Techniques for wireless network discovery and selection support

• US 9,451,535 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2014
• Issued: 09/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc., Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Gupta, Vivek
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Minh-Trang
• Application Number:
  US14/227,937
• Publication Number:
  US 20140293982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 908 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/08 Configuration management of networks or network elements address allocation H04L61/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/20 Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/02 Hierarchically pre-organised networks, e.g. paging networks, cellular networks, WLAN [Wireless Local Area Network] or WLL [Wireless Local Loop]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/18 Service support devices; Network management devices

Abstract

Techniques for wireless network discovery and selection support are described. In one embodiment, for example, an evolved packet core (EPC) node may comprise a processor circuit to implement an access network discovery and selection function (ANDSF) according to a management object that includes a branch comprising one or more policies to select a wireless local area network (WLAN), the processing circuitry to receive capabilities information and location information for a user equipment (UE) and determine access network information for the UE based on the capabilities information and the location information. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. An evolved packet core (EPC) node, comprising:

a processor circuit to implement an access network discovery and selection function (ANDSF) according to a management object that includes a branch comprising one or more policies to select a wireless local area network (WLAN), the processing circuitry to receive capabilities information and location information for a user equipment (UE) and determine access network information for the UE based on the capabilities information and the location information.

2. The EPC node of claim 1, the management object comprising an ANDSF management object.

3. The EPC node of claim 1, the branch comprising one or more nodes of a Hotspot management object.

4. The EPC node of claim 3, the Hotspot management object comprising a Hotspot 2.0 management object.

5. The EPC node of claim 1, the branch comprising a WLAN selection policy (WLANSP) branch of an ANDSF management object.

6. The EPC node of claim 1, the processing circuitry to send the access network information to the UE over an S14 interface connection.

7. The EPC node of claim 1, the access network information identifying one or more available access networks for the UE.

8. The EPC node of claim 1, the access network information identifying one or more policies for selecting among available access networks.

9. The EPC node of claim 1, comprising:

a radio frequency (RF) transceiver; and

one or more RF antennas.

10. An access network discovery and selection function (ANDSF) server, comprising:

logic, at least a portion of which is in hardware, the logic to receive an access network information request, generate access network information using an ANDSF management object (MO) comprising a wireless local area network (WLAN) selection policy branch, and send an access network information response comprising the access network information, the ANDSF MO including one or more nodes of a Hotspot 2.0 MO.

11. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the one or more nodes of the Hotspot 2.0 MO comprised in the WLAN selection policy branch of the ANDSF MO.

12. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the ANDSF MO including a PreferredRoamingPartnerList node of the Hotspot 2.0 MO, the PreferredRoamingPartnerList node comprising a list of preferred roaming partners for a user equipment (UE).

13. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the ANDSF MO including a RequiredProtoPortTuple node of the Hotspot 2.0 MO, the RequiredProtoPortTuple node comprising required internet protocol (IP) protocols and port numbers of one or more operator-supported applications of a user equipment (UE).

14. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the ANDSF MO including an SPExclusionList node of the Hotspot 2.0 MO, the SPExclusionList node comprising a list of service set identifiers (SSIDs) that are not preferred by a home service provider of a user equipment (UE).

15. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the ANDSF MO including a MinBackhaulThreshold node of the Hotspot 2.0 MO, the MinBackhaulThreshold node comprising a policy specifying a minimum available backhaul threshold for application to a selection of a WLAN.

16. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the ANDSF MO comprising a MaximumBSSLoadValue leaf of the Hotspot 2.0 MO, the MaximumBSSLoadValue leaf comprising a policy specifying a maximum basic service set (BSS) load for application to a selection of a WLAN.

17. The ANDSF server of claim 10, the logic to send the access network information response over an S14 interface connection.

18. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising a set of instructions that, in response to being executed on a computing device, cause the computing device to:

receive a request for access network information, the request comprising capabilities information and location information for a user equipment (UE);

determine access network information for the UE based on an ANDSF management object (MO) that comprises a wireless local area network selection policy (WLANSP) branch and a plurality of Hotspot 2.0 MO nodes, the ANDSF MO excluding one or more other nodes of the Hotspot 2.0 MO; and

send a response to the request over an S14 interface connection, the response comprising the access network information.

19. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the WLANSP branch comprising at least one of the plurality of Hotspot 2.0 MO nodes.

20. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the access network information comprising one or more parameters determined based on a RequiredProtoPortTuple node comprised among the plurality of Hotspot 2.0 MO nodes.

21. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the access network information comprising one or more parameters determined based on a SPExclusionList node comprised among the plurality of Hotspot 2.0 MO nodes.

22. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the access network information comprising one or more parameters determined based on a PreferredRoamingPartnerList node comprised among the plurality of Hotspot 2.0 MO nodes.

23. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the access network information comprising available network information identifying one or more access networks.

24. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, the access network information comprising mobility policy information identifying one or more policies for selecting among available access networks.

25. User equipment (UE), comprising:

a radio frequency (RF) transceiver; and

processing circuitry operative on the RF transceiver to send an access network information request and receive access network information in response to the access network information request, the access network information comprising available network information generated using an ANDSF management object (MO) comprising a wireless local area network selection policy (WLANSP) branch that includes at least one node of a Hotspot 2.0 MO and omits at least one other node of the Hotspot 2.0 MO.

26. The UE of claim 25, the ANDSF MO comprising an inter-system routing policy (ISRP) branch that is distinct from the WLANSP branch.

27. The UE of claim 25, the ANDSF MO excluding a SubscriptionPriority branch of the Hotspot 2.0 MO.

28. The UE of claim 25, the access network information comprising at least one mobility policy for the UE.

29. The UE of claim 28, the processing circuitry to select an access network based on the available network information and the at least one mobility policy.

30. The UE of claim 25, the processing circuitry operative on the RF transceiver to receive the access network information from an ANDSF server via an S14 interface.

31. The UE of claim 25, the WLANSP branch including a Hotspot 2.0 MO node that comprises a list of non-preferred service set identifiers (SSIDs).

32. The UE of claim 25, the WLANSP branch including a Hotspot 2.0 MO node that comprises a list of preferred roaming partners for the UE.