US 12,075,245 B2
Wireless network slice access based on encrypted slice certificates that indicate slice characteristics
Marouane Balmakhtar, Fairfax, VA (US); and Lyle Walter Paczkowski, Mission Hills, KS (US)
Assigned to T-MOBILE INNOVATIONS LLC, Overland Park, KS (US)
Filed by T-MOBILE INNOVATIONS LLC, Overland Park, KS (US)
Filed on Mar. 9, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/690,906.
Prior Publication US 2023/0292124 A1, Sep. 14, 2023
Int. Cl. H04W 12/069 (2021.01); H04W 8/20 (2009.01); H04W 12/08 (2021.01)
CPC H04W 12/069 (2021.01) [H04W 8/20 (2013.01); H04W 12/08 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of operating a wireless communication network to serve a wireless user device over a wireless network slice that has an encrypted slice certificate that has slice characteristics, the method comprising:
a wireless access node receiving the encrypted slice certificate from the wireless user device and transferring the encrypted slice certificate to a network control-plane;
the network control-plane receiving the encrypted slice certificate from the wireless access node, decrypting the encrypted slice certificate, determining a correspondence between expected characteristics and the slice characteristics from a decrypted slice certificate, authorizing the wireless user device for the wireless network slice based on the correspondence, and in response to authorization, transferring user context for the wireless network slice to the wireless access node and a network user-plane;
the wireless access node receiving the user context for the wireless network slice, exchanging user data with the wireless user device per the user context, and exchanging the user data with the network user-plane per the user context; and
the network user-plane receiving the user context for the wireless network slice, exchanging the user data with the wireless access node per the user context, and exchanging the user data with a data system per the user context.