Methods, apparatuses, architectures and systems for handling link degradation and/or link failure in an integrated access and backhaul (iab) network

Abstract

An Integrated Access and Backhaul, IAB, node determines link degradation in a primary path to a first Distributed Unit, DU, of a gNB, establishes a secondary path with a second DU of a gNB, detects link failure in the primary path, releases the primary path and makes the second primary path as a new primary path. A first IAB donor node receives an indication of link degradation from an IAB node in a network managed by the first IAB donor node, determines that an available IAB node is in a network managed by a second IAB donor node, sends to the second IAB donor node a request to connect the IAB node with the second IAB donor node and, in case the request is accepted, requests the IAB node to connect with the second IAB donor node. An IAB can also measure channel quality for a first path to a first IAB donor node and for a second path to a second IAB donor node and, in case the channel quality of both the first path and the second path is below a threshold, duplicate traffic on both the first path and the second path, in case the channel quality of the first path is below the threshold and the channel quality of the second channel is above the threshold, send traffic only over the second path and, in case the channel quality of the first path is above the threshold, send traffic only over the first path.