Relay UE Authentication Signaling for Secondary PDU Session Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless communication systems face challenges in efficiently authenticating remote user equipment (UE) through relay UE in a secondary authentication process, particularly in scenarios involving UE-network relay, which is crucial for ensuring secure communication with core networks.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus are introduced for relay UE to identify and authenticate remote UE by receiving a direct communication request message, including unique identifiers or primary authentication-related keys, and transmitting accept messages indicating pending secondary authentication, while also determining the need for secondary authentication based on network subscription information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If relay UE performs secondary authentication for remote UE accessing data network, then authentication security is improved, but authentication complexity and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a network function (NF) as an intermediary to handle secondary authentication. The relay UE interacts with the network function through standardized interfaces, allowing the complex authentication logic to be centralized in the network while keeping the relay UE's processing requirements manageable. This mediator approach separates authentication complexity from the relay UE's operational burden.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary identification of remote UE using first unique identifiers (such as SUPI or SUCI) received in direct communication request messages before initiating secondary authentication. This preliminary action allows the system to prepare authentication context and determine authentication requirements in advance, reducing real-time processing complexity during the actual authentication process.
2Reliability
If relay UE transmits indicator of pending secondary authentication in direct communication accept message, then authentication reliability is improved, but message processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The authentication status information is segmented into a dedicated indicator field within the direct communication accept message. This segmentation allows the complex authentication state to be represented by a simple flag or bit, making the message processing straightforward while still conveying the necessary reliability information about pending secondary authentication status.
3Measurement precision
If relay UE acquires remote UE identification information through network function, then authentication accuracy is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The network function serves multiple purposes: it handles secondary authentication, provides remote UE identification information, and manages authentication context. By making the network function multi-functional, the patent avoids adding separate dedicated components for each function, thereby limiting the increase in system architecture complexity while maintaining high identification accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a method for authenticating a UE in a wireless communication system, including: receiving, by a relay UE, a direct communication request message from a remote UE; identifying, by the relay UE, authentication for the remote UE based on the direct communication request message; and transmitting, by the relay UE, a direct communication accept message to the remote UE, and the direct communication request message may include at least one of a first unique identifier or a primary authentication-related key ID of the remote UE, and the direct communication accept message may include an indicator indicating whether secondary authentication of a protocol data unit (PDU) session of the relay UE, which the remote UE uses, is pending.