IoT eSIM OTA Provisioning via Profile Template Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for provisioning IoT devices over-the-air (OTA) using SMS messaging are slow and error-prone due to the need to transfer full device profiles, which are typically 4 KB to 10 KB in size, often requiring segmented transmission and reassembly, increasing processing complexity and error likelihood.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves storing device profile templates on IoT devices and eSIMs, allowing for the generation of a device profile by activating specific elements using configuration parameters sent over-the-air, reducing the data transfer to a single byte or a fraction of the original size, thus avoiding segmented data transfer and enhancing robustness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If full device profiles are transferred using SMS messaging for OTA provisioning, then device provisioning can be achieved, but the process becomes slow and error-prone due to segmented transmission and reassembly requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The device profile is divided into a template portion and a configuration parameter portion. The template contains static elements that remain unchanged, while configuration parameters contain dynamic elements that vary by network. This segmentation allows only the necessary configuration parameters to be transmitted via SMS, rather than the entire profile, thereby reducing transmission time and errors.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts only the essential configuration parameters from the full device profile for transmission via SMS. The template portion is retained locally on the IoT device, and only the variable configuration elements are transmitted over the air, significantly reducing data transfer requirements and improving provisioning reliability.
2Reliability
If full device profiles are transmitted OTA, then complete provisioning information is provided, but data transfer size becomes large (4 KB to 10 KB) requiring segmented transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts only the variable configuration parameters from the full device profile for OTA transmission. The static template portion is stored locally on the device, eliminating the need to transmit redundant information. This reduces data transfer size from 4-10 KB to a much smaller fraction, improving transmission reliability on low-bandwidth channels.
Solution Approach 2:
The device profile is segmented into template and configuration parameter components. This allows the system to transmit only the necessary variable portion via SMS while keeping the static template locally, reducing overall data transfer requirements and eliminating segmentation errors associated with transmitting entire profiles in multiple SMS segments.
3Ease of operation
If device profiles are transmitted and reassembled using segmented data transfer, then provisioning can be completed, but processing complexity and error likelihood increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts only the configuration parameters that need to be transmitted and applied, rather than transmitting and reassembling entire device profiles. This simplifies the processing required on the IoT device, as it only needs to receive and apply parameter values rather than reconstructing complete profile data from multiple segments.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for provisioning electronic devices that may not have a local provisioning agent (LPA), such as Internet of Things (IoT) devices, to a mobile network of a mobile network operator (MNO), are discussed herein. The IoT devices and/or the associated embedded subscriber identity module (eSIM) may have one or more device profile templates stored thereon, where individual ones of the device profile templates are associated with a particular MNO. A device provisioning system of an MNO may provision the IoT device in a machine-to-machine (M2M) manner over the air (OTA) by communicating, such as via a radio node, one or more configuration parameters to the IoT device. The IoT device may identify a device profile template associated with the MNO to which the IoT device is to be provisioned and configure that device profile template based at least in part on the configuration parameters received from the device provisioning system.