RIC Signaling Storm Mitigation via Zone Segmentation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Repetitive signaling in radio access networks (RANs) leads to signaling storms, causing network outages and breaches of protected information, which existing technologies struggle to mitigate efficiently and quickly.

Innovation Solution

Implement a RAN intelligent controller (RIC) system that monitors registration messages using both near-real-time and non-real-time applications to detect signaling storms and execute mitigation policies, such as throttling and filtering, through machine learning models.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If existing technologies are used to detect and mitigate signaling storms, then network protection is provided, but detection and mitigation speed is insufficient to prevent network outages and information breaches

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenetwork protectionVSAvoiddetection and mitigation speed

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSSpeed

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the RAN into multiple zones with different trust levels (trusted and untrusted). By dividing the network monitoring function into zone-specific components, the system can detect and mitigate signaling storms locally in untrusted zones before they propagate to trusted zones, improving both detection speed and network protection.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-establishing trusted and untrusted zones and pre-configuring mitigation policies before signaling storms occur. When abnormal signaling is detected, pre-defined mitigation actions are immediately executed, eliminating the delay associated with real-time policy formulation and response.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Measurement precision

If all registration messages are processed and analyzed in real-time, then signaling storm detection accuracy is improved, but network processing load increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesignaling storm detection accuracyVSAvoidnetwork processing capacity

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies different quality levels of processing to different messages based on their origin zones. Messages from untrusted zones undergo rigorous analysis with multiple detection mechanisms, while messages from trusted zones receive standard processing. This localized quality differentiation maintains high detection accuracy for malicious messages while preserving overall network processing capacity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary filtering and classification of registration messages based on their source zones before full analysis. By pre-identifying messages from untrusted zones and applying targeted detection rules, the system achieves high detection accuracy without subjecting all messages to computationally intensive analysis, thus maintaining network productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Data Source

PatentUS20250374120A1Signaling storm mitigation

Publication Date: 2025.12.04 BOOST SUBSCRIBERCO LLC

AI summary

A computer-implemented method includes: monitoring registration messages in a radio access network (RAN) using a RAN intelligent controller (RIC); based on monitoring the registration messages, detecting a signaling storm condition using the RIC; and based on detecting the signaling storm condition, executing a mitigation policy using the RIC, the mitigation policy altering treatment of incoming registration messages by the RAN.