PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-10716096-B2
Application Number: US-201816175094-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Enabling network slicing in a 5G network with CP/UP separation

Abstract:
An apparatus of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a CP-UP separation includes processing circuitry configured to decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE for establishing a connection between the UE and a UPF of a 5G NR architecture in a network slice. In response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice, encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities. A CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities is decoded at the CU-CP entity. The resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities. A CU-UP entity is selected by the CU-CP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An apparatus of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the apparatus comprising:
 processing circuitry, wherein to configure the apparatus for communication with a User Equipment (UE) within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture using network slicing, the processing circuitry is to:
 decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE, the RRC request message for establishing a connection between the UE and a user plane function (UPF) of the 5G NR architecture in a network slice; 
 in response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice, encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; 
 decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; and 
 select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information; and 
 
 memory coupled to the processing circuitry, the memory configured to store the resource availability information. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the resource status request message and the resource status response message are communicated between the CU-CP entity and the plurality of CU-UP entities using E1 interfaces. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the resource status response message further includes:
 latency information for a first communication link between the CU-UP entity and a corresponding Distributed Unit (DU) entity of a plurality of DU entities within the gNB; and 
 latency information for a second communication link between the CU-UP and the UPF of the 5G NR architecture. 
 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 encode a response message for transmission to the UE, the response message identifying a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities and the selected CU-CP entity to handle data communications for the network slice, wherein the DU entity is selected from the plurality of DU entities at the gNB based on the latency information for the first communication link. 
 
     
     
       5. The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 encode a latency measurement request message for transmission by the CU-UP entity to the corresponding DU entity via an F1-U interface, the latency measurement request message including a sequence number. 
 
     
     
       6. The apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 decode by the CU-UP entity, a latency measurement response message received from the corresponding DU entity, the latency measurement response message identifying the sequence number; and 
 determine the latency information for the first communication link based on a round-trip time between sending the latency measurement request message and receiving the latency measurement response message. 
 
     
     
       7. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 encode a CU-UP resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity via an E1 interface, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected CU-UP entity. 
 
     
     
       8. The apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 decode a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and 
 encode a CU-UP resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the CU-UP resource release message to release network resources at the CU-UP reserved for the network slice. 
 
     
     
       9. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 decode a network slicing request for partitioning Distributed Unit (DU) resources and CU-UP resources at the gNB to handle communication traffic associated with the network slice, wherein the DU resources comprise a plurality of DU entities and the CU-UP resources comprise the plurality of CU-UP entities at the gNB. 
 
     
     
       10. The apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 encode a DU resource status request message for transmission by the CU-CP entity of the gNB to the plurality of DU entities via a corresponding plurality of F1-C interfaces; and 
 decode at the CU-CP entity, a DU resource status response message from each of the plurality of DU entities, the DU resource status response message including resource availability information for the DU entities. 
 
     
     
       11. The apparatus of  claim 10 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 select a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities based on the resource availability information for the DU entities; and 
 encode a DU resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected DU entity, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected DU entity. 
 
     
     
       12. The apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 decoding a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and 
 encode a DU resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected DU entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the DU resource release message to release network resources at the DU reserved for the network slice. 
 
     
     
       13. The apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising transceiver circuitry coupled to the processing circuitry; and, one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver circuitry. 
     
     
       14. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the instructions to configure the one or more processors for communication within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture and to cause the gNB to:
 decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE, the RRC request message for establishing a connection between the UE and a user plane function (UPF) of the 5G NR architecture in a network slice; 
 in response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice, encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; 
 decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; and 
 select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information. 
 
     
     
       15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 14 , wherein the resource status response message further includes:
 latency information for a first communication link between the CU-UP entity and a corresponding Distributed Unit (DU) entity of a plurality of DU entities within the gNB; and 
 latency information for a second communication link between the CU-UP and the UPF of the 5G NR architecture. 
 
     
     
       16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to:
 encode a response message for transmission to the UE, the response message identifying a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities and the selected CU-CP entity to handle data communications for the network slice, wherein the DU entity is selected from the plurality of DU entities at the gNB based on the latency information for the first communication link. 
 
     
     
       17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to:
 encode a latency measurement request message for transmission by the CU-UP entity to the corresponding DU entity via an F1-U interface, the latency measurement request message including a sequence number. 
 
     
     
       18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 17 , wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to:
 decode by the CU-UP entity, a latency measurement response message received from the corresponding DU entity, the latency measurement response message identifying the sequence number; and 
 determine the latency information for the first communication link based on a round-trip time between sending the latency measurement request message and receiving the latency measurement response message. 
 
     
     
       19. An apparatus of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the apparatus comprising:
 processing circuitry, wherein to configure the apparatus for communication with a User Equipment (UE) within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture using network slicing, the processing circuitry is to:
 in response to a confirmation message that a user equipment (UE) is authorized to communicate via a network slice, encode a Central Unit User Plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; 
 decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; 
 select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information; 
 encode a CU-UP resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity via an E1 interface, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected CU-UP entity; and 
 
 memory coupled to the processing circuitry, the memory configured to store the resource availability information. 
 
     
     
       20. The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the processing circuitry is further to:
 decode a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and 
 encode a CU-UP resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the CU-UP resource release message to release network resources at the CU-UP reserved for the network slice.

Description:
PRIORITY CLAIM 
     This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/582,858, filed Nov. 7, 2017, and entitled “ENABLING NETWORK SLICING IN 5G NR RAN WITH CP/UP SEPARATION,” which provisional patent applications is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Aspects pertain to wireless communications. Some aspects relate to wireless networks including 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) networks, 3GPP LTE (Long Term Evolution) networks, 3GPP LTE-A (LTE Advanced) networks, and fifth-generation (5G) networks including 5G new radio (NR) (or 5G-NR) networks and 5G-LTE networks. Other aspects are directed to enabling network slicing in a 5G-NR radio access network (RAN) with control plane (CP) and user plane (UP) separation. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Mobile communications have evolved significantly from early voice systems to today&#39;s highly sophisticated integrated communication platform. With the increase in different types of devices communicating with various network devices, usage of 3GPP LTE systems has increased. The penetration of mobile devices (user equipment or UEs) in modern society has continued to drive demand for a wide variety of networked devices in a number of disparate environments. Fifth generation (5G) wireless systems are forthcoming, and are expected to enable even greater speed, connectivity, and usability. Next generation 5G networks (or 5G-NR networks) are expected to increase throughput, coverage, and robustness and reduce latency and operational and capital expenditures. 5G-NR networks will continue to evolve based on 3GPP LTE-Advanced with additional potential new radio access technologies (RATs) to enrich people&#39;s lives with seamless wireless connectivity solutions delivering fast, rich content and services. As current cellular network frequency is saturated, higher frequencies, such as millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency, can be beneficial due to their high bandwidth. 
     Potential LTE operation in the unlicensed spectrum includes (and is not limited to) the LTE operation in the unlicensed spectrum via dual connectivity (DC), or DC-based LAA, and the standalone LTE system in the unlicensed spectrum, according to which LTE-based technology solely operates in unlicensed spectrum without requiring an “anchor” in the licensed spectrum, called MulteFire. MulteFire combines the performance benefits of LTE technology with the simplicity of Wi-Fi-like deployments. 
     Further enhanced operation of LTE systems in the licensed as well as unlicensed spectrum is expected in future releases and 5G-NR systems. Such enhanced operations can include techniques to address enabling network slicing in a 5G-NR RAN with CP/UP separation using different RAN interfaces. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       In the figures, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numerals may describe similar components in different views. Like numerals having different letter suffixes may represent different instances of similar components. The figures illustrate generally, by way of example, but not by way of limitation, various aspects discussed in the present document. 
         FIG. 1A  illustrates an architecture of a network in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1B  is a simplified diagram of an overall next generation (NG) system architecture in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1C  illustrates an example MulteFire Neutral Host Network (NHN) 5G architecture in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1D  illustrates a functional split between next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) and the 5G Core network (5GC) in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1E  and  FIG. 1F  illustrate a non-roaming 5G system architecture in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1G  illustrates an example Cellular Internet-of-Things (CIoT) network architecture in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1H  illustrates an example Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1I  illustrates an example roaming architecture for SCEF in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 1J  illustrates an example Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) New Radio Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) architecture in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates example components of a device  200  in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 4  is an illustration of a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 5  is an illustration of a user plane protocol stack in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 6  is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some example aspects, able to read instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. 
         FIG. 7  illustrates components of an exemplary 5G-NR architecture with control unit control plane (CU-CP)-control unit user plane (CU-UP) separation, in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 8  illustrates a processing flow diagram for performing latency measurements at a distributed unit (DU) of a next generation Node-B (gNB) initiated by a CU-CP, in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 9  illustrates a processing flow diagram for performing latency measurements at a DU of a gNB initiated by the DU, in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 10  illustrates generally a flowchart of example functionalities which can be performed in a wireless architecture in connection with configuring network slicing in a 5G-NR RAN with CP/UP separation, in accordance with some aspects. 
         FIG. 11  illustrates a block diagram of a communication device such as an evolved Node-B (eNB), a new generation Node-B (gNB), an access point (AP), a wireless station (STA), a mobile station (MS), or a user equipment (UE), in accordance with some aspects. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description and the drawings sufficiently illustrate aspects to enable those skilled in the art to practice them. Other aspects may incorporate structural, logical, electrical, process, and other changes. Portions and features of some aspects may be included in, or substituted for, those of other aspects. Aspects set forth in the claims encompass all available equivalents of those claims. 
       FIG. 1A  illustrates an architecture of a network in accordance with some aspects. The network  140 A is shown to include a user equipment (UE)  101  and a UE  102 . The UEs  101  and  102  may be smartphones (e.g., handheld touchscreen mobile computing devices connectable to one or more cellular networks) or any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as Personal Data Assistants (PDAs), pagers, laptop computers, desktop computers, wireless handsets, drones, or any other computing device including a wired or wireless communications interface. In some aspects, the UE  101  or  102  may be Internet-of-Things (IoT)-enabled devices, configured to communicate with a RAN  110  or a core network (CN)  120 , including but not limited to vehicles or drones. 
     In some aspects, any of the UEs  101  or  102  can comprise an IoT UE or a Cellular IoT (CIoT) UE, which can comprise a network access layer designed for low-power IoT applications utilizing short-lived UE connections. In some aspects, any of the UEs  101  and  102  can include a narrowband (NB) IoT UE (e.g., such as an enhanced NB-IoT (eNB-IoT) UE and Further Enhanced (FeNB-IoT) UE). An IoT UE can utilize technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) or machine-type communications (MTC) for exchanging data with an MTC server or device via a public land mobile network (PLMN), Proximity-Based Service (ProSe) or device-to-device (D2D) communication, sensor networks, or IoT networks. The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiated exchange of data. An IoT network includes interconnecting IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure), with short-lived connections. The IoT UEs may execute background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the IoT network. In some aspects, any of the UEs  101  and  102  can include enhanced MTC (eMTC) UEs or further enhanced MTC (FeMTC) UEs. 
     The UEs  101  and  102  may be configured to connect, e.g., communicatively couple, with a radio access network (RAN)  110 . The RAN  110  may be, for example, an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), a NextGen RAN (NG RAN), or some other type of RAN. The UEs  101  and  102  utilize connections  103  and  104 , respectively, each of which comprises a physical communications interface or layer (discussed in further detail below); in this example, the connections  103  and  104  are illustrated as an air interface to enable communicative coupling, and can be consistent with cellular communications protocols, such as a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) protocol, a code-division multiple access (CDMA) network protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular (POC) protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth generation (5G) protocol, a New Radio (NR) protocol, and the like. In some aspects, the network  140 A can include a core network (CN)  120 . Various aspects of NG RAN and NG Core are discussed herein in reference to, e.g.,  FIGS. 1B-1J . 
     In an aspect, the UEs  101  and  102  may further directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface  105 . The ProSe interface  105  may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink interface comprising one or more logical channels, including but not limited to a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH), and a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH). 
     The UE  102  is shown to be configured to access an access point (AP)  106  via connection  107 . The connection  107  can comprise a local wireless connection, such as, for example, a connection consistent with any IEEE 802.11 protocol, according to which the AP  106  can comprise a wireless fidelity (WiFi®) router. In this example, the AP  106  is shown to be connected to the Internet without connecting to the core network of the wireless system (described in further detail below). 
     The RAN  110  can include one or more access nodes (ANs) or access points (APs) that enable the connections  103  and  104 . These access nodes (ANs) can be referred to as base stations (BSs), NodeBs, evolved NodeBs (eNBs), Next Generation NodeBs (gNBs), RAN nodes, and the like, and can comprise ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). In some aspects, the communication nodes  111  and  112  can be transmission/reception points (TRPs). In instances when the communication nodes  111  and  112  are NodeBs (e.g., eNBs or gNBs), one or more TRPs can function within the communication cell of the NodeBs. In some aspects, a NodeB can be a E-UTRA-NR (EN)-gNB (en-gNB) configured to support E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) (e.g., multi-RAT Dual Connectivity (MR-DC)), in which a UE may be connected to one eNB that acts as a master node (MN) and one en-gNB that acts as a secondary node (SN). 
     The RAN  110  may include one or more RAN nodes for providing macrocells, e.g., macro RAN node  111 , and one or more RAN nodes for providing femtocells or picocells (e.g., cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells), e.g., low power (LP) RAN node  112 . Any of the RAN nodes  111  and  112  can terminate the air interface protocol and can be the first point of contact for the UEs  101  and  102 . In some aspects, any of the RAN nodes  111  and  112  can fulfill various logical functions for the RAN  110  including, but not limited to, radio network controller (RNC) functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobility management. In an example, any of the nodes  111  or  112  can be a new generation node-B (gNB), an evolved node-B (eNB), or another type of RAN node. 
     In accordance with some aspects, the UEs  101  and  102  can be configured to communicate using Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communication signals with each other or with any of the RAN nodes  111  and  112  over a multicarrier communication channel in accordance various communication techniques, such as, but not limited to, an Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) communication technique (e.g., for downlink communications) or a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) communication technique (e.g., for uplink and ProSe for sidelink communications), although such aspects are not required. The OFDM signals can comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers. 
     In some aspects, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlink transmissions from any of the RAN nodes  111  and  112  to the UEs  101  and  102 , while uplink transmissions can utilize similar techniques. The grid can be a time-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time-frequency resource grid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in each slot. Such a time-frequency plane representation may be used for OFDM systems, which makes it applicable for radio resource allocation. Each column and each row of the resource grid may correspond to one OFDM symbol and one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain may correspond to one slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid may be denoted as a resource element. Each resource grid may comprise a number of resource blocks, which describe mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block may comprise a collection of resource elements; in the frequency domain, this may, in some aspects, represent the smallest quantity of resources that currently can be allocated. There may be several different physical downlink channels that are conveyed using such resource blocks. 
     The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) may carry user data and higher-layer signaling to the UEs  101  and  102 . The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) may carry information about the transport format and resource allocations related to the PDSCH channel, among other things. It may also inform the UEs  101  and  102  about the transport format, resource allocation, and H-ARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling (assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to the UE  102  within a cell) may be performed at any of the RAN nodes  111  and  112  based on channel quality information fed back from any of the UEs  101  and  102 . The downlink resource assignment information may be sent on the PDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each of the UEs  101  and  102 . 
     The PDCCH may use control channel elements (CCEs) to convey the control information. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCH complex-valued symbols may first be organized into quadruplets, which may then be permuted using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching. Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as resource element groups (REGs). Four Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH can be transmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of the downlink control information (DCI) and the channel condition. There can be four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation level, L=1, 2, 4, or 8). 
     Some aspects may use concepts for resource allocation for control channel information that are an extension of the above-described concepts. For example, some aspects may utilize an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) that uses PDSCH resources for control information transmission. The EPDCCH may be transmitted using one or more enhanced control channel elements (ECCEs). Similar to above, each ECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as an enhanced resource element groups (EREGs). An ECCE may have other numbers of EREGs according to some arrangements. 
     The RAN  110  is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network (CN)  120  via an S1 interface  113 . In aspects, the CN  120  may be an evolved packet core (EPC) network, a NextGen Packet Core (NPC) network, or some other type of CN (e.g., as illustrated in reference to  FIGS. 1B-1I ). In this aspect, the S1 interface  113  is split into two parts: the S1-U interface  114 , which carries traffic data between the RAN nodes  111  and  112  and the serving gateway (S-GW)  122 , and the S1-mobility management entity (MME) interface  115 , which is a signaling interface between the RAN nodes  111  and  112  and MMEs  121 . 
     In this aspect, the CN  120  comprises the MMEs  121 , the S-GW  122 , the Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW)  123 , and a home subscriber server (HSS)  124 . The MMEs  121  may be similar in function to the control plane of legacy Serving General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Support Nodes (SGSN). The MMEs  121  may manage mobility aspects in access such as gateway selection and tracking area list management. The HSS  124  may comprise a database for network users, including subscription-related information to support the network entities&#39; handling of communication sessions. The CN  120  may comprise one or several HSSs  124 , depending on the number of mobile subscribers, on the capacity of the equipment, on the organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS  124  can provide support for routing/roaming, authentication, authorization, naming/addressing resolution, location dependencies, etc. 
     The S-GW  122  may terminate the S1 interface  113  towards the RAN  110 , and routes data packets between the RAN  110  and the CN  120 . In addition, the S-GW  122  may be a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN node handovers and also may provide an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities of the S-GW  122  may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policy enforcement. 
     The P-GW  123  may terminate a SGi interface toward a PDN. The P-GW  123  may route data packets between the EPC network  120  and external networks such as a network including the application server  184  (alternatively referred to as application function (AF)) via an Internet Protocol (IP) interface  125 . The P-GW  123  can also communicate data to other external networks  131 A, which can include the Internet, IP multimedia subsystem (IPS) network, and other networks. Generally, the application server  184  may be an element offering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (e.g., UMTS Packet Services (PS) domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). In this aspect, the P-GW  123  is shown to be communicatively coupled to an application server  184  via an IP interface  125 . The application server  184  can also be configured to support one or more communication services (e.g., Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.) for the UEs  101  and  102  via the CN  120 . 
     The P-GW  123  may further include a node for policy enforcement and charging data collection. Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF)  126  is the policy and charging control element of the CN  120 . In a non-roaming scenario, in some aspects, there may be a single PCRF in the Home Public Land Mobile Network (HPLMN) associated with a UE&#39;s Internet Protocol Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roaming scenario with local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE&#39;s IP-CAN session: a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) within a HPLMN and a Visited PCRF (V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN). The PCRF  126  may be communicatively coupled to the application server  184  via the P-GW  123 . The application server  184  may signal the PCRF  126  to indicate a new service flow and select the appropriate Quality of Service (QoS) and charging parameters. The PCRF  126  may provision this rule into a Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) (not shown) with the appropriate traffic flow template (TFT) and QoS class of identifier (QCI), which commences the QoS and charging as specified by the application server  184 . 
     In an example, any of the nodes  111  or  112  can be configured to communicate to the UEs  101 ,  102  (e.g., dynamically) an antenna panel selection and a receive (Rx) beam selection that can be used by the UE for data reception on a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) as well as for channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) measurements and channel state information (CSI) calculation. In an example, any of the nodes  111  or  112  can be configured to communicate to the UEs  101 ,  102  (e.g., dynamically) an antenna panel selection and a transmit (Tx) beam selection that can be used by the UE for data transmission on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) as well as for sounding reference signal (SRS) transmission. 
     In some aspects, the communication network  140 A can be an IoT network. One of the current enablers of IoT is the narrowband-IoT (NB-IoT). NB-IoT has objectives such as coverage extension, UE complexity reduction, long battery lifetime, and backward compatibility with the LTE network. In addition, NB-IoT aims to offer deployment flexibility allowing an operator to introduce NB-IoT using a small portion of its existing available spectrum, and operate in one of the following three modalities: (a) standalone deployment (the network operates in re-farmed GSM spectrum); (b) in-band deployment (the network operates within the LTE channel); and (c) guard-band deployment (the network operates in the guard band of legacy LTE channels). In some aspects, such as with further enhanced NB-IoT (FeNB-IoT), support for NB-IoT in small cells can be provided (e.g., in microcell, picocell or femtocell deployments). One of the challenges NB-IoT systems face for small cell support is the UL/DL link imbalance, where for small cells the base stations have lower power available compared to macro-cells, and, consequently, the DL coverage can be affected or reduced. In addition, some NB-IoT UEs can be configured to transmit at maximum power if repetitions are used for UL transmission. This may result in large inter-cell interference in dense small cell deployments. 
       FIG. 1B  is a simplified diagram of a next generation (NG) system architecture  140 B in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1B , the NG system architecture  140 B includes NG-RAN  110  and a 5G network core (5GC)  120 . The NG-RAN  110  can include a plurality of nodes, such as gNBs  128 A and  128 B, and NG-eNBs  130 A and  130 B. The gNBs  128  (e.g.,  128 A and  128 B) and the NG-eNBs  130  (e.g.,  130 A and  130 B) can be communicatively coupled to the UE  102  via, for example, an N1 interface. 
     The core network  120  (e.g., a 5G core network or 5GC) can include an access and mobility management function (AMF)  132  or a user plane function (UPF)  134 . The AMF  132  and the UPF  134  can be communicatively coupled to the gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  via NG interfaces. More specifically, in some aspects, the gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  can be connected to the AMF  132  by NG-C interfaces, and to the UPF  134  by NG-U interfaces. The gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  can be coupled to each other via Xn interfaces. 
     In some aspects, the gNB  128 A or  128 B can include a node providing new radio (NR) user plane and control plane protocol termination towards the UE, and is connected via the NG interface to the 5GC  120 . In some aspects, the NG-eNB  130 A or  130 B can include a node providing evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE, and is connected via the NG interface to the 5GC  120 . In some aspects, each of the gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  can be implemented as a base station, a mobile edge server, a small cell, a home eNB, and so forth. 
     In some aspects, the system architecture  140 B can be a 5G-NR system architecture providing network slicing architecture and supporting policy configuration and enforcement between network slices as per service level agreements (SLAs) within the RAN  110 . Additionally and as illustrated in greater detail in  FIG. 7 , the RAN  110  can provide separation of central unit control plane (CU-CP) and central unit user plane (CU-UP) functionalities while supporting network slicing (e.g., using resource availability and latency information communication via different RAN interfaces, such as E1, F1-C, and F1-U interfaces). In some aspects, the US  102  can communicate RRC signaling  190 B to the gNB  128 B for establishing a connection with an entity (e.g., UPF  134 ) of the 5GC  120 . The gNB  128 B can include separate distributed units (DUs), CU-CP, and CU-UP entities (as illustrated in  FIG. 7 ). The CU-CP entity can obtain resource utilization and latency information from the DU and CU-UP entities, and select a DU/CU-UP pair based on such information for purposes of configuring the network slice. Network slice configuration information  192 B associated with the configured network slice can be provided to the UE  102  for purposes of initiating data communication with the 5GC UPF entity using the network slice. 
       FIG. 1C  illustrates an example MulteFire Neutral Host Network (NHN) 5G architecture  140 C in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1C , the MulteFire 5G architecture  140 C can include the UE  102 , NG-RAN  110 , and core network  120 . The NG-RAN  110  can be a MulteFire NG-RAN (MF NG-RAN), and the core network  120  can be a MulteFire 5G neutral host network (NHN). In some aspects, the MF NHN  120  can include a neutral host AMF (NH AMF)  132 , a NH SMF  136 , a NH UPF  134 , and a local AAA proxy  151 C. The AAA proxy  151 C can provide connection to a 3GPP AAA server  155 C and a participating service provider AAA (PSP AAA) server  153 C. The NH-UPF  134  can provide a connection to a data network  157 C. 
     The MF NG-RAN  120  can provide similar functionalities as an NG-RAN operating under a 3GPP specification. The NH-AMF  132  can be configured to provide similar functionality as a AMF in a 3GPP 5G core network (e.g., as described in reference to  FIG. 1D ). The NH-SMF  136  can be configured to provide similar functionality as a SMF in a 3GPP 5G core network (e.g., as described in reference to  FIG. 1D ). The NH-UPF  134  can be configured to provide similar functionality as a UPF in a 3GPP 5G core network (e.g., as described in reference to  FIG. 1D ). 
       FIG. 1D  illustrates a functional split between NG-RAN and the 5G Core (5GC) in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1D , there is illustrated a more detailed diagram of the functionalities that can be performed by the gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  within the NG-RAN  110 , as well as the AMF  132 , the UPF  134 , and the SMF  136  within the 5GC  120 . In some aspects, the 5GC  120  can provide access to the Internet  138  to one or more devices via the NG-RAN  110 . 
     In some aspects, the gNBs  128  and the NG-eNBs  130  can be configured to host the following functions: functions for Radio Resource Management (e.g., inter-cell radio resource management  129 A, radio bearer control  129 B, connection mobility control  129 C, radio admission control  129 D, dynamic allocation of resources to UEs in both uplink and downlink (scheduling)  129 F); IP header compression, encryption and integrity protection of data; selection of an AMF at UE attachment when no routing to an AMF can be determined from the information provided by the UE; routing of User Plane data towards UPF(s); routing of Control Plane information towards AMF; connection setup and release; scheduling and transmission of paging messages (originated from the AMF); scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (originated from the AMF or Operation and Maintenance); measurement and measurement reporting configuration for mobility and scheduling  129 E; transport level packet marking in the uplink; session management; support of network slicing; QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers; support of UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state; distribution function for non-access stratum (NAS) messages; radio access network sharing; dual connectivity; and tight interworking between NR and E-UTRA, to name a few. 
     In some aspects, the AMF  132  can be configured to host the following functions, for example: NAS signaling termination; NAS signaling security  133 A; access stratum (AS) security control; inter core network (CN) node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks; idle state/mode mobility handling  133 B, including mobile device, such as a UE reachability (e.g., control and execution of paging retransmission); registration area management; support of intra-system and inter-system mobility; access authentication; access authorization including check of roaming rights; mobility management control (subscription and policies); support of network slicing; or SMF selection, among other functions. 
     The UPF  134  can be configured to host the following functions, for example: mobility anchoring  135 A (e.g., anchor point for Intra-/Inter-RAT mobility); packet data unit (PDU) handling  135 B (e.g., external PDU session point of interconnect to data network); packet routing and forwarding; packet inspection and user plane part of policy rule enforcement; traffic usage reporting; uplink classifier to support routing traffic flows to a data network; branching point to support multi-homed PDU session; QoS handling for user plane, e.g., packet filtering, gating, UL/DL rate enforcement; uplink traffic verification (SDF to QoS flow mapping); or downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering, among other functions. 
     The Session Management function (SMF)  136  can be configured to host the following functions, for example: session management; UE IP address allocation and management  137 A; selection and control of user plane function (UPF); PDU session control  137 B, including configuring traffic steering at UPF  134  to route traffic to proper destination; control part of policy enforcement and QoS; or downlink data notification, among other functions. 
       FIG. 1E  and  FIG. 1F  illustrate a non-roaming 5G system architecture in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1E , there is illustrated a 5G system architecture  140 E in a reference point representation. More specifically, UE  102  can be in communication with RAN  110  as well as one or more other 5G core (5GC) network entities. The 5G system architecture  140 E includes a plurality of network functions (NFs), such as access and mobility management function (AMF)  132 , session management function (SMF)  136 , policy control function (PCF)  148 , application function (AF)  150 , user plane function (UPF)  134 , network slice selection function (NSSF)  142 , authentication server function (AUSF)  144 , and unified data management (UDM)/home subscriber server (HSS)  146 . The UPF  134  can provide a connection to a data network (DN)  152 , which can include, for example, operator services, Internet access, or third-party services. The AMF  132  can be used to manage access control and mobility, and can also include network slice selection functionality. The SMF  136  can be configured to set up and manage various sessions according to a network policy. The UPF  134  can be deployed in one or more configurations according to a desired service type. The PCF  148  can be configured to provide a policy framework using network slicing, mobility management, and roaming (similar to PCRF in a 4G communication system). The UDM can be configured to store subscriber profiles and data (similar to an HSS in a 4G communication system). 
     In some aspects, the 5G system architecture  140 E includes an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS)  168 E as well as a plurality of IP multimedia core network subsystem entities, such as call session control functions (CSCFs). More specifically, the IMS  168 E includes a CSCF, which can act as a proxy CSCF (P-CSCF)  162 E, a serving CSCF (S-CSCF)  164 E, an emergency CSCF (E-CSCF) (not illustrated in  FIG. 1E ), or interrogating CSCF (I-CSCF)  166 E. The P-CSCF  162 E can be configured to be the first contact point for the UE  102  within the IM subsystem (IMS)  168 E. The S-CSCF  164 E can be configured to handle the session states in the network, and the E-CSCF can be configured to handle certain aspects of emergency sessions such as routing an emergency request to the correct emergency center or PSAP. The I-CSCF  166 E can be configured to function as the contact point within an operator&#39;s network for all IMS connections destined to a subscriber of that network operator, or a roaming subscriber currently located within that network operator&#39;s service area. In some aspects, the I-CSCF  166 E can be connected to another IP multimedia network  170 E, e.g. an IMS operated by a different network operator. 
     In some aspects, the UDM/HSS  146  can be coupled to an application server  160 E, which can include a telephony application server (TAS) or another application server (AS). The AS  160 E can be coupled to the IMS  168 E via the S-CSCF  164 E or the I-CSCF  166 E. In some aspects, the 5G system architecture  140 E can use a unified access barring mechanism using one or more of the techniques described herein, which access barring mechanism can be applicable for all RRC states of the UE  102 , such as RRC_IDLE, RRC_CONNECTED, and RRC_INACTIVE states. 
     In some aspects, the 5G system architecture  140 E can be configured to use 5G access control mechanism techniques described herein, based on access categories that can be categorized by a minimum default set of access categories, which are common across all networks. This functionality can allow the public land mobile network PLMN, such as a visited PLMN (VPLMN) to protect the network against different types of registration attempts, enable acceptable service for the roaming subscriber and enable the VPLMN to control access attempts aiming at receiving certain basic services. It also provides more options and flexibility to individual operators by providing a set of access categories, which can be configured and used in operator specific ways. 
       FIG. 1F  illustrates a 5G system architecture  140 F and a service-based representation. System architecture  140 F can be substantially similar to (or the same as) system architecture  140 E. In addition to the network entities illustrated in  FIG. 1E , system architecture  140 F can also include a network exposure function (NEF)  154  and a network repository function (NRF)  156 . In some aspects, 5G system architectures can be service-based and interaction between network functions can be represented by corresponding point-to-point reference points Ni (as illustrated in  FIG. 1E ) or as service-based interfaces (as illustrated in  FIG. 1F ). 
     A reference point representation shows that an interaction can exist between corresponding NF services. For example,  FIG. 1E  illustrates the following reference points: N1 (between the UE  102  and the AMF  132 ), N2 (between the RAN  110  and the AMF  132 ), N3 (between the RAN  110  and the UPF  134 ), N4 (between the SMF  136  and the UPF  134 ), N5 (between the PCF  148  and the AF  150 , not shown), N6 (between the UPF  134  and the DN  152 ), N7 (between the SMF  136  and the PCF  148 , not shown), N8 (between the UDM  146  and the AMF  132 , not shown), N9 (between two UPFs  134 , not shown), N10 (between the UDM  146  and the SMF  136 , not shown), N11 (between the AMF  132  and the SMF  136 , not shown), N12 (between the AUSF  144  and the AMF  132 , not shown), N13 (between the AUSF  144  and the UDM  146 , not shown), N14 (between two AMFs  132 , not shown), N15 (between the PCF  148  and the AMF  132  in case of a non-roaming scenario, or between the PCF  148  and a visited network and AMF  132  in case of a roaming scenario, not shown), N16 (between two SMFs, not shown), and N22 (between AMF  132  and NSSF  142 , not shown). Other reference point representations not shown in  FIG. 1E  can also be used. 
     In some aspects, as illustrated in  FIG. 1F , service-based representations can be used to represent network functions within the control plane that enable other authorized network functions to access their services. In this regard, 5G system architecture  140 F can include the following service-based interfaces: Namf  158 H (a service-based interface exhibited by the AMF  132 ), Nsmf  158 I (a service-based interface exhibited by the SMF  136 ), Nnef  158 B (a service-based interface exhibited by the NEF  154 ), Npcf  158 D (a service-based interface exhibited by the PCF  148 ), a Nudm  158 E (a service-based interface exhibited by the UDM  146 ), Naf  158 F (a service-based interface exhibited by the AF  150 ), Nnrf  158 C (a service-based interface exhibited by the NRF  156 ), Nnssf  158 A (a service-based interface exhibited by the NSSF  142 ), Nausf  158 G (a service-based interface exhibited by the AUSF  144 ). Other service-based interfaces (e.g., Nudr, N5g-eir, and Nudsf) not shown in  FIG. 1F  can also be used. 
       FIG. 1G  illustrates an example CIoT network architecture in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1G , the CIoT architecture  140 G can include the UE  102  and the RAN  110  coupled to a plurality of core network entities. In some aspects, the UE  102  can be machine-type communication (MTC) UE. The CIoT network architecture  140 G can further include a mobile services switching center (MSC)  160 , MME  121 , a serving GPRS support note (SGSN)  162 , a S-GW  122 , an IP-Short-Message-Gateway (IP-SM-GW)  164 , a Short Message Service Service Center (SMS-SC)/gateway mobile service center (GMSC)/Interworking MSC (IWMSC)  166 , MTC interworking function (MTC-IWF)  170 , a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF)  172 , a gateway GPRS support node (GGSN)/Packet-GW (P-GW)  174 , a charging data function (CDF)/charging gateway function (CGF)  176 , a home subscriber server (HSS)/a home location register (HLR)  177 , short message entities (SME)  168 , MTC authorization, authentication, and accounting (MTC AAA) server  178 , a service capability server (SCS)  180 , and application servers (AS)  182  and  184 . In some aspects, the SCEF  172  can be configured to securely expose services and capabilities provided by various 3GPP network interfaces. The SCEF  172  can also provide means for the discovery of the exposed services and capabilities, as well as access to network capabilities through various network application programming interfaces (e.g., API interfaces to the SCS  180 ). 
       FIG. 1G  further illustrates various reference points between different servers, functions, or communication nodes of the CIoT network architecture  140 G. Some example reference points related to MTC-IWF  170  and SCEF  172  include the following: Tsms (a reference point used by an entity outside the 3GPP network to communicate with UEs used for MTC via SMS), Tsp (a reference point used by a SCS to communicate with the MTC-IWF related control plane signaling), T4 (a reference point used between MTC-IWF  170  and the SMS-SC  166  in the HPLMN), T6a (a reference point used between SCEF  172  and serving MME  121 ), T6b (a reference point used between SCEF  172  and serving SGSN  162 ), T8 (a reference point used between the SCEF  172  and the SCS/AS  180 / 182 ), S6m (a reference point used by MTC-IWF  170  to interrogate HSS/HLR  177 ), S6n (a reference point used by MTC-AAA server  178  to interrogate HSS/HLR  177 ), and S6t (a reference point used between SCEF  172  and HSS/HLR  177 ). 
     In some aspects, the CIoT UE  102  can be configured to communicate with one or more entities within the CIoT architecture  140 G via the RAN  110  according to a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocol, and using one or more reference points, such as a narrowband air interface, for example, based on one or more communication technologies, such as Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) technology. As used herein, the term “CIoT UE” refers to a UE capable of CIoT optimizations, as part of a CIoT communications architecture. In some aspects, the NAS protocol can support a set of NAS messages for communication between the CIoT UE  102  and an Evolved Packet System (EPS) Mobile Management Entity (MME)  121  and SGSN  162 . In some aspects, the CIoT network architecture  140 F can include a packet data network, an operator network, or a cloud service network, having, for example, among other things, a Service Capability Server (SCS)  180 , an Application Server (AS)  182 , or one or more other external servers or network components. 
     The RAN  110  can be coupled to the HSS/HLR servers  177  and the AAA servers  178  using one or more reference points including, for example, an air interface based on an S6a reference point, and configured to authenticate/authorize CIoT UE  102  to access the CIoT network. The RAN  110  can be coupled to the CIoT network architecture  140 G using one or more other reference points including, for example, an air interface corresponding to an SGi/Gi interface for 3GPP accesses. The RAN  110  can be coupled to the SCEF  172  using, for example, an air interface based on a T6a/T6b reference point, for service capability exposure. In some aspects, the SCEF  172  may act as an API GW towards a third-party application server such as AS  182 . The SCEF  172  can be coupled to the HSS/HLR  177  and MTC AAA  178  servers using an S6t reference point, and can further expose an Application Programming Interface to network capabilities. 
     In certain examples, one or more of the CIoT devices disclosed herein, such as the CIoT UE  102 , the CIoT RAN  110 , etc., can include one or more other non-CIoT devices, or non-CIoT devices acting as CIoT devices, or having functions of a CIoT device. For example, the CIoT UE  102  can include a smart phone, a tablet computer, or one or more other electronic device acting as a CIoT device for a specific function, while having other additional functionality. In some aspects, the RAN  110  can include a CIoT enhanced Node B (CIoT eNB)  111  communicatively coupled to the CIoT Access Network Gateway (CIoT GW)  195 . In certain examples, the RAN  110  can include multiple base stations (e.g., CIoT eNBs) connected to the CIoT GW  195 , which can include MSC  160 , MME  121 , SGSN  162 , or S-GW  122 . In certain examples, the internal architecture of RAN  110  and CIoT GW  195  may be left to the implementation and need not be standardized. 
       FIG. 1H  illustrates an example Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1H , the SCEF  172  can be configured to expose services and capabilities provided by 3GPP network interfaces to external third-party service provider servers hosting various applications. In some aspects, a 3GPP network such as the CIoT architecture  140 G, can expose the following services and capabilities: a home subscriber server (HSS)  116 H, a policy and charging rules function (PCRF)  118 H, a packet flow description function (PFDF)  120 H, a MME/SGSN  122 H, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC)  124 H, a serving call server control function (S-CSCF)  126 H, a RAN congestion awareness function (RCAF)  128 H, and one or more other network entities  130 H. The above-mentioned services and capabilities of a 3GPP network can communicate with the SCEF  172  via one or more interfaces as illustrated in  FIG. 1H . 
     The SCEF  172  can be configured to expose the 3GPP network services and capabilities to one or more applications running on one or more service capability server (SCS)/application server (AS), such as SCS/AS  102 H,  104 H, . . . ,  106 H. Each of the SCS/AG  102 H- 106 H can communicate with the SCEF  172  via application programming interfaces (APIs)  108 H,  110 H,  112 H, . . . ,  114 H, as seen in  FIG. 1H . 
       FIG. 1I  illustrates an example roaming architecture for SCEF in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1I , the SCEF  172  can be located in HPLMN  1101  and can be configured to expose 3GPP network services and capabilities, such as  102 I, . . . ,  104 I. In some aspects, 3GPP network services and capabilities, such as  106 I, . . . ,  108 I, can be located within VPLMN  112 I. In this case, the 3GPP network services and capabilities within the VPLMN  112 I can be exposed to the SCEF  172  via an interworking SCEF (IWK-SCEF)  197  within the VPLMN  112 I. 
       FIG. 1J  illustrates an example Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) New Radio Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) architecture in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 1J , the EN-DC architecture  140 J includes radio access network (or E-TRA network, or E-TRAN)  110  and EPC  120 . The EPC  120  can include MMEs  121  and S-GWs  122 . The E-UTRAN  110  can include nodes  111  (e.g., eNBs) as well as Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access New Radio (EN) next generation evolved Node-Bs (en-gNBs)  128 . 
     In some aspects, en-gNBs  128  can be configured to provide NR user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE  102 , and acting as Secondary Nodes (or SgNBs) in the EN-DC communication architecture  140 J. The eNBs  111  can be configured as master nodes (or MeNBs) in the EN-DC communication architecture  140 J. as illustrated in  FIG. 1J , the eNBs  111  are connected to the EPC  120  via the S1 interface and to the EN-gNBs  128  via the X2 interface. The EN-gNBs  128  may be connected to the EPC  120  via the S1-U interface, and to other EN-gNBs via the X2-U interface. The SgNB  128  can communicate with the UE  102  via a UU interface (e.g., using signalling radio bearer type 3, or SRB3 communications as illustrated in  FIG. 1J ), and with the MeNB  111  via an X2 interface (e.g., X2-C interface). The MeNB  111  can communicate with the UE  102  via a UU interface. 
     Even though  FIG. 1J  is described in connection with EN-DC communication environment, other types of dual connectivity communication architectures (e.g., when the UE  102  is connected to a master node and a secondary node) can also use the techniques disclosed herein. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates example components of a device  200  in accordance with some aspects. In some aspects, the device  200  may include application circuitry  202 , baseband circuitry  204 , Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry  206 , front-end module (FEM) circuitry  208 , one or more antennas  210 , and power management circuitry (PMC)  212  coupled together at least as shown. The components of the illustrated device  200  may be included in a UE or a RAN node. In some aspects, the device  200  may include fewer elements (e.g., a RAN node may not utilize application circuitry  202 , and instead include a processor/controller to process IP data received from an EPC). In some aspects, the device  200  may include additional elements such as, for example, memory/storage, display, camera, sensor, or input/output (I/O) interface elements. In other aspects, the components described below may be included in more than one device (e.g., said circuitries may be separately included in more than one device for Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementations). 
     The application circuitry  202  may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuitry  202  may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination of general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, and dedicated processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupled with, or may include, memory/storage and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory/storage to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the device  200 . In some aspects, processors of application circuitry  202  may process IP data packets received from an EPC. 
     The baseband circuitry  204  may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuitry  204  may include one or more baseband processors or control logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signal path of the RF circuitry  206  and to generate baseband signals for a transmit signal path of the RF circuitry  206 . Baseband processing circuitry  204  may interface with the application circuitry  202  for generation and processing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of the RF circuitry  206 . For example, in some aspects, the baseband circuitry  204  may include a third generation (3G) baseband processor  204 A, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor  204 B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor  204 C, or other baseband processor(s)  204 D for other existing generations, generations in development or to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuitry  204  (e.g., one or more of baseband processors  204 A-D) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry  206 . In other aspects, some or all of the functionality of baseband processors  204 A-D may be included in modules stored in the memory  204 G and executed via a Central Processing Unit (CPU)  204 E. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some aspects, modulation/demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry  204  may include Fast-Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping/de-mapping functionality. In some aspects, encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry  204  may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or Low-Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functionality. Aspects of modulation/demodulation and encoder/decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functionality in other aspects. 
     In some aspects, the baseband circuitry  204  may include one or more audio digital signal processor(s) (DSP)  204 F. The audio DSP(s)  204 F may be include elements for compression/decompression and echo cancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in other aspects. Components of the baseband circuitry  204  may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board in some aspects. In some aspects, some or all of the constituent components of the baseband circuitry  204  and the application circuitry  202  may be implemented together such as, for example, on a system on a chip (SOC). 
     In some aspects, the baseband circuitry  204  may provide for communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some aspects, the baseband circuitry  204  may support communication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), or a wireless personal area network (WPAN). Baseband circuitry  204  configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry, in some aspects. 
     RF circuitry  206  may enable communication with wireless networks using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various aspects, the RF circuitry  206  may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wireless network. RF circuitry  206  may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry  208  and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry  204 . RF circuitry  206  may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by the baseband circuitry  204  and provide RF output signals to the FEM circuitry  208  for transmission. 
     In some aspects, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry  206  may include a mixer  206 A, an amplifier  206 B, and a filter  206 C. In some aspects, the transmit signal path of the RF circuitry  206  may include a filter  206 C and a mixer  206 A. RF circuitry  206  may also include a synthesizer  206 D for synthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry  208  based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer  206 D. The amplifier  206 B may be configured to amplify the down-converted signals and the filter  206 C may be a low-pass filter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the baseband circuitry  204  for further processing. In some aspects, the output baseband signals may optionally be zero-frequency baseband signals. In some aspects, mixer  206 A of the receive signal path may comprise passive mixers. 
     In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the transmit signal path may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer  206 D to generate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry  208 . The baseband signals may be provided by the baseband circuitry  204  and may be filtered by filter  206 C. 
     In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path and the mixer  206 A of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature down conversion and up conversion, respectively. In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path and the mixer  206 A of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path and the mixer  206 A may be arranged for direct down conversion and direct up conversion, respectively. In some aspects, the mixer  206 A of the receive signal path and the mixer  206 A of the transmit signal path may be configured for super-heterodyne operation. 
     In some aspects, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may optionally be analog baseband signals. According to some alternate aspects, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be digital baseband signals. In these alternate aspects, the RF circuitry  206  may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry  204  may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuitry  206 . In some dual-mode aspects, a separate radio IC circuitry may optionally be provided for processing signals for each spectrum. In some aspects, the synthesizer  206 D may optionally be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, the synthesizer  206 D may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider. 
     The synthesizer  206 D may be configured to synthesize an output frequency for use by the mixer  206 A of the RF circuitry  206  based on a frequency input and a divider control input. In some aspects, the synthesizer  206 D may be a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer. 
     In some aspects, frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement. Divider control input may be provided, for example, by either the baseband circuitry  204  or the applications circuitry  202  depending on the desired output frequency. In some aspects, a divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by the applications circuitry  202 . 
     Synthesizer circuitry  206 D of the RF circuitry  206  may include a divider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phase accumulator. In some aspects, the divider may be a dual modulus divider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some aspects, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example aspects, the DLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these aspects, the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Nd equal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to assist in keeping the total delay through the delay line to one VCO cycle. 
     In some aspects, synthesizer circuitry  206 D may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other aspects, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, or four times the carrier frequency) and may be used in conjunction with quadrature generator and divider circuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency with multiple different phases with respect to each other. In some aspects, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In some aspects, the RF circuitry  206  may include an IQ/polar converter. 
     FEM circuitry  208  may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas  210 , or to amplify the received signals and provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the RF circuitry  206  for further processing. FEM circuitry  208  may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals for transmission provided by the RF circuitry  206  for transmission by one or more of the one or more antennas  210 . In various aspects, the amplification through the transmit signal paths or the receive signal paths may be done in part or solely in the RF circuitry  206 , in part or solely in the FEM circuitry  208 , or in both the RF circuitry  206  and the FEM circuitry  208 . 
     In some aspects, the FEM circuitry  208  may include a TX/RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry  208  may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry  208  may include an LNA to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RF signals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry  206 ). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry  208  may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RF circuitry  206 ), and one or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or more antennas  210 ). 
     In some aspects, the PMC  212  may manage power provided to the baseband circuitry  204 . The PMC  212  may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion. The PMC  212  may, in some aspects, be included when the device  200  is capable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device is included in a UE. The PMC  212  may increase the power conversion efficiency while providing beneficial implementation size and heat dissipation characteristics. 
       FIG. 2  shows the PMC  212  coupled with the baseband circuitry  204 . In other aspects, the PMC  212  may be additionally or alternatively coupled with, and perform similar power management operations for, other components such as, but not limited to, application circuitry  202 , RF circuitry  206 , or FEM circuitry  208 . 
     In some aspects, the PMC  212  may control, or otherwise be part of, various power saving mechanisms of the device  200 . For example, if the device  200  is in an RRC_Connected state, in which it is still connected to the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it may enter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a period of inactivity. During this state, the device  200  may power down for brief intervals of time and thus save power. 
     According to some aspects, if there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, then the device  200  may transition off to an RRC_Idle state, in which it disconnects from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device  200  goes into a very low power state and it performs paging during which it periodically wakes up to listen to the network and then powers down again. The device  200  may transition back to RRC_Connected state to receive data. An additional power saving mode may allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longer than a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours). During this time, the device  200  in some aspects may be unreachable to the network and may power down. Any data sent during this time incurs a delay, which may be large, and it is assumed the delay is acceptable. 
     Processors of the application circuitry  202  and processors of the baseband circuitry  204  may be used to execute elements of one or more instances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the baseband circuitry  204 , alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3, Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the application circuitry  202  may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received from these layers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g., transmission communication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP) layers). As referred to herein, Layer 3 may comprise a radio resource control (RRC) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 2 may comprise a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 1 may comprise a physical (PHY) layer of a UE/RAN node, described in further detail below. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry  204 , in accordance with some aspects. As discussed above, the baseband circuitry  204  of  FIG. 2  may comprise processors  204 A- 204 E and a memory  204 G utilized by said processors. Each of the processors  204 A- 204 E may include a memory interface,  304 A- 304 E, respectively, to send/receive data to/from the memory  204 G. 
     The baseband circuitry  204  may further include one or more interfaces to communicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as a memory interface  312  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from memory external to the baseband circuitry  204 ), an application circuitry interface  314  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from the application circuitry  202  of  FIG. 2 ), an RF circuitry interface  316  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry  206  of  FIG. 2 ), a wireless hardware connectivity interface  318  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components), and a power management interface  320  (e.g., an interface to send/receive power or control signals to/from the PMC  212 ). 
       FIG. 4  is an illustration of a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some aspects. In an aspect, a control plane  400  is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE  102 , the RAN node  128  (or alternatively, the RAN node  130 ), and the AMF  132 . 
     The PHY layer  401  may in some aspects transmit or receive information used by the MAC layer  402  over one or more air interfaces. The PHY layer  401  may further perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC), power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization and handover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, such as the RRC layer  405 . The PHY layer  401  may in some aspects still further perform error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decoding of the transport channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, and Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna processing. 
     The MAC layer  402  may in some aspects perform mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC service data units (SDUs) from one or more logical channels onto transport blocks (TB) to be delivered to PHY via transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or more logical channels from transport blocks (TB) delivered from the PHY via transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), and logical channel prioritization. 
     The RLC layer  403  may in some aspects operate in a plurality of modes of operation, including: Transparent Mode (TM), Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC layer  403  may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM data transfers, and segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers. The RLC layer  403  may also maintain sequence numbers independent of the ones in PDCP for UM and AM data transfers. The RLC layer  403  may also in some aspects execute re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transfers, detect duplicate data for AM data transfers, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect protocol errors for AM data transfers, and perform RLC re-establishment. 
     The PDCP layer  404  may in some aspects execute header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP Sequence Numbers (SNs), perform in-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUs at re-establishment of lower layers, perform reordering and eliminate duplicates of lower layer SDUs, execute PDCP PDU routing for the case of split bearers, execute retransmission of lower layer SDUs, cipher and decipher control plane and user plane data, perform integrity protection and integrity verification of control plane and user plane data, control timer-based discard of data, and perform security operations (e.g., ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.). 
     In some aspects, primary services and functions of the RRC layer  405  may include broadcast of system information (e.g., included in Master Information Blocks (MIBs) or System Information Blocks (SIBs) related to the non-access stratum (NAS)); broadcast of system information related to the access stratum (AS); paging initiated by 5GC  120  or NG-RAN  110 , establishment, maintenance, and release of an RRC connection between the UE and NG-RAN (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection addition, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release, also for carrier aggregation and Dual Connectivity in NR or between E-UTRA and NR); establishment, configuration, maintenance, and release of Signalling Radio Bearers (SRBs) and Data Radio Bearers (DRBs); security functions including key management, mobility functions including handover and context transfer, UE cell selection and reselection and control of cell selection and reselection, and inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility; and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting. Said MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or more information elements (IEs), which may each comprise individual data fields or data structures. The RRC layer  405  may also, in some aspects, execute QoS management functions, detection of and recovery from radio link failure, and NAS message transfer between the NAS layer  406  in the UE and the NAS layer  406  in the AMF  132 . 
     In some aspects, the following NAS messages can be communicated during the corresponding NAS procedure, as illustrated in Table 1 below: 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
               
                   
               
               
                 5G NAS 
                 5G NAS 
                 4G NAS 
                 4G NAS 
               
               
                 Message 
                 Procedure 
                 Message name 
                 Procedure 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Registration 
                 Initial 
                 Attach Request 
                 Attach 
               
               
                 Request 
                 registration 
                   
                 procedure 
               
               
                   
                 procedure 
               
               
                 Registration 
                 Mobility 
                 Tracking Area 
                 Tracking area 
               
               
                 Request 
                 registration 
                 Update (TAU) 
                 updating 
               
               
                   
                 update 
                 Request 
                 procedure 
               
               
                   
                 procedure 
               
               
                 Registration 
                 Periodic 
                 TAU Request 
                 Periodic 
               
               
                 Request 
                 registration 
                   
                 tracking area 
               
               
                   
                 update 
                   
                 updating 
               
               
                   
                 procedure 
                   
                 procedure 
               
               
                 Deregistration 
                 Deregistration 
                 Detach 
                 Detach 
               
               
                 Request 
                 procedure 
                 Request 
                 procedure 
               
               
                 Service 
                 Service request 
                 Service 
                 Service request 
               
               
                 Request 
                 procedure 
                 Request or 
                 procedure 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Extended 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Service 
               
               
                   
                   
                 Request 
               
               
                 PDU Session 
                 PDU session 
                 PDN 
                 PDN 
               
               
                 Establishment 
                 establishment 
                 Connectivity 
                 connectivity 
               
               
                 Request 
                 procedure 
                 Request 
                 procedure 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     In some aspects, when the same message is used for more than one procedure, then a parameter can be used (e.g., registration type or TAU type) which indicates the specific purpose of the procedure, e.g. registration type=“initial registration”, “mobility registration update” or “periodic registration update”. 
     The UE  101  and the RAN node  128 / 130  may utilize an NG radio interface (e.g., an LTE-Uu interface or an NR radio interface) to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the PHY layer  401 , the MAC layer  402 , the RLC layer  403 , the PDCP layer  404 , and the RRC layer  405 . 
     The non-access stratum (NAS) protocol layers  406  form the highest stratum of the control plane between the UE  101  and the AMF  132  as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . In aspects, the NAS protocol layers  406  support the mobility of the UE  101  and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE  101  and the UPF  134 . In some aspects, the UE protocol stack can include one or more upper layers, above the NAS layer  406 . For example, the upper layers can include an operating system layer  424 , a connection manager  420 , and application layer  422 . In some aspects, the application layer  422  can include one or more clients which can be used to perform various application functionalities, including providing an interface for and communicating with one or more outside networks. In some aspects, the application layer  422  can include an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) client  426 . 
     The NG Application Protocol (NG-AP) layer  415  may support the functions of the N2 and N3 interface and comprise Elementary Procedures (EPs). An EP is a unit of interaction between the RAN node  128 / 130  and the 5GC  120 . In certain aspects, the NG-AP layer  415  services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services and non-UE-associated services. These services perform functions including, but not limited to: UE context management, PDU session management and management of corresponding NG-RAN resources (e.g. Data Radio Bearers [DRBs]), UE capability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transport, and configuration transfer (e.g. for the transfer of SON information). 
     The Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) layer (which may alternatively be referred to as the SCTP/IP layer)  414  may ensure reliable delivery of signaling messages between the RAN node  128 / 130  and the AMF  132  based, in part, on the IP protocol, supported by the IP layer  413 . The L2 layer  412  and the L1 layer  411  may refer to communication links (e.g., wired or wireless) used by the RAN node  128 / 130  and the AMF  132  to exchange information. 
     The RAN node  128 / 130  and the AMF  132  may utilize an N2 interface to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L1 layer  411 , the L2 layer  412 , the IP layer  413 , the SCTP layer  414 , and the S1-AP layer  415 . 
       FIG. 5  is an illustration of a user plane protocol stack in accordance with some aspects. In this aspect, a user plane  500  is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE  102 , the RAN node  128  (or alternatively, the RAN node  130 ), and the UPF  134 . The user plane  500  may utilize at least some of the same protocol layers as the control plane  400 . For example, the UE  102  and the RAN node  128  may utilize an NR radio interface to exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising the PHY layer  401 , the MAC layer  402 , the RLC layer  403 , the PDCP layer  404 , and the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer  416 . The SDAP layer  416  may, in some aspects, execute a mapping between a Quality of Service (QoS) flow and a data radio bearer (DRB), and a marking of both DL and UL packets with a QoS flow ID (QFI). In some aspects, an IP protocol stack  513  can be located above the SDAP  416 . A user datagram protocol (UDP)/transmission control protocol (TCP) stack  520  can be located above the IP stack  513 . A session initiation protocol (SIP) stack  522  can be located above the UDP/TCP stack  520 , and can be used by the UE  102  and the UPF  134 . 
     The General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U) layer  504  may be used for carrying user data within the 5G core network  120  and between the radio access network  110  and the 5G core network  120 . The user data transported can be packets in IPv4, IPv6, or PPP formats, for example. The UDP and IP security (UDP/IP) layer  503  may provide checksums for data integrity, port numbers for addressing different functions at the source and destination, and encryption and authentication on the selected data flows. The RAN node  128 / 130  and the UPF  134  may utilize an N3 interface to exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L layer  411 , the L2 layer  412 , the UDP/IP layer  503 , and the GTP-U layer  504 . As discussed above with respect to  FIG. 4 , NAS protocols support the mobility of the UE  101  and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE  101  and the UPF  134 . 
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some example aspects, able to read instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Specifically,  FIG. 6  shows a diagrammatic representation of hardware resources  600  including one or more processors (or processor cores)  610 , one or more memory/storage devices  620 , and one or more communication resources  630 , each of which may be communicatively coupled via a bus  640 . For aspects in which node virtualization (e.g., NFV) is utilized, a hypervisor  602  may be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices or sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources  600   
     The processors  610  (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP) such as a baseband processor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, a processor  612  and a processor  614 . 
     The memory/storage devices  620  may include main memory, disk storage, or any suitable combination thereof. The memory/storage devices  620  may include, but are not limited to, any type of volatile or non-volatile memory such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random-access memory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), Flash memory, solid-state storage, etc. 
     The communication resources  630  may include interconnection or network interface components or other suitable devices to communicate with one or more peripheral devices  604  or one or more databases  606  via a network  608 . For example, the communication resources  630  may include wired communication components (e.g., for coupling via a Universal Serial Bus (USB)), cellular communication components, NFC components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components. 
     Instructions  650  may comprise software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least any of the processors  610  to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. The instructions  650  may reside, completely or partially, within at least one of the processors  610  (e.g., within the processor&#39;s cache memory), the memory/storage devices  620 , or any suitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of the instructions  650  may be transferred to the hardware resources  600  from any combination of the peripheral devices  604  or the databases  606 . Accordingly, the memory of processors  610 , the memory/storage devices  620 , the peripheral devices  604 , and the databases  606  are examples of computer-readable and machine-readable media. 
       FIG. 7  illustrates components of an exemplary 5G-NR architecture  700  with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 7 , the 5G-NR architecture  700  can include a 5G core  712  and NG-RAN  714 . The NG-RAN  714  can include one or more gNBs such as gNB  128 A and  128 B. The 5GC  712  and the NG-RAN  714 , in some aspects, may be similar or the same as the 5GC  120  and the NG-RAN  110  of  FIG. 1B , respectively. In some aspects, network elements of the NG-RAN  714  may be split into central and distributed units, and different central and distributed units, or components of the central and distributed units, may be configured for performing different protocol functions. For example, different protocol functions of the protocol layers depicted in  FIG. 4  or  FIG. 5 . 
     In some aspects, the gNB  128 B can comprise or be split into one or more of a gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU)  702  and a gNB Distributed Unit (gNB-DU)  704 ,  706 . Additionally, the gNB  128 B can comprise or be split into one or more of a gNB-CU-Control Plane (gNB-CU-CP)  708  and a gNB-CU-User Plane (gNB-CU-UP)  710 . The gNB-CU  702  is a logical node configured to host the radio resource control layer (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer and packet data convergence protocol layer (PDCP) protocols of the gNB or RRC, and PDCP protocols of the E-UTRA-NR gNB (en-gNB) that controls the operation of one or more gNB-DUs. The gNB-DU (e.g.,  704  or  706 ) is a logical node configured to host the radio link control layer (RLC), medium access control layer (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) layers of the gNB  128 A,  128 B or en-gNB, and its operation is at least partly controlled by gNB-CU  702 . In some aspects, one gNB-DU (e.g.,  704 ) can support one or multiple cells. 
     The gNB-CU  702  comprises a gNB-CU-Control Plane (gNB-CU-CP) entity  708  and a gNB-CU-User Plane entity  710 . The gNB-CU-CP  708  is a logical node configured to host the RRC and the control plane part of the PDCP protocol of the gNB-CU  702  for an en-gNB or a gNB. The gNB-CU-UP  710  is a logical (or physical) node configured to host the user plane part of the PDCP protocol of the gNB-CU  702  for an en-gNB, and the user plane part of the PDCP protocol and the SDAP protocol of the gNB-CU  702  for a gNB. 
     The gNB-CU  702  and the gNB-DU  704 ,  706  can communicate via the F1 interface, and the gNB  128 A can communicate with the gNB-CU  702  via the Xn-C interface. The gNB-CU-CP  708  and the gNB-CU-UP  710  can communicate via the E1 interface. Additionally, the gNB-CU-CP  708  and the gNB-DU  704 ,  706  can communicate via the F1-C interface, and the gNB-DU  704 ,  706  and the gNB-CU-UP  710  can communicate via the F1-U interface. 
     In some aspects, the gNB-CU  702  terminates the F1 interface connected with the gNB-DU  704 ,  706 , and in other aspects, the gNB-DU  704 ,  706  terminates the F1 interface connected with the gNB-CU  702 . In some aspects, the gNB-CU-CP  708  terminates the E1 interface connected with the gNB-CU-UP  710  and the F1-C interface connected with the gNB-DU  704 ,  706 . In some aspects, the gNB-CU-UP  710  terminates the E1 interface connected with the gNB-CU-CP  708  and the F1-U interface connected with the gNB-DU  704 ,  706 . 
     In some aspects, the F1 interface is a point-to-point interface between endpoints and supports the exchange of signaling information between endpoints and data transmission to the respective endpoints. The F1 interface can support control plane and user plane separation and separate the Radio Network Layer and the Transport Network Layer. In some aspects, the E1 interface is a point-to-point interface between a gNB-CU-CP and a gNB-CU-UP and supports the exchange of signaling information between endpoints. The E1 interface can separate the Radio Network Layer and the Transport Network Layer, and in some aspects, the E1 interface may be a control interface not used for user data forwarding. 
     Referring to the NG-RAN  714  (e.g.  110 ), the gNBs  128 A,  128 B of the NG-RAN  714  may communicate to the 5GC  712  via the NG interfaces, and can be interconnected to other gNBs via the Xn interface. In some aspects, the gNBs  128 A,  128 B can be configured to support FDD mode, TDD mode or dual mode operation. In certain aspects, for EN-DC, the S1-U interface and an X2 interface (e.g., X2-C interface) for a gNB, consisting of a gNB-CU and gNB-DUs, can terminate in the gNB-CU. 
     In some aspects, gNB  128 B supporting CP/UP separation, includes a single CU-CP entity  708 , multiple CU-UP entities  710 , and multiple DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 , with all entities being configured for network slice operation. As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , each DU entity  704 , . . . ,  706  can have a single connection with the CU-CP  708  via a F1-C interface. Each DU entity  704 , . . . ,  706  can be connected to multiple CU-UP entities  710  using F1-U interfaces. The CU-CP entity  708  can be connected to multiple CU-UP entities  710  via E1 interfaces. Each DU entity  704 , . . . ,  706  can be connected to one or more UEs, and the CU-UP entities  710  can be connected to a user plane function (UPF) and the 5G core  712 . 
     In some aspects, entities within the gNB  128 B can perform one or more procedures associated with interfaces or radio bearers within the NG-RAN  714  with the separation of CP/UP. For example, NG-RAN  714  can support the following procedures: 
     E1 interface setup: this procedure allows to setup the E1 interface, and it includes the exchange of the parameters needed for interface operation. The E1 setup is initiated by the CU-CP  708 . 
     E1 interface reset: this procedure allows to reset the E1 interface, including changes in the configuration parameters. The E1 interface reset is initiated by either the CU-CP  708  or the CU-UP  710 . 
     E1 error indication: this procedure allows to report detected errors in one incoming message. The E1 interface reset is initiated by either the CU-CP  708  or the CU-UP  710 . 
     E1 load information: this procedure allows CU-UP  710  to inform CU-CP  708  of the prevailing load condition periodically. The same procedure could also be used to indicate overload of CU-UP  710  with overload status (Start/Stop). 
     E1 configuration update: this procedure supports updates in CU-UP  710  configuration, such as capacity changes. 
     Data Radio Bearer (DRB) setup: this procedure allows the CU-CP  708  to setup DRBs in the CU-CP, including the security key configuration and the quality of service (QoS) flow to DRB mapping configuration. 
     DRB modification: this procedure allows the CU-CP  708  to modify DRBs in the CU-CP, including the modification of security key configuration and the modification of the QoS flow to DRB mapping configuration. 
     DRB release: this procedure allows the CU-CP  708  to release DRBs in the CU-CP. 
     Downlink Data Notification (DDN): This procedure allows CU-UP  710  to request CU-CP  708  to trigger paging procedure to support RRC Inactive state. 
     In some aspects, the NG-RAN  714  can be configured to support E1 interface management procedures for network slicing including resource availability indication from the CU-UP  710 , resource management in CU-UP  710 , and latency indication from the CU-UP  710 . 
     In some aspects, the NG-RAN  714  can be configured to support F1-C interface management procedures for network slicing including resource availability indication from the DU entities  704 , . . .  706 , the resource management in the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 , and latency indication from the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 . 
     In some aspects, the NG-RAN  714  can be configured to support latency measurements over the F1-U interface so that the UP elements including DU entities ( 704 , . . . ,  706 ) and CP-UP entities  710  are able to communicate latency information to other neighboring UP elements. In this regard, network slicing can be supported in the NG-RAN  714  with the separation of CP/UP. In some aspects, slice-level isolation and the improved resource utilization can be provided by the central RRM in the CU-CP  708 . 
     In some aspects, procedures associated with network slicing include operations and communications over the E1 interface, the F1-C interface, and the F1-U interface. With these procedures, the CU-CP  708  can select the appropriate DU and CU-UP entities to serve the specific network slicing request associated with a certain service level agreement (SLA). 
     E1 Procedures for Network Slicing 
     In some aspects, the procedure over the E1 interface can include information collection from the CU-UP entities  710  and resource management in the CU-UP  708 . Specifically, the information collection can include resource availability indication and latency indication, while the resource management can include resource allocation and resource release. The CU-CP  708  can be configured to collect the information from the CU-UP entities  710  periodically or issue an on-demanding query based on a network slice request. 
     In some aspects, a resource availability indication procedure can allow the CU-UP entities  710  to inform the CU-CP  708  of the availability of resources to process a network slicing request. For example, the indication of the available resource can assist the CU-CP  708  to determine whether the specific CU-UP can serve the specific network slice requesting associated with a certain SLA. 
     In some aspects, a latency indication procedure can allow the CU-UP entities  710  to inform the CU-CP  708  of the latency to the neighboring DUs  704 , . . . ,  706  (e.g., a DU associated or coupled with a given CU-UP entity), in the NG-RAN  714  and UPFs in the 5GC  712 . The latency indication can be used to assist the CU-CP  708  to identify the CP-UP entities  710  that meets the SLA of the slicing request in terms of latency. For example, the CU-CP  708  can be configured to rely on the latency indication to check the network slice availability in the specific CU-UP given the slice maybe requesting a low latency in the UP. 
     In some aspects, a resource allocation procedure can allow the CU-CP  708  to allocate the resource in the CU-UP  710  that is associated with a specific slice. Upon the reception of a request for a network slice creation, the CU-CP  708  can select the CU-UP  710  (e.g., one of the CU-UP entities) following the indicated SLA and allocate the resource in the selected CU-UP to the network slice. 
     In some aspects, a resource release procedure can allow the CU-CP  708  to release the resource in the CU-UP that is assigned to an established network slice. Upon the removal of the slice, the CU-CP  708  can notify the corresponding CU-UP to release the resource used by the removed network slice. 
     Table 2, Table 3, and Table 4 below illustrate example messages in connection with one or more of the E1 procedures supporting network slicing and described herein. 
     Table 2 below can be used in connection with a message for the procedures of resource availability indication and latency indication. In some aspects, the following names can be used for the Table 2 messages: CU-UP Load Indication, CU-UP Resource Status or CU-UP Availability Indication, but other names can also be used instead. The example message listed in Table 2 can be communicated by a CU-UP entity  710  to the CU-CP  708  to report the available resource and the latency measurement results in the CU-UP. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 2 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 Status Indication 
                   
                   
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 &gt; Maximum Processing 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The maximum traffic 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Rate 
                   
                   
                 load that can be 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 processed in the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 CU-UP. It can be 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 expressed in the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 form of bits/second 
               
               
                 &gt;Available Buffer Size 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The size of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 buffer currently 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 available in the CU- 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 UP 
               
               
                 &gt;DUs for Latency 
                 M 
                   
                   
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Indication List 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt; DUs for Latency 
                   
                   
                   
                 EACH 
                 ignore 
               
               
                 Indication 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 DU ID allocated at 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the CU-CP 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;Latency 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The value of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Measurement Result 
                   
                   
                 latency measured 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 over the link 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 between the CU-UP 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 and the DU 
               
               
                 &gt; UPFs for Latency 
                 M 
                   
                   
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Indication List 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt; UPFs for Latency 
                   
                   
                   
                 EACH 
                 ignore 
               
               
                 Indication 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;UPF ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 UPF ID allocated at 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the SMF 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;Latency 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The value of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Measurement Result 
                   
                   
                 latency measured 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 over the link 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 between the CU-UP 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 and the UPF 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The message illustrated in Table 2 can include maximum processing rate information (i.e., latency indication for the CU-UP) and available buffer size information (i.e., resource availability indication for the CU-UP). The message illustrated in Table 2 can also include latency indication associated with a DU entity (e.g., an entity from  704 , . . . ,  706  as allocated at the CU-CP  708 ) and the communication link between the DU entity and the CU-UP  710 . Similarly, the message illustrated in Table 2 can also include latency indication associated with a UPF entity of the 5GC  712  (e.g., a UPF entity allocated at the SMF in the 5GC  712 ) and the communication link between the UPF entity and the CU-UP  710 . 
     Table 3 below indicates a message that can be used for a network slice setup procedure. The message illustrated in Table 3 can be communicated by the CU-CP  708  to the CU-UP  710  to setup the network slice by allocating the specific resource. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 3 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 S-NSSAI 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 Single Network Slice 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Selection Assistance 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 information 
               
               
                 Setup Indication 
                   
                   
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 &gt; Processing Rate 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The maximum 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Allocation 
                   
                   
                 processing rate 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 assigned to the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 network slice 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 identified with S- 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 NSSAI. It can be 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 expressed in the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 form of bits/second 
               
               
                 &gt;Buffer Allocation 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The size of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 buffer assigned to 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the network slice 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 identified with S- 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 NSSAI. 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The message illustrated in Table 3 can include Single Network Slice Selection Assistance information (S-NSSAI), identifying the requested network slice. The message illustrated in Table 3 can also include processing rate allocation information (i.e., latency related) and buffer allocation (i.e., resource related). 
     In some aspects, a network slice establishment request can be communicated to the NG-RAN  714  from higher layers for purposes of establishing to a network slice in accordance with a SLA. After obtaining resource availability and latency information from one or more of the CU-UP  710  and the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  (e.g., using communication messages illustrated in Table 2 and Table 5), the CU-CP  708  can allocate resources for the network slice based on the obtained resource availability and latency information (e.g., using communication messages illustrated in Table 3 and Table 6). When the network slice is terminated, the CU-CP  708  can release the resources previously allocated for the network slice using communication messages, such as illustrated in Table 4 and Table 7. 
     Table 4 below indicates a message that can be used for a network slice release procedure. The message illustrated in Table 4 can be communicated by the CU-CP  708  to the CU-UP  710  to terminate the network slice by releasing the previously allocated resources. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 4 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 S-NSSAI 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 Single Network Slice 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Selection Assistance 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 information 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     F1-C Procedures for Network Slicing 
     In some aspects, the procedure over the F1-C interface can include information collection from the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  and the resource management in the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 . Specifically, the information collection can includes resource availability indication and latency indication, while the resource management include resource allocation and resource release. The CU-CP  708  can be configured to collect the information from the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  periodically or issue an on-demanding query based on a network slice request. 
     In some aspects, a resource availability indication procedure can allows the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  to inform the CU-CP  708  of the availability of resources to process a network slicing request. For example, the indication of the available resource can assist the CU-CP  708  to determine whether the specific DU entity of the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  can serve the specific network slice request associated with a certain SLA. 
     In some aspects, a latency indication procedure can allow DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  to inform the CU-CP  708  of the latency to neighboring CU-UPs  710  in the NG-RAN  714 . The latency indication can be used to assist the CU-CP  708  to identify the DU entity of DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  that meets the SLA of the slicing request in terms of latency. For example, the CU-CP  708  can be configured to rely on the latency indication to check the network slice availability in the specific DU given the slice may be requesting a low latency in the UP. 
     In some aspects, a resource allocation procedure can allow the CU-CP  708  to allocate the resource in the DU entity of DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  that is associated with the specific network slice. Upon the reception of a request of the network slice creation (e.g., as received from higher layers), the CU-CP  708  can be configured to select the DU entity from DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  following the indicated SLA and allocate the resource in the selected DU to the network slice. 
     In some aspects, a resource release procedure can allow the CU-CP  708  to release the previously reserved resource in the DU that is assigned to the established network slice. Upon the removal of the slice, the CU-CP  708  can be configured to notify the corresponding DU to release the resource used by the removed slice. 
     Table 5, Table 6, and Table 7 below illustrates example messages in connection with one or more of the F1-C procedures supporting network slicing and described herein. 
     Table 5 below can be used in connection with a message for the procedures of resource availability indication and latency indication. In some aspects, the following names can be used for the Table 5 messages: DU Load Indication, DU Resource Status or DU Availability Indication, but other names can also be used instead. The example message listed in Table 5 can be communicated by a DU entity (from DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 ) to the CU-CP  708  to report the available resource and the latency measurement results in the DU. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 5 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 Status Indication 
                   
                   
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 &gt; Maximum Processing 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The maximum traffic 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Rate 
                   
                   
                 load that can be 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 processed in the DU. 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 It can be expressed in 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the form of 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 bits/second 
               
               
                 &gt;Available Buffer Size 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The size of the buffer 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 currently available in 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the DU 
               
               
                 &gt;CU-UPs for Latency 
                 M 
                   
                   
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Indication List 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt; CU-UPs for 
                   
                   
                   
                 EACH 
                 ignore 
               
               
                 Latency Indication 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 CU-UP ID allocated 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 at the CU-CP 
               
               
                 &gt;&gt;Latency 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The value of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Measurement Result 
                   
                   
                 latency measured 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 over the link between 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the CU-UP and the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 DU 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The message illustrated in Table 5 can include maximum processing rate information (i.e., latency indication for the DU identified by the DU ID) and available buffer size information (i.e., resource availability indication for the DU). The message illustrated in Table 5 can also include latency indication associated with a CU-UP entity  710  (identified by a CU-UP ID as allocated at the CU-CP  708 ). 
     Table 6 below indicates a message that can be used for a network slice setup procedure. The message illustrated in Table 6 can be communicated by the CU-CP  708  to the a DU entity of DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  to setup the network slice by allocating the specific resource at the DU. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 6 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 S-NSSAI 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 Single Network 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Slice Selection 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Assistance 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 information 
               
               
                 Setup Indication 
                   
                   
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 &gt; Processing Rate 
                 M 
                 FLOAT 
                 The maximum 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 Allocation 
                   
                   
                 processing rate 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 assigned to the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 network slice 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 identified with S- 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 NSSAI. It can be 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 expressed in the 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 form of bits/second 
               
               
                 &gt;Buffer Allocation 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The size of the 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 buffer assigned to 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the network slice 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 identified with S- 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 NSSAI. 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The message illustrated in Table 6 can include Single Network Slice Selection Assistance information (S-NSSAI), identifying the requested network slice. The message illustrated in Table 6 can also include processing rate allocation information (i.e., latency related) and buffer allocation (i.e., resource related) for the DU entity. 
     Table 7 below indicates a message that can be used for a network slice release procedure. The message illustrated in Table 7 can be communicated by the CU-CP  708  to a DU entity of DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  to terminate the network slice by releasing the previously allocated resources. 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 7 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 S-NSSAI 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 Single Network Slice 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Selection Assistance 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 information 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     F1-U Procedure for Network Slicing 
     In some aspects, the F1-U interface can be used for the UP traffic transport between the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706  and the CU-UP  710 . As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , each gNB can include multiple DUs and CU-UPs available in the NG-RAN  714 . In some aspects, a network slice request can be associated with requesting low latency in the UP. In this case, the CU-CP  708  may need to conduct appropriate selection of the DUs and CU-UPs meeting the requested SLA latency. Therefore, as mentioned above, the latency information in the UP can be critical for the decision made in the CU-UP. 
     In some aspects, example F1-U procedures for latency measurements between the DUs and CU-UPs are illustrated in connection with  FIG. 8  in  FIG. 9 . 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a processing flow diagram  800  for performing latency measurements at a distributed unit (DU) of a next generation Node-B (gNB) initiated by a CU-CP, in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 8 , the processing flow  800  can take place between a CU-UP  802  and a DU  804 . 
     As CU-UP  802  is deployed, it can communicate a latency measurement request message  806  (e.g., a ping packet) to the DU  804  in its neighborhood. In some aspects, a unique sequence (e.g., sequence “1234” illustrated in  FIG. 8  or another sequence) can be inserted in the issued measurement request message  806 . The DU  804  overhearing the message  806  can communicate back a latency measurement response message  808  (e.g., a ping ACK packet) with a copy of the sequence received within message  806 . After the retrieval of the ping ACK packet (i.e., message  808 ), the CU-UP  802  may determine the round-trip time associated with the specific DU  804  based on the received message  808 . 
       FIG. 9  illustrates a processing flow diagram  900  for performing latency measurements at a DU of a gNB initiated by the DU, in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 8 , the processing flow  900  can take place between a DU  902  and a CU-UP  904 . 
     As one DU  902  (e.g., a DU from the DU entities  704 , . . . ,  706 ) is deployed, it can communicate a latency measurement request message  906  (e.g., a ping packet) to the CU-UP  904  in its neighborhood. In some aspects, a unique sequence (e.g., sequence “54321” illustrated in  FIG. 9  or another sequence) can be inserted in the issued measurement request message  906 . The CU-UP  904  overhearing the message  906  can communicate back a latency measurement response message  908  (e.g., a ping ACK packet) with a copy of the sequence received within message  906 . After the retrieval of the ping ACK packet (i.e., message  908 ), the DU  902  may determine the round-trip time associated with the specific CU-UP  904  based on the received message  908 . 
     In some aspects, a latency measurement request message, such as  806  or  906 , can be configured as the message illustrated in the following Table 8: 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 8 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 CU-UP ID allocated 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 at the CU-CP 
               
               
                 DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 DU ID allocated at the 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 CU-CP 
               
               
                 Sequence Number 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The sequence 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 number assigned by 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the message sender 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The above message illustrated in Table 8 can be sent by the CU-UP to the DU or by the DU to the CU-UP for the request of the latency measurement over the link between the CU-UP and the DU. 
     In some aspects, a latency measurement response message, such as  808  or  908 , can be configured as the message illustrated in the following Table 9: 
     
       
         
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
                 TABLE 9 
               
               
                   
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 Semantics 
                   
                 Assigned 
               
               
                 IE/Group Name 
                 Presence 
                 IE type 
                 description 
                 Criticality 
                 Criticality 
               
               
                   
               
             
            
               
                 Message Type 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                   
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                 CU-UP ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 CU-UP ID allocated 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 at the CU-CP 
               
               
                 DU ID 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 DU ID allocated at 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the CU-CP 
               
               
                 Sequence Number 
                 M 
                 INTEGER 
                 The sequence 
                 YES 
                 reject 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 number copied from 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 the corresponding 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 request 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     The above message illustrated in Table 9 can be sent by the CU-UP to the DU or by the DU to the CU-UP in response to a latency measurement request message, such as message  806  or  906 . 
       FIG. 10  illustrates generally a flowchart of example functionalities which can be performed in a wireless architecture in connection with configuring network slicing in a 5G-NR RAN with CP/UP separation, in accordance with some aspects. Referring to  FIG. 10 , the example method  1000  can be performed by processing circuitry within a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation. To configure the gNB (e.g.,  128 B) for communication with a UE (e.g.,  102 ) within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture (e.g.,  700 ) using network slicing, the processing circuitry is to, at operation  1002 , decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE. For example, the gNB  128 B can decode RRC signaling  190 B which can include the RRC request message for establishing a connection between the UE and a user plane function (e.g., UPF in the 5GC  712 ) of the 5G NR architecture in a network slice. At operation  1004 , in response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice (e.g., as may be received by the gNB  128 B from the 5GC  712 ), the gNB processing circuitry can encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity (e.g.,  708 ) of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities (e.g.,  710 ) of the gNB. At operation  1006 , a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities (e.g.,  710 ) is decoded at the CU-CP entity (e.g.,  708 ). The resource status response message can include resource availability information for the CU-UP entities. At operation  1008 , a CU-UP entity is selected by the CU-CP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information. 
       FIG. 11  illustrates a block diagram of a communication device such as an evolved Node-B (eNB), a next generation Node-B (gNB), an access point (AP), a wireless station (STA), a mobile station (MS), or a user equipment (UE), in accordance with some aspects. In alternative aspects, the communication device  1100  may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other communication devices. 
     Circuitry (e.g., processing circuitry) is a collection of circuits implemented in tangible entities of the device  1100  that include hardware (e.g., simple circuits, gates, logic, etc.). Circuitry membership may be flexible over time. Circuitries include members that may, alone or in combination, perform specified operations when operating. In an example, hardware of the circuitry may be immutably designed to carry out a specific operation (e.g., hardwired). In an example, the hardware of the circuitry may include variably connected physical components (e.g., execution units, transistors, simple circuits, etc.) including a machine-readable medium physically modified (e.g., magnetically, electrically, moveable placement of invariant massed particles, etc.) to encode instructions of the specific operation. 
     In connecting the physical components, the underlying electrical properties of a hardware constituent are changed, for example, from an insulator to a conductor or vice versa. The instructions enable embedded hardware (e.g., the execution units or a loading mechanism) to create members of the circuitry in hardware via the variable connections to carry out portions of the specific operation when in operation. Accordingly, in an example, the machine-readable medium elements are part of the circuitry or are communicatively coupled to the other components of the circuitry when the device is operating. In an example, any of the physical components may be used in more than one member of more than one circuitry. For example, under operation, execution units may be used in a first circuit of a first circuitry at one point in time and reused by a second circuit in the first circuitry, or by a third circuit in a second circuitry at a different time. Additional examples of these components with respect to the device  1100  follow. 
     In some aspects, the device  1100  may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other devices. In a networked deployment, the communication device  1100  may operate in the capacity of a server communication device, a client communication device, or both in server-client network environments. In an example, the communication device  1100  may act as a peer communication device in peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network environment. The communication device  1100  may be a UE, eNB, PC, a tablet PC, a STB, a PDA, a mobile telephone, a smart phone, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any communication device capable of executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that communication device. Further, while only a single communication device is illustrated, the term “communication device” shall also be taken to include any collection of communication devices that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), and other computer cluster configurations. 
     Examples, as described herein, may include, or may operate on, logic or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules are tangible entities (e.g., hardware) capable of performing specified operations and may be configured or arranged in a certain manner. In an example, circuits may be arranged (e.g., internally or with respect to external entities such as other circuits) in a specified manner as a module. In an example, the whole or part of one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client or server computer system) or one or more hardware processors may be configured by firmware or software (e.g., instructions, an application portion, or an application) as a module that operates to perform specified operations. In an example, the software may reside on a communication device-readable medium. In an example, the software, when executed by the underlying hardware of the module, causes the hardware to perform the specified operations. 
     Accordingly, the term “module” is understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, specifically configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily (e.g., transitorily) configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a specified manner or to perform part or all of any operation described herein. Considering examples in which modules are temporarily configured, each of the modules need not be instantiated at any one moment in time. For example, where the modules comprise a general-purpose hardware processor configured using software, the general-purpose hardware processor may be configured as respective different modules at different times. Software may accordingly configure a hardware processor, for example, to constitute a particular module at one instance of time and to constitute a different module at a different instance of time. 
     Communication device (e.g., UE)  1100  may include a hardware processor  1102  (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), a main memory  1104 , a static memory  1106 , and mass storage  1107  (e.g., hard drive, tape drive, flash storage, or other block or storage devices), some or all of which may communicate with each other via an interlink (e.g., bus)  1108 . 
     The communication device  1100  may further include a display device  1110 , an alphanumeric input device  1112  (e.g., a keyboard), and a user interface (UI) navigation device  1114  (e.g., a mouse). In an example, the display device  1110 , input device  1112  and UI navigation device  1114  may be a touch screen display. The communication device  1100  may additionally include a signal generation device  1118  (e.g., a speaker), a network interface device  1120 , and one or more sensors  1121 , such as a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, compass, accelerometer, or other sensor. The communication device  1100  may include an output controller  1128 , such as a serial (e.g., universal serial bus (USB), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near field communication (NFC), etc.) connection to communicate or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a printer, card reader, etc.). 
     The storage device  1107  may include a communication device-readable medium  1122 , on which is stored one or more sets of data structures or instructions  1124  (e.g., software) embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. In some aspects, registers of the processor  1102 , the main memory  1104 , the static memory  1106 , or the mass storage  1107  may be, or include (completely or at least partially), the device-readable medium  1122 , on which is stored the one or more sets of data structures or instructions  1124 , embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. In an example, one or any combination of the hardware processor  1102 , the main memory  1104 , the static memory  1106 , or the mass storage  1116  may constitute the device-readable medium  1122 . 
     As used herein, the term “device-readable medium” is interchangeable with “computer-readable medium” or “machine-readable medium”. While the communication device-readable medium  1122  is illustrated as a single medium, the term “communication device-readable medium” may include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers) configured to store the one or more instructions  1124 . 
     The term “communication device-readable medium” may include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions (e.g., instructions  1124 ) for execution by the communication device  1100  and that cause the communication device  1100  to perform any one or more of the techniques of the present disclosure, or that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying data structures used by or associated with such instructions. Non-limiting communication device-readable medium examples may include solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media. Specific examples of communication device-readable media may include: non-volatile memory, such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; Random Access Memory (RAM); and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. In some examples, communication device-readable media may include non-transitory communication device-readable media. In some examples, communication device-readable media may include communication device-readable media that is not a transitory propagating signal. 
     The instructions  1124  may further be transmitted or received over a communications network  1126  using a transmission medium via the network interface device  1120  utilizing any one of a number of transfer protocols (e.g., frame relay, internet protocol (IP), transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP), hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), etc.). Example communication networks may include a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a packet data network (e.g., the Internet), mobile telephone networks (e.g., cellular networks), Plain Old Telephone (POTS) networks, and wireless data networks (e.g., Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family of standards known as Wi-Fi®, IEEE 802.16 family of standards known as WiMax®), IEEE 802.15.4 family of standards, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) family of standards, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) family of standards, peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, among others. In an example, the network interface device  1120  may include one or more physical jacks (e.g., Ethernet, coaxial, or phone jacks) or one or more antennas to connect to the communications network  1126 . In an example, the network interface device  1120  may include a plurality of antennas to wirelessly communicate using at least one of single-input multiple-output (SIMO), MIMO, or multiple-input single-output (MISO) techniques. In some examples, the network interface device  1120  may wirelessly communicate using Multiple User MIMO techniques. 
     The term “transmission medium” shall be taken to include any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying instructions for execution by the communication device  1100 , and includes digital or analog communications signals or other intangible medium to facilitate communication of such software. In this regard, a transmission medium in the context of this disclosure is a device-readable medium. 
     As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to, be part of, or include an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) or other special purpose circuit, an electronic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group), or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) executing one or more software or firmware programs, a combinational logic circuit, or other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality. In some aspects, the circuitry may be implemented in, or functions associated with the circuitry may be implemented by, one or more software or firmware modules. In some aspects, circuitry may include logic, at least partially operable in hardware. In some aspects, circuitry as well as modules disclosed herein may be implemented in combinations of hardware, software or firmware. In some aspects, functionality associated with a circuitry can be distributed across more than one piece of hardware or software/firmware module. In some aspects, modules (as disclosed herein) may include logic, at least partially operable in hardware. Aspects described herein may be implemented into a system using any suitably configured hardware or software. 
     Any of the radio links described herein may operate according to any one or more of the following exemplary radio communication technologies or standards including, but not limited to: a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) radio communication technology, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) radio communication technology, an Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) radio communication technology, or a Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) radio communication technology, for example Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Freedom of Multimedia Access (FOMA), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), 3GPP Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE Advanced), Code division multiple access 2000 (CDMA2000), Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD), Mobitex, Third Generation (3G), Circuit Switched Data (CSD), High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data (HSCSD), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (Third Generation) (UMTS (3G)), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) (W-CDMA (UMTS)), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), High Speed Packet Access Plus (HSPA+), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System-Time-Division Duplex (UMTS-TDD), Time Division-Code Division Multiple Access (TD-CDMA), Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-CDMA), 3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 8 (Pre-4th Generation) (3GPP Rel. 8 (Pre-4G)), 3GPP Rel. 9 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 9), 3GPP Rel. 10 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 10), 3GPP Rel. 11 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 11), 3GPP Rel. 12 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 12), 3GPP Rel. 13 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 13), 3GPP Rel. 14 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 14), 3GPP Rel. 15 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 15), 3GPP Rel. 16 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 16), 3GPP Rel. 17 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 17), 3GPP Rel. 18 (3rd Generation Partnership Project Release 18), 3GPP 5G or 5G-NR, 3GPP LTE Extra, LTE-Advanced Pro, LTE Licensed-Assisted Access (LAA), MulteFire, UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), Long Term Evolution Advanced (4th Generation) (LTE Advanced (4G)), cdmaOne (2G), Code division multiple access 2000 (Third generation) (CDMA2000 (3G)), Evolution-Data Optimized or Evolution-Data Only (EV-DO), Advanced Mobile Phone System (1st Generation) (AMPS (1G)), Total Access Communication System/Extended Total Access Communication System (TACS/ETACS), Digital AMPS (2nd Generation) (D-AMPS (2G)), Push-to-talk (PTT), Mobile Telephone System (MTS), Improved Mobile Telephone System (IMTS), Advanced Mobile Telephone System (AMTS), OLT (Norwegian for Offentlig Landmobil Telefoni, Public Land Mobile Telephony), MTD (Swedish abbreviation for Mobiltelefonisystem D, or Mobile telephony system D), Public Automated Land Mobile (Autotel/PALM), ARP (Finnish for Autoradiopuhelin, “car radio phone”), NMT (Nordic Mobile Telephony), High capacity version of NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone) (Hicap), Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD), Mobitex, DataTAC, Integrated Digital Enhanced Network (iDEN), Personal Digital Cellular (PDC), Circuit Switched Data (CSD), Personal Handy-phone System (PHS), Wideband Integrated Digital Enhanced Network (WiDEN), iBurst, Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA), also referred to as also referred to as 3GPP Generic Access Network, or GAN standard), Zigbee, Bluetooth®, Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig) standard, mmWave standards in general (wireless systems operating at 10-300 GHz and above such as WiGig, IEEE 802.11ad, IEEE 802.1 lay, and the like), technologies operating above 300 GHz and THz bands, (3GPP/LTE based or IEEE 802.11p and other), Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-X (V2X), Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I), and Infrastructure-to-Vehicle (I2V) communication technologies, 3GPP cellular V2X, DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communications) communication systems such as Intelligent-Transport-Systems and others. 
     Aspects described herein can be used in the context of any spectrum management scheme including, for example, dedicated licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, (licensed) shared spectrum (such as Licensed Shared Access (LSA) in 2.3-2.4 GHz, 3.4-3.6 GHz, 3.6-3.8 GHz and further frequencies and Spectrum Access System (SAS) in 3.55-3.7 GHz and further frequencies). Applicable exemplary spectrum bands include IMT (International Mobile Telecommunications) spectrum (including 450-470 MHz, 790-960 MHz, 1710-2025 MHz, 2110-2200 MHz, 2300-2400 MHz, 2500-2690 MHz, 698-790 MHz, 610-790 MHz, 3400-3600 MHz, to name a few), IMT-advanced spectrum, IMT-2020 spectrum (expected to include 3600-3800 MHz, 3.5 GHz bands, 700 MHz bands, bands within the 24.25-86 GHz range, for example), spectrum made available under the Federal Communications Commission&#39;s “Spectrum Frontier” 5G initiative (including 27.5-28.35 GHz, 29.1-29.25 GHz, 31-31.3 GHz, 37-38.6 GHz, 38.6-40 GHz, 42-42.5 GHz, 57-64 GHz, 71-76 GHz, 81-86 GHz and 92-94 GHz, etc.), the ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) band of 5.9 GHz (typically 5.85-5.925 GHz) and 63-64 GHz, bands currently allocated to WiGig such as WiGig Band 1 (57.24-59.40 GHz), WiGig Band 2 (59.40-61.56 GHz), WiGig Band 3 (61.56-63.72 GHz), and WiGig Band 4 (63.72-65.88 GHz); the 70.2 GHz-71 GHz band; any band between 65.88 GHz and 71 GHz; bands currently allocated to automotive radar applications such as 76-81 GHz; and future bands including 94-300 GHz and above. Furthermore, the scheme can be used on a secondary basis on bands such as the TV White Space bands (typically below 790 MHz) where in particular the 400 MHz and 700 MHz bands can be employed. Besides cellular applications, specific applications for vertical markets may be addressed, such as PMSE (Program Making and Special Events), medical, health, surgery, automotive, low-latency, drones, and the like. 
     Aspects described herein can also be applied to different Single Carrier or OFDM flavors (CP-OFDM, SC-FDMA, SC-OFDM, filter bank-based multicarrier (FBMC), OFDMA, etc.) and in particular 3GPP NR (New Radio) by allocating the OFDM carrier data bit vectors to the corresponding symbol resources. 
     Additional Notes and Examples: 
     The following describes various examples of methods, machine-readable media, and systems (e.g., machines, devices, or other apparatus) discussed herein. 
     Example 1 is an apparatus of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry, wherein to configure the apparatus for communication with a User Equipment (UE) within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture using network slicing, the processing circuitry is to: decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE, the RRC request message for establishing a connection between the UE and a user plane function (UPF) of the 5G NR architecture in a network slice; in response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice, encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; and select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information; and memory coupled to the processing circuitry, the memory configured to store the resource availability information. 
     In Example 2, the subject matter of Example 1 includes, interfaces. 
     In Example 3, the subject matter of Examples 1-2 includes, wherein the resource status response message further includes: latency information for a first communication link between the CU-UP entity and a corresponding Distributed Unit (DU) entity of a plurality of DU entities within the gNB; and latency information for a second communication link between the CU-UP and the UPF of the 5G NR architecture. 
     In Example 4, the subject matter of Example 3 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: encode a response message for transmission to the UE, the response message identifying a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities and the selected CU-CP entity to handle data communications for the network slice, wherein the DU entity is selected from the plurality of DU entities at the gNB based on the latency information for the first communication link. 
     In Example 5, the subject matter of Examples 3-4 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: encode a latency measurement request message for transmission by the CU-UP entity to the corresponding DU entity via an F1-U interface, the latency measurement request message including a sequence number. 
     In Example 6, the subject matter of Example 5 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: decode by the CU-UP entity, a latency measurement response message received from the corresponding DU entity, the latency measurement response message identifying the sequence number; and determine the latency information for the first communication link based on a round-trip time between sending the latency measurement request message and receiving the latency measurement response message. 
     In Example 7, the subject matter of Examples 1-6 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: encode a CU-UP resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity via an E1 interface, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected CU-UP entity. 
     In Example 8, the subject matter of Example 7 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: decode a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and encode a CU-UP resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the CU-UP resource release message to release network resources at the CU-UP reserved for the network slice. 
     In Example 9, the subject matter of Examples 1-8 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: decode a network slicing request for partitioning Distributed Unit (DU) resources and CU-UP resources at the gNB to handle communication traffic associated with the network slice, wherein the DU resources comprise a plurality of DU entities and the CU-UP resources comprise the plurality of CU-UP entities at the gNB. 
     In Example 10, the subject matter of Example 9 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: encode a DU resource status request message for transmission by the CU-CP entity of the gNB to the plurality of DU entities via a corresponding plurality of F1-C interfaces; and decode at the CU-CP entity, a DU resource status response message from each of the plurality of DU entities, the DU resource status response message including resource availability information for the DU entities. 
     In Example 11, the subject matter of Example 10 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: select a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities based on the resource availability information for the DU entities; and encode a DU resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected DU entity, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected DU entity. 
     In Example 12, the subject matter of Example 11 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: decoding a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and encode a DU resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected DU entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the DU resource release message to release network resources at the DU reserved for the network slice. 
     In Example 13, the subject matter of Examples 1-12 includes, transceiver circuitry coupled to the processing circuitry; and, one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver circuitry. 
     Example 14 is a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the instructions to configure the one or more processors for communication within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture and to cause the gNB to: decode a radio resource control (RRC) request message from the UE, the RRC request message for establishing a connection between the UE and a user plane function (UPF) of the 5G NR architecture in a network slice; in response to a confirmation message that the UE is authorized to communicate via the network slice, encode a Central Unit User plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; and select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information. 
     In Example 15, the subject matter of Example 14 includes, wherein the resource status response message further includes: latency information for a first communication link between the CU-UP entity and a corresponding Distributed Unit (DU) entity of a plurality of DU entities within the gNB; and latency information for a second communication link between the CU-UP and the UPF of the 5G NR architecture. 
     In Example 16, the subject matter of Example 15 includes, wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to: encode a response message for transmission to the UE, the response message identifying a DU entity of the plurality of DU entities and the selected CU-CP entity to handle data communications for the network slice, wherein the DU entity is selected from the plurality of DU entities at the gNB based on the latency information for the first communication link. 
     In Example 17, the subject matter of Examples 15-16 includes, wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to: encode a latency measurement request message for transmission by the CU-UP entity to the corresponding DU entity via an F1-U interface, the latency measurement request message including a sequence number. 
     In Example 18, the subject matter of Example 17 includes, wherein the one or more processors further cause the gNB to: decode by the CU-UP entity, a latency measurement response message received from the corresponding DU entity, the latency measurement response message identifying the sequence number; and determine the latency information for the first communication link based on a round-trip time between sending the latency measurement request message and receiving the latency measurement response message. 
     Example 19 is an apparatus of a Next Generation Node-B (gNB) with a control plane (CP)-user plane (UP) separation, the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry, wherein to configure the apparatus for communication with a User Equipment (UE) within a 5G new radio (NR) architecture using network slicing, the processing circuitry is to: in response to a confirmation message that a user equipment (UE) is authorized to communicate via a network slice, encode a Central Unit User Plane (CU-UP) resource status request message for transmission by a Central Unit Control Plane (CU-CP) entity of the gNB to a plurality of CU-UP entities of the gNB; decode at the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP resource status response message from each of the plurality of CU-UP entities, the resource status response message including resource availability information for the CU-UP entities; select by the CU-CP entity, a CU-UP entity from the plurality of CU-UP entities based on the resource availability information; encode a CU-UP resource allocation message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity via an E1 interface, the resource allocation message including resource allocation information for configuring the network slice at the selected CU-UP entity; and memory coupled to the processing circuitry, the memory configured to store the resource availability information. 
     In Example 20, the subject matter of Example 19 includes, wherein the processing circuitry is further to: decode a configuration message from the UPF of the 5G NR architecture, the configuration message indicating termination of the network slice; and encode a CU-UP resource release message by the CU-CP entity for transmission to the selected CU-UP entity upon decoding the configuration message indicating the network slice termination, the CU-UP resource release message to release network resources at the CU-UP reserved for the network slice. 
     Example 21 is at least one machine-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations to implement of any of Examples 1-20. 
     Example 22 is an apparatus comprising means to implement of any of Examples 1-20. 
     Example 23 is a system to implement of any of Examples 1-20. 
     Example 24 is a method to implement of any of Examples 1-20. 
     Although an aspect has been described with reference to specific example aspects, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these aspects without departing from the broader scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. The accompanying drawings that form a part hereof show, by way of illustration, and not of limitation, specific aspects in which the subject matter may be practiced. The aspects illustrated are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the teachings disclosed herein. Other aspects may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. This Detailed Description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of various aspects is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. 
     Such aspects of the inventive subject matter may be referred to herein, individually or collectively, merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single aspect or inventive concept if more than one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific aspects have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific aspects shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various aspects. Combinations of the above aspects, and other aspects not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. 
     In this document, the terms “a” or “an” are used, as is common in patent documents, to include one or more than one, independent of any other instances or usages of “at least one” or “one or more.” In this document, the term “or” is used to refer to a nonexclusive or, such that “A or B” includes “A but not B,” “B but not A,” and “A and B,” unless otherwise indicated. In this document, the terms “including” and “in which” are used as the plain-English equivalents of the respective terms “comprising” and “wherein.” Also, in the following claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are open-ended, that is, a system, UE, article, composition, formulation, or process that includes elements in addition to those listed after such a term in a claim are still deemed to fall within the scope of that claim. Moreover, in the following claims, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third,” etc. are used merely as labels, and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects. 
     The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in a single aspect for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed aspects require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed aspect. Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate aspect.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20181030
Publication Date: 20200714
Grant Date: 20200714
Priority Date: 20171107
Inventors: Yu, Yifan
SIROTKIN, ALEXANDER
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04W24/10", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W88/085", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W48/20", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W88/085", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W48/20", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W76/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W24/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/04", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W24/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W76/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W48/20", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W88/085", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/04", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 65518397