Enhancements for Minimization of Service Interruption

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025203335-A1
Application number	US-202318849695-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 22, 2023
Priority date	Mar 30, 2022
Publication date	Jun 19, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A user equipment (UE) is configured to identify a disaster condition applies to a first public land mobile network (PLMN), select a second PLMN for disaster roaming services, wherein one or more tracking areas (TAs) of the second PLMN are in a forbidden list stored locally at the UE and wherein the second PLMN and the first PLMN have a roaming agreement for disaster roaming services and register with the second PLMN for disaster roaming services in the one or more TAs of the second PLMN from the forbidden list.

First claim

What is claimed:

1 . A method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
selecting a first public land mobile network (PLMN) for disaster roaming services; and initiating a disaster roaming wait timer, wherein the UE does not initiate a normal registration with the first PLMN when the disaster roaming wait timer is running.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, when the disaster roaming wait timer is running, a request to establish an emergency protocol data unit (PDU) session with the first PLMN; initiating an emergency registration with the first PLMN while the disaster roaming wait timer is running; and establishing the emergency PDU session with the first PLMN when the emergency registration with the first PLMN is successful.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the disaster roaming wait timer is stopped when the emergency registration is initiated.

4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the disaster roaming wait timer continues to run when the emergency registration is initiated.

5 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
when the disaster roaming wait timer expires, initiating a regular registration with the first PLMN.

6 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
when the disaster roaming wait timer expires, waiting to initiate a regular registration with the first PLMN until the emergency PDU session is released.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
selecting, when the disaster roaming wait timer is running and the UE is deregistered, a fifth generation mobility management (5GMM) substate of 5GMM-DEREGISTERED.ATTEMPTING-REGISTRATION.

8 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
selecting a second PLMN for registration that was previously under a disaster condition; and initiating a disaster return wait timer, wherein the UE does not initiate a normal registration with the second PLMN when the disaster return wait timer is running.

9 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
receiving, when the disaster return wait timer is running, a request to establish an emergency protocol data unit (PDU) session with the second PLMN; initiating an emergency registration with the second PLMN while the disaster roaming wait timer is running; and establishing the emergency PDU session with the second PLMN when the emergency registration with the second PLMN is successful.

10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the disaster return wait timer is stopped when the emergency registration is initiated.

11 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the disaster return wait timer continues to run when the emergency registration is initiated.

12 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
when the disaster return wait timer expires, initiating a regular registration with the second PLMN.

13 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
when the disaster return wait timer expires, waiting to initiate a regular registration with the second PLMN until the emergency PDU session is released.

14 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
selecting, when the disaster return wait timer is running and the UE is registered, a fifth generation mobility management (5GMM) substate of 5GMM-REGISTERED.ATTEMPTING-REGISTRATION-UPDATE.

15 . A method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
identifying a disaster condition applies to a first public land mobile network (PLMN); selecting a second PLMN for disaster roaming services, wherein one or more tracking areas (TAs) of the second PLMN are in a forbidden list stored locally at the UE and wherein the second PLMN and the first PLMN have a roaming agreement for disaster roaming services; and registering with the second PLMN for disaster roaming services in the one or more TAs of the second PLMN from the forbidden list.

16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the forbidden list is one of a forbidden TA list, a forbidden TA for roaming list or a forbidden TA for regional provision of service list.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the second PLMN is not in a forbidden PLMN list stored locally at the UE.

18 . The method of claim 15 , the operations further comprising:
removing the one or more TAs of the second PLMN from the forbidden list in response to registering with the second PLMN for disaster roaming services.

19 . The method of claim 15 , the operations further comprising:
receiving an indication that the second PLMN is offering disaster roaming services, wherein the UE is configured to consider a TA of the second PLMN that is part the forbidden list as being available for disaster roaming services in response to the indication.

20 . A method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
selecting a public land mobile network (PLMN) for registration under disaster conditions, wherein the selecting is performed manually at the UE; initiating a registration procedure with the PLMN, wherein the PLMN is in a forbidden PLMN list; receiving a type of reject cause for the registration procedure, wherein the registration procedure is for normal services; and autonomously initiating a registration procedure for disaster roaming services based on the type of reject cause.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• VIJAYA KUMAR Anikethan Ramakrishna
• Kumar Basant
• Koshta Nirlesh
• Ramappa Shashanka Totadamane
• Prakasam Sridhar
• Vamanan Sudeep Manithara
• Gupta Vivek G

Classifications

• H04W84/042

  Public Land Mobile systems, e.g. cellular systems · CPC title

• H04W60/04

  using triggered events · CPC title

• H04W48/18

  Selecting a network or a communication service · CPC title

• H04W48/04

  based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed · CPC title

• H04W4/90 Primary

  Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS] · CPC title