Access Network Switching With Timely Congestion Status Reporting

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Solution Overview

Problem

When network switching occurs and a target base station is no longer congested, existing systems fail to timely notify the application function (AF) of this change, leading to suboptimal rate adjustments and degraded user experience.

Innovation Solution

Implementing methods and apparatuses in access network devices and network elements to timely report network status information, including congestion information, to trigger appropriate transmission policy adjustments, such as increasing or decreasing transmission rates based on congestion status.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the AF performs rate adjustment based on congestion status without timely notification of switching, then the AF can maintain rate adjustment capability, but user experience is degraded due to delayed or incorrect rate adjustments

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverate adjustment accuracyVSAvoidnotification delay

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The source access network device sends congestion status information to the target access network device before switching is completed. This preliminary action ensures that the target device has the latest congestion information ready, enabling immediate notification to the AF after switching, thus resolving the timing delay issue while maintaining rate adjustment accuracy

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system establishes a feedback mechanism where the source access network device reports congestion status to the target device, which then notifies the AF after switching. This feedback loop ensures that the AF receives accurate and timely congestion information, maintaining rate adjustment reliability while reducing notification delays

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

2Loss of time

If the source access network device sends congestion status information before switching, then timeliness of notification is improved, but network signaling overhead increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification timelinessVSAvoidsignaling overhead

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of timeVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential congestion status information that needs to be transferred during switching, rather than transmitting complete congestion reports. This selective extraction reduces signaling overhead while maintaining notification timeliness, as only the critical parameters needed for rate adjustment are communicated

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs partial action by sending only the necessary congestion status parameters during switching rather than complete congestion information. This partial transmission approach reduces signaling overhead while still providing sufficient information for timely rate adjustment decisions by the AF

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP4694341A1Communication method, apparatus and system, and storage medium

Publication Date: 2026.02.11 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD

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AI summary

This application discloses a communication method, apparatus, and system, and a storage medium. If a first access network device determines that switching occurs, the first access network device sends network status information. This improves timeliness of reporting the network status information.