WLAN Interworking Gateway Offloading LTE Traffic
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current communication systems face challenges in efficiently managing association procedures between LTE and WLAN networks, particularly in offloading and radio aggregation, due to complexities in authentication, admission control, and resource allocation across different access points.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that enable a control node to receive and process information from one network to perform association procedures with access points of another network on behalf of user equipment, including selecting appropriate access points based on load information and performing authentication and admission control, thereby facilitating seamless offloading and radio aggregation between LTE and WLAN networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If association procedures are performed manually by user equipment, then authentication and admission control are ensured, but management signaling and air interface usage increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a control node as an intermediary entity that performs association procedures between LTE and WLAN networks. The control node receives information from the LTE network, performs authentication and admission control, selects appropriate WLAN access points, and provides association procedure information back to the LTE network. This intermediary approach ensures reliable authentication while reducing management signaling by handling procedures centrally rather than through direct manual interactions between user equipment and multiple network elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The control node performs authentication and admission control procedures in advance before the actual data transmission begins. By pre-processing these association procedures and selecting appropriate WLAN access points beforehand, the system ensures reliable connection establishment while minimizing the time and signaling required during actual traffic offloading operations.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple access points are manually evaluated by user equipment, then appropriate access point selection is achieved, but processing time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The control node acts as an intermediary that receives information about multiple WLAN access points from the LTE network and performs the evaluation and selection process centrally. Instead of requiring user equipment to manually assess multiple access points, the control node processes this information and determines the most appropriate access point, thereby achieving adaptable access point selection while reducing processing time and complexity at the user equipment level.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameters used for access point evaluation from local user equipment decisions to network-controlled parameters. The control node receives information about access points, evaluates them based on network conditions, and selects appropriate access points by changing the decision-making parameters from user-side to network-side, thereby improving selection adaptability while reducing processing time.
3Loss of information
If association procedures are performed centrally by control node, then management signaling is reduced, but network complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control node is designed as a multi-functional entity that handles various tasks including receiving information from LTE network, performing authentication, conducting admission control, evaluating multiple access points, selecting appropriate access points, and providing association procedure information. By consolidating these multiple functions into a single control node, the system reduces management signaling while the added network complexity is contained within this dedicated control function rather than distributing complexity across multiple network elements.
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided a method comprising receiving, at a control node associated with a plurality of access points of a first network (e.g. a WLAN Interworking Gateway—WIG), information from an access point of a second network (e.g. an eNB of a LTE network), wherein the received information is useable by the control node to perform at least one association procedure (e.g. AP selection, local IP and MAC address assignment, admission control, authentication) with an access point of the first network (e.g. WLAN) on behalf of a user equipment, said user equipment being associated with the second network, performing said at least one association procedure and providing association procedure information to the access point of the second network.