APPARATUS, SYSTEM AND METHOD OF CELLULAR NETWORK COMMUNICATIONS CORRESPONDING TO A NON-CELLULAR NETWORK

• US 20140161103A1
• Filed: 10/31/2013
• Published: 06/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Shu-Ping Yeh
• Inventors: Sirotkin, Alexander, Fong, Mo-Han, Himayat, Nageen, Talwar, Shilpa, Yeh, Shu-Ping
• Granted Patent: US 10,356,640 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/332
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0088 Scheduling hand-off measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Some demonstrative embodiments include devices, systems and/or cellular network communications corresponding to a non-cellular network. For example, an Evolved Node B (eNB) may be configured to transmit to a User Equipment (UE) at least one configuration message to configure one or more measurements to be performed by the UE with respect to at least Wireless-Local-Area-Network (WLAN), to receive from the UE at least one report message including measurement information corresponding to the WLAN, to trigger the UE to start or stop offloading to the WLAN, and/or to transmit to the UE network assistance information corresponding to the WLAN.

Claims

1. A cellular node comprising:

a radio to transmit to a User Equipment (UE) at least one configuration message to configure one or more measurements to be performed by said UE with respect at least one Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), and to receive from the UE at least one report message including measurement information corresponding to said WLAN.

2. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said configuration message comprises at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of at least one identifier of said at least one WLAN, at least one frequency band of said at least one WLAN, and at least one frequency channel of said at least one WLAN.

3. The cellular node of claim 2, wherein said at least one identifier comprises at least one identifier selected from the group consisting of a Service Set Identification (SSID), an Extended SSID (ESSID), a Basic SSID (SSID), a Roaming Consortium, a Hotspot Operator Friendly Name, a Network Access Identifier (NAI) Home Realm, and a Mobility Domain.

4. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said configuration message comprises reporting configuration information defining at least one configuration selected from the group consisting of a reporting criterion defining a criterion to trigger said UE to send said report message, and a reporting format defining said measurement information.

5. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said configuration message comprises a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) signaling message.

6. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said report message comprises at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of an identifier of said WLAN, a channel of said WLAN, a privacy parameter of said WLAN, a security parameter of said WLAN, a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) of said WLAN, a Received Channel Power Indicator (RCPI) of said WLAN, a Received Power Indicator (RPI) of said WLAN, a Received Signal to Noise Indicator (RSNI) threshold of said WLAN, a connection Quality of Service (QoS) of said WLAN, a load parameter indicating a load of said WLAN, and an indication of one or more other WLANs detected by said UE.

7. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said report message comprises a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) signaling message.

8. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said cellular node is to receive said report message when said UE is at a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) idle state.

9. The cellular node of claim 1 comprising a controller to determine network assistance information corresponding to said at least one WLAN based on said measurement information, wherein said radio is to transmit a message including said network assistance information.

10. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said radio is to transmit a message to trigger said UE to start or stop offloading to said WLAN.

11. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein said radio is to transmit a message including a reselection frequency list including a plurality of WLAN frequencies associated with a plurality of cell reselection priorities, said WLAN frequencies including a WLAN frequency of said WLAN and a reselection priority of said WLAN is based on said measurement information.

12. The cellular node of claim 1, wherein, based on said measurement information said radio is to transmit a message including an access barring indication to bar said UE from using a cellular link with said cellular node.

13. A User Equipment (UE) comprising:

a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) transceiver;

a cellular transceiver to receive from a cellular node at least one trigger message; and

a controller to control access network selection of said UE with respect to a WLAN based on said trigger message.

14. The UE of claim 13, wherein said trigger message comprises a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) signaling message.

15. The UE of claim 14, wherein said RRC signaling message comprises a DLInformationTransfer message, a RRCConnectionReconfiguration message, a HandoverFromEUTRAPreparationRequest message, a MobilityFromEUTRACommand message, a RRCConnectionRelease message, a RRCConnectionReject message, or a dedicated RRC message.

16. The UE of claim 13, wherein said trigger message includes a reselection frequency list including a plurality of WLAN frequencies associated with a plurality of cell reselection priorities.

17. The UE of claim 13, wherein said trigger message comprises an access barring indication to bar said UE from using a cellular link with said cellular node, and wherein, in response to said access barring indication, said controller is to control said WLAN transceiver to connect to said WLAN.

18. An Evolved Node B (eNB) comprising:

a radio; and

a controller to control said radio to transmit to one or more User Equipment (UEs) at least one Radio-Resource Control (RRC) configuration message to configure one or more measurements to be performed by said UEs with respect to one or more Wireless Local Area Network (WLANs), and to receive from the one or more UEs one or more RRC report messages including measurement information corresponding to said one or more WLANs, wherein, based on said measurement information, said controller is to control said radio to transmit to at least one UE a RRC trigger message including an offload trigger to trigger said UE to start or stop offloading to a WLAN of said one or more WLANs.

19. The eNB of claim 18, wherein said RRC trigger message comprises a DLInformationTransfer message, a RRCConnectionReconfiguration message, a HandoverFromEUTRAPreparationRequest message, a MobilityFromEUTRACommand message, a RRCConnectionRelease message, a RRCConnectionReject message, or a dedicated RRC message.

20. The eNB of claim 18, wherein said controller is to determine network assistance information corresponding to one or more WLANs based on said measurement information, and to control said radio to transmit at least one RRC message including said network assistance information.

21. A method comprising:

communicating between a cellular node and a User Equipment (UE) at least one configuration message to configure one or more measurements to be performed by said UE with respect at least one Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN); and

communicating between the UE and the cellular node at least one report message including measurement information corresponding to said WLAN.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said configuration message comprises at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of at least one identifier of said at least one WLAN, at least one frequency band of said at least one WLAN, and at least one frequency channel of said at least one WLAN.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein said configuration message comprises reporting configuration information defining at least one configuration selected from the group consisting of a reporting criterion defining a criterion to trigger said UE to send said report message, and a reporting format defining said measurement information.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein said configuration message comprises a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) signaling message.

25. A product including a non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by a machine, result in:

transmitting from a cellular node a message including a reselection frequency list including a plurality of Wireless Local Are Network (WLAN) frequencies of one or more WLANS, and a plurality of cell reselection priorities prioritizing said WLAN frequencies.

26. The product of claim 25, wherein the instructions result in transmitting said message based on measurement information corresponding to said WLANs.

27. The product of claim 26, wherein the instructions result in receiving said measurement information from a UE, and transmitting said message to said UE.

28. The product of claim 26, wherein the instructions result in transmitting said message to a UE and receiving said measurement information from another UE.

29. The product of claim 25, wherein said message comprises a Radio-Resource Control (RRC) signaling message.

30. The product of claim 29, wherein said RRC signaling message comprises a RRCConnectionRelease message.