Control device and access node for licensed assisted access
The present invention provides a control device for providing network-slice-aware licensed assisted access (LAA). The control device is configured to determine, for at least one slice-type, an unlicensed frequency band and/or an LAA configuration parameter. Furthermore, the control device is configured to provide, to at least one radio access node, configuration information comprising the determined frequency band and/or the LAA configuration parameter. The present invention also provides a radio access node for configuring network-slice-aware LAA. The radio access node is configured to receive, from a control device, configuration information comprising, for at least one slice-type, a frequency band and/or an LAA configuration parameter. The radio access node is further configured to request and receive, from a UE, a channel measurement report on one or more unlicensed frequency bands.
1. A control device for providing network-slice-aware Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), the control device comprising:
a processor being configured to:
determine, for at least one slice type, an unlicensed frequency band and/or an LAA configuration parameter,
provide, to at least one radio access node, configuration information comprising the determined unlicensed frequency band and/or the determined LAA configuration parameter, and
determine, for the at least one slice type, a listen before talk (LBT) usage parameter indicating whether LBT is to be used or not,
wherein the LAA configuration parameter comprises the LBT usage parameter.
2. The control device according to claim 1 , the processor being configured to:
determine the unlicensed frequency band and/or the LAA configuration parameter based on at least one of a slice type requirement, a channel measurement, an availability of unlicensed bands, location information, or slice traffic information.
3. The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the configuration information comprises a look-up table that includes the unlicensed frequency band and/or the LAA configuration parameter.
4. The control device according to claim 1 , the processor being further configured to:
determine, for the at least one slice type for which it is determined that LBT is to be used, an LBT configuration parameter,
wherein the LAA configuration parameter further comprises the LBT configuration parameter.
5. The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the LAA configuration parameter further comprises at least one of a proposed maximum burst size, a proposed time gap between transmissions, or a proposed format of a reservation signal.
6. The control device according to claim 1 , the processor being further configured to:
provide, for at least one slice instance of at least the at least one slice type, a weighting factor or a list of weighting factors for updating the configuration information for the at least one slice type.
7. The control device according to claim 1 , the processor being further configured to:
receive at least one service request and/or slice instantiation request related to the at least one slice type,
determine, for each respective related slice type, a respective unlicensed frequency band and/or a respective LAA configuration parameter, when the service request and/or the slice instantiation request is received.
8. The control device according to claim 1 , the processor being further configured to:
provide the configuration information to the at least one radio access node during or after handover of a user equipment (UE) to the at least one radio access node.
9. A system comprising:
the control device according to claim 1 , and
a radio access node for configuring network-slice-aware licensed assisted access (LAA), the radio access node being configured to:
receive, from the control device, configuration information comprising, for at least one slice type, a frequency band and/or an LAA configuration parameter,
request and receive, from a user equipment (UE), a channel measurement report on one or more unlicensed frequency bands,
determine at least one suitable slice type for the UE according to quality of service (QoS) requirements of the UE and radio resource conditions and/or availability,
determine, according to the at least one suitable slice type, an LAA configuration based on the configuration information and the channel measurement report, and
provide, to the UE, a configuration instruction comprising the determined LAA configuration.
10. The system according to claim 9 , further configured to:
receive a weighting factor or a list of weighting factors for at least one slice instance of the at least one slice type, and
update the LAA configuration for the at least one slice type based on the weighting factor or the list of weighting factors and the configuration information.
11. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the configuration information comprises a look-up table which includes, for the at least one slice type, the frequency band and/or the LAA configuration parameter.
12. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the LAA configuration parameter comprises at least one of a proposed maximum burst size, a proposed gap between transmissions, a proposed format of a reservation signal, or a listen before talk (LBT) configuration parameter.
13. A method for providing network-slice-aware licensed assisted access (LAA), the method comprising:
determining, for at least one slice type, an unlicensed frequency band and/or an LAA configuration parameter,
providing, to at least one radio access node, configuration information comprising the determined unlicensed frequency band and/or the LAA configuration parameter, and
determining, for the at least one slice type, a listen before talk (LBT) usage parameter indicating whether LBT is to be used or not,
wherein the LAA configuration parameter comprises the LBT usage parameter.
14. The control device according to claim 4 , wherein the LBT configuration parameter is a clear channel assessment (CCA) timer, a CCA threshold, and/or a LBT mode.