Method of distributing PCC rules among IP-connectivity access network (IP-CAN) bearers

1. A method performed by a policy and charging rules node (PCRN) for distributing policy and charging control (PCC) rules among a plurality of IP-Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) bearers, the method comprising:

determining, by the PCRN, at least one PCC rule to be provided to a policy and charging enforcement node (PCEN);

providing each PCC rule of the at least one PCC rule to the PCEN;

selecting a rule distribution approach from a plurality of rule distribution approaches;

controlling, by the PCRN, distribution of the at least one PCC rule among a plurality of IP-CAN bearers based on the selected rule distribution approach; and

binding each distributed PCC rule of the at least one PCC rule to a select one of the IP-CAN bearers of the plurality of IP-CAN bearers.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining if one or more IP-CAN bearers have been terminated; and

redistributing impacted PCC rules using a first approach among active IP-CAN bearers.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising, before the step of redistributing, determining from a configuration of the PCRN that the first approach should be used.

4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:

determining if the redistribution of the impacted PCC rules using the first approach is at a desired value; and

if the redistributing using the first approach is not at the desired value, performing redistribution of the impacted PCC rules using a second approach.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein each of the IP-CAN bearers carries one or more requested service data flows, and each of the IP-CAN bearers include a plurality of segments that constitute an end-to-end IP-CAN bearer.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the plurality of segments comprise a first segment located between a user equipment and a base station, a second segment located between the base station and a serving gateway (SOW), and a third segment located between the SOW and a packet data gateway network (POW), wherein the PGW controls QoS for each of the requested SDFs while the SGW controls dynamic management of the IP-CAN bearers.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of determining, by the PCRN, at least one PCC rule to be provided to the PCEN comprises:

receiving, at the PCRN, a request message; and

generating the at least one PCC rule based on the request message.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected rule distribution approach is a First-Fit approach.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the selected rule distribution approach is a Best-Fit approach.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of controlling distribution is further based on an external input from a component of a Self-Organizing Network (SON).

11. A system for distributing policy and charging control (PCC) rules among a plurality of IP-Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) bearers, the system comprising a policy and charging rules node (PCRN) configured to process an application request to generate at least one policy and charging control (PCC) rule, the PCRN having:

an interface configured to communicate with a policy and charging enforcement node (PCEN);

an IP-CAN session manager including a processor configured to:

transmit at least one policy and charging control (PCC) rule to the PCEN via the interface for controlling distribution of the generated PCC rules among a plurality of IP-CAN bearers based on a rule distribution approach selected from a plurality of rule distribution approaches, wherein the IP-CAN session manager is configured to perform distribution of the at least one PCC rule to one or more of the IP-CAN bearers.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the PCRN is further configured to bind a requested service data flow to a respective IP-CAN bearer of the plurality of IP-CAN bearers.

13. The system of claim 11 , further comprising an application request translator configured to translate the application request into at least one requested service data flow, including determining, for each packet filter information section, a requested service flow from the packet filter information section.

14. The system of claim 11 , wherein the selected rule distribution approach is one of a First-Fit approach and a Best-Fit approach.

15. A method performed by a policy and charging rules node (PCRN) for performing bearer binding, the method comprising:

determining, by the PCRN, that bearer binding should be performed with respect to a set of policy charging and control (PCC) rules and a set of bearers;

in response to determining that bearer binding should be performed, determining a first rule distribution approach of a plurality of rule distribution approaches to apply to the set of PCC rules;

for each PCC rule of the set of PCC rules, selecting a bearer of the set of bearers to which the PCC rule should be bound based on the first rule distribution approach; and

sending an indication to at least one other network device of a bearer of the set of bearers selected for a PCC rule of the set of PCC rules.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of determining comprises:

receiving, at the PCRN, a request message; and

generating the set of PCC rules based on the request message.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of determining comprises:

receiving, at the PCRN, an indication that a bearer has been terminated; and

identifying, as the set of PCC rules, one or more PCC rules previously bound to the bearer that has been terminated.

18. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of selecting a bearer of the set of bearers to which the PCC rule should be bound based on the first rule distribution approach comprises:

iterating through the set of bearers; and

selecting a first bearer encountered that can accommodate the PCC rule.

19. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of selecting a bearer of the set of bearers to which the PCC rule should be bound based on the first rule distribution approach comprises:

selecting a bearer of the set of bearers such that a greatest possible bandwidth capacity of the set of bearers will be utilized.

20. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:

determining that a distribution of PCC rules among the set of bearers is not optimal;

in response to determining that a distribution of PCC rules among the set of bearers is not optimal, determining a second rule distribution approach to apply to the PCC rules; and

redistributing the PCC rules among the set of bearers based on the second rule distribution approach.