CN109644375B

CN109644375B - AT command for cellular internet of things rate control

Info

Publication number: CN109644375B
Application number: CN201780053305.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: K·K·阿代帕利; V·古普塔
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc; Intel Corp
Priority date: 2016-09-29
Filing date: 2017-06-23
Publication date: 2024-03-12
Anticipated expiration: 2037-06-23
Also published as: CN109644375A; WO2018063462A1

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure describe methods and apparatus for AT commands for cellular internet of things rate control.

Description

AT command for cellular internet of things rate control

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No.62/401,710 entitled "AT COMMANDS FOR CIOT RATE CONTROL," filed on date 2016, 9 and 29, 35 U.S. C. ≡119 (e), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of networks and, more particularly, relate to an apparatus, system, and method for AT commands for cellular internet of things ("CIoT") rate control.

Background

Work items of the third generation partnership project ("3 GPP") release 13 ("Rel-13") phase 3 for CIoT core technology ("CT") of the CT1/CT3/CT4/CT6 working group are intended to enable architectural enhancements to support efficient processing of frequent and infrequent small data transmissions. CIoT may involve connecting certain devices that transmit and receive relatively small amounts of data at infrequent intervals to a cellular network, etc. This may lead to signaling overhead problems, e.g. due to the number of devices connected to the network via the same node, the device location leads to low signal levels and thus to multiple retransmissions etc. As part of Rel-13, 3GPP has provided control plane and user plane CIoT optimization, which may solve these and other problems to support small data transmissions.

Control plane evolved packet system ("EPS") optimization, which may also be referred to as data via a mobility management entity ("MME"), may transfer user data via the MME by encapsulating them in non-access stratum ("NAS") messages, which may reduce the number of control plane messages for small data transfers. This may create new NAS messages, encryption and integrity protection, and internet protocol ("IP") header compression at the MME for carrying, for example, data (via the MME). During idle-to-connected mode transitions, a packet data network ("PDN") connection optimized using the control plane EPS may not establish a user plane connection.

User plane EPS optimization (which may also be referred to as user plane solution) may be based on user plane transmission of user data. With user plane EPS optimization, user equipment ("UE") contexts may be stored in evolved node bs ("enbs") and UEs during idle states, and to establish a network connection, the UE may use a suspension and resumption procedure that may be based at least in part on whether the UE and/or the network supports user plane EPS optimization.

Drawings

Embodiments will be readily understood by the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For convenience of description, like reference numerals denote like structural elements. Embodiments are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 illustrates an architecture of a wireless network according to some embodiments.

Fig. 2 illustrates a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

Fig. 3 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of a terminal equipment ("TE") in accordance with some embodiments.

Fig. 4 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of a mobile terminal ("MT") according to some embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of a TE according to some embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of a TE according to some embodiments.

Fig. 7 illustrates an electronic device according to some embodiments.

Detailed Description

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers may be used in different drawings to identify the same or similar elements. In the following description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth such as particular structures, architectures, interfaces, techniques, etc. in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various aspects of the claimed invention. However, it will be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art having had the benefit of the present disclosure that the various aspects of the invention claimed may be practiced in other examples that depart from these specific details. In certain instances, descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the present invention with unnecessary detail.

Various aspects of the illustrative embodiments will be described using terms commonly employed by those skilled in the art to convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that alternative embodiments may be practiced using only some of the described aspects. For purposes of explanation, specific numbers, materials and configurations are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the illustrative embodiments. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that alternative embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known features are omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the illustrative embodiments.

Moreover, the various operations will be described as multiple discrete operations in turn, in a manner that is most helpful in understanding the illustrative embodiments; however, the order of description should not be construed as to imply that these operations are necessarily order dependent. In particular, these operations need not be performed in the order of presentation.

The phrases "in various embodiments," "in some embodiments," and the like are repeated. The phrase generally does not refer to the same embodiment; however, it may refer to the same embodiment. The terms "comprising," "having," and "including" are synonymous, unless the context dictates otherwise. The phrase "a or B" means (a), (B) or (a and B).

Example embodiments may be described as a process which is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a data flow diagram, a structure diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel, concurrently or concurrently. In addition, the order of operations may be rearranged. The process may be terminated when its operations are completed, but may have additional steps not included in the figures. The processes may correspond to methods, functions, procedures, subroutines, and the like. When a process corresponds to a function, its termination may correspond to the function returning to the calling function and/or the main function.

As used herein, the term "processor circuit" refers to, is part of or includes the following circuitry: capable of sequentially and automatically performing a series of arithmetic or logical operations; a circuit for recording, storing and/or transmitting digital data. The term "processor circuitry" may refer to one or more application processors, one or more baseband processors, a physical Central Processing Unit (CPU), a single core processor, a dual core processor, a tri-core processor, a quad-core processor, and/or any other device capable of executing or operating computer-executable instructions (e.g., program code, software modules, and/or functional processes). As used herein, the term "interface circuit" refers to, is part of or includes the following circuitry: circuitry providing for the exchange of information between two or more components or devices. The term "interface circuitry" may refer to one or more hardware interfaces (e.g., a bus, an input/output (I/O) interface, a peripheral component interface, etc.).

As used herein, the term "user equipment" or "UE" may be considered as synonyms for, and sometimes referred to below: a client, mobile station, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobile unit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station, access agent, user agent, receiver, etc., and may describe a remote user of a network resource in a communication network. Furthermore, the term "user equipment" or "UE" may include any type of wireless/wired device, such as consumer electronics devices, cellular telephones, smartphones, tablet personal computers, internet of things ("IoT") devices, smart sensors, wearable computing devices, personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), desktop computers, and laptop computers.

IoT markets are widespread supporting a variety of applications such as smart metering, seismic sensors, vending machines, asset tracking, and the like. To meet the needs of various market categories, ioT solution developers may integrate, for example, a modem module in a UE to implement an MT, which may additionally or alternatively be referred to as a mobile terminal, although it may be referred to as a mobile termination. An AT command (abbreviation of "ATtention" command) may be a mechanism that enables information to be transferred between or with modem modules, including, for example, information transferred by a TE to or from an MT implemented using the modem modules.

At least two rate control mechanisms may be used as part of CIoT optimization: access point name ("APN") rate control and serving public land mobile network ("PLMN") rate control. As explained in more detail below, APN rate control information may indicate a number of allowed uplink ("UL") packet data unit ("PDU") transmissions per time interval indicated by a time unit, expressed as an amount of data per APN per time unit. APN rate control may, for example, enable a home PLMN ("HPLMN") operator to provide customer services such as "up to Y messages per day". See, for example, 3GPP TS23.401v14.1.0 (2016, 9, 26). As explained in more detail below, the serving PLMN rate control information may indicate a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions allowed per time interval, expressed as an amount of data per time interval (which may be, for example, six minutes (also referred to as "dec-hop")) aggregated over multiple or all PDN connections. The serving PLMN rate control may, for example, enable the serving PLMN operator to configure "X NAS data PDUs per deci-hour". See, e.g., 3gpp ts23.401. The network may inform the MT of APN rate control and serving PLMN rate control requirements to be applied in the UL.

For example, according to 3GPP TS24.008v14.0.0 (24 days of 2016, 6), the rate control information may be part of a protocol configuration option ("PCO"). One purpose of PCO may be to access the PDN through an application layer using, for example, an open system interconnect (also referred to as "OSI") or a transmission control protocol/internet protocol (also referred to as "TCP/IP") network protocol stack. Network resources may be more efficiently used with adaptation techniques that adjust to changing network conditions. Adaptation may occur at different layers of the network protocol stack. At the physical layer, for example, adaptive power control techniques may mitigate variations in the wireless environment. At the network layer, for example, dynamic rerouting mechanisms may reduce congestion and mitigate changes in the mobile environment. At the application layer, protocols may be used to limit the generation of PDUs for access points ("APs") on the network.

Embodiments herein describe AT commands that may be used to enable a TE or MT to send and receive information about rate limiting that may be applied in the UL by an application layer. The AT commands may enable the UE to read the rate control parameters in conjunction with other AT commands supporting similar functions. The rate control parameters may be determined, for example, by the network or network operator. The UE may implement or implement UL rate control by limiting the amount of data transmitted in the UL, e.g., based on UL rate control parameters. Similarly, a PDN gateway ("P-GW")/service capability opening function ("SCEF") ("P-GW/SCEF") may implement or implement downlink ("DL") rate control by limiting the amount of data sent in the DL, e.g., based on DL rate control parameters. Thus, the rate control parameters may enable, for example, reduction or prevention of network congestion or overload.

Fig. 1 illustrates an architecture of a wireless network according to some embodiments. The system 100 is shown to include a radio access network ("RAN") -in this embodiment, an evolved universal mobile telecommunications system ("UMTS") terrestrial radio access network ("E-UTRAN") 110, which may include one or more access points capable of implementing the connection 102 to the UE 200. The one or more access points may be referred to as access nodes, base stations ("BSs"), nodebs, enodebs ("enbs"), RAN nodes, etc., and may be ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite access points that provide coverage within a geographic area (e.g., cell). The E-UTRAN 110 may include RAN nodes 111 for providing macro cells and RAN nodes 112 for providing femto cells or pico cells (e.g., cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacities, and/or higher bandwidths than macro cells).

Either of RAN nodes 111 and 112 may terminate the air interface protocol and may be the first point of contact for UE 200. In some embodiments, either of RAN nodes 111 and 112 may perform various logical functions of E-UTRAN 110, including, but not limited to, radio network controller ("RNC") functions such as radio bearer management, UL and DL dynamic radio resource management, and data packet scheduling, and mobility management.

According to some embodiments, the UE 200 may be configured to: according to various communication techniques, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing ("OFDM") communication signals are used to communicate with each other or with any of RAN nodes 111 and 112 over a multicarrier communication channel, such as, but not limited to, orthogonal frequency division multiple access ("OFDMA") communication techniques (e.g., for DL communications) or single carrier frequency division multiple access ("SC-FDMA") communication techniques (e.g., for UL and proximity services ("ProSe") or side-link communications), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. The OFDM signal may comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers.

In some embodiments, DL resource grids may be used for DL transmissions from either of RAN nodes 111 and 112 to UE 200, while UL transmissions may use similar techniques. The grid may be a time-frequency grid, referred to as a resource grid or time-frequency resource grid, which is a physical resource in the DL in each slot. This time-frequency plane representation is a common practice for OFDM systems, which makes it intuitive for radio resource allocation. Each column and each row of the resource grid corresponds to one OFDM symbol and one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to one slot in the radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is called a resource element. Each resource grid includes a plurality of resource blocks that describe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block includes a set of resource elements; in the frequency domain, this represents the minimum amount of resources that can currently be allocated. There are several different physical DL channels that are transmitted using such resource blocks.

A physical DL shared channel ("PDSCH") may carry user data and higher layer signaling to the UE 200. A physical DL control channel ("PDCCH") may carry information on a transport format and resource allocation related to the PDSCH channel, etc. It may also inform UE 200 of transport format, resource allocation and H-ARQ ("hybrid automatic repeat request") information related to the UL shared channel. In general, DL scheduling (assignment of control channel resource blocks and shared channel resource blocks to UEs 200 within a cell) may be performed at either of RAN nodes 111 and 112 based on channel quality information fed back from UEs 200, and then DL resource assignment information may be transmitted on PDCCHs for (e.g., assigned to) UEs 200.

The PDCCH may use control channel elements ("CCEs") to convey control information. The PDCCH complex-valued symbols may first be organized into four tuples before being mapped to resource elements, and then may be aligned for rate matching using a sub-block interleaver. Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE may correspond to nine groups of four physical resource elements referred to as resource element groups ("REGs"). Four quadrature phase shift keying ("QPSK") symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of DL control information ("DCI") and channel conditions. Four or more different PDCCH formats with different numbers of CCEs may be defined in LTE (e.g., aggregation level l=1, 2, 4, or 8).

Some embodiments may use the resource allocation concept as an extension of the above concepts for control channel information. For example, some embodiments 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 groups of four physical resource elements referred to as Enhanced Resource Element Groups (EREGs). In some cases, ECCEs may have other amounts of EREGs.

The E-UTRAN 110 is shown as being communicatively coupled to a core network, in this embodiment an evolved packet core ("EPC") network 120, via an S1-MME interface 113. In some embodiments, EPC 120 may be an HPLMN, for example, in a non-roaming scenario. In some embodiments, EPC 120 may be a serving PLMN, for example, in a roaming scenario.

In this embodiment, EPC network 120 may include MME/CIoT serving gateway node ("C-SGN") 121, serving gateway ("S-GW") 122, P-GW/SCEF 123, and P-GW/short message service center ("SMSC") -interworking MSC ("IWMSC") 124 (which may also be referred to as SMSC-IWMSC). S1-MME interface 113 may be a signaling interface between RAN nodes 111 and 112 and MME/C-SGN 121. MME/C-SGN 121 may be similar in function to the control plane of a legacy serving general packet radio service ("GPRS") support node ("SGSN"). The MME may, for example, manage mobility aspects in the access, such as gateway selection and tracking area list management. The C-SGN may be a node for CIoT optimization, for example. A home subscriber server ("HSS") (not shown) may be a database for network users that includes subscription-related information for supporting network entities in processing communication sessions. EPC network 120 may include one or several HSS (not shown), depending on the number of mobile subscribers, the capacity of the devices, the organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS may provide support for routing/roaming, authentication, authorization, naming/address resolution, location dependencies, etc.

The S-GW 122 may route data packets between the E-UTRAN 110 and the EPC network 120. Furthermore, the S-GW 122 may be a local mobility anchor for inter-RAN node handover and may also provide anchoring for inter-3 GPP mobility. Other responsibilities may include legal interception, billing, and some policy enforcement.

The P-GW/SCEF 123 may route data packets between the EPC network 120 and external networks, e.g., networks including an application server 130 (alternatively referred to as an application function ("AF")). The P-GW/SCEF 123 may be used, for example, to communicate non-IP data, such as machine type data, over a control plane. In this embodiment, the P-GW/SCEF 123 is shown sending non-IP data (e.g., machine type data) from the P-GW/SCEF 123 to the application server 130. The P-GW/SMSC-IWMSC 124 may, for example, relay, store and forward SMS messages. In this embodiment, the P-GW/SMEC-IWMSC 124 is shown sending SMS data to the application server 130. The application server 130 may be an element that supports various services, such as communication services, e.g., voice over internet protocol ("VoIP") sessions, push-to-talk ("PTT") sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.; CIoT services such as smart metering, seismic sensors, vending machines, asset tracking, etc.; SMS services, such as message services, information services, notification services, etc., for UEs 200 via EPC network 120. Additionally or alternatively, for non-IP data packets, data packets may be routed between MME/C-SGN 121 and application server 130, e.g., via a point-to-point ("PtP") tunnel 125 for non-IP data, or for IP data packets, e.g., via an IP data tunnel 126.

The serving PLMN rate control may allow the serving PLMN to protect signaling radio bearers in its MME (e.g., MME/C-SGN 121) and E-UTRAN (e.g., E-UTRAN 120) from the load of NAS PDU generation. This may be done by allowing the MME/C-SGN to signal the maximum load value allowed for user data transmitted via NAS, for example when CIoT control plane optimization is used. The maximum rate may be signaled to the PGW/SCEF (e.g., PGW/SCEF 123) and the UE (e.g., UE 200) at PDN connection establishment. The maximum rate may be expressed as the number of data PDUs per time interval. In some embodiments, the time interval may be six minutes. In addition to being expressed as the number of data PDUs, the maximum rate may also be expressed as the number of UL EPS session management ("ESM") data transfer messages including user data container information elements ("IEs"). Further, the maximum rate may be expressed as the number of UL data messages.

In some embodiments, UE 200 may be responsible for keeping UL user data below a maximum UL limit, and P-GW (e.g., P-GW/SCEF 123 or P-GW/SMSC-IWMSC 124) may be responsible for keeping DL user data below a maximum DL limit. UL and DL maximum rates may be independent. In addition, the S-GW (e.g., S-GW 122) may be notified when serving PLMN rate control is in use so that the S-GW may notify the P-GW (e.g., P-GW/SCEF 123 or P-GW/SMSC-IWMSC 124) when control plane or user plane is in use for a particular PDN connection. The serving PLMN may discard or delay user data exceeding the signaled maximum rate. Thus, an MME (e.g., MME/C-SGN 121) may implement a monitoring function for limiting data sent by entities that do not follow a maximum rate signaled.

APN rate control may be intended to allow the HPLMN to limit the data load of PDN connections using a particular APN by signaling the maximum allowed UL rate to the UE (e.g., UE 200). The maximum rate may be signaled by the P-GW (e.g., P-GW/SCEF 123 or P-GW/SMSC-IWMSC 124). Furthermore, the maximum DL rate that the P-GW intends to implement can also be signaled to the UE. The rate may be expressed in terms of several data amounts per time unit. For example, the rate may be expressed as the number of UL data messages. The rate may also be expressed as the number of data PDUs. Further, the rate may be expressed as a number of UL ESM data transfer messages including the user data container IE. APN rate control may be applied to any data sent using e.g. a specific PDN connection, irrespective of whether the control plane or the user plane is used. The P-GW (e.g., P-GW/SCEF 123 or P-GW/SMSC-IWMSC 124) may be responsible for keeping DL user data below the maximum DL limit and the UE (e.g., UE 200) may be responsible for keeping UL user data below the maximum UL limit. Similar to the case involving serving PLMN rate control, it may be possible to monitor the data load and may discard or delay data beyond the signaled maximum rate. In the case of APN rate control, monitoring may be implemented by a P-GW (e.g., P-GW/SCEF 123 or P-GW/SMSC/IWMSC 124).

Embodiments herein describe AT commands that can handle APN rate control and serving PLMN rate control mechanisms for CIoT optimization. Embodiments may be used as a basis for updates to relevant 3GPP specifications, including but not limited to 3GPP TS27.007,v14.0.0 (2016, 6, 23).

Some modifications to the AT commands that may enable APN rate control or serving PLMN rate control may be as follows:

the +cgdcont AT command may be enhanced to provide an indication to the MT of whether TE or (in general) UE supports APN rate control;

the +cgcontrdp AT command may be enhanced to provide serving PLMN rate control or APN rate control information from the network to the TE; or alternatively

A new AT command + cgratetiot for rate control of CIoT may be introduced to provide rate control information from the network to the TE.

In some embodiments, the +cgdcont AT command may include parameters that may include APN rate control information or PLMN rate control information, as shown in table 1 below. Table 1 below may be based on table 111 of 3gpp ts27.007, for example.

Table 1: +CGDCONT parameter command syntax

The set command may specify a packet data protocol ("PDP") context parameter value for a PDP context identified by the (local) context identification parameter < cid >, and may also allow the TE to specify whether or not to request secure transmission of ESM information, as the PCO may include information requiring encryption. There may be other reasons for the UE to use the security protection transmission of ESM information, for example if the UE needs to transmit an APN. The number of PDP contexts that may be in the defined state at the same time may be given by the range of test command returns.

For EPS, PDN connections and their associated EPS default bearers may be identified thereby.

The special form of the set command, +cgdcont= < cid > may cause the value of the context number < cid > to become undefined.

If an initial PDP context is supported, a context of < cid > = 0 may be automatically defined at start-up, see for example sub-clause 10.1.0 of 3gpp ts 27.007. As with all other contexts, the parameters of < cid > =0 can be modified with +cgdcont. If an initial PDP context is supported, +cgdcont=0 may reset the context number 0 to its specific default setting.

The read command may return the current settings for each defined context.

The test command may return a value supported as a composite value. If the MT supports several PDP types < pdp_type >, a parameter value range for each < pdp_type > can be returned on a separate line.

Values defined for Table 1

< cid > may be an integer type parameter that specifies a particular PDP context definition. The parameters may be local to the TE-MT interface and may be used in other PDP context related commands. The range of allowed values (e.g., minimum = 1, or if an initial PDP context is supported (see, e.g., sub-clause 10.1.0 of 3gpp ts 27.007), then minimum = 0) may be returned by the test form of the command.

It may be noted that in the test form of commands +cgdcont and +cgdsct, < cid > of the network initiated PDP context may have a value outside the range indicated for < cid >.

The < pdp_type > may be a string type parameter indicating a PDP type. The default value may be manufacturer specific. The PDP types that may be supported in various embodiments may include: x.25 (e.g., as described in ITU telecommunication standardization sector "ITU-T") (international telegraph and telephone consultation committee ("CCITT") x.25 layer 3); internet protocol ("IP") (e.g., described in internet engineering task force ("IETF") standard ("STD") 5, "internet protocol"); internet protocol, version 6 ("IPV 6") (e.g., described in request for comments ("RFC") 2460, "internet protocol, version 6 (IPV 6) specification"); IP, version 4/version 6 ("IPV 4V 6"), which may be a virtual PDP type (e.g., described in 3GPP TS24.301V14.0.1 (2016, 6, 30)) introduced to handle dual IP stack UE capabilities; the internet hosts the octet stream protocol ("OSPIH"); or point-to-point protocol ("PPP") (e.g., described in IETF STD 51 (7 month 1994)). In some embodiments, only IP, IPV6, and IPV4V6 values may be supported for EPS services.

The < APN > may be a string type parameter, which is a logical name used to select a gateway GPRS support node ("GGSN") or an external packet data network. If the value is null or omitted, a subscription value may be requested.

The < pdp_addr > may be a string type parameter that identifies the MT in the address space applicable to the PDP. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned with the read form of +CGDCONT. The value of the parameter may be ignored using the set command. This parameter may be included in the set command for backward compatibility reasons only.

< d_comp > may be an integer type parameter that controls PDP data compression (which may only apply to subnet related convergence protocol ("SNDCP")) (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 44.065V13.0.0 (2015, 12, 18 days)). In various embodiments, < d_comp > may have: a value of 0 to indicate shutdown; a value of 1 to indicate on (e.g., manufacturer preferred compression); a value of 2 to indicate v.42bis; or a value of 3 to indicate v.44.

< h_comp > may be an integer type parameter that controls PDP header compression (see, e.g., 3gpp TS 44.065 and 3GPP TS25.323v13.0.0 (2016, 1, 8)). In various embodiments, < h_comp > may have: a value of 0 to indicate shutdown; a value of 1 to indicate on (e.g., manufacturer preferred compression); a value of 2 to indicate RFC 1144, "compression TCP/IP Headers for Low-Speed Serial Links" (which may apply only to SNDCP); a value of 3 to indicate RFC 2507, "IP Header Compression"; or a value of 4 to indicate RFC 3095, "RObust Header Compression (ROHC): framework and four profiles: RTP, UDP, ESP, and uncompressed" (which may be applicable only to packet data convergence protocol ("PDCP")).

< IPv4AddrAlloc > may be an integer type parameter that controls how the MT/TA requests to acquire IPv4 address information. In various embodiments, < IPv4AddrAlloc > may have: a value of 0 to indicate IPv4 address allocation by NAS signaling; or a value of 1 to indicate an IPv4 address assigned by the dynamic host configuration protocol ("DHCP").

The < request_type > may be an integer type parameter indicating the type of PDP context activation request for the PDP context, see e.g. 3gpp ts24.301 (sub-clause 6.5.1.2) and 3gpp ts24.008 (sub-clause 10.5.6.17). If the initial PDP context is supported (see e.g., sub-clause 10.1.0 of 3gpp ts 27.007), then assignment of < cid > = 0 for emergency bearer services may not be allowed. According to, for example, 3gpp ts24.008 (sub-clause 4.2.4.2.2 and sub-clause 4.2.5.1.4) and 3gpp ts24.301 (sub-clause 5.2.2.3.3 and sub-clause 5.2.3.2.2), separate PDP contexts have to be established for emergency bearer services.

If the PDP context for the emergency bearer service is the only active context, only emergency calls are allowed, see e.g. 3gpp ts23.401, sub-clause 4.3.12.9. In various embodiments, < request_type > may have: a value of 0 to indicate whether the PDP context is used for new PDP context establishment or for handover from a non-3 GPP access network (how the MT decides whether the PDP context is for new PDP context establishment or for handover is implementation specific); a value of 1 to indicate that the PDP context is for emergency bearer traffic; a value of 2 to indicate that the PDP context is to be used for new PDP context establishment; or a value of 3 to indicate that the PDP context is to be used for handover from a non-3 GPP access network.

< P-cscf_discovery > may be an integer type parameter that affects how MT/TA requests to acquire a packet call session control function ("P-CSCF") address, see e.g. 3gpp TS 24.229, "IP multimedia call control protocol based on Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and Session Description Protocol (SDP)", attachment B and attachment L. In various embodiments, < P-cscf_discover > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the P-CSCF address discovers preferences that are not affected by +cgdcont; a value of 1 to indicate a preference for P-CSCF address discovery through NAS signaling; or a value of 2 to indicate the preference for P-CSCF address discovery by DHCP.

The < im_cn_signaling_flag_ind > may be an integer type parameter that indicates to the network whether the PDP context is used for IP multimedia ("IM") core network ("CN") subsystem-related signaling only. In various embodiments, < im_cn_signaling_flag_ind > may have: a value of 0 to indicate to the UE that the PDP context is not used only for IM CN subsystem related signaling; or a value of 1 to indicate to the UE that the PDP context is used only for IM CN subsystem related signaling.

The < NSLPI > may be an integer type parameter indicating NAS signaling priority for the PDP context request. In various embodiments, < NSLPI > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the PDP context is to be activated, wherein a value of a low priority indicator is configured in the MT; or a value of 1 to indicate that the PDP context is to be activated, wherein the value of the low priority indicator is set to "MS is not configured for NAS signaling low priority". The MT may utilize the NSLPI information provided as may be indicated in, for example, 3gpp ts24.301 and 3gpp ts 24.008.

The < securePCO > may be an integer type parameter indicating whether a secure protection transmission of PCO is requested (applicable only to EPS, see e.g. 3gpp ts23.401 sub-clause 6.5.1.2). In various embodiments, < securePCO > may have: a value of 0 to indicate a secure protection transmission of unsolicited PCO; or a value of 1 to indicate that a secure protection transmission of PCO is requested.

< IPv4_mtu_discovery > may be an integer type parameter that affects how the MT/TA requests to obtain the IPv4 maximum transmission unit ("MTU") size, see e.g., 3gpp ts24.008 sub-clause 10.5.6.3. In various embodiments, < IPv4_mtu_discovery > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that IPv4 MTU size finds a preference that is not affected by +cgdcont; or a value of 1 to indicate a preference for IPv4 MTU size discovery through NAS signaling.

The < local_addr_ind > may be an integer type parameter that indicates to the network whether the MS supports a Local IP address in the TFT (see e.g., 3gpp ts24.301 and 3gpp ts24.008 sub-clause 10.5.6.3). In various embodiments, < local_addr_ind > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the MS does not support a local IP address in the TFT; or a value of 1 to indicate that the MS supports a local IP address in the TFT.

The < apn_rate_control_support_ind > may be an integer type parameter that indicates to the network whether the MS supports APN Rate Control (see 3gpp ts24.008 sub-clause 10.5.6.3). In various embodiments, < apn_rate_control_support_ind > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the MS does not support APN rate control; or a value of 1 to indicate that the MS supports APN rate control.

In some embodiments, the +cgdcontrdp AT command may include parameters that may include APN rate control information or PLMN rate control information, as shown in table 2 below. Table 2 below may be based on table 10.1.23-1 of 3gpp ts27.007, for example.

TABLE 2 CGCONTRDP action command syntax

The execute command may return the relevant information < bearer_id >, < apn >, < local_addr and subnet_mask >, < gw_addr >, < dns_prim_addr >, < dns_sec_addr >, < P-cscf_prim_addr >, < P-cscf_sec_addr >, < im_cn_signaling_flag >, < lipa_indication >, < IPv4_mtu >, < wlan_offload > and < serving_plmn_rate_control >, for the active non-secondary PDP context with the context identifier < cid >.

If the MT indicates more than two IP addresses of a P-CSCF server or more than two IP addresses of a domain name system ("DNS") server, then multiple lines of information per < cid > may be returned.

If the MT has dual stack capability, at least one pair of rows with information can be returned per < cid >. The first row carries IPv4 parameters followed by a row carrying IPv6 parameters. If the MT with dual stack capability indicates more than two IP addresses of the P-CSCF server or more than two IP addresses of the DNS server, a plurality of such line pairs may be returned. If the MT does not include all IP addresses in a row, for example, in case the UE receives four IP addresses of DNS servers and two IP addresses of P-CSCF servers, the parameter value indicating the IP address that cannot be filled in may be set as an empty string or no string exists.

If the parameter < cid > is omitted, then relevant information for all active non-secondary PDP contexts may be returned. The test command may return a < cid > list associated with the active non-auxiliary context.

Values defined for Table 2

< cid > may be an integer type parameter that specifies a particular non-secondary PDP context definition. This parameter is local to the TE-MT interface and can be used for other PDP context related commands (see +cgdcont and +cgdscont commands).

< bearer_id > may be an integer type parameter that identifies the bearer (i.e., EPS bearer in EPS and network service access point indicator ("NSAPI") in UMTS/GPRS).

< apn > may be a string type parameter, which may be a logical name for selecting GGSN or external PDN.

The < local_addr and subnet_mask > may be a string type parameter, which displays the IP address of the MT and the subnet mask. The string may be formally given a numerical (0-255) parameter separated by dots:

for IPv4, "a1.a2.a3.a4.m1.m2.m3.m4"; or (b)

For IPv6, "a1.a2.a3.a4.a5.a6.a7.a8.a9.a10.a11.a12.a13.a14.a15.a16.

m1.m2.m3.m4.m5.m6.m7.m8.m9.m10.m11.m12.m13.m14.m15.m16。

When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

< gw_addr > may be a string type parameter that displays the gateway address of the MT. The string may give a number (0-255) parameter separated by dots. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

The < dns_prim_addr > may be a string type parameter that displays the IP address of the primary DNS server. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

< dns_sec_addr > may be a string type parameter that displays the IP address of the secondary DNS server. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

The < p_cscf_prim_addr > may be a string type parameter that displays the IP address of the primary P-CSCF server. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

The < p_cscf_sec_addr > may be a string type parameter that displays the IP address of the auxiliary P-CSCF server. When +CGPIAF is supported, its settings may affect the format of this parameter returned in the form of the execution of +CGCONTRDP.

The < im_cn_signaling_flag > may be an integer type parameter that shows whether the PDP context can be used for IM CN subsystem related signaling only. In various embodiments, < im_cn_signaling_flag > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the PDP context may be used for more than just IM CN subsystem related signaling; or a value of 1 to indicate that the PDP context may be used for IM CN subsystem related signaling only.

The < lipa_indication > may be an integer type parameter that indicates that the PDP context provides connectivity using a local IP address ("LIPA") PDN connection. The parameter may not be set by TE. In various embodiments, < lipa_indication > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that no indication of connectivity was provided by the PDP context using the LIPA PDN connection is received; or a value of 1 to indicate that the reception of the PDP context provides an indication of connectivity using the LIPA PDN connection.

The < IPv4_mtu > may be an integer type parameter showing an IPv4MTU size expressed in octets.

The < wlan_offload > may be an integer type parameter that indicates whether traffic can be offloaded via the WLAN using a specified PDN connection. This may refer to bits 1 and 2 of the WLAN offload acceptability IE, as may be indicated in, for example, 3gpp ts24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.20. In various embodiments, < wlan_offload > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that traffic offloading of the PDN connection via the WLAN may be unacceptable when in S1 mode or when in Iu mode; a value of 1 to indicate that traffic offloading a PDN connection via a WLAN may be acceptable while in S1 mode, but may be unacceptable in Iu mode; a value of 2 to indicate that traffic offloading the PDN connection via the WLAN may be acceptable while in Iu mode, but may be unacceptable in S1 mode; or a value of 3 to indicate that traffic for offloading PDN connections via the WLAN may be acceptable when in S1 mode or when in Iu mode.

The < local_addr_ind > may be an integer type parameter that indicates whether the MS and network support Local IP addresses in the TFT (see, e.g., 3gpp TS24.301 and 3gpp TS24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.3). In various embodiments, < local_addr_ind > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that the MS or the network or both may not support a local IP address in the TFT; or a value of 1 to indicate the MS and network support local IP addresses in the TFT.

The < serving_plmn_rate_control > may be an integer type parameter indicating the maximum number of UL ESM DATA TRANSPORT messages (including user data container IEs) that the UE may be allowed to send every 6 minute interval. This may refer to octets 3 to 4 of the serving PLMN rate control IE, as may be indicated in e.g. 3gpp ts24.301, sub-clause 9.9.4.28. The serving PLMN rate control information may indicate a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions allowed per 6 minute time interval aggregated over all PDN connections. If the indicated value is 0xFFFFH, it may indicate that there is no serving_PLMN_Rate_control limit.

The < max_uplink_rate > may be an integer type parameter indicating the maximum number of UL user data messages that the UE can transmit in the time interval indicated by the < timing_unit >. This may refer to octets 2 to 4 of the APN rate control parameter IE, as may be indicated in e.g. 3gpp ts24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.3.2.

The < timing_unit > may be an integer type parameter, which may be a time interval corresponding to < max_uplink_rate >, which together may indicate the maximum number of UL user data messages that the UE may send in the time interval of the APN. In various embodiments, < time_unit > may have: a value of 0 to indicate unlimited; a value of 1 to indicate minutes; a value of 2 to indicate hours; a value of 3 to indicate day; or a value of 4 to indicate weeks.

For example, if < max_uplink_rate > is 100 and < timing_unit > is 3 (i.e., day), it may indicate for the APN indicated by < APN > that the maximum number of UL user data messages may be limited to 100 messages per day for this < APN >.

The < add_exception_reports > may be an integer type parameter indicating whether the UE may be allowed to send UL Exception Reports even after the restriction of APN rate control has been reached. In various embodiments, < add_extraction_reports > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that additional exception reporting at the maximum rate reached may not be allowed; or a value of 1 to indicate that additional exception reporting is allowed at the maximum rate reached.

The < max_uplink_message_size > may be an integer type parameter indicating the maximum Size of the UL Message expressed in octets.

In some embodiments, the +cgrateelot AT command may include parameters that may include APN rate control information or PLMN rate control information, as shown in table 3 below. Table 3 below may be complementary to, for example, 3gpp ts 27.007.

TABLE 3 +CGRATECIOT Party Command syntax

This command may allow the TE to obtain APN rate control (see e.g. 3gpp TS 24.008) and serving PLMN rate control parameters (see e.g. 3gpp TS 24.301). The test command may return MT supported values. If the parameter < cid > is omitted, relevant information for all active non-secondary PDP contexts may be returned.

Values defined for Table 3

< cid > may be an integer type parameter that specifies a particular PDP context definition (see, e.g., + CGDCONT and +cgdscont commands).

The following parameters may be defined in, for example, 3gpp ts 24.008:

the < additional_acceptance_reports > may be an integer type parameter indicating whether additional_acceptance_reports may be allowed. This may refer to bit 4 of octet 1 of the APN rate control parameter IE, as may be indicated in e.g. 3gpp ts24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.3.2. In various embodiments, < additional_acceptance_reports > may have: a value of 0 to indicate that additional_acceptance_reports at the maximum rate reached may not be allowed; or a value of 1 to indicate that additional_acceptance_reports at the maximum rate reached may be allowed.

The < uplink_time_unit > may be an integer type parameter indicating a time unit to be used. This may refer to bits 1 to 3 of octet 1 of the APN rate control parameter IE, as may be indicated in e.g. 3gpp ts24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.3.2. In various embodiments, < uplink_time_unit > may have: a value of 0 to indicate unlimited; a value of 1 to indicate minutes; a value of 2 to indicate hours; a value of 3 to indicate day; or a value of 4 to indicate weeks.

< maximum_uplink_rate > may be an integer type parameter indicating the Maximum number of messages that the UE may be restricted to send per time unit. This may refer to octets 2 to 4 of the APN rate control parameter IE, as may be indicated in e.g. 3gpp ts24.008, sub-clause 10.5.6.3.2.

The < max_uplink_message_size > may be an integer type parameter indicating a maximum Size of an Uplink Message expressed in octets.

The following parameters may be defined in, for example, 3gpp ts 24.301:

The < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > may be an integer type parameter indicating the maximum number of UL messages that the UE may be allowed to transmit in a 6-minute interval. This may refer to octets 3 to 4 of the serving PLMN rate control IE, as indicated in e.g. 3gpp TS 24.301, sub-clause 9.9.4.28. The serving PLMN rate control information may indicate a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions allowed per 6 minute time interval aggregated over all PDN connections.

Fig. 2 illustrates a UE 200 according to some embodiments. In some embodiments, the UE 200 may be an IoT UE, which may be a network access layer designed for low power IoT applications that utilize short-term UE connections. IoT UEs may utilize technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) or machine-type communication (MTC) for exchanging data with MTC servers and/or devices (machine-initiated) via PLMN, proSe, or device-to-device (D2D) communications, sensor networks, or IoT networks. In addition to background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages, status updates, etc.) executed by IoT UEs, ioT networks may also describe interconnecting uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the internet infrastructure) with short-term connections. UE 200 may also be a smart phone (e.g., a handheld touch screen mobile computing device connectable to one or more cellular networks), but may also be any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as a Personal Data Assistant (PDA), pager, laptop computer, desktop computer, wireless handheld device, tablet computer, or any computing device that includes a wireless communication interface.

UE 200 may be configured to access a RAN, such as E-UTRAN 110. The UE 200 may utilize a connection that may include a physical communication interface or layer. The connection may be an air interface for implementing a communication coupling and may conform to a cellular communication protocol, such as a global system for mobile communications (GSM) protocol, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network protocol, a PTT Over Cellular (POC) protocol, a UMTS protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth generation (5G) protocol, a new air interface (NR) protocol, and so on.

The UE 200 may also exchange communication data directly with another UE via a ProSe interface (not shown). Alternatively, the ProSe interface may be referred to as a side link interface, which may include one or more logical channels including, but not limited to, a physical side link control channel (PSCCH), a physical side link shared channel (PSSCH), a physical side link discovery channel (PSDCH), and a physical side link broadcast channel (PSBCH).

The UE 200 may be configured to: an access point ("AP") (not shown) is accessed via a connection (not shown) that may include a local wireless connection (e.g., a connection conforming to any IEEE 802.11 protocol), where the AP may be a wireless fidelity (WiFi) router. The AP may connect to the internet without connecting to EPC 120.

The UE 200 may include TE circuitry 202 that may enable TE operation of the UE 200. The TE circuitry 202 may interface with users and applications of the UE 200 and may also interface with MT circuitry 204 of the UE 200 that may implement MT operations. MT circuitry 204 may also interface with a network. In some embodiments, the TE circuit 202 may be directly coupled with the MT circuit 204. In some embodiments, an intermediate terminal adapter ("TA") circuit 206 may be placed between the TE circuit 202 and the MT circuit 204 for converting messages exchanged between the TE circuit 202 and the MT circuit 204. In some embodiments, the TA circuit 206 may be incorporated into the TE circuit 202, into the MT circuit 204, or into a separate device.

As used herein, a reference to "TE" may refer to circuitry that implements TE operations, and a reference to "MT" may refer to circuitry that implements MT operations. The TE may provide functionality including, but not limited to, operations related to, for example, a keyboard, a screen, memory, or other hardware or software services. The MT may interface with the network and may provide functions including, but not limited to, for example, radio transmission and handoff, speech encoding and decoding, error detection and correction, and the like. The TA may provide functionality including, but not limited to, communication between, for example, the TE and the MT using, for example, AT commands. In some embodiments, the TA may be a bus over which AT commands are communicated.

As used herein, the term "circuitry" may refer to, be part of or include the following hardware components: for example, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a logic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group) and/or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) that provide the described functionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry may execute one or more software or firmware programs to provide at least some of the described functionality. Example embodiments may be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program code, software or firmware modules, and/or functional processes, executed by one or more of the foregoing circuits. Program code, software modules, and/or functional processes may include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular data types. The program code, software modules and/or functional processes discussed herein may be implemented using existing hardware in existing communication networks. For example, the program code, software modules, and/or functional processes discussed herein may be implemented using existing hardware at existing network elements or control nodes.

In some embodiments, the MT circuitry 204 may be, for example, a modem module. In some embodiments, TE circuitry 202 and MT circuitry 204 may communicate via AT commands that enable information to be transferred between or with modem modules. In some embodiments, the TE circuitry 202 and MT circuitry 204 may use AT commands to send rate control information and identify received rate control information. The TE circuit 202 may send rate control information to the MT circuit 204. The MT circuitry 204 may send rate control information to the TE circuitry 202 or the network. The TE circuit 202 may identify rate control information received from the MT circuit 204. The MT circuitry 204 may identify rate control information received from the TE circuitry 202 or from the network.

As described above, the rate control information may limit UL PDU transmission by a UE (e.g., UE 200) to the network. UL PDU transmission or UL data transmission, and DL PDU transmission or DL data transmission may include, for example, IP data, non-IP data (e.g., machine type data, or SMS data or messages). The rate control information may relate to a rate control mechanism. In some embodiments, the rate control mechanism may be an APN rate control mechanism and the rate control information may include APN rate control information. In some embodiments, the rate control mechanism may be a serving PLMN rate control mechanism and the rate control information may include serving PLMN rate control information.

In some embodiments, the APN rate control information may include an indication of whether TE circuitry 202 or (in general) UE 200 supports APN rate control. For example, if TE circuitry 202 or (in general) UE 200 does not support APN rate control, UE 200 may send UL PDU transmissions in an amount that may, for example, reduce, limit, or prevent other UEs from using bandwidth for their UL PDU transmissions. The network may have other ways to handle UL PDU transmissions for UEs that do not support APN rate control. In some embodiments, the APN rate control information may include a number, e.g., a maximum number, of UL PDU transmissions that the UE 200 is allowed to send to the APN in a time unit. The time units may be, for example, unlimited, minutes, hours, days, weeks, or any other period of time. For example, if the time unit is unrestricted for an APN, the UE 200 may send an unlimited number of UL PDU transmissions and may receive an unlimited number of DL PDUs. Further, for example, if the number of UL PDU transmissions is 100 and the time unit is a day for an APN, the number of UL PDU transmissions from UE 200 may be limited to 100 messages per day for that APN.

In some embodiments, the APN rate control information may include an indication of whether UE 200 may send a UL exception report if UE 200 reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions (e.g., maximum number). In some embodiments, the APN rate control information may include a size of the UL message, e.g., a maximum size. The size of the UL message may be expressed in, for example, octets.

In some embodiments, the rate control information may be serving PLMN rate control information. In some embodiments, the serving PLMN rate control information may include a number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval that the UE 200 is allowed to transmit, wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more or all PDN connections. The time interval may be a deci-hour or any other time period. For example, if the serving PLMN rate is 10 and the time interval is dec-hour, the number of UL PDU transmissions from UE 200 may be limited to 10 messages per six minutes on one or more or all APNs.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of a TE according to some embodiments. The operational flow/algorithm structure 300 may include: AT 304, an AT command is sent that includes rate control information related to a rate control mechanism. In some embodiments, the rate control mechanism may be an APN rate control mechanism. In some embodiments, the rate control information included in the AT command may include APN rate control information, which may include, for example, an indication of whether TE (e.g., TE circuitry 202) or UE (e.g., UE 200) supports APN rate control. Thus, for example, the AT command may be, for example, a +cgdcont AT command that includes a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether TE or UE supports APN Rate Control. The < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter is described above.

The operational flow/algorithm structure 300 may further include: AT 308, a received AT command is identified that includes received rate control information related to a rate control mechanism. In some embodiments, the received rate control information included in the received AT command may include APN rate control information, which may include, for example, a number, e.g., a maximum number, of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is allowed to send to the APN in a time unit. Thus, in some embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < max_uplink_rate > parameter and a < timing_unit > parameter to indicate the number of UL PDU transmissions allowed within a time unit. The < max_uplink_rate > parameter and the < timing_unit > parameter are described above. In other embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and an < uplink_time_unit > parameter to indicate the number of UL PDU transmissions within a time cell. The < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and the < uplink_time_unit > parameter are described above.

In some embodiments, the received rate control information included in the received AT command may include, for example, an indication of whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions (e.g., maximum number). In some embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes an < add_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send a UL Exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions. The < add_Exception_Reports > parameter is described above. In other embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgrateciot AT command that includes an < additional_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE can send UL exception reports if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions. The < additional_acceptance_reports > parameter is described above.

In some embodiments, the received rate control information included in the received AT command may include an indication of the size (e.g., maximum size) of the UL message, e.g., in octets. In some embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgcontrdp AT command, which may include a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate the Size of the UL Message. The < max_uplink_message_size > parameter is described above. In other embodiments, the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate the Size (e.g., maximum Size) of the UL Message, for example, in octets. The < max_uplink_message_size > parameter is described above.

While embodiments herein may describe sending AT commands that include rate control information related to a rate control mechanism and identifying received AT commands that include rate control information related to the rate control mechanism, embodiments described herein do not require sending AT commands for the rate control mechanism in order to identify received AT commands for the rate control mechanism. Further, while embodiments herein may describe sending an indication that a TE or UE supports a rate control mechanism and identifying rate control information related to the rate control mechanism, embodiments described herein do not require sending an indication that a TE or UE supports the rate control mechanism in order to identify received AT commands that include rate control information related to the rate control mechanism.

The operational flow/algorithm structure 300 may further include: AT 312, another received AT command is identified that includes another rate control information received regarding another rate control mechanism. The other rate control mechanism may be different from or the same as the rate control mechanism of the received AT command. Similarly, the received further rate control information included in the further received AT command may be different or the same as the received rate control information included in the received AT command. In some embodiments, the other rate control mechanism may be a serving PLMN rate control mechanism. In some embodiments, the received further rate control information included in the further received AT command may be serving PLMN rate control information, which may include, for example, a number (e.g., a maximum number) of UL PDU transmissions per time interval that the UE (e.g., UE 200) is allowed to transmit, wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more or all PDN connections. Thus, in some embodiments, another received AT command may be, for example, a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter to indicate the number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval aggregated over one or more or all PDN connections. The < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter is described above. In other embodiments, another received AT command may be, for example, a +cgrateelot AT command, which may include a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter to indicate the number of allowed UL PDU transmissions aggregated over one or more or all PDN connections. The < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter is described above.

The operational flow/algorithm structure 300 may further include: AT 316, the UE (e.g., UE 200) is caused to limit UL PDU transmission to the network based on rate control information, which may be, for example, received rate control information included in a received AT command or received another rate control information included in another received AT command.

Fig. 4 illustrates an example operational flow/algorithm structure of an MT according to some embodiments. The operational flow/algorithm structure 400 may include: AT 404, a received AT command is identified that includes rate control information related to a rate control mechanism. The operational flow/algorithm structure 400 may further include: at 408, rate control information is transmitted. The operational flow/algorithm structure 400 may further include: at 412, the UE (e.g., UE 200) is caused to limit UL PDU transmissions to the network based on the rate control information.

In some embodiments, identifying the received AT command including rate control information related to the rate control mechanism may include: identifying a received AT command from the TE that includes rate control information related to the rate control mechanism, and transmitting the rate control information may include: the rate control information is sent to the network. In some embodiments, the Rate Control mechanism may be an APN Rate Control mechanism, the APN Rate Control information may include an indication of, for example, whether the TE or UE supports APN Rate Control, and the received AT command may be, for example, a +cgdcont AT command including a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE or UE supports APN Rate Control.

Some embodiments may include: received rate control information from the network is identified and an AT command including the rate control information is sent to the TE. In some embodiments, for example, the rate control mechanism may be an APN rate control mechanism, and the APN rate control information may include a number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is allowed to send to the APN in a time unit. Thus, in some embodiments, the AT command may be, for example, a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < max_uplink_rate > parameter and a < timing_unit > parameter to indicate the number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is allowed to send within a time unit. In other embodiments, the AT command may be, for example, a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and an < uplink_time_unit > parameter to indicate the number of UL PDU transmissions within a time cell.

Various embodiments may describe the TE circuitry 202 sending AT commands to the MT circuitry 204, or may describe sending AT commands to the MT. Even though not explicitly described, embodiments that may describe the TE circuitry 202 to send AT commands to the MT circuitry 204 may also include: the MT circuit 204 recognizes the AT command received from the TE circuit 202 and describes an embodiment of sending the AT command to the MT may include: an AT command received from the TE is identified. Similarly, various embodiments may describe the MT circuit 204 to send AT commands to the TE circuit 202, or may describe the AT commands to the TE. Even though not explicitly described, embodiments that may describe the MT circuitry 204 to send AT commands to the TE circuitry 202 may also include: the TE circuitry 202 recognizes the AT command received from the MT circuitry 204 and describes an embodiment of sending the AT command to the TE may include: an AT command received from the MT is identified.

FIG. 5 illustrates another example operational flow/algorithm structure of a TE according to some embodiments. The operational flow/algorithm structure 500 may include: AT 504, an AT command is sent. The operational flow/algorithm structure 500 may further include: AT 508, one or more APN parameters received in response to the AT command are identified, wherein the one or more APN parameters include rate control information. The operational flow/algorithm structure 500 may further include: at 512, the UE is caused to limit UL PDU transmission to the network based on the rate control information. In some embodiments, the one or more APN parameters may include a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is restricted from transmitting within a time cell. The < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter is described above. In some embodiments, the one or more APN parameters may include an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides a time cell. The < uplink_time_unit > parameter is described above. In some embodiments, the time units may include unlimited, minutes, hours, days, or weeks. In some embodiments, the one or more APN parameters may include a parameter indicating whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within a time unit. The < additional_acceptance_reports > parameter is described above.

Fig. 6 illustrates yet another example operational flow/algorithm structure of a TE in accordance with some embodiments. Operational flow/algorithm structure 600 may include: AT 604, an AT command is sent. The operational flow/algorithm structure 600 may further include: AT 608, a serving PLMN parameter received in response to the AT command is identified, wherein the serving PLMN parameter includes rate control information including a maximum number of uplink messages that a User Equipment (UE) is allowed to transmit within a six minute interval. The operational flow/algorithm structure 600 may further include: at 612, the UE is caused to limit UL PDU transmission to the network based on the rate control information. In some embodiments, the Serving PLMN parameter may include a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter. The < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter is described above.

In some embodiments, the UE may include an MT that may transmit one or more parameters including rate control information, and a TE that may identify the received one or more parameters, wherein the TE may cause the UE to limit UL PDU transmissions to the network based on the rate control information. In some embodiments, the one or more parameters may include one or more APN parameters, e.g., APN parameters described herein. In some embodiments, the one or more parameters may include a serving PLMN parameter, e.g., a serving PLMN parameter described herein.

Fig. 7 illustrates an electronic device 700 according to some embodiments. In an embodiment, the electronic device 700 may be a TE circuit or an MT circuit of a UE (e.g., as described above in fig. 2), implement them, incorporate them, or be part of them. The embodiments described herein may be implemented in a system using any suitably configured hardware and/or software.

In some embodiments, the electronic device 700 may include application circuitry 702, baseband circuitry 704, radio Frequency (RF) circuitry 706, front End Module (FEM) circuitry 708, and one or more antennas 710, coupled together at least as shown. In embodiments where the electronic device 700 is implemented in the eNB 710 or by the eNB 710, the electronic device 700 may also include network interface circuitry (not shown) for communicating over a wired interface (e.g., an X2 interface, an S1 interface, etc.).

The application circuitry 702 may include one or more application processors. For example, application circuitry 702 may include a TE, such as but not limited to TE 202, or a TA, such as but not limited to TA 206. Further, for example, the application circuitry 702 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors 702 a. The processor 702a may include any combination of general-purpose and special-purpose processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processor 702a may be coupled to and/or may include a computer-readable medium 702b (also referred to as "CRM 702b", "memory 702b", "storage 702b", or "memory/storage 702 b") and may be configured to: instructions stored in CRM 702b are executed to enable various applications and/or operating systems to run on the system.

Baseband circuitry 704 may include a TE, such as but not limited to TE 202, or an MT, such as but not limited to MT 204, or a TA, such as but not limited to TA 206. Further, for example, baseband circuitry 704 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuitry 704 may include one or more baseband processors and/or control logic to process baseband signals received from the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 706 and to generate baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 706. Baseband circuitry 704 may interface with application circuitry 702 for generating and processing baseband signals and controlling the operation of RF circuitry 706. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may include a second generation (2G) baseband processor 704a, a third generation (3G) baseband processor 704b, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 704c, and/or other baseband processors 704d for other existing generations, for development, or for generations to be developed in the future (e.g., fifth generation (5G), 6G, etc.). The baseband circuitry 704 (e.g., one or more of the baseband processors 704 a-d) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 706. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting, and the like. In some embodiments, the modulation/demodulation circuitry of baseband circuitry 704 may include Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, and/or constellation mapping/demapping functions. In some embodiments, the encoding/decoding circuitry of baseband circuitry 704 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, viterbi, and/or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functions. Embodiments of the modem and encoder/decoder functions are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functions in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 704 may include elements of a protocol stack, such as elements of an E-UTRAN protocol, including, for example, physical (PHY), medium Access Control (MAC), radio Link Control (RLC), PDCP, and/or Radio Resource Control (RRC) elements. The Central Processing Unit (CPU) 704e of the baseband circuit 704 may be configured to: elements of the protocol stack are run for PHY, MAC, RLC, PDCP and/or RRC layer signaling. In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may include one or more audio Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) 704f. The audio DSP 704f may include elements for compression/decompression and echo cancellation, and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments. The baseband circuitry 704 may also include a computer-readable medium 704g (also referred to as "CRM 704g", "memory 704g", "storage 704g" or "CRM 704 g"). The CRM 704g may be used to load and store data and/or instructions for operations performed by the processor of the baseband circuitry 704. For one embodiment, the CRM 704g may include any combination of suitable volatile memory and/or non-volatile memory. CRM 704g may include any combination of various levels of memory/storage including, but not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) with embedded software instructions (e.g., firmware), random access memory (e.g., dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM)), cache, buffers, and the like. CRM 704g may be shared among various processors or dedicated to a particular processor. In some embodiments, the components of baseband circuitry 704 may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on the same circuit board. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituent components of baseband circuitry 704 and application circuitry 702 may be implemented together, for example, on a system on a chip (SOC).

In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 704 may provide communications compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, baseband circuitry 704 may support communication with E-UTRAN and/or other Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMANs), wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs). Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 704 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

The RF circuitry 706 may enable communication with a wireless network using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, and the like to facilitate communication with a wireless network. The RF circuitry 706 may include a receive signal path that may include circuitry for down-converting RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 708 and providing baseband signals to the baseband circuitry 704. The RF circuitry 706 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry for up-converting the baseband signal provided by the baseband circuitry 704 and providing an RF output signal to the FEM circuitry 708 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the RF circuit 706 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the RF circuit 706 may include a mixer circuit 706a, an amplifier circuit 706b, and a filter circuit 706c. The transmit signal path of the RF circuit 706 may include a filter circuit 706c and a mixer circuit 706a. The RF circuit 706 may also include a synthesizer circuit 706d for synthesizing frequencies used by the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path may be configured to: the RF signal received from FEM circuitry 708 is down-converted based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 706 d. The amplifier circuit 706b may be configured to: the down-converted signal is amplified, and the filter circuit 706c may be a Low Pass Filter (LPF) or a Band Pass Filter (BPF) configured to: unwanted signals are removed from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals. The output baseband signal may be provided to baseband circuitry 704 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signal may be a zero frequency baseband signal, although this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path may comprise a passive mixer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the transmit signal path may be configured to: the input baseband signal is upconverted based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuit 706d to generate an RF output signal for FEM circuit 708. The baseband signal may be provided by baseband circuitry 704 and may be filtered by filter circuitry 706 c. The filter circuit 706c may include a Low Pass Filter (LPF), but the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 706a of the transmit signal path may comprise two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature down-conversion and/or up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 706a 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 embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 706a of the transmit signal path may be arranged for direct down-conversion and/or direct up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 706a of the transmit signal path may be configured for superheterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternative embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be digital baseband signals. In these alternative embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry, and the baseband circuitry 704 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuitry 706.

In some dual mode embodiments, separate radio IC circuits may be provided for processing signals with respect to each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 706d may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional-N/n+1 synthesizer, although the scope of embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, the synthesizer circuit 706d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer including a phase locked loop with a frequency divider. The synthesizer circuit 706d may be configured to: the output frequency used by the mixer circuit 706a of the input combining RF circuit 706 is controlled based on the frequency input and the divider. In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuit 706d may be a fractional N/n+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, the frequency input may be provided by a Voltage Controlled Oscillator (VCO), although this is not a requirement. The divider control input may be provided by the baseband circuitry 704 or the application circuitry 702, depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, the divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table based on the channel indicated by application circuit 702.

The synthesizer circuit 706d of the RF circuit 706 may include a divider, a Delay Locked Loop (DLL), a multiplexer, and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a Dual Mode Divider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a Digital Phase Accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to: the input signal is divided by N or n+1 (e.g., based on the carry) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, 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 embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to decompose the VCO period into Nd equal phase packets, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuit 706d may be configured to: the carrier frequency is generated as the output frequency, while in other embodiments the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used in conjunction with the quadrature generator and divider circuit to generate a plurality of signals having a plurality of different phases relative to each other at the carrier frequency. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be an LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuit 706 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 708 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas 710, amplify the received signals, and provide an amplified version of the received signals to RF circuitry 706 for further processing. FEM circuitry 708 may further include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals provided by RF circuitry 706 for transmission by one or more of antennas 710. In some embodiments, FEM circuitry 708 may include a TX/RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. FEM circuitry 708 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) to amplify the received RF signal and provide the amplified received RF signal as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 706). The transmit signal path of FEM circuitry 708 may include: a Power Amplifier (PA) for amplifying an input RF signal (e.g., provided by RF circuit 706); and one or more filters for generating RF signals for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or more antennas 710).

In some embodiments, electronic device 700 may include additional elements, such as a display, a camera, one or more sensors, and/or interface circuitry (e.g., an input/output (I/O) interface or bus) (not shown).

In some embodiments, MT circuitry 204 may provide network connectivity and include 704, 706, 708, and 750; while TE circuitry 202 may provide higher layer functionality and include application circuitry 702.

The description of illustrated implementations, including what is described in the abstract, is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Although specific implementations and examples are described herein for illustrative purposes, various alternative or equivalent embodiments or implementations, which are considered to achieve the same purposes, can be made from the foregoing detailed description without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, as will be recognized by those skilled in the art.

Some non-limiting examples are provided below.

Example

Example 1 may include a User Equipment (UE), comprising: a Terminal Equipment (TE) circuit; and Mobile Terminal (MT) circuitry coupled with the TE circuitry, the TE circuitry to: transmitting first Access Point Name (APN) rate control information to the MT circuitry via a first identity (AT) command, the MT circuitry to: second APN rate control information is sent to the TE circuitry, the first and second rate control information restricting Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmissions by the UE to the network.

Example 2 may include the UE of example 1 or some other examples herein, wherein the first APN rate control information includes an indication of whether the TE circuitry supports APN rate control.

Example 3 may include the UE of example 1 or 2 or some other example herein, wherein the second APN rate control information includes a number of UL PDU transmissions the UE is allowed to send to an APN in a time unit.

Example 4 may include a UE, comprising: a Terminal Equipment (TE) circuit; a Mobile Terminal (MT) circuit coupled to the TE circuit, the MT circuit to: serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) rate control information is sent to the TE circuitry via an ATtention (AT) command, the serving PLMN rate control information limiting Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmissions by the UE to the network.

Example 5 may include the UE of example 4 or some other example herein, wherein the serving PLMN rate control information includes a number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval the UE is allowed to transmit, and wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more Packet Data Network (PDN) connections.

Example 6 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising computer-readable instructions that, when executed by a Terminal Equipment (TE), cause the TE to: transmitting an ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; identifying a received AT command that includes received rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 7 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 6 or some other examples herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism.

Example 8 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 6 or 7 or some other examples herein, wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information comprising an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 9 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8 or some other examples herein, wherein the AT command is a +cgdcont AT command comprising a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 10 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-9 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions allowed for the UE to send to the APN in a time unit.

Example 11 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8, 10, or some other examples herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command including a < max_uplink_rate > parameter and a < timing_unit > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time cell.

Example 12 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8, 10, or some other examples herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and an < uplink_time_unit > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time cell.

Example 13 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-12 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 14 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8, 10, 11, 13, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < add_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send a UL Exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 15 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8, 10, 12, 13, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command that includes an < additional_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send an UL exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 16 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-15 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of a size of the UL message.

Example 17 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command including a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate a Size of the UL Message in octets.

Example 18 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 6-17 or some other examples herein, wherein the computer-readable instructions further comprise computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the TE, cause the TE to: another received AT command is identified that includes another received rate control information related to another rate control mechanism.

Example 19 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 18 or some other example herein, wherein the another rate control mechanism is a serving public land mobile network ("PLMN") rate control mechanism, and wherein the received another rate control information includes serving PLMN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval the UE is allowed to transmit, and wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more Packet Data Network (PDN) connections.

Example 20 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 18 or 19 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command comprising a < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions aggregated over the one or more PDN connections.

Example 21 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 18 or 19 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter to indicate a number of allowed UL PDU transmissions aggregated over the one or more PDN connections.

Example 22 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising computer-readable instructions that, when executed by a Mobile Terminal (MT), cause the MT to: identifying a received ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; transmitting the rate control information; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 23 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 22 or some other examples herein, wherein causing the MT to identify the one or more computer-readable media that received AT commands comprising the rate control information related to the rate control mechanism comprises: causing the MT to identify one or more computer-readable media that received AT commands including rate control information from a Terminal Equipment (TE), and wherein causing the MT to transmit the rate control information comprises: the MT is caused to send the rate control information to one or more computer readable media of the network.

Example 24 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 22 or 23 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism, and wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information comprising an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 25 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 24 or some other examples herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgdcont AT command including a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 26 may include a rate control method in a Terminal Equipment (TE), comprising: transmitting an ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; identifying a received AT command that includes received rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 27 may include the method of example 26 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism.

Example 28 may include the method of example 26 or 27 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information comprising an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 29 may include the methods of examples 26-28 or some other examples herein, wherein the AT command is a +cgdcont AT command comprising a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 30 may include the methods of examples 26-29 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions allowed for the UE to send to the APN in a time unit.

Example 31 may include the methods of examples 26-28, 30 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command comprising a < max_uplink_rate > parameter and a < timing_unit > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

Example 32 may include the methods of examples 26-28, 30 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command that includes a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and an < uplink_time_unit > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time cell.

Example 33 may include the methods of examples 26-32 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 34 may include the methods of examples 26-28, 30, 31, 33, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < add_reception_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send a UL Exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 35 may include the methods of examples 26-28, 30, 32, 33, or some other example herein, the received AT command is a +cgrateeot AT command that includes an < additional_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 36 may include the methods of examples 26-35 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of a size of the UL message.

Example 37 may include the methods of examples 26-28, 30, 31, 33, 34, 36, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate a Size of the UL Message in octets.

Example 38 may include the methods of examples 26-37 or some other examples herein, wherein the computer-readable instructions further comprise computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the TE, cause the TE to: another received AT command is identified that includes another received rate control information related to another rate control mechanism.

Example 39 may include the method of example 38 or some other example herein, wherein the other rate control mechanism is a serving public land mobile network ("PLMN") rate control mechanism, and wherein the received other rate control information includes serving PLMN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval that the UE is allowed to transmit, and wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more Packet Data Network (PDN) connections.

Example 40 may include the methods of example 38 or 39 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command including a < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions aggregated over the one or more PDN connections.

Example 41 may include the method of example 38 or 39 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command including a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter to indicate a number of allowed UL PDU transmissions aggregated over the one or more PDN connections.

Example 42 may include a rate control method in a Mobile Terminal (MT), comprising: identifying a received ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; transmitting the rate control information; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 43 may include the method of example 42 or some other example herein, wherein causing the MT to identify the one or more computer-readable media that received AT commands comprising the rate control information related to the rate control mechanism comprises: causing the MT to identify one or more computer-readable media that received AT commands including rate control information from a Terminal Equipment (TE), and wherein causing the MT to transmit the rate control information comprises: the MT is caused to send the rate control information to one or more computer readable media of the network.

Example 44 may include the method of example 42 or 43 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism, and wherein the rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 45 may include the method of example 44 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgdcont AT command including a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 46 may include a Terminal Equipment (TE) comprising: means for transmitting an ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; means for identifying a received AT command that includes received rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; and means for causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmissions to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 47 may include the TE of example 46 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism.

Example 48 may include the TE of example 46 or 47 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information comprising an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 49 may include the TE of examples 46-48 or some other example herein, wherein the AT command is a +cgdcont AT command comprising a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter to indicate whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 50 may include the TEs of examples 46-49 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions allowed to be sent by the UE to the APN in a time unit.

Example 51 may include the TEs of examples 46-48, 50 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command comprising a < max_uplink_rate > parameter and a < timing_unit > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

Example 52 may include the TEs of examples 46-48, 50 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command comprising a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter and an < uplink_time_unit > parameter for indicating a number of UL PDU transmissions within the time cell.

Example 53 may include the TEs of examples 46-52 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 54 may include the TEs of examples 46-48, 50, 51, 53, or some other examples herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command comprising a < add_reception_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send a UL Exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 55 may include the TEs of examples 46-48, 50, 52, 53, or some other examples herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgrateeot AT command that includes an < additional_indication_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may send an UL exception report if the UE reaches the number of UL PDU transmissions.

Example 56 may include the TEs of examples 46-55 or some other examples herein, wherein the received rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of a size of the UL message.

Example 57 may include the TEs of examples 46-48, 50, 51, 53, 54, 56, or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command that includes a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate a Size of the UL Message in octets.

Example 58 may include the TE of examples 46-57 or some other example herein, wherein the TE is further to: another received AT command is identified that includes another received rate control information related to another rate control mechanism.

Example 59 may include the TE of example 58 or some other example herein, wherein the other rate control mechanism is a serving public land mobile network ("PLMN") rate control mechanism, and wherein the received other rate control information includes serving PLMN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions per time interval the UE is allowed to transmit, and wherein the number of UL PDU transmissions is aggregated over one or more Packet Data Network (PDN) connections.

Example 60 may include the TE of example 58 or 59 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgcontrdp AT command including a < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter to indicate a number of UL PDU transmissions aggregated over the one or more PDN connections.

Example 61 may include the TE of example 58 or 59 or some other example herein, wherein the other received AT command is a +cgrateciot AT command comprising a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter indicating a number of allowed UL PDU transmissions aggregated over one or more PDN connections.

Example 62 may include a Mobile Terminal (MT) comprising: means for identifying a received ATtention (AT) command, the AT command including rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; a module for transmitting the rate control information; and means for causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 63 may include the MT of example 62 or some other example herein, wherein the means for identifying the received AT command comprising the rate control information related to the rate control mechanism comprises: means for identifying an AT command received from a Terminal Equipment (TE) comprising rate control information, and wherein the means for transmitting the rate control information comprises: and means for sending the rate control information to the network.

Example 64 may include the MT of example 62 or 63 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control mechanism is an Access Point Name (APN) rate control mechanism, and wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information comprising an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

Example 65 may include the MT of example 64 or some other example herein, wherein the received AT command is a +cgdcont AT command including a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter for indicating whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 66 may include a signal comprising an < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter for indicating whether TE supports APN Rate Control.

Example 67 may include a signal comprising a < max_uplink_rate > parameter to indicate a maximum number of UL user data messages that a UE may transmit within a time interval.

Example 68 may include a signal including an < time_unit > parameter to indicate a time interval.

Example 69 may include a signal comprising a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter to indicate that the UE is limited to a Maximum number of messages sent per time unit.

Example 70 may include a signal comprising an < uplink_time_unit > parameter for indicating a time cell to use.

Example 71 may include a signal comprising an < add_expiration_reports > parameter to indicate whether the UE may be allowed to send UL Exception Reports even after the restriction of APN rate control has been reached.

Example 72 may include a signal including an < additional_exception_reports > parameter to indicate whether Additional exception reporting may be allowed at the maximum rate reached.

Example 73 may include a signal comprising a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate a maximum Size of the UL Message in octets.

Example 74 may include a signal comprising a < serving_plmn_rate_control > parameter to indicate a maximum number of UL Evolved Packet System (EPS) session management (ESM) data transfer messages that the UE may send every 6 minute interval.

Example 75 may include a signal comprising a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter to indicate a maximum number of UL messages that the UE may send within a 6 minute interval.

Example 76 may include a signal comprising a < max_uplink_message_size > parameter to indicate a maximum Size of an Uplink Message in octets.

Example 77 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause a Terminal Equipment (TE): transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; identifying one or more Access Point Name (APN) parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more APN parameters include rate control information; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 78 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 77 or some other examples herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is limited to transmit within a time unit.

Example 79 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 78 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides the time cell.

Example 80 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 79 or some other example herein, wherein the time units include unlimited, minutes, hours, days, or weeks.

Example 81 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of examples 78-80 or some other examples herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

Example 82 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause a Terminal Equipment (TE): transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; identifying a serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) parameter received in response to the AT command, wherein the serving PLMN parameter includes rate control information including a maximum number of uplink messages that a User Equipment (UE) is allowed to transmit within a six minute interval; and causing the UE to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 83 may include the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of example 82 or some other example herein, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

Example 84 may include an apparatus comprising: terminal Equipment (TE) for: transmitting an ATtention (AT) command and identifying one or more parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more parameters include rate control information, the TE causing the apparatus to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmissions to a network based on the rate control information; and a Mobile Terminal (MT) for: the one or more parameters including the rate control information are transmitted in response to the AT command.

Example 85 may include the apparatus of example 84 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more parameters comprise one or more Access Point Name (APN) parameters.

Example 86 may include the apparatus of example 85 or some other examples herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the apparatus is limited to transmit within a time unit.

Example 87 may include the apparatus of example 86 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides the time cell.

Example 88 may include the apparatus of example 87 or some other example herein, wherein the time units comprise unlimited, minute, hour, day, or week.

Example 89 may include the apparatus of examples 86-88 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether the apparatus may send a UL exception report if the apparatus reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

Example 90 may include the apparatus of example 84 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more parameters comprise serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) parameters.

Example 91 may include the apparatus of example 90 or some other example herein, wherein the rate control information includes a maximum number of uplink messages the apparatus is allowed to transmit in a six minute interval.

Example 92 may include the apparatus of example 90 or 91 or some other example herein, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

Example 93 may include a method comprising: transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; identifying one or more Access Point Name (APN) parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more APN parameters include rate control information; and causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 94 may include the method of example 93 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is limited to transmit within a time unit.

Example 95 may include the method of example 94 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides a time cell.

Example 96 may include the method of example 95 or some other example herein, wherein the time units comprise unlimited, minute, hour, day, or week.

Example 97 may include the methods of examples 94-96 or some other examples herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

Example 98 may include a method comprising: transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; identifying a serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) parameter received in response to the AT command, wherein the serving PLMN parameter includes rate control information including a maximum number of uplink messages that a User Equipment (UE) is allowed to transmit in a six minute interval; and causing the UE to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 99 may include the method of example 98 or some other example herein, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

Example 100 may include a Terminal Equipment (TE) comprising: a module for transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; means for identifying one or more Access Point Name (APN) parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more APN parameters include rate control information; and means for causing a User Equipment (UE) to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to the network based on the rate control information.

Example 101 may include the TE of example 100 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions the UE is restricted from transmitting within a time unit.

Example 102 may include the TE of example 101 or some other example herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides a time cell.

Example 103 may include the TE of example 102 or some other example herein, wherein the time units include unlimited, minute, hour, day, or week.

Example 104 may include the TEs of examples 101-103 or some other examples herein, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether the UE may send a UL exception report if the UE reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within a time unit.

Example 105 may include a Terminal Equipment (TE) comprising: a module for transmitting an ATtention (AT) command; means for identifying serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the serving PLMN parameters include rate control information including a maximum number of uplink messages that a User Equipment (UE) is allowed to transmit in a six minute interval; and means for causing the UE to limit Uplink (UL) Packet Data Unit (PDU) transmission to a network based on the rate control information.

Example 106 may include the TE of example 105 or some other example herein, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

Claims

1. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause a terminal device TE to:

Transmitting an ATtention command, namely an AT command;

identifying one or more access point name, APN, parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise rate control information that is applicable by an application layer in an uplink, UL; and

the user equipment UE is caused to restrict UL packet data unit, PDU, transmission to the network based on the rate control information.

2. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the one or more APN parameters include a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the UE is limited to transmit within a time unit.

3. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 2, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides the time cell.

4. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 3, wherein the time units comprise unlimited, minutes, hours, days, or weeks.

5. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 2, 3, or 4, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether a UE may send an UL exception report if the UE reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

6. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a terminal device TE to:

transmitting an ATtention command, namely an AT command;

identifying a serving public land mobile network, PLMN, parameter received in response to the AT command, wherein the serving PLMN parameter comprises rate control information applicable by an application layer in an uplink, UL, the rate control information comprising a maximum number of uplink messages a user equipment, UE, is allowed to transmit within a six minute interval; and

the UE is caused to limit UL packet data unit, PDU, transmission to the network based on the rate control information.

7. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 6, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

8. An apparatus for rate control, comprising:

terminal equipment TE for: transmitting an ATtention command, AT, command and identifying one or more parameters received in response to the AT command, wherein the one or more parameters include rate control information applicable by an application layer in an uplink, UL, packet data unit, PDU, transmission to a network being limited by the TE based on the rate control information; and

A mobile terminal MT for: the one or more parameters including the rate control information are transmitted in response to the AT command.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the one or more parameters comprise one or more access point name, APN, parameters.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise a < maximum_uplink_rate > parameter that provides a Maximum number of UL PDU transmissions that the apparatus is limited to transmit in a time unit.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the one or more APN parameters comprise an < uplink_time_unit > parameter that provides the time cell.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the AT command is a +cgcontrdp command and the rate control information comprises a maximum number of uplink messages the apparatus is allowed to transmit in a six minute interval.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, 11 or 12, wherein the one or more APN parameters include an < additional_indication_reports > parameter indicating whether the apparatus can send UL exception reports if the apparatus reaches a maximum number of UL PDU transmissions within the time unit.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the one or more parameters comprise serving public land mobile network, PLMN, parameters.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the rate control information comprises a maximum number of uplink messages the apparatus is allowed to transmit in a six minute interval.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 or 15, wherein the Serving PLMN parameter is a < serving_plmn_rate_control_value > parameter.

17. An apparatus for rate control, comprising:

means for identifying a received ATtention command, AT command, comprising rate control information related to a rate control mechanism, said rate control information being applicable by an application layer in an uplink, UL;

means for transmitting the rate control information; and

means for causing the user equipment UE to restrict UL packet data unit, PDU, transmission to the network based on said rate control information.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the means for identifying the received AT command comprising the rate control information related to the rate control mechanism is further for: an AT command including rate control information received from the terminal equipment TE is identified, and,

The means for transmitting the rate control information is further for: the rate control information is sent to the network.

19. The apparatus of claim 17 or 18, wherein the rate control mechanism is an access point name, APN, rate control mechanism, and wherein,

the rate control information includes APN rate control information including an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the received AT command is a +cgdcont AT command comprising a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter for indicating whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

21. An apparatus for rate control, comprising:

means for transmitting an ATtention command, an AT command, the AT command comprising rate control information related to a rate control mechanism, the rate control information being applicable by an application layer in an uplink, UL;

means for identifying a received AT command that includes received rate control information related to a rate control mechanism; and

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the rate control mechanism is an access point name APN rate control mechanism.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 or 22, wherein the rate control information comprises APN rate control information including an indication of whether the TE supports APN rate control.

24. The apparatus of claim 21 or 22, wherein the AT command is a +cgdcont AT command including a < apn_rate_control_support_ind > parameter for indicating whether the TE supports APN Rate Control.

25. The apparatus of claim 21 or 22, wherein the received rate control information comprises APN rate control information including a number of UL PDU transmissions the UE is allowed to send to an APN in a time unit.