Redirecting handovers in LTE networks

• US 9,363,714 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2015
• Issued: 06/07/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rahman, Moshiur, Opara, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): AJIBADE AKONAI, OLUMIDE
• Application Number:
  US14/658,996
• Publication Number:
  US 20150189554A1
• Time in Patent Office: 449 Days
• Field of Search: 455436-445, 370328-333
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/04 Arrangements for maintaining operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/04 Error control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0016 Hand-off preparation specially adapted for end-to-end data sessions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0022 for transferring data sessions between adjacent core network technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0079 in case of hand-off failure or rejection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/20 based on geographic position or location
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/36 due to handover

Abstract

An architecture that can redirect communications upon detection of a handover failure in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network is described. The architecture can obtain information indicative of a handover failure that is available in a first portion of the LTE network (e.g., a serving gateway) that has no control over the communication path. The architecture can utilize the information to instruct a second portion of the LTE network (e.g., a mobility management entity), one that can control the communication path but conventionally has no access to the handover information, to reroute the communication path to avoid unresponsive or failing network entities.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

receiving, from a gateway device, handoff data representing a handoff event that changes a first communication path for a user equipment device to a second communication path;

in response to determining a handoff issue associated with the handoff event for the user equipment based on the handoff data, generating a notification; and

transmitting the notification to a mobility management entity device, wherein the notification causes the mobility management entity device to select a different communication path for the user equipment and wherein the different communication path differs from the second communication path.

2. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the gateway device is a serving gateway device.

3. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the determining the handoff issue is based on count data representing a count of a threshold crossing alarm associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

4. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the determining the handoff issue is based on an unavailability condition associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

5. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the determining the handoff issue is based on a degraded air interface between the user equipment and an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

6. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the determining the handoff issue is based on one of a buffer overflow condition or a packet loss condition associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

7. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the alternative communication path is associated with an alternate radio access technology that differs from a radio access technology associated with the second communication path.

8. The machine readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the alternate radio access technology is associated with a communications standard that differs from a communications standard associated with a long term evolution network.

9. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the transmitting the notification to the mobility management entity device comprises transmitting the notification to the mobility management entity device prior to a handoff failure associated with the user equipment.

10. The machine readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the handoff event is directed to a first handoff initiated by an evolved nodeB device associated with the first communication path or a second handoff initiated by the user equipment.

11. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

receiving handoff data representing a handoff operation that reroutes a first communication path for a user equipment to a second communication path that differs from the first communication path;

in response to identifying, prompted by the handoff data, a handoff issue associated with the handoff operation, generating a notification comprising an instruction for a mobility management entity device of a long term evolution network to select an alternative communication path for the user equipment, wherein the alternative communication path differs from the second communication path; and

providing the notification to the mobility management entity device.

12. The machine readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the identifying the handoff issue is based on count data representing a count of a threshold crossing alarm associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

13. The machine readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the identifying the handoff issue is based on an unavailability condition associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

14. The machine readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the identifying the handoff issue is based on a degraded air interface between the user equipment and an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

15. The machine readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the identifying the handoff issue is based on a buffer overflow condition associated with an evolved nodeB device of the second communication path.

16. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:

receiving, from a gateway device of a long term evolution communication network, handoff data representing a handoff transaction that switches a first communication path for a mobile device to a second communication path that differs from the first communication path; and

in response to determining a handoff issue associated with the handoff transaction based on the handoff data, determining an alternative communication path for the mobile device, wherein the alternative communication path differs from the second communication path.

17. The machine readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the receiving the handoff data comprises receiving the handoff data from a serving gateway device.

18. The machine readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the alternative communication path is associated with an alternate radio access technology that differs from a radio access technology associated with the second communication path.

19. The machine readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the alternate radio access technology is associated with a communications standard that differs from a communications standard associated with a long term evolution network.

20. The machine readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the determining the alternative communication path comprises determining the alternative communication path prior to a handoff failure associated with the second communication path.