US 12,395,832 B2
Methods and devices for network function discovery in communication network
Ana Orea Garcia, Madrid (ES); Jorge Garcia Llorente, Madrid (ES); Juan Manuel Fernandez Galmes, Madrid (ES); Qiang Liu, Shanghai (CN); Vlatko Bolt, Zagreb (HR); and Wenliang Zhang, Shanghai (CN)
Assigned to Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Publ), Stockholm (SE)
Appl. No. 17/628,417
Filed by Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ), Stockholm (SE)
PCT Filed Jul. 26, 2019, PCT No. PCT/CN2019/098014
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jan. 19, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/016763, PCT Pub. Date Feb. 4, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2022/0248211 A1, Aug. 4, 2022
Int. Cl. H04W 8/18 (2009.01); H04W 48/16 (2009.01)
CPC H04W 8/186 (2013.01) [H04W 48/16 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for network function discovery in a communication network, the method comprising:
receiving a discovery request from a first network function, NF, to request one or more NF instance of a first group type for a first subscriber, the discovery request including a first group type identifier of the first group type;
determining one or more group identifier for one or more groups of NF instances managing the first subscriber, the one or more groups of NF instances being of the first group type and one or more other group types, the one or more group identifier mapping to a subscriber identity configured in a network repository function, NRF, each of the one or more groups being associated with a service type for a type of subscriber; and
sending a discovery response to the first network function, the discovery response including the one or more group identifiers and a respective user data repository, UDR, and addressing information to reach the one or more groups of NF instances.