MME Selection by Establishment Cause for Emergency VoLTE
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Solution Overview
Problem
In LTE networks, user equipment (UE) may select the wrong Public Land Mobile Network Identifier (PLMN ID) during emergency VoLTE calls, leading to attachment to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) not optimized for such calls, which can result in inadequate service.
Innovation Solution
A wireless access point that synchronizes with UE and selects a media conferencing MME based on a specific Establishment Cause, such as an Emergency Establishment Cause, rather than relying solely on the PLMN ID, ensuring proper routing of media conferencing data through either a media conferencing or data MME.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the UE selects PLMN ID during attachment, then the UE can be attached to the network, but the UE may select the wrong PLMN ID leading to attachment to a non-optimized MME for emergency VoLTE calls
Solution Approach 1:
The eNodeB acts as an intermediary between the UE and MME selection. Instead of relying solely on UE's PLMN ID selection, the eNodeB receives establishment cause information from the UE and uses this as an intermediate factor to determine MME selection, ensuring emergency calls are routed to optimized MMEs regardless of PLMN ID choices
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter used for MME selection from solely PLMN ID to establishment cause. By detecting the establishment cause (emergency vs. non-emergency) and using this as the selection criterion, the system ensures appropriate MME routing while maintaining simplicity in the selection process
2Reliability
If the UE attaches based on PLMN ID selection, then network attachment is achieved, but service quality for emergency calls may be degraded due to non-optimized MME assignment
Solution Approach 1:
The eNodeB receives feedback information (establishment cause) from the UE during the attachment process and uses this feedback to make informed MME selection decisions. This feedback mechanism ensures that emergency calls are automatically directed to optimized MMEs without adding complexity to the UE's attachment operation
3Device complexity
If a single MME serves all PLMNs, then network management is simplified, but emergency VoLTE calls cannot receive optimized service
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating MME selection based on the specific needs of different call types. Instead of a uniform MME assignment, the system selects different MMEs based on whether the call is emergency or non-emergency, ensuring optimized service for emergency calls while maintaining simple network management for regular calls
Data Source
AI summary
A wireless access point supports media conferencing for wireless User Equipment (UE). The wireless access point wirelessly exchanges timing signaling with the wireless UE to synchronize the wireless UE. After the wireless UE is synchronized, the wireless access point wirelessly exchanges connect signaling with the wireless UE to receive an Establishment Cause and a Wireless Network Identifier from the wireless UE. The wireless access point selects a media conferencing Mobility Management Entity (MME) when the Establishment Cause is associated with the media conferencing MME. The wireless access point selects a data MME based on the Wireless Network Identifier when the Establishment Cause is not associated with the media conferencing MME. The wireless access point exchanges network signaling with the data MME or the media conferencing MME. The wireless access point wirelessly exchanges user data with the wireless UE under control of the data MME or the media conferencing MME.