User Plane Integrity Protection in Wireless Handover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless communication systems, particularly in 5G NR, lack effective mechanisms for ensuring user plane integrity protection (UP IP) during handovers between base stations with different radio access technologies (RAT) and core networks, leading to potential service disruptions and security issues.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a method where a source base station initiates handover of a user equipment (UE) to a target base station only if the target base station supports UP IP, using a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message, and indicates UP IP support through a transparent target to source container, ensuring continuous integrity protection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If handover is performed without checking UP IP support at target base station, then handover speed is improved, but security and service continuity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The source base station performs preliminary action by checking whether the target base station supports UP IP before initiating handover. This is achieved by determining UP IP support capability of the target base station through capability indication information exchanged between base stations, ensuring that handover only occurs when UP IP continuity can be maintained, thus preventing service disruption while maintaining fast handover.
2Reliability
If UP IP support checking is implemented before handover, then UP IP continuity is improved, but handover complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces capability indication information as an intermediary element that carries UP IP support capability between base stations. This capability indication information is exchanged through standard handover signaling messages (handover request and handover request acknowledgment), allowing the source base station to determine target base station's UP IP support without adding complex new procedures, thus maintaining simplicity while ensuring continuity.
3Area of stationary object
If handover to base station without UP IP support is allowed, then coverage area is improved, but security deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The source base station uses feedback information about the target base station's UP IP support capability to make informed handover decisions. By determining whether the target base station supports UP IP through capability indication information received during handover signaling, the source base station can feedback this information to the UE and decide whether to proceed with handover, ensuring security is not compromised while maintaining coverage.
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects described herein relate to initiating, by a source base station, handover of a user equipment (UE) from the source base station to a target base station, where the source base station supports user plane (UP) integrity protection (IP) for the UE, determining, based on initiating the handover, whether the target base station supports the UP IP, and determining, based on determining whether the target base station supports the UP IP, whether to continue the handover of the UE from the source base station to the target base station.