Systems and methods for enabling private communication within a user equipment group
AssigneeHuawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
InventorsXu Li, Ngoc Dung Dao, Hang Zhang
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention provides systems and methods and apparatuses for enabling private communication between user equipments (UEs) in a (LAN) UE group. The UEs in the (LAN) UE group can communicate with each other using IP and/or non-IP type communication services. The communications between these UEs may take place in the form of point to point (e.g. UE to UE) communication or point to multi-point communication (e.g. UE to multiple UEs) as opposed to UE to Data Network (DN) communication.
Claims17
A method for enabling group user equipment (UE) communication, the method performed by a session management function (SMF) of a core network, the method comprising:
- receiving a request for a protocol data unit (PDU) session;
- requesting authorization and authentication from a data network (DN) authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server;
- receiving information associated with an allowed UE group from the Data Network Authentication, Authorization, And Accounting (DN-AAA) server, the information associated with the allowed UE group includes a UE group identifier (ID);
- requesting Policy and Charging Control (PCC) rules for the PDU session, the request including information about the PDU session, including the information associated with the allowed UE group;
- receiving the PCC rules associated with the allowed UE group;
- and
- establishing the user plane path for the PDU session according to the PCC rules;
- wherein
- establishing the user plane path for the PDU session according to the PCC rules comprises configuring a user plane path selected by a path management function (PMF).
A network node configured as a session management function comprising:
- a processor coupled to non-transient machine readable memory for configuring the network node for:
- receiving a request for a protocol data unit (PDU) session;
- requesting authorization and authentication from a data network (DN) authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server;
- receiving information associated with an allowed UE group from the DN-AAA server, the information associated with the allowed UE group includes a UE group ID;
- requesting PCC rules for the PDU session, the request including information about the PDU session, including the information associated with the allowed UE group;
- receiving the PCC rules associated with the allowed UE group;
- and
- establishing the user plane path for the PDU session according to the PCC rules, wherein the SMF being configured for establishing the user plane path for the PDU session according to the PCC rules comprises the SMF being configured for configuring a user plane path selected by a path management function (PMF).
A system for supporting user equipment (UE) group communication comprising:
- a session management function (SMF) comprising a processor and a machine readable memory storing machine readable instructions;
- a data network (DN) authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server;
- and a policy control function (PCF):
- wherein the machine readable instructions, when executed by the processor, configure the SMF for:
- receiving a request for a protocol data unit (PDU) session;
- requesting authorization and authentication from the DN-AAA server;
- receiving information associated with an allowed UE group from the DN-AAA server, the information associated with the allowed UE group includes a UE group ID;
- requesting PCC rules for the PDU session, the request including information about the PDU session, including the information associated with the allowed UE group;
- receiving the PCC rules associated with the allowed UE group;
- and
- establishing the user plane path for the PDU session according to the PCC rules;
- wherein the DN-AAA server is configured for sending the allowed UE group to the SMF in response to the request for authorization and authentication;
- and
- wherein the PCF is configured for sending the PCC rules associated with the allowed UE group in response to the request for the PCC rules,
- the system further comprising a path management function configured for selecting a user plane path for the UE group and notifying the SMF of the user plane path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.