UE Policy QoS Rules for Immediate High-Priority MO Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing QoS procedures in IoT devices, such as IoT UEs used for home automation, fail to provide immediate high QoS for critical events like flood or fire alarms due to reliance on network detection, which may be delayed, especially for mobile-originated traffic.
Innovation Solution
Implement fine-grained QoS rules within UE policies, allowing network entities to update UE policies with parameters like destination FQDN or URL, and enable UE to apply QoS treatment proactively based on triggers from network functions or application functions, using UE Policy containers via NAS.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If network entities rely on network detection to identify critical traffic, then QoS treatment can be applied, but the detection may be delayed especially for mobile-originated traffic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by providing the UE with QoS rules and traffic descriptors in advance through UE Policy configuration. The UE is pre-configured with filters (e.g., based on FQDN, URL, or application identifiers) that enable it to proactively identify critical traffic flows before they occur. When critical traffic needs to be sent, the UE can immediately apply the appropriate QoS treatment without waiting for network detection, thereby eliminating detection delay while ensuring reliable QoS treatment through pre-configured rules.
2Speed
If fine-grained QoS rules are implemented at UE level, then immediate QoS application is achieved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses the PCF (Policy Control Function) as an intermediary to manage the complexity of fine-grained QoS rules. The PCF receives QoS requirements from AFs, processes them, and translates them into UE Policy configurations that are delivered to the UE. This intermediary approach allows the network to maintain centralized control over complex QoS policies while the UE simply needs to execute the pre-configured rules, thereby achieving fast QoS application without significantly increasing UE device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by evolving the UE Policy structure to include fine-grained traffic descriptors such as FQDN, URL, and application identifiers. These enhanced parameters enable more precise traffic matching at the UE level. By changing the policy parameters to include these additional dimensions, the system achieves fine-grained QoS control without requiring complex UE logic, as the matching rules are simplified pattern-matching operations on the extended parameter set.
3Productivity
If QoS rules are updated frequently for critical events, then responsiveness to critical events improves, but signaling overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring the UE with a set of QoS rules and traffic descriptors covering various critical event scenarios. Instead of sending signaling for every critical event, the network provides the UE with a library of ready-to-use QoS policies in advance. When a critical event occurs, the UE can immediately apply the matching pre-configured rule without requiring new signaling exchanges, thereby improving responsiveness while minimizing signaling overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements periodic action through the use of QoS rule validity timers and periodic policy updates. The PCF can update UE policies periodically or based on event triggers, and the UE applies QoS rules for specified durations. This periodic mechanism allows the system to maintain up-to-date QoS configurations for critical events without requiring continuous signaling, balancing responsiveness with signaling efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatuses are described herein for providing fine-grained QoS rules within UE Policies. A network entity may receive triggers to update the policies of a user equipment (UE) with parameters based on input such as input from a third party. The network entity may derive fine-grained quality of service (QoS) rules and corresponding QoS Profiles and delivers them to the UE using a UE Policy container via the Non-Access Stratum (NAS). The fine-grained rules may comprise: a destination fully qualified domain name (FQDN) or uniform resource locator (URL), an Application ID, a User Route Selection Policy precedence value, etc. The fine-grained rules also provide mechanisms for time gating or volume gating. The UE may request new QoS treatment resulting in UE Policy update and may use the information in the fine-grained QoS rules when establishing or modifying PDU Session to apply QoS Flow Identifier (QFI) marking.