Dual Connectivity Secondary Node Selection Using Slice and Registration Area
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current communication systems in 5G networks face challenges in efficiently managing dual connectivity by not being aware of the registration area of a user equipment (UE) and selecting secondary cells that optimize slice support, leading to suboptimal traffic offload and potential disallowed cell additions during handovers.
Innovation Solution
The method involves delivering the registration area and list of allowed slices from one radio access network node to another during handover, allowing the target master node to select secondary nodes based on matching slices and optimizing slice support, and updating the registration area to enable dual connectivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the target master node selects secondary nodes without considering the registration area and slice information, then the handover process is simpler and faster, but the slice support is suboptimal and traffic offload is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The source master node performs preliminary actions by extracting and forwarding registration area and slice information to the target master node before the handover is completed. This allows the target node to make informed decisions about secondary node selection without adding complexity to the handover procedure itself, thereby improving traffic offload efficiency while maintaining procedural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The registration area and slice information act as an intermediary that bridges the source and target master nodes. By transmitting this information through the handover signaling, the target node can optimize secondary node selection based on slice support without requiring direct complex interactions between multiple network entities, thus improving productivity without proportionally increasing device complexity.
2Reliability
If the target master node uses registration area and slice information to select secondary nodes, then slice support is optimized, but the determining process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the parameters available to the target master node by including registration area and slice information in the handover signaling. This allows the node to make more reliable slice support decisions by matching allowed slices with secondary node capabilities, while the complexity increase is managed by using standardized information elements rather than introducing entirely new complex selection algorithms.
3Reliability
If the target master node determines secondary cells without slice matching, then the cell addition process is faster, but disallowed cell additions may occur reducing network reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The source master node performs preliminary action by forwarding slice information to the target master node before secondary cell determination. This allows the target node to pre-filter candidate cells based on slice compatibility, ensuring that only allowed cells are considered for addition. This approach maintains network reliability by preventing disallowed cell additions while minimizing time loss through advance information provision rather than iterative validation.
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided an apparatus comprising means for: determine, at a target master node of a master cell group associated with a communications device, one or more of: a target secondary node of a secondary cell group associated with the communications device for providing dual connectivity for the communications device; and one or more secondary cells of the target secondary node, wherein the determining uses information associated with one or more of; one or more allowed and/or configured slices of the communications device; and a registration area of the communications device.