Base Station Feature Signaling for Staged 5G Network Upgrades
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for upgrading network functions (NFs) in 5G mobile networks require simultaneous installation and activation of new features on all base stations (gNBs/eNBs) within a coverage area, leading to unpredictable behavior and errors if not all stations are compatible, making the process time-consuming and difficult to coordinate.
Innovation Solution
A method where gNBs/eNBs maintain a bit string indicating supported and activated features, allowing NFs to execute compatible functions independently without requiring all stations to be upgraded simultaneously, by exchanging this information through UE registration and session establishment messages.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If new features are installed and activated at core NFs before base station upgrades, then feature deployment speed is improved, but system reliability deteriorates due to unpredictable behavior and errors from incompatible base stations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having base stations pre-generate and store capability indication information (bit strings) indicating which features they support, before actually receiving or activating features at core NFs. This allows core NFs to safely activate features knowing which base stations are compatible, improving deployment speed without sacrificing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback through the exchange of capability indication information from base stations to core NFs via UE registration and session establishment messages. Core NFs use this feedback to determine which features to activate, ensuring compatibility while enabling independent feature activation at different locations and times.
2Reliability
If all base stations are upgraded simultaneously, then system compatibility is maintained, but deployment time and coordination complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by allowing different base stations to be upgraded at different times independently. Each base station reports its capability status, and core NFs activate features selectively based on individual base station readiness, eliminating the need for simultaneous upgrades across all base stations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by making feature activation at core NFs flexible and adaptive to the real-time upgrade status of base stations. The system dynamically adjusts which features are activated based on the capability indication information received from base stations, allowing progressive deployment as base stations are upgraded.
3Reliability
If feature activation is coordinated across all base stations, then compatibility is ensured, but coordination complexity and operational difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by having each base station autonomously determine and report its own feature support capability through bit strings in signaling messages. Base stations independently indicate which features they can support, eliminating the need for centralized coordination of feature activation across all base stations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses preliminary action by having base stations pre-report their capability status before feature activation decisions are made. This preliminary information exchange simplifies subsequent coordination, as core NFs can independently determine activation decisions based on already-received capability information without complex real-time coordination.
Data Source
AI summary
A base station of a mobile network receives a message from a User Equipment device (UE) that is related to providing mobile network service to the UE and identifies a local software and/or hardware configuration of the base station, including identifying installation of a set of possible new or upgraded features of the base station. The base station generates a data identifier that identifies each installed and active one of the set of possible new or upgraded features of the base station, and inserts the data identifier into an information element (IE) of the message. The base station sends the message to a node of the mobile network.