving the “DL RRC Message Transfer” message, the DU 110 may retrieve UE state data and send the “RRC Connection Setup” message to the intended UE 106. After sending the “RRC Connection Setup” message, the DU 110 may access the RAN DB and write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0055]

[0056] Step 5: Upon receiving the “RRC Connection Setup” message, the UE 106 may send “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message to the DU 110.

[0057] Step 6: Upon receiving the "RRC Connection Setup Complete'’ message, the DU 110 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and perform service discovery' for the CU- CP 114. The DU 110 encapsulates the RRC message in an “UL RRC Message Transfer” message. The DU 110 may send the encapsulated RRC message to the CU-CP 114 and write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0056]

[0058] Step 7 : Upon receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB, perform service discovery for AMF 214, and send an “Initial UE message” in an NG container to the AMF 214 via a service request. The CU-CP 114 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0057]

[0059] Step 8: Upon receiving the “Initial UE message”, the AMF 214 may create and / or retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB. The AMF 214 may send “Initial UE Context Setup Request” message to the CU-CP 114 and may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0058]

[0060] Step 9: Upon receiving the “Initial UE Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and perform service discovery for CU- UP 116. The CU-CP 114 may send “Bearer Context Setup Request” message over the El interface to the CU-UP 116 to establish bearer context in the CU-UP 116 (i.e., to configure security keys for the bearer and setup UL data path). After sending the “Bearer Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0059]

[0061] Step 10: Upon receiving the “Bearer Context Setup Request” message, the CU-UP 116 may create and / or retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and configure bearer, setup security and allocate Fl-U UL Tunnel Endpoint Identifiers (TEID) for the UL data path. The CU-UP 116 may then perform service discovery for the CU-CP 114 and send a “Bearer Context Setup Response” message over the El interface to the CU-CP 114 including the Fl-U UL TEID and transport layer address allocated by the CU-UP 116. After serving the “Bearer Context Setup Request'’ or after sending the “Bearer Context Setup Response'’ message, the CU-UP 116 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0060]

[0062] Step 11: Upon receiving the “Bearer Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB, perform service discovery' for the DU 110, and send a “UE Context Setup Request” message to establish a UE context in the DU 110. In this message, CU-CP 114 may also encapsulate “RRC Security' Mode Command” message. After sending the “UE Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0061]

[0063] Step 12: Upon receiving the “UE Context Setup Request” message, the DU 110 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and send the “RRC Security' Mode Command” message to the UE 106.

[0062]

[0064] Step 13: After sending the “RRC Security Mode Command” message, the DU 110 may send the “UE Context Setup Response” message to the CU-CP 114. After serving the “UE Context Setup Request” or after sending the “UE Context Setup Response” message, the DU 110 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0063]

[0065] Step 14: After receiving the “UE Context Setup Response” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB. The CU-CP 114 may perform service discovery' for the CU-UP 116 and send “Bearer Context Modification Request” message over the El interface to the CU-UP 116 to configure DL data path. This message may include Fl- U DL TEID and transport layer address allocated by the DU 110. After sending the “Bearer Context Modification Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0066] Step 15: After receiving the ‘‘Bearer Context Modification Request'’ message, the CU- UP 116 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and set up the DL data path. The CU-UP 116 may perform service discovery' for the CU-CP 114 and send a “Bearer Context Modification Response” message to the CU-CP 114 and write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB after serving the “Bearer Context Modification Request.”

[0064]

[0067] Step 16: The UE 106 may send “RRC Security7Mode Complete” message to the DU 110

[0065]

[0068] Step 17: The DU 110 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and encapsulate RRC messages in F1AP “UL RRC Message Transfer” message. The DU 110 may perform service discovery7for the CU-CP 114 and send the encapsulated RRC messages to the CU-CP 114 and write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0066]

[0069] Step 18: After receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and may7perform service discovery7for the DU 110. The CU-CP 114 may generate a “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message and encapsulate it in F1AP “DL RRC Message Transfer” message which is sent to the DU 110. The CU-CP 114 may then write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0067]

[0070] Step 19: After receiving the “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message, the DU 110 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and may send the “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message to the UE 106. The DU 110 may then write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0068]

[0071] Step 20: After receiving the “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message, the UE 106 may send a “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message to the DU 110.

[0069]

[0072] Step 21: After receiving the “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message, the DU 110 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB may perform service discovery for the CU- CP 114. The DU 110 may encapsulate RRC messages in an F1AP “UL RRC Message Transfer’ message and send the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message to the CU-CP 114. The DU 110 may then write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0070]

[0073] Step 22: After receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB. The CU-CP 114 may perform service discovery' for the AMF 214 and send an “Initial UE Context Setup Response” message to the AMF 214. The CU-CP 114 and AMF 214 may write updated UE state data back into the RAN DB.

[0071]

[0074] According to the stateless and SBA concepts, each message transaction or message exchange of a communication procedure is independent. Thus, the applicability7of the stateless and SBA concepts to the communication procedure 400 of FIG. 4 results in that each message transaction of the communication procedure 400 requires fresh service discovery of intended NF and retrieval and storage of context data. In other words, the UE state data is retrieved and stored from / to the RAN DB each time whenever control is returned to any logical network entity7. Each time a service request is received by a logical network entity7, the logical network entity7fetches / retrieves UE context data from the RAN DB and then serves the service request. Post serving the service request, the UE context data is written back into the RAN DB and a service response / control may be transferred to another logical network entity e.g., by sending a message. The other logical network entity7, upon receiving the service request, retrieves the UE context data from the RAN DB and serves the service request. Post serving the sendee request, the UE context data is written back into the RAN DB by the other logical network entity. In this manner, the UE context is retrieved and stored from / to the RAN DB each time whenever control is returned to a logical network entity, resulting in more computations and increased overall latency of the communication procedure. This is also compounded by performing service discovery after each step between the same pair of NFs, for the same UE. Thus, the application of stateless and SBA concepts is not advantageous for such communication procedures.

[0072]

[0075] To solve these and other related problems, the techniques of the present disclosure propose that for communication procedures which involve multiple message transactions between multiple logical network entities, the stateless and SBA concepts are not applicable for each message transaction instead these concepts are applicable only at procedure level. According to the proposed techniques, each logical network entity retrieves the UE state data from the central or localized repository (i.e., the RAN DB) once at the beginning of the communication procedure (from the viewpoint of the logical network entity) and stores back the UE state data back into the RAN DB only after the procedure is complete (from the viewpoint of the logical network entity ). Between these points, the UE state data is maintained in the logical network entity, making the communication system stateful at the procedure level including all the messages of the communication procedure, but stateless at the inter-procedure level or for a different UE. Further, in the present disclosure, a logical network entity invokes a service discovery function using a service-based interface only once at the beginning of the communication procedure and uses a point-to-point interface for any subsequent communication until the completion of the communication procedure. By avoiding invoking service discovery and / or repetitive retrieval and storage of UE state data for each message transaction within a communication procedure, the overall latency is significantly reduced. Further, fewer database operations result in reduction of computational overhead, thereby improving system efficiency. In this manner, the proposed techniques balance the benefits of statelessness and SBA with the practical needs of efficient communication procedures.

[0076] The techniques of the present disclosure may be implemented in a communication system (typically, in beyond 5G communication systems e.g., as shown in FIG. 3). The communication system 300 may comprise a RAN (having at least one beyond 5G base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture) and a CN communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB. Each of the at least one gNB may comprise one or more logical network entities comprising a CU-CP 114, at least one CU-UP 116, and at least one DU 110 communicatively coupled with each other for serving a UE 106. The CN may also comprise one or more logical network entities (or network functions) comprising the AMF 214, the SMF, the UPF, the AUSF, the PCF, the NEF, the NSSF, etc.

[0073]

[0077] The communication system 300 may involve different Control-Plane (C-plane) and User-Plane (U-plane) based communication procedures involving the RAN and / or the CN and each communication procedure may comprise a plurality of message transactions / exchanges among a plurality of logical network entities, where each logical network entity may be configured to provide a service. The communication procedure may comprise one or more anchor nodes (or anchor logical network entities) responsible for success and failure of the communication procedure. The selection of the anchor logical network entity is performed depending on who initiates and / or consumes service requests in the communication procedure. This can be determined and agreed per communication procedure, as the anchor entity could be different for different procedures. Typically, in most of the message transactions, the anchor logical network entity is responsible for initiating or sending service requests (i.e., the anchor logical network entity is producer of service requests or consumer of services). For instance, in the RRC setup communication procedure 400 of FIG. 4. the CU-CP 114 acts as the anchor logical network entity for remaining logical network entities involved in the communication procedure 400.

[0078] In one non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, the anchor logical network entity may be provisioned with or may comprise / maintain information about completion of the communication procedure (also referred to as the "procedure completion information”). The communication procedure may complete at different instances from the viewpoint of each logical network entity7. For instance, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication procedure 400 completes after Step 15 from the view point of CU-UP 116, completes after Step 21 from the viewpoint of DU 110, completes after Step 22 from the view point of CU-CP 114 and AMF 214. Thus, the procedure completion information may indicate as when the communication procedure completes from the viewpoint of each of a plurality7of logical network entities involved in the communication procedure.

[0074]

[0079] For each logical network entity providing the service and involved in the communication procedure (e.g., the procedure 400), the anchor logical netw ork entity7(e.g., the CU-CP 114) may be configured to facilitate retrieving of UE state data only once which is at a beginning of the communication procedure (from a view point of the logical netw ork entity7). Further, for each logical network entity, the anchor logical network entity may be configured to facilitate storing of the UE state data only once which is at the end of the communication procedure 400 (from the viewpoint of the logical network entity). Even for itself, the anchor logical network entity facilitates retrieving of UE state data only at the beginning of the communication procedure (from the viewpoint of the anchor logical network entity) and facilitates storing of the UE state data only at the end of the communication procedure 400 (from the viewpoint of the anchor logical network entity). Similarly, a logical network entity invoking a sen ice discovery function from the service-based interface is performed only once at the beginning of a communication procedure and for any subsequent communication until the completion of the communication procedure, a point-to-point direct interface is used as in the traditional communication networks. This ensures that when there are multiple transactions between the same pair of logical entities or network elements, the service discover}' is performed only once at the beginning and the direct address, e.g.,: IP address, of the sender and receiver are stored with each other until the completion of the communication procedure.

[0075]

[0080] The beginning of the communication procedure and / or the end of the communication procedure (from the viewpoint of any logical network entity) is determined based on the procedure completion information. Between the beginning and ending points of the communication procedure (from the viewpoint of the logical network entity), the UE state data is maintained in the logical network entity. The techniques of the present disclosure are now explained in connection with the RRC setup communication procedure 400 of FIG. 4 involving a plurality of logical network entities i.e., the DU 110, the CU-CP 114 (which acts as the anchor logical network entity), the CU-UP 116, the AMF 214.

[0076]

[0081] In the communication procedure 400, the CU-CP 114 may transmit a service request to a logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities. The service request may comprise information indicating beginning of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to retrieve the UE state data. In other words, such service request indicates that the communication procedure 400 is still open from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructs the logical network entity to retrieve and keep the UE state data.

[0077]

[0082] For instance, in Step 9 of FIG. 4, the CU-CP 114 transmits a service request ‘'Bearer Context Setup Request” to the CU-UP 116 and instructs the CU-UP 116 to retrieve the UE state data. Upon receiving the “Bearer Context Setup Request” service request, the CU-UP 116 may serve the service request by retrieving the UE state data from the RAN DB and configuring bearer, setup security and allocating F 1 -U UL TEID for the UL data path. The CU-UP 116 may then send a sen-ice response “Bearer Context Setup Response” to the CU-CP 114. After serving the service request, the CU-UP 116 maintains the UE state with itself (instead of writing in the RAN DB. The CU-UP 116 also provides its IP address back to CU-CP 114 for any subsequent communication during the communication procedure.

[0078]

[0083] The CU-CP 114 keeps on checking / determining, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116. For instance, at Step 14 (which is sending the sendee request “Bearer Context Modification Request” to the CU-UP 116), the CU-CP 114 determines that this is the last message exchange, and the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116.

[0079]

[0084] Upon determining (at Step 14) that the communication procedure will get completed from the viewpoint of CU-UP 116 after serving the service request “Bearer Context Modification Request”, the CU-UP 116 may transmit a service closure request to the CU-UP 116, the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and instructing the CU-UP 116 to store the updated UE state data (which was retrieved and / or created for serv ing the service request of Step 9) back into the RAN DB. The CU-CP 114 may also provide its own IP address to the CU-UP 116 to send a response back, as the subsequent request is not initiated using service discovery.

[0080]

[0085] It may be noted that the service closure request is not transmitted separately, instead the content of the service closure request (i.e.. the information indicating closure of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and instructing the CU- UP 116 to store the UE state data) is included in the service request “Bearer Context Modification Request” which is then sent to the CU-UP 116 in Step 14.

[0086] Upon receiving the sen-ice request “Bearer Context Modification Request”, the CU-UP 116 serves the received service request by setting up the DL data path. Post serving the sen-ice request, the CU-UP 116 may send a service response to the CU-CP 114, the service response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and indicating that the UE state data has been stored back in the RAN DB.

[0081]

[0087] It may be noted that the service response is not transmitted separately, instead the content of the service response (i.e., the information indicating the closure of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and indicating that the UE state data has been stored back in the RAN DB) is included in the service response “Bearer Context Modification Response” which is then sent to the CU-CP 114 in Step 15. In this manner, the retrieval and storing of the UE state data is performed only once for CU-UP 116, reducing the overall latency and computations.

[0082]

[0088] In the present disclosure, service discovery is performed only once (which is at the beginning of the communication procedure, when a service is required for the first time), and the service discovery is not repeated if there are multiple handshakes between two logical network entities during the course of the communication procedure. The sendee is ty pically performed by the logical network entity which is the consumer of the sendee (which in most cases is the anchor logical network entity). Specifically, the anchor logical network entity performs the service discovery when a service is required for the first time during the communication procedure. This involves identifying and establishing communication with the one or more logical network entities that offer or that are capable of providing the required service(s) within the communication system.

[0089] Once the one or more logical network entities are discovered that provides the required sendee, the anchor logical network entity retains or remembers the same one or more logical network entities that was discovered for the first time during the procedure, until the completion of the communication procedure and does not repeat the service discovery process for subsequent interactions with the already discovered one or more logical network entities. This approach eliminates the additional overhead of rediscovering services and / or logical network entities for each handshake between two logical network entities. Hence, this approach further reduces latency and computational load associated with repeated service discovery' operations and improves communication efficiency by reducing the number of service discovery operations during the course of the communication procedure.

[0083]

[0090] In one non-limiting embodiment, the anchor logical network entity7(which is the sendee requester) is provisioned with required credentials (e.g., IP address, TEID, interface endpoint, but not limited thereto) associated with different logical network entities of the communication system. The provisioning of the credentials facilitates ensures that any previously discovered logical network entity can be contacted directly again (if required) during the course of the communication procedure. In other words, such provisioning of the credentials facilitates direct communication between the anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered logical network entity for communications during sending of subsequent service requests of the communication procedure. Such provisioning facilitates seamless and uninterrupted sendee during the entire communication procedure while minimizing latency and reducing the computational load.

[0084]

[0091] In one example, the communication procedure may be a RAN based communication procedure which may involve a plurality of logical network entities of the RAN. In another example, the communication procedure may be a CN based communication procedure which may involve a plurality of logical network entities of the CN. In yet another example, the communication procedure may be a RAN and CN based communication procedure which may involve a plurality of logical network entities of the RAN and the CN. In summary, the communication procedure may be a RAN and / or CN based communication procedure which may involve a plurality of logical network entities of the RAN and / or the CN.

[0085]

[0092] It may be noted that the communication procedure may comprise more than one anchor logical network entities. For example, for a RAN based communication procedure, there may be multiple anchor logical network entities on the RAN side. Similarly, for an exemplary CN based communication procedure, there may be multiple anchor logical network entities on the CN side. For an exemplary RAN and CN based communication procedure, there may be one anchor logical network entities on the RAN side (e.g., the CU-CP 114) and one anchor logical network entities on the CN side (e.g., the AMF 214). For another exemplary RAN and CN based communication procedure, there may be multiple anchor logical network entities on the RAN side and multiple anchor logical network entities on the CN side.

[0086]

[0093] In the communication procedures involving multiple anchor logical network entities, one of the multiple anchor logical network entities may be designated as a master anchor logical network entity which may be configured to perform procedure completion for remaining of the multiple anchor logical network entities. Said differently, the master anchor logical network entity’ may declare the procedure as completed with respect to the other master anchor logical network entities.

[0087]

[0094] The communication procedure may comprise a Control-Plane (C -plane) procedure involving a plurality of message exchanges among a plurality of logical network entities of the RAN and / or CN. The C-plane procedure may comprises any one of: a RRC setup procedure for establishing a communication link between the UE 106 and the gNB 102, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure for transferring a session of the UE 106 from a source DU to a target DU within the same gNB 102, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure for transferring a session of the UE 106 from a source DU of a source gNB to a target DU of a target gNB, a bearer reconfiguration procedure, a cell selection procedure for selecting a serving cell for the UE 106, a cell reselection procedure for switching the UE 106 from a source cell to a target cell, an AMF relocation procedure for transferring mobility -related control functions of the UE 106 from a source AMF to a target AMF, or any other RAN and / or CN based C-plane procedure.

[0095] It may be noted that the present disclosure is not limited for C-plane procedures and in general, the techniques of the present disclosure are equally applicable for any type of communication procedure such as a User-Plane (U-plane) procedure, a Management-Plane (M- plane) procedure, etc. involving a plurality of message exchanges among a plurality of logical network entities of the RAN and / or CN.

[0088]

[0096] In the present disclosure, each logical network entity involved in a communication procedure performs a single read operation to retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB and performs a single write operation to store the UE state data back into the RAN DB. In one nonlimiting embodiment, instead of performing one data retrieval operation and one data storing operation for each logical network entity of the communication procedure, the UE state data may be retrieved only once and stored only once during the entire communication procedure. For instance, the anchor logical network entity’ may perform a single read operation to retrieve the UE state data from the RAN DB at the beginning of the communication procedure and then signal relevant UE state data to other peer logical network entity involved in the communication procedure over appropriate interfaces. The anchor logical network entity may perform a single write operation to store the updated UE state data back into the RAN DB after the communication procedure is completed.

[0097] Consider an exemplary communication procedure involving the CU-CP 114 (as anchor logical network entity), the CU-UP 116, and the DU 110. The CU-CP 114, acting as the anchor logical network entity, may perform retrieval of the UE state data from the RAN DB for all three entities and then share the UE state data relevant to the CU-UP 116 and the DU 110 over El / Fl signaling interfaces. In this way the CU-UP 116 and the DU 110 receive the necessary7UE state data without needing to individually access the RAN DB. Thus, by centralizing the read / write operations to a single node, the present disclosure may reduce accesses to the RAN DB.

[0089]

[0098] Example:

[0090]

[0099] The forthcoming paragraphs describe the C-plane procedure of FIG. 4 (RRC setup communication procedure 400) implemented using the techniques of the present disclosure. The communication procedure 400 involves interactions between the UE 106 and the multiple logical network entities of the RAN 102 and the CN 122. The CU-CP 114 may act as the anchor logical network entity. Message transactions to / from the UE 106 are not SBA based.

[0091]

[0100] In the below explanation, three procedure tokens (OPEN, CLOSE, and CLOSED) are used to indicate state of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of each logical network entity. The procedure token “OPEN” indicates that the communication procedure 400 has begun or that the communication procedure 400 is still open from the viewpoint of the logical network entity. The procedure token “CLOSE” indicates that the communication procedure 400 is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and the CU-CP 114 (anchor logical network entity) transmits a request to the logical network entity indicating closure of the communication procedure after the service request is served. The procedure token “CLOSED” is an acknowledgement indicating that the communication procedure has been closed by the logical network entity after serving the request. In one embodiment, the procedure token and / or the information associated with the procedure token may be communicated between the different logical network entities of the communication procedure.

[0092]

[0101] Step 1: The UE 106 may send an “RRC Connection Request’' message to the DU 110.

[0093]

[0102] Step 2 : The DU 110 may receive the “RRC Connection Request” message or common channel request. The DU 110 may create UE context or state data, perform service discovery of the CU-CP 114 and send the UE’s “RRC Connection Request"’ message in an Fl container to CU-CP 114 via a service request. After sending the “Initial UL RRC message”, the DU 110 keeps the UE state data with itself and marks procedure token as OPEN indicating that the communication procedure is still open or active.

[0094]

[0103] Step 3: Upon receiving the “Initial UL RRC message”, the CU-CP 114 may create UE context or state data. The CU-CP 114 may reply to the service request received from the DU 110 after processing the “Initial UL RRC message” and may send “RRC Connection Setup” in an Fl container to the DU 110. The CU-CP 114 marks the procedure token as OPEN indicating that the communication procedure is still open or active. Specifically, by marking the procedure token as OPEN, the CU-CP 114 indicates to the DU 110 that the communication procedure is still open or active.

[0095]

[0104] Step 4: Upon receiving the “DL RRC Message Transfer” message, the DU 110 may send the “RRC Connection Setup” message to the UE 106 and marks the procedure token as OPEN

[0096]

[0105] Step 5: Upon receiving the “RRC Connection Setup” message, the UE 106 may send “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message to the DU 110.

[0097]

[0106] Step 6: The DU 110 receives the “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message. The DU 110 does not decode this message and sends “UL RRC Message Transfer” message to CU- CP 114 via direct addressing / signaling (i.e., no service discovery is performed). The procedure token is still OPEN as the CU-CP 114 has not marked the communication procedure as completed.

[0098]

[0107] Step 7: Upon receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer’ message, the CU-CP 114 may perform service discovery for AMF 214 and send an “Initial UE message” in an NG container to the AMF 214 via a service request. The procedure token is still OPEN.

[0099]

[0108] Step 8: Upon receiving the “Initial UE message” service request, the AMF 214 (which is anchor entity on CN side) may create UE context. If handshakes / communications are required with other CN logical network entities, the AMF 214 handles such handshakes and procedure completion for the other CN logical network entities. Though in the communication procedure 400 there are no other handshake needed at CN side. The AMF 214 replies to the service request from CU-CP 114 after processing the “Initial UE message” and sends “Initial UE Context Setup Request” to the CU-CP 114 as a service request. The AMF 214 marks the procedure token as OPEN.

[0100]

[0109] Step 9: Upon receiving the “Initial UE Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 performs service discovery for CU-UP 116 and sends a “Bearer Context Setup Request” message over the El interface to the CU-UP 116 via a service request to establish bearer context in the CU-UP 116. The procedure token is still OPEN.

[0101]

[0110] Step 10: Upon receiving the “Bearer Context Setup Request” message, the CU-UP 116 creates UE context and may configure bearer, setup security and allocate Fl-U UL TEID for the UL data path. The CU-UP 116 may then reply to the service request by sending a “Bearer Context Setup Response” message over the El interface to the CU-CP 114. The CU-UP 116 does not perform any service discovery and procedure token is still OPEN.

[0111] Step 11: Upon receiving the “Bearer Context Setup Request” message, the CU-CP 114 may send a “UE Context Setup Request” message to establish a UE context in the DU 110. In this message, CU-CP 114 may also encapsulate “RRC Security Mode Command” message. The procedure token is still OPEN. It may be noted that the CU-CP 114 does not perform sendee discovery' of the DU 110 and direct addressing is used for establishing the connection with the DU 110.

[0102]

[0112] Step 12: Upon receiving the “UE Context Setup Request” message, the DU 110 may send the “RRC Security Mode Command” message to the UE 106. The procedure token is still OPEN

[0103]

[0113] Step 13: After sending the “RRC Security Mode Command” message, the DU 110 may update UE context (if required) send the “UE Context Setup Response” message to the CU-CP 114. The DU 110 may share the DL TEID for the data path with the CU-CP 114 and procedure token is still OPEN.

[0104]

[0114] Step 14: After receiving the “UE Context Setup Response” message, the CU-CP 114 directly addresses the already discovered CU-UP 116 and sends a “Bearer Context Modification Request” message over the El interface to the CU-UP 116 to configure DL data path. Here, the CU-CP 114 knows (based on the procedure completion information) that the communication procedure is about to complete form the point of view of the CU-UP 116 and hence, the CU-CP 114 may include information in the “Bearer Context Modification Request” message sent to the CU-UP 116. The information indicates closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and instructs the CU-UP 116 to store the UE state data into the RAN DB. The procedure token is marked as CLOSE indicating that the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116.

[0115] Step 15: After receiving the ‘‘Bearer Context Modification Request'’ message, the CU- UP 116 may set up the DL data path and may reply to the service request from the CU-CP 114 by sending a “Bearer Context Modification Response” message to the CU-CP 114. The CU- UP 116 may write updated UE state data into the RAN DB and mark the procedure token as CLOSED indicating the closure of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the CU-UP 116 and indicating that the UE state data has been written into the RAN DB. In the “Bearer Context Modification Response” message, the CU-CP 114 includes information indicating that the communication procedure 400 has been closed and the UE state data has been stored back in the RAN DB. The CU-UP 116 does not perform service discovery' and uses direct addressing for communicating with the CU-CP 114.

[0105]

[0116] Step 16: The UE 106 may send “RRC Security Mode Complete” message to the DU 110

[0106]

[0117] Step 17: The DU 110 may update the UE state data (if required) and sends RRC message from the UE in an “UL RRC Message Transfer” message to the CU-CP 114 without performing the service discovery'. The DU 110 marks the procedure token as OPEN.

[0107]

[0118] Step 18: After receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may generate a “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message and encapsulate it in F1AP “DL RRC Message Transfer” message which is sent to the DU 110 (without performing sendee discovery ). Here, the CU-CP 114 knows that the communication procedure is about to complete form the point of view of the DU 110 and hence procedure token is marked as CLOSE. The CU-CP 114 may include information in the “DL RRC Message Transfer” message sent to the DU 110 indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the DU 110 and instructing the DU 110 to store the UE state data into the RAN DB.

[0119] Step 19: After receiving the "RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message, the DU 110 may decode RRC header of the received message to check if the RRC message is a CLASSI message or CLASS 2 message. Class 1 message entails that the UE context is written to the RAN DB only after a response from the UE 106 is received. The DU 110 sends the “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message to the UE 106. The DU 110 may mark the procedure token as OPEN.

[0108]

[0120] Step 20: After receiving the “RRC Connection Reconfiguration” message, the UE 106 may send a “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message to the DU 110.

[0109]

[0121] Step 21: After receiving the “RRC Connection Setup Complete” message, the DU 110 may encapsulate RRC messages in an F1AP “UL RRC Message Transfer” message and send the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message to the CU-CP 114 (without performing the service discover}'). The DU 110 may update the UE state data (if required) and write the latest UE state data into the RAN DB. The DU 110 may mark the procedure token as CLOSED indicating the closure of the communication procedure 400 from the viewpoint of the DU 110 and indicating that the UE state data has been written into the RAN DB. In the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the DU 110 includes information indicating that the communication procedure 400 has been closed and the UE state data has been stored back in the RAN DB.

[0110]

[0122] Step 22: After receiving the “UL RRC Message Transfer” message, the CU-CP 114 may send an “Initial UE Context Setup Response” message to the AMF 214 in response to earlier service request of Step 8. Since the CU-CP 114 knows that the communication procedure is about to complete form the point of view of the AMF 214 and hence procedure token is marked as CLOSE. The CU-CP 114 may include information in the “Initial UE Context Setup Response” message sent to the AMF 214 indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the AMF 214 and instructing the AMF 214 to store the UE state data into the RAN DB.

[0111]

[0123] Upon receiving the “Initial UE Context Setup Response” message, the AMF 214 may write the UE state data back into the RAN DB. Finally, the CU-CP 114 marks the procedure as CLOSED and writes the UE state data into the RAN DB. Here, the CU-CP 114 does not wait for confirmation / acknowledgement from AMF 214 because the CU-CP 114 is aware that the procedure is completed, and UE state data is no longer needed.

[0112]

[0124] In this manner, each logical network entity avoids invoking service discovery' and / or repetitive retrieval and storage of UE state data for each message transaction within the communication procedure 400, thereby reducing the overall latency of the communication procedure and reducing the computational overhead. It may be noted that though in the current network deployments, there are three logical network entities i.e., a CU-CP 114, at least one CU-UP 116, and at least one DU 110 and two interfaces El and Fl within the RAN 102. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto and in beyond 5G communication systems, there may be additional logical network entities and / or additional interfaces such as a DU-DU interface.

[0113]

[0125] FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus 500, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 5, the apparatus 500 may comprise at least one transmitter or output component 502, at least one receiver or input component 504, at least one processor 508, at least one memory 510, at least one storage component 512, at least one interface 514, and at least one antenna 516. The at least one transmitter 502 may be configured to transmit data / information to one or more external nodes / devices using the antenna 516 and the at least one receiver 504 may be configured to receive data / information from the one or more external nodes / devices using the antenna 516. The at least one transmitter and receiver may be collectively implemented as a single transceiver or input-output module 506. In one non-limiting embodiment, the at least one processor 508 may be communicatively coupled with the transceiver 506, the memory 510, the storage component 512, the interface 514, and the antenna 516 (e.g., via a bus 518) for implementing the techniques consistent with the present disclosure. The bus 518 may include a wired interconnection or a wireless interconnection.

[0114]

[0126] The at least one processor 508, as used herein, means any type of computational circuit that may comprise hardware elements and software elements. The processor 508 may be embodied as a multi-core processor, a single core processor, or a combination of one or more multi-core processors and / or one or more single core processors, a distributed processing system, or the like. The processor 508 may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an accelerated processing unit (APU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or another type of processing component.

[0115]

[0127] The memory 510 may include a non -transitory computer readable medium. The memory 510 may include a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), and / or another type of dynamic or static storage device (e.g., a flash memory, a magnetic memory, and / or an optical memory) that stores information and / or instructions for use by processor 508. The memory 510 may comprise machine-readable instructions which are executable by the processor 508. These machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor 508 cause the processor 508 to perform one or more method steps of an embodiment described above.

[0116]

[0128] The apparatus 500 may include the storage component 512 which stores information and / or software related to the operation and use of the apparatus 500. For example, the storage component 512 may include a hard disk (e.g., a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optic disk, and / or a solid-state disk), a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a floppy disk, a cartridge, a magnetic tape, and / or another type of non-transitory computer-readable medium, along with a corresponding drive.

[0117]

[0129] The communication interface 514 is an interface that provides a communication connection to other devices, such as external devices and internal devices. The connection by the communication interface 514 can be a wired connection, a wireless connection, or a combination of wired and wireless connections, and can be a direct connection or an indirect connection via a communication network that exists between the apparatus 500 and other devices. In other words, the standard of the communication interface 514 is not limited.

[0118]

[0130] The bus 518 acts as an interconnect between the processor 508, the memory' 510, the storage component 512, the transmitter 502, the receiver 504, the communication interface 514, and the antenna 516 of the apparatus 500.

[0119]

[0131] The number and arrangement of components shown in FIG. 5 are provided as an example. In practice, the apparatus 500 may include additional components, fewer components, different components, or differently arranged components than those shown in FIG. 5. Additionally, or alternatively, a set of components (e.g., one or more components) of the apparatus 500 may perform one or more functions described as being performed by another set of components of the apparatus 500. Further, one or more method steps described in any of the embodiments may be performed utilizing a plurality of apparatuses 500 in communication with one another.

[0120]

[0132] In one non-limiting embodiment, the apparatus 500 may be used to implement some or all functions of any entity including the UE 106, various network entities of the RAN 102. various entities of the core network, but not limited thereto. Specifically, the apparatus 500 may implement the functionalities of the anchor logical network entity and / or any other network function or network logical network entity.

[0121]

[0133] Referring now to FIG. 6, a flowchart is described illustrating an example method 600 performed by a logical network entity for enhancing communication in a communication system 300, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The logical network entity7may be any logical network entity7of the RAN 102 (i.e., the CU 108, the DU 110, the CU-CP 114, and the CU-UP 116) or any network function of the CN 122 (e.g., the AMF 214, the SMF, the UPF, the AUSF, the PCF, the NEF, the NSSF, etc.) and the functionalities of the logical network entity7may be implemented with the help of the apparatus 500 (and particularly, with the help of the at least one processor 508).

[0122]

[0134] The method 600 may7include performing the operations of blocks 602 and 604 for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system 300 that comprises a plurality of logical network entities.

[0123]

[0135] The method 600 may include, at block 602, facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality7of logical network entities retrieving of state data associated with a UE 106. The retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0124]

[0136] At block 604, the method 600 may include facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0125]

[0137] Embodiments:

[0126]

[0138] Embodiment 1. A method comprising: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, performing following: facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), wherein the retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity7; and facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0127]

[0139] Embodiment 2: The method of embodiment 1, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity7.

[0128]

[0140] Embodiment 3: The method of embodiment 2, further comprising: transmitting, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the service request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity7to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determining, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity; upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity, transmitting a service closure request to the logical network entity, the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receiving a service response from the logical network entity, the service response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and storing the state data.

[0141] Embodiment 4: The method of any of the embodiments 1-3, further comprising: performing service discovery once during the communication procedure, wherein performing the service discovery once during the communication procedure comprises performing the sendee discovery when the service is required for the first time, wherein performing the sen ice discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality' of logical network entities that offer required sendee within the communication system.

[0129]

[0142] Embodiment 5: The method of any of the embodiments 1-4, further comprising: facilitating provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication system to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity7and any' previously discovered entity7, for communication during transmission of subsequent service requests of the communication procedure.

[0130]

[0143] Embodiment 6: The method of any of the embodiments 1-5, wherein: facilitating retrieving of the state data comprises facilitating retrieving of the state data from a central repository associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository' comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and facilitating storing of the retrieved state data comprises facilitating storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

[0131]

[0144] Embodiment 7: The method of any of the embodiments 1-6, further comprising: identifying a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure; and performing, using the master anchor logical network entity, procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

[0145] Embodiment 8: The method of any of the embodiments 1-7, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5thGeneration base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB, each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU-UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

[0132]

[0146] Embodiment 9: The method of any of the embodiments 1-8, wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) or a User-Plane (U-plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

[0133]

[0147] Embodiment 10. An apparatus configured to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE). wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity .

[0134]

[0148] Embodiment 11 : The apparatus of the embodiment 10, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity7comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0135]

[0149] Embodiment 12: The apparatus of the embodiment 12, wherein the apparatus is further configured to: transmit a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the sendee request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determine, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity; upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity, transmit a sendee closure request to the logical network entity, the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity’ and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receive a sendee response from the logical network entity', the service response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and storing the state data.

[0136]

[0150] Embodiment 13: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-12. further configured to: perform service discovery once during the communication procedure, wherein to perform the sendee discovery once during the communication procedure, the apparatus is configured to perform the service discovery when the service is required for the first time, wherein performing the service discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality of logical network entities that offer required service within the communication system.

[0137]

[0151] Embodiment 14: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-13, further configured to: facilitate provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication system to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered entity, for communication during transmission of subsequent sendee requests of the communication procedure.

[0138]

[0152] Embodiment 15: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-14, wherein: to facilitate retrieving of the state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate retrieving of the state data from a central repository associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

[0139]

[0153] Embodiment 16: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-15, further configured to: identify a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure; and perform, using the master anchor logical network entity, procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

[0140]

[0154] Embodiment 17: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-16, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5thGeneration base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB, each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU-UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

[0141]

[0155] Embodiment 18: The apparatus of any of the embodiments 10-17, wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) procedure or a User-Plane (U- plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of: a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

[0142]

[0156] Embodiment 19. A non-transitory computer readable media storing one or more computer executable instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE). wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0143]

[0157] Embodiment 20: The non- transitory computer readable media of embodiment 19, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity7comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

[0144]

[0158] It may be noted here that the subject matter of some or all embodiments described with reference to Figures 1-4 may be relevant for the method 600 and the same is not repeated for the sake of brevity7. The language used in the specification has been principally selected for readability7and instructional purposes, and it may not have been selected to delineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter. It is therefore intended that the scope of the disclosure be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by any claims that issue on an application based here on. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the disclosure, which is set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

1. What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, performing following: facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), wherein the retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity7.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2. further comprising: transmitting, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the service request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determining, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity;upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity', transmitting a service closure request to the logical network entity', the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receiving a service response from the logical network entity, the service response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical netyvork entity and storing the state data.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: performing service discovery once during the communication procedure, wherein performing the service discovery' once during the communication procedure comprises performing the service discovery when the service is required for the first time, yvherein performing the service discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality of logical netyvork entities that offer required service yvithin the communication system.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: facilitating provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication sy stem to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered entity, for communication during transmission of subsequent sendee requests of the communication procedure.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:facilitating retrieving of the state data comprises facilitating retrieving of the state data from a central repository associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and facilitating storing of the retrieved state data comprises facilitating storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: identifying a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure: and performing, using the master anchor logical network entity-', procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5th Generation base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB. each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU- UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

9. The method as claimed in claim 1. wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) or a User-Plane (U-plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

10. An apparatus configured to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the apparatus is further configured to:transmit a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the service request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity' to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determine, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity; upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity, transmit a service closure request to the logical network entity', the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity' and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receive a service response from the logical network entity, the sen-ice response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and storing the state data.

13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to: perform service discovery' once during the communication procedure, wherein to perform the service discovery' once during the communication procedure, the apparatus is configured to perform the service discovery when the service is required for the first time, wherein performing the service discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality of logical network entities that offer required service within the communication system.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to:facilitate provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication system to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered entity, for communication during transmission of subsequent service requests of the communication procedure.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein: to facilitate retrieving of the state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate retrieving of the state data from a central repository' associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to: identify a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure: and perform, using the master anchor logical network entity', procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5th Generation base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB,each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU- UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) procedure or a User-Plane (U-plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of: a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

19. A non-transitory computer readable media storing one or more computer executable instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality- of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE),wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

20. The non-transitory computer readable media as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.ABSTRACTThe present disclosure relates to enhancements in communications for beyond 5G (e.g., 6G) communication system. In one embodiment, the present disclosure discloses a method which comprises for each logical network entity' providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality' of logical network entities, facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity' of the plurality' of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE). The retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity'. The method further comprises facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity'.Figure 6What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, performing following: facilitating, by at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), wherein the retrieving of the state data is performed at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitating, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity7.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2. further comprising: transmitting, by the at least one anchor logical network entity, a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the service request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determining, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity;upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity', transmitting a service closure request to the logical network entity', the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receiving a service response from the logical network entity, the service response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical netyvork entity and storing the state data.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: performing service discovery once during the communication procedure, wherein performing the service discovery' once during the communication procedure comprises performing the service discovery when the service is required for the first time, yvherein performing the service discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality of logical netyvork entities that offer required service yvithin the communication system.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: facilitating provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication sy stem to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered entity, for communication during transmission of subsequent sendee requests of the communication procedure.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:facilitating retrieving of the state data comprises facilitating retrieving of the state data from a central repository associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and facilitating storing of the retrieved state data comprises facilitating storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: identifying a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure: and performing, using the master anchor logical network entity-', procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5th Generation base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB. each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU- UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

9. The method as claimed in claim 1. wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) or a User-Plane (U-plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

10. An apparatus configured to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE), wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the apparatus is further configured to:transmit a service request to the logical network entity, wherein the service request comprises information indicating beginning of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and instructing the logical network entity' to retrieve the state data associated with the UE; determine, based on the procedure completion information, whether the communication procedure is about to complete from the viewpoint of the logical network entity; upon determining that the communication procedure is completed after the service request is served, from the viewpoint of the logical network entity, transmit a service closure request to the logical network entity', the service closure request comprising information indicating closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity' and instructing the logical network entity to store the state data; and receive a service response from the logical network entity, the sen-ice response comprising information indicating the closure of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity and storing the state data.

13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to: perform service discovery' once during the communication procedure, wherein to perform the service discovery' once during the communication procedure, the apparatus is configured to perform the service discovery when the service is required for the first time, wherein performing the service discovery' comprises identifying and establishing communication with one or more of the plurality of logical network entities that offer required service within the communication system.

14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to:facilitate provisioning of credentials associated with different logical network entities of the communication system to the at least one anchor logical network entity for facilitating direct communication between the at least one anchor logical network entity and any previously discovered entity, for communication during transmission of subsequent service requests of the communication procedure.

15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein: to facilitate retrieving of the state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate retrieving of the state data from a central repository' associated with the communication system, wherein the central repository comprises a Radio Access Network Database (RAN DB), and to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data, the apparatus is configured to facilitate storing of the retrieved state data into the central repository.

16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, further configured to: identify a master anchor logical network entity when the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises more than one anchor logical network entities associated with the communication procedure: and perform, using the master anchor logical network entity', procedure completion for remaining of the more than one anchor logical network entities.

17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein: the communication system comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) comprising at least one beyond 5th Generation base station (gNB) in a distributed architecture, and a core network (CN) communicatively coupled with the at least one gNB,each of the at least one gNB comprises one or more logical network entities comprising a Central Unit Control Plane entity (CU-CP), at least one Central Unit User Plane entity (CU- UP), and at least one Distributed Unit (DU) communicatively coupled with each other for serving the UE, and the CN comprise one or more logical network entities comprising an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), and a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF).

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the communication procedure comprises a Control-Plane (C-plane) procedure or a User-Plane (U-plane) based Radio Access Network (RAN) or Core Network (CN) procedure comprising a plurality of message exchanges among the plurality of logical network entities, and wherein the C-plane based RAN or CN procedure comprises one of: a Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup procedure, an intra gNB inter DU handover procedure, an inter gNB inter DU handover procedure, a cell selection procedure, a cell reselection procedure, an AMF relocation procedure.

19. A non-transitory computer readable media storing one or more computer executable instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to: for each logical network entity providing a service and involved in a communication procedure within a communication system that comprises a plurality of logical network entities, perform following: facilitate, using at least one anchor logical network entity of the plurality- of logical network entities, retrieving of state data associated with a user equipment (UE),wherein the apparatus is configured to perform retrieving of the state data at a beginning of the communication procedure from a viewpoint of the logical network entity; and facilitate storing of the state data at an end of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

20. The non-transitory computer readable media as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one anchor logical network entity comprises information about completion of the communication procedure from the viewpoint of the logical network entity.

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