Local Breakout Service for LTE Network Resource Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
In LTE networks, user equipment (UE) often remains anchored to a packet data network (PDN) gateway (PGW) even when roaming, leading to unnecessary resource wastage due to routing traffic through a PGW that is not geographically or logically closest to the UE's current location.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a local breakout service, managed by the Mobility Management Entity (MME), which performs a lookup procedure to determine if the UE should be re-anchored to a closer PGW based on its current locale, using locale-to-PGW mappings to identify a more suitable PGW and re-anchors the UE when necessary, allowing for the establishment of new bearers and teardown of old ones to optimize routing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the UE remains anchored to the original PGW during roaming, then the network maintains simple anchoring management, but network resources are wasted due to suboptimal routing paths
Solution Approach 1:
The MME performs a lookup procedure in advance to determine the optimal PGW for the UE's current locale before traffic needs to be routed. This preliminary determination of the target PGW based on locale-to-PGW mappings allows the network to proactively establish optimal routing paths, preventing resource wastage before it occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic re-anchoring where the UE's anchor point (PGW) can change based on its current locale. Instead of a static anchoring relationship, the system dynamically adjusts the PGW assignment by comparing the current anchored PGW with the optimal PGW determined through lookup procedures, enabling adaptive resource optimization.
2Productivity
If the MME performs lookup procedures to determine optimal PGW re-anchoring, then traffic routing is optimized, but signaling overhead and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The lookup procedure is selectively applied based on the UE's locale information. The MME determines whether re-anchoring is necessary by comparing locale-specific optimal PGW mappings with the current PGW assignment, performing detailed lookups only when locale changes indicate potential routing optimizations are available.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the anchoring parameter (PGW identifier) from its current value to an optimized value when the lookup procedure determines that a different PGW would provide better routing. This parameter change is triggered by locale updates and is conditional rather than continuous, balancing optimization needs with signaling overhead.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, a device, and a non-transitory storage medium provide to store packet data network (PDN) connection data pertaining to a user equipment connected to a network; store locale-to-packet data network gateway (PGW) data, wherein the locale-to-PGW data includes mappings between locales and PGWs to be used when the user equipment is located in the locales; receive a locale update pertaining to the user equipment; query the locale-to-PGW data in response to the locale update; determine, based on a result of the query, whether the user equipment is to be re-anchored to a different PGW than a PGW to which the user equipment is currently anchored; invoke a re-anchoring procedure, in response to a determination that the user equipment is to be re-anchored to the different PGW; and omit to invoke the re-anchoring procedure, in response to a determination that the user equipment is not to be re-anchored.