US-12621755-B2 - Method, apparatus, and computer program product to support multiple slices in case of overlayunderlay networking

Abstract

A method, apparatus, and computer program product are provided for supporting the identification and selection of multiple network slices for remote user equipment. In the context of a method, the method includes receiving a first request from a remote user device, the request comprising a network identifier and requested slice information. The method also includes, based at least on the network identifier and the requested slice information, obtaining a slice identifier set comprising at least one slice identifier, and causing transmission of the slice identifier set to the remote user device for use in a session.

Inventors

• Laurent Thiebaut
• Devaki Chandramouli
• György Wolfner
• Hannu Petri Hietalahti

Assignees

• NOKIA TECHNOLOGIES OY

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20210914

Claims (18)

1. 1 . A relay user equipment configured to be connected to an overlay network, the relay user equipment comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the relay user equipment at least to: receive a first request from a remote user device, the request comprising a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) identifier of a home PLMN of the remote user device and requested slice information comprising a listing of Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Informations (S-NSSAIs) which the remote user device intends to be presented as requested Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (N-SSAI) within a Non-Access Stratum registration request message that will be sent to the overlay network; based at least on the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information, and based on at least one or more parameters comprising one or more slice mapping rules, determine a slice identifier set comprising at least one slice identifier that identifies at least one respective network slice that is supported by the relay user equipment; and cause transmission of the slice identifier set to the remote user device for use over a relay session to the overlay network.
2. 2 . The relay user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the computer program code, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the relay user equipment to determine the slice identifier set by: causing transmission of a second request to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), the second request comprising the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information; and receiving the slice identifier set from the AMF with the slice identifier set being determined based at least on the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information.
3. 3 . The relay user equipment of claim 2 , wherein the second request comprises a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session establishment request, and wherein the receiving the slice identifier set from the AMF comprises receiving the slice identifier set as part of a PDU session acceptance message.
4. 4 . The relay user equipment of claim 2 , wherein the second request comprises a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session modification request, and wherein the receiving the slice identifier set from the AMF comprises receiving the slice identifier set as part of a PDU session modification acceptance message.
5. 5 . The relay user equipment of claim 2 , wherein the second request comprises a dedicated Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message requesting authorization for relaying traffic of the remote user device.
6. 6 . The relay user equipment of claim 5 , wherein the computer program code, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the relay user equipment at least to: receive the slice identifier set and a slice identifier and determine, based on the slice identifier set and the slice identifier, a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session to relay the traffic of the remote user device.
7. 7 . The relay user equipment of claim 6 , wherein determining the PDU session comprises determining one of: a usage of an already established PDU session for the slice identifier, a request for modification of the already established PDU session for the slice identifier, or a request for establishment of the PDU session.
8. 8 . The relay user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the one or more parameters further comprises at least one of the requested slice information and capabilities of an associated access network.
9. 9 . The relay user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the one or more slice mapping rules are received from a Policy Control Function (PCF).
10. 10 . The relay user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the computer program code, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the relay user equipment at least to: trigger establishment of a PDU session in accordance with the one or more parameters.
11. 11 . The relay user equipment of claim 1 , wherein the computer program code, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the relay user equipment at least to: trigger modification of a PDU session in accordance with the one or more parameters.
12. 12 . A method of providing a slice identifier set, the method performed by a relay user equipment connected to an underlay network, the method comprising: receiving a first request from a remote user device, the request comprising a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) identifier of a home PLMN of the remote user device and requested slice information comprising a listing of Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Informations (S-NSSAIs) which the remote user device intends to be presented as requested Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (N-SSAI) within a Non-Access Stratum registration request message that will be sent to the overlay network; based at least on the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information, and based on at least one or more parameters comprising one or more slice mapping rules, determining a slice identifier set comprising at least one slice identifier that identifies at least one respective network slice that is supported by the relay user equipment; and causing transmission of the slice identifier set to the remote user device for use over a relay session to the overlay network.
13. 13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein determining the slice identifier set further comprises: causing transmission of a second request to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), the second request comprising the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information; and receiving the slice identifier set from the AMF with the slice identifier set being determined based at least on the PLMN identifier and the requested slice information.
14. 14 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the second request comprises a dedicated Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message requesting authorization for relaying traffic of the remote user device.
15. 15 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the one or more slice mapping rules are received from a Policy Control Function (PCF).
16. 16 . A remote user equipment comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the remote user equipment at least to: cause transmission of a request to a relay user equipment connected to an overlay network, the request comprising a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) identifier of a home PLMN of the remote user equipment and requested slice information comprising a listing of Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Informations (S-NSSAIs) which the remote user equipment intends to be presented as requested Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (N-SSAI) within a Non-Access Stratum registration request message that will be sent to the overlay network; and receive, from the relay user equipment, a slice identifier set for use by the remote user equipment over a relay session to the overlay network, wherein the slice identifier set comprises at least one slice identifier that identifies at least one respective network slice that is supported by the relay user equipment and wherein the slice identifier set is determined by the relay user equipment based on the PLMN identifier, the requested slice information and at least one or more parameters comprising one or more slice mapping rules.
17. 17 . The remote user equipment of claim 16 , wherein the computer program code, when executed by the at least one processor, further causes the remote user equipment at least to: generate, using the slice identifier set, a slice request to register to a network over a connection supported by the relay user equipment.
18. 18 . A method of obtaining a slice identifier set, the method performed by a remote user equipment, the method comprising: causing transmission of a request to a relay user equipment connected to an overlay network, the request comprising a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) identifier of a home PLMN of the remote user equipment and requested slice information comprising a listing of Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Informations (S-NSSAIs) which the remote user equipment intends to be presented as requested Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (N-SSAI) within a Non-Access Stratum registration request message that will be sent to the overlay network; and receiving, from the relay user equipment, the slice identifier set for use by the remote user equipment over a relay session to the overlay network, wherein the slice identifier set comprises at least one slice identifier that identifies at least one respective network slice that is supported by the relay user equipment and wherein the slice identifier set is determined by the relay user equipment based on the PLMN identifier, the requested slice information and at least one or more parameters comprising one or more slice mapping rules.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a national phase entry of International Application No. PCT/EP2021/075149, filed Sep. 14, 2021, which claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/087,043, filed Oct. 2, 2020, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. TECHNOLOGICAL FIELD An example embodiment relates generally to supporting the identification and selection of multiple network slices for remote user equipment. BACKGROUND A communication system can be seen as a facility that enables communication sessions between two or more entities such as user equipment (UE), base stations/access points, Network Functions (NF), and/or other nodes by providing connectivity between the various entities involved in the communication path. A communication system can be provided, for example, by means of a communication network and one or more compatible communication devices. Telecommunication networks, such as the fifth generation of mobile networks (5G networks) are expected to be the next major phase of mobile telecommunication standards and to bring many improvements in the mobile network user experience. For instance, 5G networks should provide new technical solutions allowing a greater throughput, lower latency, higher reliability, higher connectivity, and higher mobility range. In addition to these improvements in terms of performance, 5G networks are also expected to extend the flexibility in the network usage and to provide users with a wider range of use cases and business models. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a standards organization which develops protocols for mobile telephony and is known for the development and maintenance of various standards including second generation (2G), third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), Long Term Evolution (LTE), and fifth generation (5G) standards. The 5G network has been designed as a Service Based Architecture (SBA), e.g., a system architecture in which the system functionality is achieved by a set of NFs providing services to other authorized NFs to access their services. The 5G network system allows for the support of network slices, which are end to end logical networks which support a certain set of NFs. In other words, a network slice is a logical network that provides specific network capabilities and network characteristics. Across a 5G network, comprising a plurality of network slices, particular network slices can be configured to support particular features (e.g., hardware specifications, NFs, domain access, etc.) not common to all network slices. User equipment can be configured to access multiple network slices over the same access point. Identification of a network slice is done via Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI) which is sent to the user equipment via signaling messages between the user equipment and the connected network. The Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (NSSAI) is a collection of S-NSSAIs sent to the user equipment via signaling messages between the user equipment and the connected network. A single user equipment can be served by multiple network slices at a time. The S-NSSAI signaled by the user equipment to the network, assists the network in selecting a particular network slice instance. The network slice instance is a set of NF instances and their required resources (e.g., computing, processing, storage, networking, etc.) which form a deployed network slice. The S-NSSAI is associated with a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), for example, the S-NSSAI is configured to indicate an associated PLMN identification code, or other ID information, having network-specific values or standard global values. An S-NSSAI is used by the user equipment for selecting and accessing the PLMN that the S-NSSAI is associated with. BRIEF SUMMARY In an embodiment, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to receive a first request from a remote user device, the request comprising a network identifier and requested slice information. The at least one memory and the computer program code are also configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to, based at least on the network identifier and the requested slice information, obtain a slice identifier set comprising at least one slice identifier. The at least one memory and the computer program code are also configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to cause transmission of the slice identifier set to the remote user device for use over a relay session. In some embodiments, the at least one memory and the computer program code that are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to obtain the slice identifier set are