Virtual UE Set Session Management for Cross-Device Application Continuity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless communication systems face challenges in maintaining seamless application contexts and user experiences across multiple devices, placing a significant burden on application developers to manage session context information during device switches.
Innovation Solution
A network entity manages a virtual user equipment (UE) set by registering multiple UEs with a common security and session context, assigning a common identifier, and relaying data based on UE capabilities to maintain application continuity across devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If application developers manually track session context information at the application protocol layer, then application continuity is maintained during device switches, but development complexity and burden increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a network entity (AMF) as an intermediary that centralizes the tracking and management of session context information. Instead of application developers manually tracking context across devices, the AMF automatically maintains the session context and coordinates device switches, thereby maintaining application continuity while eliminating the development burden.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the session context management functionality from the application layer and relocates it to the network layer (AMF). This separation allows the application to focus on its core functionality while the network entity handles the complex task of maintaining session context across multiple devices, reducing development complexity.
2Reliability
If session context information is tracked at the application protocol layer, then application continuity is maintained, but latency increases due to manual management overhead
Solution Approach 1:
The AMF acts as a mediator that automatically manages session context transitions, eliminating the need for applications to perform manual context tracking operations. This automated intermediary processing reduces the time required for device switches while maintaining continuity.
Solution Approach 2:
The network entity pre-establishes session context information and prepares for potential device switches before they occur. By having the context already tracked and organized at the network layer, the system can quickly transition between devices without incurring latency during the switch event.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple devices are registered to the same user with individual session management, then device-specific capabilities are optimized, but resource efficiency and spectral utilization decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the session management of multiple devices under a unified virtual UE identity at the network layer. By combining the session contexts of multiple devices into a single virtual representation, the system maintains device-specific capability optimization while improving resource efficiency and spectral utilization through consolidated management.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual UE concept provides a universal interface that represents multiple physical devices. This universal representation allows the network to efficiently manage resources across devices while maintaining the ability to optimize for individual device capabilities when needed, thereby improving overall productivity and spectral efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
This document describes methods, devices, systems, and means for managing a virtual user equipment, UE, set by a network entity, the network entity registering multiple user equipment to the virtual UE set, generating a virtual-UE-set session context, and sending a virtual-UE-set context notification to a base station, directing the base station to transmit the virtual-UE-set session context to each of the multiple user equipment in the virtual UE set. The network entity determines that a first user equipment in the virtual UE set is in-focus for aa first instance of an application, applies a first set of capabilities associated with the first UE to a session for the first instance of the application, and based on the relaying, relays data between the first instance of the application and an application server based on the first set of capabilities.