Network Slice Boundary Cell Policies for SLA Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing network slicing mechanisms fail to recognize that cells within a network can be treated differently based on whether they are at the coverage boundary or not, leading to suboptimal policies and protection mechanisms for service level agreements.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that identify cells forming part of the boundary of a network slice's coverage area and adapt operations accordingly, including determining whether a cell is a boundary cell or not, and applying specific policies for admission, congestion control, and energy efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If uniform policies are applied to all cells within a network slice, then implementation complexity is reduced, but service level agreement compliance deteriorates due to inability to protect boundary cells
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by distinguishing between boundary cells and non-boundary cells within the same network slice, and applying different policies to each type. Boundary cells receive enhanced protection mechanisms and admission control policies, while non-boundary cells follow standard policies, thereby maintaining SLA compliance without uniformly complex implementation across all cells.
2Reliability
If boundary cells are identified and treated differently, then service level agreement compliance is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional identification and differentiation mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the network slice coverage area into boundary cells and non-boundary cells based on their spatial relationship with the coverage perimeter. This segmentation enables differentiated policy application where boundary cells receive special protection mechanisms while non-boundary cells follow standard operations, improving SLA compliance through targeted rather than universal complexity.
3Reliability
If resource isolation between slices is enhanced, then slice availability and protection are improved, but loss of energy increases due to stricter resource allocation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality to resource isolation by implementing enhanced isolation and protection mechanisms only for boundary cells, while non-boundary cells use standard resource allocation. This localized approach ensures slice availability and protection where most critical (at boundaries) while minimizing energy consumption throughout the entire network slice.
Data Source
AI summary
A network node in a telecommunications network stores information defining at least one network slice. For at least one defined network slice, information is stored identifying a plurality of cells that define at least a part of a boundary of a coverage area of the network slice. The operation of a cell is then adapted depending on whether or not the cell defines at least a part of the boundary of the coverage area of the network slice.