Configuration of a ran based notification area for a user equipment in RRC inactive state

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11129131-B2
Application number	US-202016784026-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 6, 2020
Priority date	Aug 10, 2017
Publication date	Sep 21, 2021
Grant date	Sep 21, 2021

Abstract

A communication system is disclosed in which a base station receives, from at least one further base station, information identifying at least one respective tracking area associated with at least one cell of each further base station. The base station also receives, from a core network, information identifying a registration area for a user equipment (UE). The base station defines, based on the received information identifying at least one respective tracking area and the received information identifying a registration area, a radio access network (RAN) based notification area for the UE.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method performed by a user equipment (UE) in a communication system while the UE is in an RRC inactive state, the method comprising:
transmitting, to at least one radio access network (RAN) node, a message for resuming a connection, the message for resuming the connection comprising an indication of a RAN based notification area update; and
receiving, from the at least one radio access network (RAN) node after transmission of the message for resuming the connection comprising the indication of the RAN based notification area update and, when the RAN node has determined to send the UE back to an inactive state, information for keeping the UE in the inactive state and for configuring the UE with a RAN based notification area,
wherein the RAN based notification area represents an area configured, taking account of a registration area for the UE:
to cover at least one cell;
to be contained within a core network (CN) registration area; and
to represent an area within which the UE can move whilst remaining in an inactive state.

2. A user equipment (UE) for a communication system, the UE comprising:
a transmitter configured to transmit, to at least one radio access network (RAN) node, a message for resuming a connection, the message for resuming the connection comprising an indication of a RAN based notification area update; and
a receiver configured to receive, from at least one radio access network (RAN) node after transmission of the message for resuming the connection comprising the indication of the RAN based notification area update and, when the RAN node has determined to send the UE back to an inactive state, information keeping the UE in the inactive state and for configuring the UE with a RAN based notification area,
wherein the RAN based notification area represents an area configured, taking account of the registration area:
to cover at least one cell;
to be contained within a registration area for the UE; and
to represent an area within which the UE can move whilst remaining in an inactive state.

Assignees

• Nec Corp

Inventors

• Chen Yuhua
• Khirallah Chadi
• Gupta Neeraj

Classifications

• Y02D30/70

  in wireless communication networks · CPC title

• H04W68/00 Primary

  User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like · CPC title

• H04W68/02 Primary

  Arrangements for increasing efficiency of notification or paging channel · CPC title

• H04W8/08

  Mobility data transfer · CPC title

• H04W76/27

  Transitions between radio resource control [RRC] states · CPC title