Cisco Technology, Inc.

Aeneas Sean Dodd-Noble

Om Prakash Suthar

Ravi Kiran Guntupalli

Ian McDowell Campbell

Srinath Gundavelli

Timothy Peter Stammers

Nirav Salot

Vivek Agarwal

Humberto Jose La Roche

Ravi Shekhar

Michael David Geller

Vimal Srivastava

Ammar Rayes

Irfan Ali

Arun C Alex

Raghavendra Vidyashankar Suryanarayanarao

Rajiv Asati

Hendrikus G P Bosch

Ryo Watanabe

Stinson Samuel Mathai

Prasannakumar Murugesan

Louis Gwyn Samuel

Sebastian Speicher

Pablo Camarillo Garvia

Alessandro Duminuco

Jeffrey Michael Napper

Surendra M Kumar

Arghya T Mukherjee

Raghavendra Suryanarayanarao Vidyashankar

Anil Kumar Chandrupatla

Ianik Semco

Carlos M Pignataro

Bart A Brinckman

Warren Scott Wainner

Luca Martini

Sape Jurriën Mullender

Sridhar Bhaskaran

Ajeet Pal Singh Gill

Akshya Kumar Singh

Ameo Ghosh

Santanu Dasgupta

Kirk McBean

David Alan Johnson

Amarnath Sury Arvind

Suraj Sharad Mody

Stefano Benedetto Previdi

Kevin Shatzkamer

Alon Shlomo Bernstein

Konstantin Livanos

Oliver James Bull

Peter Bosch

Alon Ben Ami

Maulik Vijay Vaidya

Sape Jurrien Mullender

Rajesh P Velandy

Amit Ghadge

Mark Ammar Rayes

Mahesh Chakravarthy Vittal Viveganandhan

David Lake

Pravin Appaji Ajagekar

Santhosh Shenoy Panambur

Veena Ramamoorthy

Tomonobu Okada

Jay Edward Lubomirski

Tejas Birajdar

David A Johnson

Stinson Mathai

Viveganandhan Mahesh Vittal

In one example, a first connectivity request for a first network connection between a user equipment and a first network is obtained. A control plane serving gateway node for the first network connection is selected. The control plane serving gateway node is co-located with a control plane packet data network gateway node configured to support a second network connection between the user equipment and a second network that is different from the first network. A second connectivity request for the second network connection is obtained. The second network connection is established with the control plane serving gateway node and the control plane packet data network gateway node.

Optimized serving gateway node selection for interworking networks

In a Fifth Generation (5G) network having an enhanced SBA (eSBA) architecture, a message with a header used to signal binding information (e.g. HTTP custom header for 3gpp-Sbi-Binding) may be received at a recipient NF (service) instance in a direct communication or via a service communication proxy (SCP) in an indirect communication. A binding indication comprising an address of an NF (service) instance may be obtained from the header. One or more alternative binding indications comprising one or more alternative addresses of one or more alternative NF (service) instances may also be obtained from the header. The one or more alternative NF (service) instances may be equivalent NFs (services) of the same NF (Service) Set as the NF (service) instance. The address may be used for communication of messages to the NF (service) instance, and the one or more alternative addresses may be used for load balancing or backup failure.

Binding indications for load balancing and redundancy for communications between network function instances in a 5G core network

Techniques are described herein for network slice support of respective transport protocols. In one example, a session management function obtains, from a user equipment, a request for a network slice identifier in a network that includes a plurality of network slices each configured to support a respective transport protocol. In response to the request, the session management function identifies a first transport protocol of the respective transport protocols by which the user equipment is to communicate. Based on the first transport protocol, the session management function identifies a first network slice of the plurality of network slices by which the user equipment is to communicate. The first network slice is configured to support the first transport protocol. The session management function provides the network slice identifier to the user equipment. The network slice identifier corresponds to the first network slice.

Network slice support of respective transport protocols

A user device operates a first data session using a first network slice. The user device obtains a trigger notification from a remote application that identifies a second network slice, and the user device determines that the first network slice and the second network slice are mutually exclusive. The user device ends the first data session on the first network slice and initiates a second data session on the second network slice.

Application initiated network trigger for switching a user device between mutually exclusive network slices

A network function (NF) entity in a communication network receives User Plane Function (UPF) registration information for a plurality of UPFs, the registration information including a respective network attribute for each UPF. The NF entity associates each UPF with a corresponding network based on the respective network attribute, and map one or more User Equipment (UE) to the corresponding network based on a security policy to create a UE-to-network table. The NF further receives a request to establish a session for a subsequent UE, the request including a subsequent UE identifier, and determine an access permission for the subsequent UE to access the corresponding network based on the subsequent UE identifier and the UE-to-network table. The NF selects one UPF from the plurality of UPF to service the session for the subsequent UE based on the access permission, and an association between the one UPF and the corresponding network.

Selecting a user plane function (UPF) for layer 2 networks

A method enables communication between Session Management Function (SMF) and User Plane Function (UPF) instances which are separately deployed behind Network Address Translation (NAT) services. The method includes configuring an SMF or a UPF to initiate an association with a corresponding UPF or SMF. The SMF registers first information with a Network Repository Function (NRF) enabling the remote UPF to communicate with the SMF through a NAT service. The method further includes obtaining second information from the NRF enabling the SMF to communicate with the remote UPF through the NAT service. The method also includes sending an association request to the remote UPF based on the second information and receiving an association response from the remote UPF through the NAT service.

Network address translation (NAT) traversal and proxy between user plane function (UPF) and session management function (SMF)

A solution for selecting an optimal user Plane entity (with Control and User Plane Separation (CUPS)) per UE during seamless roaming. In one embodiment, a method is provide that is performed by a control plane entity in a mobile core network that supports inter public land mobile network (PLMN) roaming among two or more PLMNs. The method includes obtaining a create session request from an entity in a second PLMN to which a user equipment has roamed from a first PLMN; selecting a particular user plane entity among a plurality of user plane entities based on one or more user equipment related parameters; and establishing a session with the particular user plane entity to serve user plane traffic in the mobile core network for the user equipment.

Efficient user plane function selection with S10 roaming

In one example, an Access Point (AP) configures a first mapping of a first cellular network connection to a first local access network group, and further configures a second mapping of a second cellular network connection to a second local access network group. The AP determines whether a user device is authorized to use the first cellular network connection or the second cellular network connection. If the user device is authorized to use the first cellular network connection, the AP associates, for the user device, a first user device identifier with the first local access network group. If the user device is authorized to use the second cellular network connection, the AP associates, for the user device, a second user device identifier with the second local access network group.

Applying network policies on a per-user basis

An example method is provided in one example embodiment and may include receiving traffic associated with at least one of a mobile network and a Gi-Local Area Network (data-plane), wherein the traffic comprises one or more packets; determining a classification of the traffic to a service chain, wherein the service chain comprises one or more service functions associated at least one of one or more mobile network services and one or more data-plane services; routing the traffic through the service chain; and routing the traffic to a network using one of a plurality of egress interfaces, wherein each egress interface of the plurality of egress interfaces is associated with at least one of the one or more mobile network services and the one or more data-plane services.

System and method for hosting mobile packet core and value-added services using a software defined network and service chains

Techniques associated with localizing data traffic for a time sensitive network within a virtualized radio access network are provided. In one embodiment, a method includes determining that a user equipment (UE) is associated with a time sensitive network; and localizing data traffic for the UE within a virtualized radio access network based on determining that the data traffic for the UE can be localized at one centralized user plane component of the virtualized radio access network for the time sensitive network. The data traffic can be Layer-2 data traffic or unstructured data traffic.

Virtualized radio access network architecture for applications requiring a time sensitive network

In one example, a User Plane Function (UPF) in a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (V-PLMN) that includes a first network and a second network obtains network traffic from user equipment via the first network. The UPF provides the network traffic obtained via the first network to a data network with an Internet Protocol (IP) address allocated to the network traffic obtained from the user equipment. In response to a handover of the user equipment from the first network to the second network, the UPF obtains the network traffic from the user equipment via the second network. The UPF provides the network traffic obtained via the second network to the data network with the IP address.

Maintaining internet protocol address for network traffic during handover procedure

A Network Exposure Function (NEF) relays a trigger from a remote application function to a user device and causes the user device to switch between mutually exclusive network slices. The NEF stores a mapping associating device modes with network slices. The NEF also determines that a user device is operating in a first device mode using a first network slice. The NEF obtains a trigger from the remote application function identifying the user device and a second device mode. The NEF determines that the second device mode is associated with a second network slice that is mutually exclusive to the first network slice. The NEF provides a notification to the user device, causing the user device to end a first data session on the first network slice and to initiate a second data session on the second network slice.

Methods are provided to preemptively reconfigure a mobile network to respond to external emergencies. The method is performed at a network device of a service provider which provides access to a mobile network for wireless device. The method includes obtaining a message indicating an occurrence of a disaster. The message includes at least an emergency type and location information. The method further includes determining, based on the emergency type, a reconfiguration policy for reconfiguring the mobile network in an area indicated by the location information and reconfiguring the mobile network based on the reconfiguration policy. The method further includes authenticating a disaster application function and a notification message informing about an occurrence of a disaster.

Methods to preemptively autoconfigure a mobile network to respond to external emergencies

Methods for selecting network slice, session management, and user plane functions for user equipment (UE) are described. In one example, a control plane (CP) entity for mobility management may select a CP entity for session management for a session of a UE based on a first set of data items. The CP entity for mobility management may further select a user plane (UP) entity for the session of the UE based on a second set of data items, where second set of data items include at least some of the same data items of the first set. The CP entity for mobility management may send, to the selected CP entity, a message including an identity or indication of the selected UP entity for the session of the UE. The selected CP entity may select the identified or indicated UP entity for use in the session of the UE.

Methods and apparatus for selecting network slice, session management and user plane functions

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Andover, MA, United States of America

Aeneas Sean Dodd-Noble