SBA Network Function Event Reporting with Cached IE Updates
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing 5G telecommunication network's Service Based Architecture (SBA) faces inefficiencies in signaling due to large message sizes and increased network overhead, which can impact performance and infrastructure demands as mobile broadband usage grows.
Innovation Solution
Implement event-based reporting mechanisms where Network Functions (NFs) send reporting instructions with trigger conditions and cache information, only sending updated values when conditions are met, reducing unnecessary data transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all information elements are sent in every Nchf operation message, then the receiving NF has complete information for processing, but the message size increases and signaling overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary information elements that have changed since the last operation and sends them in update messages. The receiving NF maintains cached values of information elements to compare against received values, determining whether to include an IE in a message based on whether its value has changed. This extraction principle reduces message size while maintaining information completeness for processing.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the network infrastructure is expanded to handle larger message sizes, then more interactions can be supported, but the cost and complexity of the network increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of message composition from including all information elements to including only changed information elements. This parameter change in the signaling protocol allows the existing network infrastructure to handle messages efficiently without expansion, as the message size dynamically adapts to the actual changes rather than always transmitting maximum data.
3Ease of operation
If optional information elements are always included in messages, then the receiving NF can process all possible data, but the processing overhead and bandwidth consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by sending only the necessary subset of information elements (those that have changed) rather than all optional IEs. The receiving NF has the capability to process all possible data types but only receives and processes the partial set that is actually changed, reducing bandwidth consumption while maintaining full processing capability when needed.
Data Source
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AI summary
There is provided mechanisms for event-based reporting from a second NF to a first NF in an SBA network. A method is performed by the first NF. The method comprises sending reporting instructions of events for a session with the second NF. The reporting instructions comprise a list of triggers conditions for each of the events and information of IEs whose values are cached by the first NF for the session. Each of the trigger conditions is associated with its own set of IEs. The second NF is instructed to provide a report to the first NF when one of the trigger conditions is fulfilled at the second NF. The report comprises values of the set of IEs for the event that caused the trigger condition to be fulfilled. The second NF is instructed to include values in the report of those IEs cached by the first NF only if the values have changed compared to the cached values. The method comprises receiving, on an interface between the first NF and the second NF, the report of the event upon the trigger conditions having been fulfilled at the second NF.