# US 10,873,948 B2 · Sustainable service selection > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,873,948 B2 - Document ID: US10873948B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/482,733 - Filed: 2017-02-03 - Published: 2020-07-02 - Granted: 2020-12-22 - Earliest claimed: 2017-02-03 - Assignees: Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy - Applicants: Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy - Inventors: Klaus Hoffmann - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10873948B2 ## CPC - H04L 41/5019: Ensuring fulfilment of SLA - H04W 72/51: based on terminal or device properties - H04L 5/0037: {Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation} - H04W 4/50: Service provisioning or reconfiguring - H04W 48/18: Selecting a network or a communication service - H04W 72/543: based on requested quality, e.g. QoS - H04L 41/5054: Automatic deployment of services triggered by the service manager, e.g. service implementation by automatic configuration of network components - H04L 41/5096: {wherein the managed service relates to distributed or central networked applications} - H04W 76/12: Setup of transport tunnels - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) ## Abstract It is provided a method, comprising requesting a resource for a service from a network, wherein the request includes a requirement indication indicating a requirement to the resource to be fulfilled for the service. ## Claims ### Claim 1 Apparatus, comprising at least one processor, at least one memory including computer program code, and the at least one processor, with the at least one memory and the computer program code, being arranged to cause the apparatus to at least perform at least receiving, at the processor, a request from a user equipment for a first network slice for a service, wherein the request comprises a requirement indication, and the requirement indication indicates the requirement to be fulfilled for the service; extracting the requirement received at the processor; determining, at the processor, a contribution of the first network slice to the requirement requested from the user equipment, where the contribution comprises a first part of the service that is executed on the first network slice; requesting, at the processor, a second network slice for executing a second part of the service, wherein the request includes a contribution indication, the contribution indication indicating an allowable contribution to the requirement, and the allowable contribution is based on the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform determining, at the processor, for each of plural first network slices for the service, a respective contribution of the respective first network slice to the requirement requested by the user equipment, where the first part of the service is executed on the respective first network slice; wherein the requesting for the second network slice includes one or more contribution indicator pairs each comprising an identification of a respective first network slice of the plural first network slices and a respective contribution indication, and each of the contribution indications is based on the requirement and the contribution of the respective first network slice. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform checking, for each of the plural first network slices, based on the respective contribution, if the requirement for the service can be fulfilled by the respective first network slice; inhibiting, for each of the plural first network slices, that the requesting for the second network slice includes the contribution indicator pair comprising the identification of the respective first network slice if the requirement for the service cannot be fulfilled by the respective first network slice. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform monitoring if a received response to the requesting for the second network slice comprises the identification of a selected one of the first network slices; allocating the selected one of the first network slices to the service if the response comprises the identification of the selected one of the first network slices. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the allowable contribution is indicated in the contribution indication by the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice; and the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform calculating the allowable contribution based on the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice, and the contribution indication comprises the calculated allowable contribution. ### Claim 6 (depends on 2) The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform checking if the contribution of the first network slice allows fulfilling the requirement; allocating the first network slice to the service if the contribution of the first network slice allows fulfilling the requirement. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform providing an outgoing impossibility indication in response to the request for the first network slice if the contribution of the first network slice does not allow fulfilling the requirement. ### Claim 8 (depends on 2) The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code, is arranged to cause the apparatus to further perform monitoring if, in response to the request for the second network slice, an incoming impossibility indication is received, wherein the incoming impossibility indication indicates that the second network slice exceeds the allowable contribution; determining a contribution of a third network slice to the requirement for a case that the second part of the service is executed on the third network slice; checking if the contribution of the third network slice exceeds the allowable contribution; allocating the third network slice to the service if the contribution of the third network slice does not exceed the allowable contribution and the incoming impossibility indication is received. ### Claim 9 Method, comprising receiving, at the processor, a request from a user equipment for a first network slice for a service, wherein the request comprises a requirement indication, and the requirement indication indicates the requirement to be fulfilled for the service; extracting, at the processor, the requirement from the request received from the user equipment; determining a contribution of the first network slice to the requirement requested from the user equipment, where the contribution comprises a first part of the service that is executed on the first resource; requesting, at the processor, a second network slice for executing a second part of the service, wherein the request includes a contribution indication, the contribution indication indicating an allowable contribution to the requirement, and the allowable contribution is based on the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method according to claim 9, further comprising determining, at the processor, for each of plural first network slices for the service, a respective contribution of the respective first network slice to the requirement for a case that the first part of the service is executed on the respective first network slice; wherein the requesting for the second network slice includes one or more contribution indicator pairs each comprising an identification of a respective first network slice of the plural first network slices and a respective contribution indication, and each of the contribution indications is based on the requirement and the contribution of the respective first network slice. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, further comprising checking, for each of the plural first network slices, based on the respective contribution, if the requirement for the service can be fulfilled by the respective first network slice; inhibiting, for each of the plural first network slice, that the asking for the second network slice includes the contribution indicator pair comprising the identification of the respective first network slice if the requirement for the service cannot be fulfilled by the respective first network slice. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, further comprising monitoring if a received response to the asking for the second network slice comprises the identification of a selected one of the first network slices; allocating the selected one of the first network slices to the service if the response comprises the identification of the selected one of the first network slice. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, wherein at least one of the allowable contribution is indicated in the contribution indication by the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice; and the method further comprises calculating the allowable contribution based on the requirement and the contribution of the first network slice, and the contribution indication comprises the calculated allowable contribution. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, further comprising checking if the contribution of the first network slice allows fulfilling the requirement; allocating the first network slice to the service if the contribution of the first network slice allows fulfilling the requirement. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, further comprising providing an outgoing impossibility indication in response to the request for the first network slice if the contribution of the first network slice does not allow fulfilling the requirement. ### Claim 16 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, further comprising monitoring if, in response to the request for the second network slice, an incoming impossibility indication is received, wherein the incoming impossibility indication indicates that the second network slice exceeds the allowable contribution; determining a contribution of a third network slice to the requirement for a case that the second part of the service is executed on the third network slice; checking if the contribution of the third network exceeds the allowable contribution; allocating the third network slice to the service if the contribution of the third network slice does not exceed the allowable contribution and the incoming impossibility indication is received. ### Claim 17 (depends on 9) A computer program product comprising a set of instructions which, when executed on an apparatus, is configured to cause the apparatus to carry out the method according to claim 9. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The computer program product according to claim 17, embodied as a computer-readable medium or directly loadable into a computer.