US 11,950,218 B2
Auto-configuration of hybrid cells supporting shared cell and unique cell operating modes for user equipment in virtualized radio access network architectures
Srinath Gundavelli, San Jose, CA (US); Indermeet Singh Gandhi, San Jose, CA (US); Mark Grayson, Maidenhead (GB); and Arun G. Khanna, Sunnyvale, CA (US)
Assigned to CISCO TECHNOLOGY, INC., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed by Cisco Technology, Inc., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed on May 14, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/320,522.
Prior Publication US 2022/0369324 A1, Nov. 17, 2022
Int. Cl. H04W 72/121 (2023.01); H04W 72/044 (2023.01); H04W 72/30 (2023.01); H04W 76/11 (2018.01)
CPC H04W 72/121 (2013.01) [H04W 72/046 (2013.01); H04W 72/30 (2023.01); H04W 76/11 (2018.02)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
obtaining, by a network element of a mobile network, a registration request for a user equipment, wherein the mobile network includes a radio access network comprising a plurality of radio units in which each radio unit of the plurality of radio units provides a shared cell that is shared with at least one other radio unit of the plurality of radio units and each radio unit of the plurality of radio units provides a unique cell that is not shared with any other radio units of the plurality of radio units, and wherein a policy includes operating mode information that indicates a first group of user equipment that are to operate in a shared cell operating mode and that indicates a second group of user equipment that are to operate in a unique cell operating mode;
determining, based on the policy, an operating mode for the user equipment, wherein the operating mode indicates whether the user equipment is to operate in the shared cell operating mode or the unique cell operating mode; and
facilitating service connection of the user equipment to one of the shared cell or the unique cell of a particular radio unit of the plurality of radio units of the radio access network based on the operating mode for the user equipment.