Reducing network load caused by network function event reporting

Abstract

A method is provided that includes receiving a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription. The method includes detecting an occurrence of the event, and generating notification data for the subscription. The method includes bundling multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription. And the method includes sending an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data.

Description

REDUCING NETWORK LOAD CAUSED BY NETWORK FUNCTION EVENT REPORTING TECHNOLOGICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to telecommunications and, in particular, to event exposure services of network functions in a telecommunications system.BACKGROUND

[0002] Telecommunications systems can be seen as facilities that enable communications between two or more entities such as between two user equipment, between a user equipment and a base station, between two base stations, a user equipment and a network function of a communication network and / or a base station and other nodes. A telecommunications system can include a communication network and one or more user equipment. The communication sessions may comprise, for example, communication of data for carrying communications such as voice, video, electronic mail (email), text message, multimedia and / or content data and so on. Non-limiting examples of services provided comprise two-way or multi-way calls, data communication or multimedia services and access to a data network system, such as the Internet.

[0003] In a telecommunications system that includes a wireless communication network, at least a part of a communication session between at least two stations occurs over a wireless link. Examples of wireless communication networks comprise public land mobile networks (PLMN), satellite based communication networks and different wireless local networks, for example wireless local area networks (WLAN). Some wireless communication networks can be divided into cells, and are therefore often referred to as cellular networks.

[0004] A user can access the telecommunications system by means of an appropriate communication device or terminal. A communication device of a user may be referred to as user equipment (UE) or user device. A communication device is provided with an appropriate signal receiving and transmitting apparatus for enabling communications, for example enabling access to a communication network or communications directly with other users. The communication device may access a carrier provided by, for example, a base station of a cell, and transmit and / or receive communications on the carrier.

[0005] Telecommunications systems have evolved through multiple generations, each bringing advancements in speed, capacity, and functionality. The Evolved Packet System (EPS) represents the 4G architecture, which includes Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) as its radio access technologies. The 5G System (5GS) builds upon EPS, introducing 5G New Radio (5G NR) for enhanced mobile broadband, massive machine-type communications, and ultra-reliable low-latency communications. The future 6G System (6GS) is expected to further revolutionize telecommunications with even more advanced capabilities. These systems are interconnected, with 5GS designed to interwork with EPS for seamless service continuity. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) plays a crucial role indeveloping and maintaining standards for these telecommunications systems, ensuring global interoperability and evolution from Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) (3G) through to the ongoing development of 6G technologies.BRIEF SUMMARY

[0006] Example implementations of the present disclosure are directed to telecommunications and, in particular, to event exposure services of network functions in a telecommunications system. The present disclosure includes, without limitation, the following example implementations.

[0007] Some example implementations provide an apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least: receive a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; detect an occurrence of the event; generate notification data for the subscription; bundle multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription; and send an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data.

[0008] Some example implementations provide a method comprising: receiving a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; detecting an occurrence of the event; generating notification data for the subscription; bundling multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription; and sending an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data.

[0009] Some example implementations provide an apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least: send a request to a network function (NF) service producer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; and receive an event notification from the NF service producer for an occurrence of the event, the event notification including multiple notification data that is bundled, and the multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription

[0010] Some example implementations provide a method comprising: sending a request to a network function (NF) service producer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; and receiving an event notification from the NF service producer for an occurrence of the event, the event notification including multiple notification datathat is bundled, and the multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription.

[0011] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description together with the accompanying figures, which are briefly described below. The present disclosure includes any combination of two, three, four or more features or elements set forth in this disclosure, regardless of whether such features or elements are expressly combined or otherwise recited in a specific example implementation described herein. The present disclosure is intended to be read holistically such that any separable features or elements of the disclosure, in any of its aspects and example implementations, should be viewed as combinable unless the context of the disclosure clearly dictates otherwise.

[0012] It will therefore be appreciated that this Brief Summary is provided merely for purposes of summarizing some example implementations so as to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosure. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the above described example implementations are merely examples and should not be construed to narrow the scope or spirit of the disclosure in any way. Other example implementations, aspects and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of some described example implementations.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURE(S)

[0013] Having thus described example implementations of the disclosure in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying figures, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications system that includes one or more public land mobile networks (PLMNs) coupled to one or more external data networks, according to some example implementations of the present disclosure;

[0015] FIG. 2 illustrates a telecommunications system that includes two PLMNs, in accordance with some example implementations;

[0016] FIG. 3 illustrates an event exposure service provided by a user plane function (UPF) to one or more data consumers via a data collection coordination function (DCCF);

[0017] FIG. 4 is a diagram of procedure(s) for event subscription and notification, according to various example implementations;

[0018] FIG. 5 is a diagram of procedure(s) for event subscription and notification in which multiple notification data is bundled for multiple subscriptions, according to some example implementations;

[0019] FIGS. 6A and 6B are flowcharts illustrating various steps in a method according to various example implementations

[0020] FIG. 7 illustrates an apparatus according to some example implementations.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Some implementations of the present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying figures, in which some, but not all implementations of the disclosure are shown. Indeed, various implementations of the disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the implementations set forth herein; rather, these example implementations are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

[0022] Unless specified otherwise or clear from context, references to first, second or the like should not be construed to imply a particular order. A feature described as being above another feature (unless specified otherwise or clear from context) may instead be below, and vice versa; and similarly, features described as being to the left of another feature else may instead be to the right, and vice versa. Also, while reference may be made herein to quantitative measures, values, geometric relationships or the like, unless otherwise stated, any one or more if not all of these may be absolute or approximate to account for acceptable variations that may occur, such as those due to engineering tolerances or the like.

[0023] As used herein, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, the “or” of a set of operands is the “inclusive or” and thereby true if and only if one or more of the operands is true, as opposed to the “exclusive or” which is false when all of the operands are true. Thus, for example, “[A] or [B]” is true if [A] is true, or if [B] is true, or if both [A] and [B] are true. Further, the articles “a” and “an” mean “one or more,” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form. Furthermore, it should be understood that unless otherwise specified, the terms “data,” “content,” “digital content,” “information,” and similar terms may be at times used interchangeably. The term “network” may refer to a group of interconnected computers including clients and servers; and within a network, these computers may be interconnected directly or indirectly by various means including via one or more switches, routers, gateways, access points or the like.

[0024] The present disclosure discusses telecommunication systems and mobile or cellular networks and user equipment thereof, and while specific terms may be used, are broadly applicable across various technologies. For instance, while the present disclosure may reference radio access technologies such as 5G NR and 5G Advanced, the present disclosure is equally relevant to next generation radio access technologies, such as 6G. Example implementations of the present disclosure described herein also mention public land mobile networks (PLMNs) and mobile network operators (MNOs), but example implementations are similarly applicable to standalone non-public networks (SNPNs) .

[0025] Although some examples and figures focus on radio access networks (RANs) and in particular radio access networks that operate in accordance with the 3GPP standard for 5G NR (generally referred toas 3GPP access or 3GPP access networks), example implementations are applicable to any type of access networks. This includes not only 3GPP access networks but also non-3GPP access networks, such as wireline access, untrusted non-3GPP access network, and trusted non-3GPP access network using wireless access gateway function (W-AGF), non-3GPP interworking function (N3IWF), or trusted non-3GPP gateway function (TNGF) to connect to a core network (e.g., a 5G core network (5GC) or a 6G core network (6GC)) of a mobile or cellular network.

[0026] Further, as used in this application, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry); (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and (ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) with software (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions); or (c) hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor(s), that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.

[0027] The above definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0028] FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications system 100 according to various example implementations of the present disclosure. Examples of suitable telecommunications systems include UMTS, EPS and 5GS, as well as the future 6GS. The telecommunications system (otherwise referred to as a system) generally includes one or more mobile or cellular networks, and these mobile or cellular networks may interwork between telecommunications systems. As shown, for example, the system includes one or more PLMNs 102 coupled to one or more other external data networks 104 - notably including a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet. As will be appreciated, a PLMN may be a standalone PLMN that includes a 5GC, or may be a non-standalone PLMN that includes both an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and a 5GC connected to a RAN.

[0029] Each of the PLMNs 102 includes a core network (CN) 106, such as the EPC, the 5GC, or a 6GC; and each CN is coupled to one or more RANs 108 that implement one or more radio access technologies (RATs). Examples of these RANs include the evolved UMTS terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN) of 4G LTE, the next generation (NG) radio access network (NG-RAN) of 5G NR, and the 6G RAN. As usedherein, a “network device” refers to any suitable device of a RAN or a core network of a telecommunications system. Examples of suitable network devices are described in greater detail below.

[0030] Examples of RATs include 3GPP radio access technologies such as GSM, CDMA2000 1xEV-DO (HRPD), CDMA2000 1x (1xRTT), UTRA, E-UTRA, 5G NR, 5G Advanced, and 6G. Other examples of RATs include IEEE 802 technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.15 (including 802.15.1 (WPAN / Bluetooth), 802.15.4 (Zigbee) and 802.15.6 (WBAN)), Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), ultra wideband (UWB), and the like. Generally, a RAT may refer to any 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, 6G or higher generation RAT and their different versions, as well as to any other RAT that may be arranged to interwork with such a RAT to provide access to the ON 106 of a MNO.

[0031] The telecommunications system 100 also includes one or more communication devices that may be varyingly known as user equipment (UE) 110, terminal device, terminal equipment, mobile station or the like. The UE is generally a device configured to communicate with a network device (e.g., an access node such as a RAN node of RAN 108) or a or a further UE in the telecommunications system. The UE may be a portable computer (e.g., laptop, notebook, tablet computer), mobile phone (e.g., cell phone, smartphone), wearable computer (e.g., smartwatch), or the like. In other examples, the UE may be an Internet of things (loT) device, an industrial loT (I loT device), a vehicle equipped with a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technology, or the like. In some examples, as referenced by 3GPP, the UE may be a narrowband loT (NB-loT) device, an enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) device, a reduced capability (RedCap) device, an ambient loT device, or the like.

[0032] In operation, these UEs 110 may connect to one or more RAN nodes of the RANs 108 according to their particular RATs to thereby access a particular CN 106 of a PLMN 102, or to access one or more of the external data networks 104 (e.g., the Internet) or services provided by the PLMN. The external data network may provide Internet access, or 3rd party services. For example, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has classified 5G mobile network services (e.g., services provided by a 5G mobile network) into three categories: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communications (mMTC) or massive internet of things (MIoT).

[0033] FIG. 2 illustrates a telecommunications system 200 that includes two PLMNs 102A, 102B, in accordance with some example implementations of the present disclosure. As shown, each of the PLMNs is equipped with a number of network functions (NFs), two of which are shown as respectively a NF service consumer (NFc) 202 and a NF service producer (NFp) 204. A network function may refer to an operational and / or a physical entity. A network function may be a specific network node or element, or a specific function or set of functions carried out by one or more entities, such as virtualized network elements (VNFs). One physical node may be configured to perform plural NFs. A network function can be implemented either as a network element on a dedicated hardware, as a software instance running on adedicated hardware, or as a virtualized function instantiated on an appropriate platform, e.g., on a cloud infrastructure. Examples of such network functions include a resource control or management function, session management or control function, interworking, data management or storage function, authentication function or a combination of one or more of these functions.

[0034] In the context of a 3GPP 5G service based architecture (SBA), core network NFs may communicate with each other using service-based interfaces (SBIs). These core network NFs may include, for example, an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a user plane function (UPF), a network repository function (NRF) 206, 208, a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF), a service communication proxy (SCP), or the like. Other examples of suitable core network NFs include a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), an energy information function (EIF), or the like. The PLMNs may each further include a security edge protection proxy (SEPP) 210, 212 configured to operate as a security edge node or gateway.

[0035] In some examples, the NFs may communicate with each other using representational state transfer application programming interfaces (APIs), which may be known as Restful APIs. Further examples of NFs include NFs related to gaming, streaming or industrial process control. The telecommunications system may also include nodes from 3G or 4G node systems, such as home subscriber server (HSS), and a suitable interworking function for protocol translations between, e.g., diameter and REST API JSON (JavaScript Object Notation). While described herein primarily using terminology of 5G systems, example implementations of the present disclosure may be applicable also to other communication networks using proxies as described herein, such as 4G networks and non-3GPP networks.

[0036] Although the telecommunications system 200 is illustrated with two PLMNs 102A, 102B, in general at least some example implementations may be practiced in a single PLMN, which need not necessarily have SEPPs. In an inter-PLMN case, the SEPP 210, 212 is a network node at the boundary of a MNO’s network that may be configured to receive a message, such as a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request message or HTTP response message from an NF, to apply protection for sending and to forward the reformatted message through a chain of intermediate nodes, such as IP exchanges (IPXs) 214, 216, towards a receiving SEPP. The receiving SEPP receives a message sent by the sending SEPP and forwards the message towards an NF within its MNO’s network.

[0037] In the example of FIG. 2, an NF service may be provided to a NFc 202 by a NFp 204. Examples of NFcs include a NWDAF, SMF, NEF, AF, TSCTSF, DCCF, EIF or the like. Examples of suitable NFps include a UPF, AMF, SMF, UDM, NEF, PCF, LMF, NSACF, SCP or the like. As noted, the NFc and NFp may reside in different PLMNs 102A, 102B or the NFc and NFp may reside in the same PLMN.

[0038] In some examples, an SCP 218, 220 may be deployed for indirect communication between NFs. An SCP is an intermediate network entity to assist in indirect communication between an NFc 202 and an NFp 204, including routing messages, such as control plane messages between the NFs. The SCP may discover and select NFp on behalf of NFc. The SCP may request an access token (at times referred to as an authorization token) from the NRF 206, 208 or an authorization server on behalf of NFc to access the service of NFp.

[0039] Direct communication may be applied between NFc 202 and NFp 204 for an NF service, or NF service communication may be performed indirectly via SCP(s) 218, 220. In direct communication, the NFc performs discovery of the target NFp by local configuration or via local NRF 206 (this NRF may be referred to as a NRFc). In indirect communication, the NFc may delegate the discovery of the target NFp to the SCP 218. In the latter case, the SCP may use the parameters provided by NFc to perform discovery and / or selection of the target NFp , such as with reference to one or more NRFs 206, 208.

[0040] NF discovery and NF service discovery enable entities, such as NFc 202 or SCP 218, to discover a set of NF instance(s) and NF service instance(s) for a specific NF service or an NFp type. The NFc and / or the SCP may be core network entities. The NRF may include a function that is used to support the functionality of NF and NF service registration, discovery, authorization and status notification. Additionally or alternatively, the NRF 206, 208 may be configured to act as an authorization server. The NRF may maintain an NF profile of available NFp entities and their supported services. The NRF may notify about newly registered, updated, or deregistered NFp entities along with its NF services to a subscribed NFc or SCP. An NRF may thus advise NFc entities or SCP concerning where, that is, from which NFp entities, they may obtain services they need. In general, an NRF is a terminological example of a network support node, and an SCP is a terminological example of a proxy entity. An NRF may be separate from or co-located with an SCP, or even hosted by a service provider.

[0041] In order for the NFc 202 or SCP 218 to obtain information about the NFp 204 and / or NF service(s) registered or configured in a PLMN / slice, the NFc or SCP may initiate, based on local configuration, a discovery procedure with an NRF, such as NRF 206. The discovery procedure may be initiated by providing the type of the NFp 204 and optionally a list of the specific service(s) it is attempting to discover.The NFc or SCP may additionally or alternatively provide other service parameters, such as information relating to network slicing.

[0042] It is to be noted that at least some of the entities or nodes, such as NFc 202, NFp 204, NRF 206, 208, may act in both service-consuming and service-providing roles and that their physical structure may be similar or identical, while their role in the present examples in delivery of a particular message or service is identified by use of the prefix / suffix “c” or “p” indicating whether they are acting as the service-consuming or service-producing NF. It is to be noted that instead of “c” and “p”, “v” for visited and “h” for home can be used to refer to at least some respective entities in the visited and home PLMNs. In some exampleimplementations, a telecommunications system includes parts from multiple generations of mobile communication technology.

[0043] In 3GPP, a number of NFps 204 provide event exposure services that allow the NFps to expose and notify authorized NFcs 202 about specific network events and notification data associated with those network events. For example, the UPF may expose data to NFcs using a UPF event exposure service (Nupf_EventExposure). An NFc (e.g., SMF, NWDAF, AF) may subscribe to this service, and the subscription may target any UE 110 or a specific UE’s protocol data unit (PDU) session identified, e.g., by its IP address. For each subscription, the UPF may perform requested measurements (e.g., user data usage or user data trends) and send event notifications or reports, per subscription, including the measurements.

[0044] The growth of artificial intelligence (Al) / machine learning (ML) usage in mobile networks results in extensive data collection from a NFp 204 (e.g., UPF), which may cause massive signaling and processing that in turn degrades performance of the network including the NFp and the NFc.

[0045] FIG. 3 illustrates an event exposure service provided by a UPF 302 (a NFp 204) to one or more data consumers 304 (e.g., SMF, NWDAF, AF) via a DCCF 306, in which either or both of the data consumers or DCCF may be considered a NFc 202. The event exposure service provided by the UPF is currently used for data collection from the UPF. In this regard, notification data from the UPF for AI / ML may be retrieved by the data consumer(s) directly, or as shown, via the DCCF. When using the DCCF, so-called “formatting instructions” may be provided to optimize the overall data collection signaling in the CN 106. These formatting instructions may be used to reduce the number of subscriptions at the UPF by merging subscriptions of multiple data consumers which may have otherwise performed separate individual subscriptions to the UPF. The formatting instructions may also reduce the signaling between data consumer(s) and the DCCF.

[0046] When the UPF 302 is accessed directly by the data consumer(s) 304, and when the UPF is accessed indirectly via the DCCF 206, however, the current event exposure service does not support merging subscriptions or reducing the number of subscriptions at the UPF if the filters (e.g., target UE, target slice, target data) required by the different data consumers cannot be merged. Even when reducing the number of subscriptions, the signaling load of the UPF for sending notifications (and of the data consumer 304) may still be equally high, especially if the subscriptions are quite fine-granular or demanding. And intensive data collection from the UPF may degrade network performance.

[0047] In view of the foregoing, example implementations of the present disclosure provide solution(s) for a NFp 204 to reduce its load for reporting events of event subscriptions for an event exposure service. According to the solution(s) provided by example implementations, the event exposure service may support the bundling of notification data for different subscriptions. Additionally or alternatively, the event exposure service may support extending the filters and reporting requirements that are applicable when subscribingat the NFp, such as by introducing one or more options which can help reduce the number of subscriptions, e.g., “list of target UEs,” “subscriber category,” etc. In another example, the event exposure service may support the NFp selecting among different notification options based on its load. In another example, the event exposure service may support the NFp sending notifications that correspond with requests to update the subscription, such as to reduce signaling. And in yet another example, the event exposure service may support the NFp sending notifications as deltas to previous notifications.

[0048] FIG. 4 is a diagram of procedure(s) for event subscription and notification between a NFc 202 and a NFp 204, according to various example implementations. Example implementations will be primarily described in the context of the event exposure service provided by the UPF 302 to data consumer(s) 304 (directly or via DCCF 306). It should be understood, however, that example implementations may be equally applicable to the event exposure services of other NFps (e.g., AMF, SMF, UDM, NEF, PCF, LMF, NSACF, SCP), which may be provided to any of a number of different NFcs (e.g., NWDAF, SMF, NEF, AF, TSCTSF, DCCF, EIF).

[0049] According to some example implementations, the NFc 202 may send a request to the NFp 204 for a subscription to an event. As shown in FIG. 4, for example, the NFc may at step 401 invoke the Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe service operation of the Nupf_EventExposure service provided by the UPF 302. In some examples, the request may include an indication that notification bundling is allowed for the subscription. The indication may be provided in a number of different manners, such as by an explicit indication, or an implicit indication such as a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the request for the subscription may include information that a list of target UE(s) 110, a subscriber category, and / or formatting instructions for the subscription.

[0050] The NFp 204 (e.g., UPF 302) may receive the request for the subscription. The NFp may create a new event subscription resource representing the subscription, assign a resource uniform resource identifier (URI) to the subscription, and set up necessary mechanisms to monitor for the occurrence of events according to the subscription. The NFp may detect an occurrence of the event, and report the occurrence of the event. In this regard, the NFp may generate notification data (NotificationData) for the subscription, and send an event notification including the notification data to the NFc 302.

[0051] According to some example implementations, the NFp 204 may at step 402 evaluate one or more options for reporting the occurrence of the event, such as in an event-driven or periodic manner. As explained in greater detail below, the options may include an option 0 in which multiple notification data for multiple subscriptions may be bundled and included in the event notification.

[0052] In some examples, the options may include an option 1 for baseline reporting in which the event notification may be assigned a notification ID that uniquely identifies the event notification, and which may refer by reference to the event notification and the notification data contained in the event notification. Insome examples, the options may include an option 2 in which an event notification may include information indicating the event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NFc 202. And in some examples, the options may include an option 3 for delta reporting in which a second event notification for a second occurrence of the event may include the notification ID to refer by reference to an earlier event notification and notification data contained in the earlier event notification. The second event notification may then include notification data as a delta (difference) to the notification data contained in the earlier event notification.

[0053] In some examples, the NFp 204 may implement one or more of the options for one or more event notifications. This may include the NFp implementing one of the options for an event notification, implementing more than one of the options for an event notification, or implementing one or more of the options for multiple event notifications.

[0054] According to option 0, the request for a subscription to the event includes a notify URI (e.g., eventNotifyUri). In some of these examples, the request also includes an indication that notification bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI (i.e., the subscriptions have the same notify URI). The NFp 204 may bundle multiple notification data including the notification data generated for a first subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription (i.e., notification data generated for multiple subscriptions). The NFp may then at step 403A send an event notification to the NFc 202 that includes the multiple notification data. In examples in which the NFp is a UPF 302, the UPF may invoke a Nupf_EventExposure_Notify service operation to send a notify message to the NFc that includes the event notifications that are bundled. The bundling of the notification data may reduce the number of event notifications (including request / response messages) between the NFp and the NFc.

[0055] As an example, assume a notification data size of 4 thousand octets and a maximum JSON payload of 16 million octets before compression is applied. The bundling of notification data may allow bundling up to 4000 notification data from different subscriptions in a same event notification.

[0056] In some examples, the request for a subscription to the event may also include a bundle ID to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. The bundle ID may be used to group subscriptions, such as a group of subscriptions that share the same notification URI. In some of these examples, the multiple notification data that are bundled may include the notification data generated for one of the bundled subscriptions and the notification data generated for at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID (i.e., the subscriptions have the same bundle ID). In some further examples, when an event notification has any capacity remaining after bundling the multiple notification data for subscriptions that share the same bundle ID, the NFp 204 may add notification data for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill the remaining capacity.

[0057] In some examples, the event notification is a POST request message; and in some of these examples, a data type in the POST body of the POST request message may indicate either a singlenotification or an array of notifications (of potentially different subscriptions). In this regard, in some examples, the POST request message may include an array that contains the multiple notification data. This may be enabled in a number of different manners, such as by using a data type that is a list of mutually exclusive alternatives as shown below in Table A (e.g., maintain backward compatibility).Table A

[0058] To further illustrate option 0, FIG. 5 is a diagram of procedure(s) for event subscription and notification in which multiple notification data is bundled for multiple subscriptions, according to some example implementations. As shown, a NFc 202 may at step 501 send a Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe request message to the UPF to subscribe to UPF event exposure, such as for a particular PDU session of a UE 110.

[0059] The Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe request message may include an indication of whether notification data generated for the subscription are allowed (not allowed by default) to be bundled with notification data generated for other subscription(s) with a same notify URI (eventNotifyUri) in a same Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe request message. If bundling is allowed, in some examples, the subscription request message may also include a bundle ID to identify subscriptions (with the same notify URI) whose event reports may be bundled together, such as if the NFc 202 only allows to bundle event reports from specific (but not all) subscriptions (e.g., if a NWDAF wishes to only bundle event reports generated for a same analytic service request).

[0060] The UPF 302 may at step 502 create an event subscription resource if the request is accepted, and send a Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe response message that includes a 201 created status code to signal the successful creation of the event subscription resource. The UPF may at step 503 bundle multiple notification data generated for multiple subscriptions (including the subscription and at least one other subscription) with the same notify URI, and with the same bundle ID if provided in the Nupf_EventExposure_Subscribe request message at step 501. The UPF may then at step 504 send a Nupf_EventExposure_Notify request message to the NFc 202, and the message may include the multiple notification data.

[0061] In some examples in which bundling is allowed and possible, the UPF 302 or other NFp 204 may bundle the multiple notification data for multiple subscriptions based on one or more of a number of different factors. For example, the bundling of the multiple notification data should not add latency / delay for delay critical events. The UPF may instead only bundle delay critical events which happen nearly at the same time. In another example, the UPF (or other NFp) may bundle notification data for delay tolerantevents as long as the events are sent before their last allowed reporting time, which may be indicated by information that indicates reporting time information (e.g., reportingTimel nfo).

[0062] In some examples in which the NFp 204 is a SMF, the Nsmf_EventExposure_Subscribe request message for the event exposure service of the SMF may be enhanced with the same or similar parameters to support the bundling of notification data from the UPF 302 for subscriptions performed via the SMF. This may be the case, for example, for NWDAF subscriptions to UPF event exposure for UEs 110 in a certain area of interest. In some of these examples, the SMF may forward the indication that bundling is allowed, and if provided, the bundle ID, to the UPF when subscribing to the UPF event exposure.

[0063] Returning to FIG. 4, in option 1 , the subscription may mimic the way that subscriptions are typically performed, but support fine-granular event reporting instructions to optimize signaling for the NFp 204 itself, and not only overall network signaling (e.g., caused by analytics-related data collection). According to option 1, the event notification may be assigned a notification ID (e.g., notification^) that uniquely identifies the event notification. The NFp may then at step 403B send an event notification to the NFc 202 that includes the notification ID. The notification ID may serve to refer by reference to the event notification and the notification data contained in the event notification. The notification ID may then be used in subsequent interactions between the NFp and NFc 202. In some examples, the request to the NFp 204 for the subscription to the event at step 401 may include information that indicates for how long event notifications may be stored at the NFc (for the purpose of referring to them by reference to their notification IDs).

[0064] In option 2, an event notification may be used by the NFp 204 to negotiate an update of reporting parameter(s) for subscription(s) of the NFc 202. In some of these examples, NFp may at step 403C send an event notification to the NFc that includes information, such as a notification type (e.g., REPORTING J EQ_NEGOTIATION), which indicates the event notification is for the negotiation of the update. This event notification may therefore target to negotiate the reporting parameter(s), and not necessarily to report notification data (although notification data may also be included).

[0065] In some examples, the update of the reporting parameter(s) may be expressed in the event notification in a number of different manners, For example, the update may be expressed as one or more concrete formatting instructions to be used, or as generic commands which may even target all subscriptions of the NFc (and not only the subscription towards which the event notification is sent), such as indicated in Table A.

[0066] As shown in Table B below, in some examples, in option 2, the event notification may include information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the reporting parameter(s) to the subscription(s) of the NFc. Additionally or alternatively, for example, the event notification may include information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the subscription(s), and / or information that indicates key-value pair(s) for the update of the reporting parameter(s).Table B

[0067] In option 3, an (second) event notification for an (second) occurrence of the event may include a notification ID (option 1) to refer by reference to an earlier (first) event notification and notification data contained in the earlier event notification. Option 1 may therefore be a prerequisite for option 3. In some of these example, In some of these examples, NFp may at step 403D send an event notification to the NFc that includes an indication that the event is being reported via reference to a previously-reported event, as described above with respect to option 1.

[0068] As shown in Table C below, in some examples, in option 3, the event notification may include (in addition to the notification ID), an indication that the (second) notification data to report the occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the event notification may include information that indicates attribute and value pair(s) of attributes in the (second) notification data included in the event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.Table C

[0069] In some examples, event notifications sent as a delta may either refer to an earlier, “full” event notification, or refer to another event notification sent as a delta. This may be enabled by the event notification sent as a delta itself also being assigned a notification ID. The NFc 202 may therefore be ableto re-construct the full contents of notification data. The NFp may maintain (and be able to compare with) previous event notifications. The NFp may (potentially together with the NFc or based on configuration) also determine a memory window during which the previous event notifications may be maintained, such as by a maximum age that a notification may remain usable a reference notification (although normally notifications may be maintained for a sufficient amount of time).

[0070] FIGS. 6 A and 6B are flowcharts illustrating various steps in a method 600 according to various example implementations. The method includes receiving a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription, as shown at block 602 of FIG. 6A. The method includes detecting an occurrence of the event, as shown at block 604. The method includes generating notification data for the subscription, as shown at block 606. The method includes bundling multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription, as shown at block 608. And the method includes sending an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data, as shown at block 610.

[0071] In some examples, the method is performed by a NF service producer, and the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP). In some of these examples, the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, a NEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF).

[0072] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI. In some of these examples, the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is sent to the notify URI.

[0073] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. In some of these examples, the multiple notification data that is bundled at block 608 includes includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0074] In some examples, bundling the multiple notification data at block 608 further includes adding notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

[0075] In some examples, the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

[0076] In some examples, the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

[0077] In some examples, the notification data is for the occurrence of the event, and the method 600 further includes detecting a second occurrence of the event, as shown at block 612 of FIG.6B. In some of these examples, the method also includes generating second notification data for the second occurrence of the event, as shown at block 614. And the method includes sending a second event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the second notification data, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data, as shown at block 616.

[0078] In some examples, the second event notification includes at least one of an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID, or information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

[0079] In some examples, the method 600 further includes sending a second event notification to the NF service consumer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

[0080] In some examples, the second event notification includes at least one of information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer, information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions, or information that indicates one or more key-value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

[0081] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. In some of these examples, the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiationof the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0082] Some example implementations provide a method that includes sending a request to a network function (NF) service producer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription. The method also includes receiving an event notification from the NF service producer for an occurrence of the event, the event notification including multiple notification data that is bundled, and the multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription

[0083] In some examples, the method is performed by a NF service consumer, and the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, aNEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF). In some of these examples, the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP).

[0084] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI. In some of these examples, the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is received at the notify URI.

[0085] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. In some of these examples, the multiple notification data that is bundled includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0086] In some examples, the multiple notification data further includes notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

[0087] In some examples, the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

[0088] In some examples, the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

[0089] In some examples, the notification data is for the occurrence of the event. In some of these examples, the method further includes receiving a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes second notification data for a second occurrence of the event, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data,.

[0090] In some examples, the second event notification includes at least one of

[0091] an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID; or

[0092] information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

[0093] In some examples, the method is performed by a NF service consumer. In some of these examples, the method further includes receiving a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

[0094] In some examples, the second event notification includes at least one of

[0095] information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer. The method includes information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions; or

[0096] information that indicates one or more key -value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

[0097] In some examples, the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled. In some of these examples, the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiation of the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0098] According to example implementations of the present disclosure, a telecommunications system 100 or PLMN 102, and its components such as a UE 110, CN 106, RAN 108, NFc 202, NFp 204, NRF 206, 208, SEPP 210, 212, IPX 214, 216, and / or SCP 218, 220, may be implemented by various means. Meansfor implementing the system and its components may include hardware, firmware, software, or combinations thereof. In some examples, one or more apparatuses may be configured to function as or otherwise implement the system and its components shown and described herein. In examples involving more than one apparatus, the respective apparatuses may be connected to or otherwise in communication with one another in a number of different manners, such as directly or indirectly via a wired or wireless network or the like.

[0099] According to some example implementations, at least some of the method 600 described with respect to FIGS. 6A and 6B may be carried out by an apparatus comprising means for performing functions corresponding steps of the method. Examples of a suitable apparatus may include a standalone computer comprising at least one network function, such as a server, host or node, a distributed computing system comprising at least one network function, or a cloud computing system comprising at least one network function. The at least one network function may be implemented as a virtual machine or a container by a distributed computing system or a cloud computing system.

[0100] FIG. 7 illustrates an apparatus 700 in which means for performing various operations includes hardware, alone or under direction of one or more computer programs from a computer-readable storage medium or other memory, such as computer memory, according to some example implementations of the present disclosure. The apparatus may include one or more of each of a number of components such as, for example, processing circuitry 702 connected to computer-readable storage medium or other memory 704.

[0101] The processing circuitry 702 may be composed of one or more processors alone or in combination with one or more computer-readable storage media. The processing circuitry is generally any piece of computer hardware that is capable of processing information such as, for example, data, computer programs, computer code and / or other suitable electronic information. The processing circuitry is composed of a collection of electronic circuits some of which may be packaged as an integrated circuit or multiple interconnected integrated circuits (an integrated circuit at times more commonly referred to as a “chip”). The processing circuitry may be configured to execute computer programs, which may be stored onboard the processing circuitry or otherwise stored in the memory 704 (of the same or another apparatus).

[0102] The processing circuitry 702 may comprise a number of processors, a multi-core processor or some other type of processor, such as a central processing unit, a graphics processing unit, a tensor processing, unit, or an accelerator, depending on the particular implementation. Further, the processing circuitry may be implemented using a number of heterogeneous processor systems in which a main processor is present with one or more secondary processors on a single chip. As another illustrative example, the processing circuitry may be a symmetric multi-processor system containing multiple processors of the same type. In yet another example, the processing circuitry may be embodied as orotherwise include one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or the like. Thus, although the processing circuitry may be capable of executing a computer program to perform one or more functions, the processing circuitry of various examples may be capable of performing one or more functions without the aid of a computer program. In either instance, the processing circuitry may be appropriately programmed to perform functions or operations according to example implementations of the present disclosure.

[0103] The memory 704 is generally any piece of computer hardware that is capable of storing information such as, for example, data, computer programs, instructions 706 (e.g., computer-readable program code) and / or other suitable information either on a temporary basis and / or a permanent basis. The memory may include volatile and / or non-volatile memory, and may be fixed or removable. Examples of suitable memory include recording media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard drive, a flash memory, a thumb drive, a removable computer diskette, an optical disk or some combination thereof.

[0104] The memory 704 is a non-transitory device capable of storing information. One example of a suitable memory is a computer-readable storage medium, which is distinguishable from a computer-readable transmission medium capable of carrying information from one location to another. Examples of suitable computer-readable transmission media comprise electronic carrier signals, telecommunications signals, or some combination thereof. As used herein, the term “non-transitory” is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM versus ROM). A computer-readable medium as described herein generally refers to a computer-readable storage medium or computer-readable transmission medium. A computer-readable medium is any entity or device capable in which information, such as one or more computer programs or portions thereof, may be stored and carried.

[0105] In addition to the memory 704 (e.g., computer-readable storage medium), the processing circuitry 702 may also be connected to one or more interfaces for displaying, transmitting and / or receiving information. The interfaces may include a communications interface 708 and / or one or more user interfaces (e.g., display, user input interface). The communications interface may be configured to transmit and / or receive information, such as to and / or from other apparatus(es), network(s) or the like. The communications interface may be configured to transmit and / or receive information by physical (wired) and / or wireless communications links. Examples of suitable communication interfaces include a network interface controller (NIC), wireless NIC (WNIC) or the like.

[0106] Execution of the instructions 706 by the processing circuitry 702, or storage of the instructions in the memory 704, supports combinations of operations for implementing example implementations of the present disclosure. In this manner, an apparatus 700 may comprise at least one processing circuitry and at least one memory coupled to the at least one processing circuitry, where the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute instructions stored in the at least one memory. It will also be understoodthat one or more functions, and combinations of functions, may be implemented by special purpose hardware-based computer systems and / or processing circuitry which perform the specified functions, or combinations of special purpose hardware and program code instructions.

[0107] Some example implementations of the present disclosure may also be carried out in the form of a computer process defined by one or more computer programs or portions thereof. Example implementations of the present disclosure may be carried out by executing at least one portion of a computer program comprising instructions. The computer program may be in source code form, object code form, or in some intermediate form. The computer program may be stored in a computer-readable medium that is readable by a computer, processing circuitry or other suitable apparatus. As indicated above, for example, the computer program may be stored in a memory, such as a computer-readable storage medium. Additionally or alternatively, for example, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable transmission medium. The coding of software for carrying out example implementations of the present disclosure is well within the scope of a person of ordinary skill in the art.

[0108] As will be appreciated, any suitable instructions may be loaded onto a computer, a processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus from a memory or a computer-readable medium (e.g., computer-readable storage medium, computer-readable transmission medium) to produce a particular machine, such that the particular machine becomes a means for implementing the functions specified herein. The instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable medium that can direct a computer, a processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus to function in a particular manner to thereby generate a particular machine or particular article of manufacture. In some examples, the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium may produce an article of manufacture, where the article of manufacture becomes a means for implementing functions described herein. The instructions may be retrieved from a computer-readable medium and loaded into a computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus to configure the computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus to execute operations to be performed on or by the computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus.

[0109] Retrieval, loading and execution of instructions comprising program code instructions may be performed sequentially such that one instruction is retrieved, loaded and executed at a time. In some example implementations, retrieval, loading and / or execution may be performed in parallel such that multiple instructions are retrieved, loaded, and / or executed together. Execution of the program code instructions may produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions executed by the computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus provide operations for implementing functions described herein.

[0110] As explained above and reiterated below, the present disclosure includes, without limitation, the following example implementations.

[0111] Clause 1. A method comprising: receiving a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; detecting an occurrence of the event; generating notification data for the subscription; bundling multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription; and sending an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data.

[0112] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the method is performed by a NF service producer, and the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP), and wherein the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, a NEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF).

[0113] Clause 3. The method of clause 1 or clause 2, wherein the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI, and wherein the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is sent to the notify URI.

[0114] Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, and wherein the multiple notification data that is bundled includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0115] Clause 5. The method of clause 4, wherein bundling the multiple notification data further includes adding notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

[0116] Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

[0117] Clause 7. The method of any of clauses 1 to 6, wherein the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

[0118] Clause 8. The method of clause 7, wherein the notification data is for the occurrence of the event, and the method further comprises: detecting a second occurrence of the event; generating second notification data for the second occurrence of the event; and sending a second event notification to the NFservice consumer that includes the second notification data, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data.

[0119] Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID; or information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

[0120] Clause 10. The method of any of clauses 1 to 9, wherein the method further comprises sending a second event notification to the NF service consumer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

[0121] Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer; information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions; or information that indicates one or more key-value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

[0122] Clause 12. The method of clause 10 or clause 11, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, and wherein the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiation of the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0123] Clause 13. An apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 12.

[0124] Clause 14. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method of any of clauses 1 to 12.

[0125] Clause 15. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 12.

[0126] Clause 16. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 12.

[0127] Clause 17. A computer program comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 12.

[0128] Clause 18. A method comprising: sending a request to a network function (NF) service producer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed forthe subscription; and receiving an event notification from the NF service producer for an occurrence of the event, the event notification including multiple notification data that is bundled, and the multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription.

[0129] Clause 19. The method of clause 18, wherein the method is performed by a NF service consumer, and the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, a NEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF), and wherein the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP).

[0130] Clause 20. The method of clause 18 or clause 19, wherein the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI, and wherein the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is received at the notify URI.

[0131] Clause 21. The method of any of clauses 18 to 20, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, and wherein the multiple notification data that is bundled includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0132] Clause 22. The method of clause 21, wherein the multiple notification data further includes notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

[0133] Clause 23. The method of any of clauses 18 to 22, wherein the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

[0134] Clause 24. The method of any of clauses 18 to 23, wherein the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

[0135] Clause 25. The method of clause 24, wherein the notification data is for the occurrence of the event, and wherein the method further comprises receiving a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes second notification data for a second occurrence of the event, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data.

[0136] Clause 26. The method of clause 25, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to thenotification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID; or information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

[0137] Clause 27. The method of any of clauses 18 to 26, wherein the method is performed by a NF service consumer, and wherein the method further comprises receiving a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

[0138] Clause 28. The method of clause 27, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer; information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions; or information that indicates one or more key-value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

[0139] Clause 29. The method of clause 27 or clause 28, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, and wherein the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiation of the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

[0140] Clause 30. An apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 18 to 29.

[0141] Clause 31. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method of any of clauses 18 to 29.

[0142] Clause 32. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 18 to 29.

[0143] Clause 33. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 18 to 29.

[0144] Clause 34. A computer program comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 18 to 29.

[0145] Many modifications and other implementations of the disclosure set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which the disclosure pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing description and the associated figures. Therefore, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to be limited to the specific implementations disclosed and that modifications and other implementations are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although the foregoing description and the associated figures describe example implementations in the context of certain examplecombinations of elements and / or functions, it should be appreciated that different combinations of elements and / or functions may be provided by alternative implementations without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In this regard, for example, different combinations of elements and / or functions than those explicitly described above are also contemplated as may be set forth in some of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. An apparatus comprising:at least one memory configured to store instructions; andat least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least:receive a request from a network function (NF) service consumer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription;detect an occurrence of the event;generate notification data for the subscription;bundle multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription; andsend an event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the multiple notification data.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is to implement a NF service producer, and the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP), andwherein the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, a NEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF).

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI, andwherein the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is sent to the notify URI.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, andwherein the multiple notification data that is bundled includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the apparatus caused to bundle the multiple notification data further includes the apparatus caused to add notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the notification data is for the occurrence of the event, and the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to further at least:detect a second occurrence of the event;generate second notification data for the second occurrence of the event; andsend a second event notification to the NF service consumer that includes the second notification data, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID; or information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to further send a second event notification to the NF service consumer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer;information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions; orinformation that indicates one or more key-value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, andwherein the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiation of the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

13. An apparatus comprising:at least one memory configured to store instructions; andat least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least:send a request to a network function (NF) service producer for a subscription to an event, the request including an indication that notification data bundling is allowed for the subscription; and receive an event notification from the NF service producer for an occurrence of the event, the event notification including multiple notification data that is bundled, and the multiple notification data including the notification data generated for the subscription and notification data generated for at least one other subscription14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the apparatus is to implement by a NF service consumer, and the NF service consumer is a network data analytics function (NWDAF), an SMF, a NEF, an application function (AF), a time sensitive communication and time synchronization function (TSCTSF), a data collection coordination function (DCCF), or an energy information function (EIF), andwherein the NF service producer is a user plane function (UPF), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a unified data management (UDM), a network exposure function (NEF), a policy control function (PCF), a location management function (LMF), a network slice admission control function (NSACF) or a service communication proxy (SCP).

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the request for the subscription includes a notify uniform resource identifier (URI), and the request includes the indication that notification data bundling is allowed for subscriptions that share the notify URI, andwherein the subscription and the at least one other subscription share the notify URI, and the event notification that includes the multiple notification data is received at the notify URI.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, andwherein the multiple notification data that is bundled includes the notification data generated for the subscription and the notification data generated for the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the multiple notification data further includes notification data generated for at least one further subscription that does not share the bundle ID to fill any remaining capacity of the event notification.

18. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the event notification is a POST request message, and the POST request message includes an array that contains the multiple notification data for the subscription and the at least one other subscription.

19. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the event notification includes a notification identifier (ID) that uniquely identifies the event notification.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the notification data is for the occurrence of the event, andwherein the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to further receive a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes second notification data for a second occurrence of the event, and that includes the notification ID to refer by reference to the event notification and at least the notification data.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: an indication that the second notification data to report the second occurrence of the event is a delta to the notification data reported with the occurrence of the event identified by the notification ID; or information that indicates one or more attribute and value pairs of attributes in the second notification data included in the second event notification that have different values compared to the notification data included in the event notification identified by the notification ID.

22. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the method is performed by a NF service consumer, andwherein the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to further receive a second event notification from the NF service producer that includes information indicating the second event notification is for negotiation of an update of one or more reporting parameters for one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the second event notification includes at least one of: information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters to the one or more subscriptions of the NF service consumer;information that indicates formatting instructions for notification data generated for the one or more subscriptions; orinformation that indicates one or more key-value pairs for the update of the one or more reporting parameters.

24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the request for the subscription includes a bundle identifier (ID) to identify subscriptions whose event reports may be bundled, andwherein the second event notification includes information that indicates applicability of the negotiation of the update of the one or more reporting parameters, and the information indicates the negotiation of the update applies to the subscription and the at least one other subscription that share the bundle ID.

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