WO2024148161A1 - Method and apparatus for edge group management - Google Patents

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses, and procedures for edge group management in wireless communications are provided. For example, a method implemented by a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) includes receiving a first indication indicating information of a group session relocation associated with a group of user sessions, performing, based on the information of the group session relocation, an application context relocation procedure on at least one user session of the group of user sessions, and transmitting a second indication indicating the application context relocation procedure being completed in the WTRU.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EDGE GROUP MANAGEMENT

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

[0001] This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/437,564 filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on January 6, 2023, the entire contents of which being incorporated herein by reference as if fully set forth below in its entirety and for all applicable purposes.

SUMMARY

[0002] Embodiments disclosed herein generally relate to communication networks, wireless and/or wired. One or more embodiments disclosed herein are related to methods, apparatuses, and procedures for Edge group management in wireless communications. For example, enhanced methods and apparatuses to support management of edge computing user session groupings are provided.

[0003] In one embodiment, a method implemented by a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) includes receiving a first indication indicating information of a group session relocation associated with a group of user sessions, performing, based on the information of the group session relocation, an application context relocation procedure on at least one user session of the group of user sessions, and transmitting a second indication indicating the application context relocation procedure being completed in the WTRU.

[0004] In one embodiment, a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) comprising circuitry, including a transmitter, a receiver, a processor, and memory, is configured to: receive a first indication indicating information of a group session relocation associated with a group of user sessions; perform, based on the information of the group session relocation, an application context relocation procedure on at least one user session of the group of user sessions; and transmit a second indication indicating the application context relocation procedure being completed in the WTRU.

[0005] In various embodiments, the first indication is received from an edge group management function (EGMF). The information indicates a start request for the group session relocation, and comprises any of: a group identifier (GID), a user identifier (UID), a list of user session identifiers (USIDs) requiring relocation, a list of user session information, a list of required application context relocation (ACR) execution entities, a target edge application server (EAS), a selected ACR scenario list, a relocation timeout, and/or a relocation type. The second indication is transmitted to the EGMF and indicates a complete request for the group session relocation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] A more detailed understanding may be had from the detailed description below, given by way of example in conjunction with drawings appended hereto. Figures in such drawings, like the detailed description, are examples. As such, the Figures (FIGs.) and the detailed description are not to be considered limiting, and other equally effective examples are possible and likely. Furthermore, like reference numerals ("ref.") in the FIGs. indicate like elements, and wherein:

[0007] FIG. 1A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system;

[0008] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A;

[0009] FIG. 10 is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A;

[0010] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example CN that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A;

[0011] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a 3GPP TSG-SA6 architecture for enabling edge applications, according to one or more embodiments;

[0012] FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating an example procedure of application context relocation (ACR), according to one or more embodiments;

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates examples of group types for groups of user sessions, according to one or more embodiments;

[0014] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an edge group management function (EGMF) incorporated in an edge enablement layer (EEL) architecture, according to one or more embodiments;

[0015] FIG. 6 is a system diagram illustrating an example of an EGMF being implemented as a standalone server and deployed in a central operator data network, according to one or more embodiments;

[0016] FIG. 7 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example procedure of a WTRU (e.g ., application client (AC) or edge enable client (EEC)) joining a group, according to one or more embodiments;

[0017] FIG. 8 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example procedure of a WTRU (e.g., AC or EEC) leaving a group, according to one or more embodiments;

[0018] FIG. 9 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example procedure for obtaining group information from an EGMF, according to one or more embodiments;

[0019] FIG. 10 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example procedure for group session relocation (GSR), according to one or more embodiments;

[0020] FIG. 1 1 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example procedure for group notification, according to one or more embodiments;

[0021] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example deployment where an EGMF is performed by an ECS, according to one or more embodiments; and

[0022] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example deployment where an EGMF is performed by an EES, according to one or more embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments and/or examples disclosed herein. However, it will be understood that such embodiments and examples may be practiced without some or all of the specific details set forth herein In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components and circuits have not been described in detail, so as not to obscure the following description. Further, embodiments and examples not specifically described herein may be practiced in lieu of, or in combination with, the embodiments and other examples described, disclosed or otherwise provided explicitly, implicitly and/or inherently (collectively "provided") herein. Although various embodiments are described and/or claimed herein in which an apparatus, system, device, etc. and/or any element thereof carries out an operation, process, algorithm, function, etc. and/or any portion thereof, it is to be understood that any embodiments described and/or claimed herein assume that any apparatus, system, device, etc. and/or any element thereof is configured to carry out any operation, process, algorithm, function, etc. and/or any portion thereof.

[0024] Example Communications System, Networks, and Devices

[0025] The methods, procedures, apparatuses and systems provided herein are well-suited for communications involving both wired and wireless networks. An overview of various types of wireless devices and infrastructure is provided with respect to FIGs. 1A-1 D, where various elements of the network may utilize, perform, be arranged in accordance with and/or be adapted and/or configured for the methods, apparatuses and systems provided herein.

[0026] FIG. 1A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communications system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems 100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail (ZT) unique-word (UW) discreet Fourier transform (DFT) spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-s OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block- filtered OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), and the like.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wireless transmit/receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a radio access network (RAN) 104/113, a core network (ON) 106/115, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, though it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and/or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and/or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a "station" and/or a "STA”, may be configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals and may include (or be) a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fl device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and/or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and/or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and/or industrial wireless networks, and the like. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a UE.

[0028] The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114a and/or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 1 14b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, e.g., to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the CN 106/115, the Internet 110, and/or the networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be any of a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B (NB), an eNode-B (eNB), a Home Node-B (HNB), a Home eNode-B (HeNB), a gNode-B (g NB), a NR Node-B (NR NB), a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. While the base stations 1 14a, 1 14b are each depicted as a single element, it will be appreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and/or network elements.

[0029] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104/1 13, which may also include other base stations and/or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and/or the base station 1 14b may be configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. A cell may provide coverage for a wireless service to a specific geographical area that may be relatively fixed or that may change over time. The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 1 14a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in an embodiment, the base station 1 14a may include three transceivers, i.e., one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple output (M IMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each or any sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and/or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0030] The base stations 1 14a, 1 14b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0031] More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104/113 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and/or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and/or High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0032] In an embodiment, the base station 1 14a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and/or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and/or LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro). [0033] In an embodiment, the base station 1 14a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR Radio Access, which may establish the air interface 1 16 using New Radio (NR).

[0034] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for instance using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and/or transmissions sent to/from multiple types of base stations (e.g., an eNB and a gNB).

[0035] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.1 1 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

[0036] The base station 114b in FIG. 1A may be a wireless router, Home Node-B, Home eNode-B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a roadway, and the like. In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.1 1 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR, etc.) to establish any of a small cell, picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 1 10 via the CN 106/115.

[0037] The RAN 104/113 may be in communication with the CN 106/1 15, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and/or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have varying quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as differing throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, and the like. The CN 106/115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and/or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciated that the RAN 104/113 and/or the CN 106/115 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as the RAN 104/113 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104/1 13, which may be utilizing an NR radio technology, the CN 106/1 15 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing any of a GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or Wi-Fi radio technology.

[0038] The CN 106/115 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and/or other networks 1 12. The PSTN 108 may include circuit-switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and/or the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP/IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and/or wireless communications networks owned and/or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104/114 or a different RAT.

[0039] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0040] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1 B, the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit/receive element 122, a speaker/microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display/touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and/or other elements/peripherals 138, among others. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0041] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like. The processor 1 18 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input/output processing, and/or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit/receive element 122. While FIG. 1 B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be appreciated that the processor 1 18 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together, e.g., in an electronic package or chip.

[0042] The transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in an embodiment, the transmit/receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and/or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit/receive element 122 may be an emitter/detector configured to transmit and/or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In an embodiment, the transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and/or receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit/receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and/or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0043] Although the transmit/receive element 122 is depicted in FIG. 1 B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit/receive elements 122. For example, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit/receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0044] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that are to be transmitted by the transmit/receive element 122 and to demodulate the signals that are received by the transmit/receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11 , for example.

[0045] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receive user input data from, the speaker/microphone 124, the keypad 126, and/or the display/touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor 1 18 may also output user data to the speaker/microphone 124, the keypad 126, and/or the display/touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130 and/or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0046] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and/or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium- ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0047] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and/or determine its location based on the timing of the signals being received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by way of any suitable locationdetermination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0048] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other elements/peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and/or hardware modules/units that provide additional features, functionality and/or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the elements/peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (e.g., for photographs and/or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, a virtual reality and/or augmented reality (VR/AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The elements/peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors, the sensors may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor; a geolocation sensor; an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and/or a humidity sensor.

[0049] The WTRU 102 may include a full duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for both the uplink (e.g., for transmission) and downlink (e.g., for reception) may be concurrent and/or simultaneous. The full duplex radio may include an interference management unit to reduce and or substantially eliminate self-interference via either hardware (e.g., a choke) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via processor 118). In an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the uplink (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0050] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106

[0051] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In an embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0052] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, and 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the uplink (UL) and/or downlink (DL), and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 C, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another over an X2 interface.

[0053] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1 C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (PGW) 166. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any one of these elements may be owned and/or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0054] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, and 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation/deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and/or WCDMA.

[0055] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to/from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter-eNode- B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. [0056] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0057] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and/or wireless networks that are owned and/or operated by other service providers. [0058] Although the WTRU is described in FIGs. 1A-1 D as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments that such a terminal may use (e.g., temporarily or permanently) wired communication interfaces with the communication network.

[0059] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0060] A WLAN in infrastructure basic service set (BSS) mode may have an access point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have an access or an interface to a distribution system (DS) or another type of wired/wireless network that carries traffic into and/or out of the BSS. Traffic to STAs that originates from outside the BSS may arrive through the AP and may be delivered to the STAs. Traffic originating from STAs to destinations outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP, for example, where the source STA may send traffic to the AP and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. The traffic between STAs within a BSS may be considered and/or referred to as peer-to-peer traffic. The peer-to-peer traffic may be sent between (e.g., directly between) the source and destination STAs with a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use an 802.11 e DLS or an 802.11 z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and the STAs (e.g., all of the STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may sometimes be referred to herein as an "ad-hoc" mode of communication.

[0061] When using the 802.11 ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operations, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, Carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) may be implemented, for example in 802.11 systems. For CSMA/CA, the STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed/detected and/or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0062] High throughput (HT) STAs may use a 40 MHz wide channel for communication, for example, via a combination of the primary 20 MHz channel with an adjacent or nonadjacent 20 MHz channel to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0063] Very high throughput (VHT) STAs may support 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and/or 160 MHz wide channels. The 40 MHz, and/or 80 MHz, channels may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining 8 contiguous 20 MHz channels, or by combining two noncontiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. For the 80+80 configuration, the data, after channel encoding, may be passed through a segment parser that may divide the data into two streams. Inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT) processing, and time domain processing, may be done on each stream separately. The streams may be mapped on to the two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above-described operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to a medium access control (MAC) layer, entity, etc.

[0064] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.1 1af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.1 1af and 802.11ah relative to those used in 802.11 n, and 802 11 ac. 802.11 af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV white space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11 ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non-TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11 ah may support meter type control/machine- type communications (MTC), such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, for example, limited capabilities including support for (e.g., only support for) certain and/or limited bandwidths. The MTC devices may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain a very long battery life).

[0065] WLAN systems, which may support multiple channels, and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11 n, 802.11 ac, 802.1 1 af, and 802.1 1 ah, include a channel which may be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and/or limited by a STA, from among all STAs operating in a BSS, which supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode. In the example of 802.11 ah, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for STAs (e.g., MTC type devices) that support (e.g., only support) a 1 MHz mode, even if the AP, and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and/or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and/or network allocation vector (NAV) settings may depend on the status of the primary channel. If the primary channel is busy, for example, due to a STA (which supports only a 1 MHz operating mode), transmitting to the AP, the entire available frequency bands may be considered busy even though a majority of the frequency bands remains idle and may be available.

[0066] In the United States, the available frequency bands, which may be used by 802.1 1 ah, are from 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In Korea, the available frequency bands are from 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. In Japan, the available frequency bands are from 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.1 1 ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz depending on the country code.

[0067] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 113 and the CN 1 15 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 113 may employ an NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 113 may also be in communication with the CN 115.

[0068] The RAN 113 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 113 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 1 16. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNBs 180a, 180b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and/or receive signals from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. Thus, the gNB 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and/or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum while the remaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and/or gNB 180c).

[0069] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, OFDM symbol spacing and/or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and/or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframe or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of various or scalable lengths (e.g., including a varying number of OFDM symbols and/or lasting varying lengths of absolute time).

[0070] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and/or a non-standalone configuration. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without also accessing other RANs (e.g., such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c). In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as a mobility anchor point. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with/connect to gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with/connecting to another RAN such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement DC principles to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In the non- standalone configuration, eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as a mobility anchor for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and/or throughput for servicing WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0071] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and/or DL, support of network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data towards user plane functions (UPFs) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards access and mobility management functions (AMFs) 182a, 182b, and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 D, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with one another over an Xn interface.

[0072] The CN 115 shown in FIG. 1 D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one session management function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and at least one Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 115, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and/or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0073] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N2 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, support for network slicing (e.g., handling of different protocol data unit (PDU) sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, management of the registration area, termination of NAS signaling, mobility management, and the like. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b, e.g., to customize CN support for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the types of services being utilized WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced massive mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for MTC access, and/or the like. The AMF 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE- A, LTE-A Pro, and/or non-3GPP access technologies such as Wi-Fi.

[0074] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to an AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 115 via an N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to a UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 115 via an N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and allocating UE IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providing downlink data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP based, Ethernet-based, and the like. [0075] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, e.g., to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, providing mobility anchoring, and the like.

[0076] The CN 1 15 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 1 15 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 115 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 115 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and/or wireless networks that are owned and/or operated by other service providers. In an embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to a local Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b through the UPF 184a, 184b via the N3 interface to the UPF 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPF 184a, 184b and the DN 185a, 185b.

[0077] In view of FIGs. 1 A-1 D, and the corresponding description of FIGs. 1 A-1 D, one or more, or all, of the functions described herein with regard to any of: WTRUs 102a-d, base stations 1 14a-b, eNode-Bs 160a- c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNBs 180a-c, AMFs 182a-b, UPFs 184a-b, SMFs 183a-b, DNs 185a-b, and/or any other element(s)/device(s) described herein, may be performed by one or more emulation elements/devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more, or all, of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and/or to simulate network and/or WTRU functions.

[0078] The emulation devices may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a lab environment and/or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being fully or partially implemented and/or deployed as part of a wired and/or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being temporarily implemented/deployed as part of a wired and/or wireless communication network. The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for purposes of testing and/or performing testing using over- the-air wireless communications.

[0079] The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, including all, functions while not being implemented/deployed as part of a wired and/or wireless communication network. For example, the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and/or a non-deployed (e.g., testing) wired and/or wireless communication network in order to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and/or wireless communications via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and/or receive data.

[0080] Introduction

[0081] Edge Group Management Function (EGMF) offers a service to edge users that allows the edge users to create and manage different group types. The EGMF allows for differentiated group management capabilities for Edge Application Server (EAS) discovery and edge service continuity at the group level.

[0082] Application Layer for Supporting Edge Services

[0083] TSG-SA6 is a 3GPP Technical Standardization Group (TSG). An SA deals with Service and System Aspects, and SA Group #6 (SA6) deals with Application Enablement & Critical Communication Applications. In some recent implementations, an SA6 architecture is defined (e.g., in 3GPP TS 23.558) and a high-level architecture is shown in FIG. 2. The SA6 architecture is an example of enabling edge applications in wireless networks, and some components of the SA6 architecture are described below.

[0084] An Application Client (AC) is a user application residing on a WTRU that communicates with an EAS. A WTRU may use one or more ACs concurrently.

[0085] An Edge Application Server (EAS) is an application server resident in an Edge Data Network (EDN). In some examples, an EAS may be a software server executing on generic hardware located at the edge and providing a service to the AC. In the context of a mobility/relocation use case, a source-EAS (S-EAS) is an instance of an EAS in an initial location and serving the AC before mobility/relocation happens, and a target-EAS (T-EAS) is an instance of an EAS in a destination location and serving the AC after mobility/relocation has happened. There can be multiple EAS instances per EDN. Each EDN may contain a different set of EAS instances of different types (e.g., different EASID). An EAS may serve one or more AC instances that may reside on different WTRUs.

[0086] An Edge Enabler Client (EEC) provides edge support to the AC instances on a WTRU. There can be one or more EEC per WTRU. Each AC uses only one EEC.

[0087] An Edge Enabler Server (EES) provides supporting functions needed by EAS and/or EEC In the context of a mobility/relocation use case, the source-EES (S-EES) is the EES used before mobility/relocation happens, and the target-EES (T-EES) is the EES used after mobility/relocation has happened. There can be one or more EES instances per EDN (or per Data Network Name (DNN)). There can be multiple EDN instances in the network.

[0088] An Edge Configuration Server (ECS) provides supporting functions for an EEC or EES to discover EES instances providing certain EAS. There can be one or more ECSs for the network. [0089] A Notification Management Client (NMC) provides supporting functions for an EEC to create a notification channel between the NMC and a Notification Management Server (NMS) to receive notifications from the ECS or EES. In some cases, each EEC uses only one NMC.

[0090] A Notification Management Server (NMS) provides supporting functions for an ECS or EES to send notifications to an EEC via a notification channel created between the NMC and the NMS. There can be one or more NMSs for the network.

[0091] Service Continuity

[0092] 3GPP TS 23.558 defines service continuity procedures in an Edge Enablement Layer (EEL) for transferring an application context from an S-EAS to a T-EAS. The context transfer may be triggered, for example, by WTRU movement as well as non-mobility events (e.g., EAS server maintenance, overload, etc.). The purpose of service continuity is to minimize edge service interruption to the ACs executing on a WTRU. [0093] Service continuity for applications requiring context relocation is specified by the EEL in five different application context relocation (ACR) scenarios. Each scenario is composed of four different phases: detection, decision, execution, and post-execution. One or more ACR scenarios may specify different EEL entities (e.g., EEC, EES, or EAS) for the detection and decision phases, such as a detection entity and/or a decision-making entity, and different sets of interactions between EEL entities for an execution phase. FIG. 3 provides a high-level overview of an example ACR procedure.

[0094] As specified in 3GPP TS 23.558, the detection entity monitors WTRU location and movement, and informs the decision-making entity. The decision-making entity then determines if an ACR procedure is required and commands the execution entity to perform ACR. The execution entity then runs the ACR procedures defined in the service continuity scenarios to transfer the application context from the S-EAS to the T-EAS. When ACR execution is complete, ACR cleanup is performed.

[0095] As specified in 3GPP TS 23.558, service continuity planning (SCP) provides support for seamless service continuity by using information about planned or predicted WTRU movement to detect the need for ACR before the WTRU moves to the expected location. ACR procedures are used to temporarily duplicate the application context from the S-EAS at the T-EAS. These application contexts remain synchronized until the WTRU moves to the expected location and the AC connects to the T-EAS, at which point the ACR cleanup procedures may be performed.

[0096] User Session

[0097] A user session is a logical connection between an AC and an EAS where user application data is exchanged. To start a user session, an AC uses services from the edge enablement layer (EEL) to establish connectivity with the EDN where the edge services are deployed. The AC can then discover and start exchanging user application data with the selected EAS.

[0098] User Session Group(s) [0099] 3GPP TR 23.700-98 identifies several use cases dealing with groups of related user sessions and edge services. Three examples of user session groupings have been identified. These groupings or group types are common EAS, bundled EAS, and synchronized EAS.

[0100] Referring to FIG. 4, examples of the three group types (common EAS, bundled EAS, and synchronized EAS) are illustrated.

[0101] In the first example, common EAS groups combine multiple user sessions where different WTRUs (ACs) require edge services from a common EAS. As users may join or leave a group, relocation of the common EAS may be required for service continuity.

[0102] In the second example, bundled EAS groups combine multiple user sessions where a single WTRU (AC) requires several EASs to have similar network characteristics (e.g., latency). To provide similar characteristics, EASs should be hosted in a same or equivalent edge hosting environment (EHE). In some cases, when the WTRU moves around, the WTRU may require edge services from a different EHE.

[0103] In the third example, synchronized EAS groups combine multiple user sessions where application data must be synchronized between different instances of an EAS. Synchronization may be required when, for example, a group of users of an application are unable to obtain services from a common EAS instance (or have strict network characteristic requirements) that can only be met by different EAS instances based on, e.g., a WTRU location or an EAS load.

[0104] Overview

[0105] In some current implementations, ACR procedures defined for service continuity do not take group requirements into consideration. This leads to EEL decisions for user session relocation that may not provide service continuity for the entire group. For example, current service continuity procedures do not consider group requirements for relocation. In some cases, service continuity for bundled EASs is limited, with no support for EEC-driven ACR scenarios. Therefore, service continuity may not be supported for groups of user sessions in current implementations.

[0106] In some current implementations, group participants are not informed of events that may impact user sessions. For example, a user may join or leave a group which may lead to selection of a different common EAS instance for that group. Existing group members must be informed of such an event because it may affect group operation. Not informing group members of events such as a user joining, leaving, or relocating may lead to timing, performance, or broken session issues for the whole group. There is no current mechanism to inform group participants of events that may impact group operation, such as a user joining, leaving, or relocating.

[0107] In some current implementations, groups with dynamic or hybrid requirements are not supported. In addition, migrating from a group type to a different group type is not supported. For example, users participating in a common EAS group may become distanced such that the common EAS group must migrate to a synchronized EAS group. Group type migration is not supported in current implementations.

[0108] As such, it is desired to have new or enhanced methods or mechanisms to improve group management in current 3GPP systems, for example, a wireless communications system using an edge enablement architecture. In addition, enhancements to current 3GPP Edge Enablement Layer (EEL) Service Continuity procedures and user session groupings are also desired.

[0109] In various embodiments, methods, apparatuses, and procedures for edge group management in wireless communications are provided. For example, enhancements to the current 3GPP EEL architecture to support management of edge computing user session groupings are provided.

[0110] Referring to FIG. 5, an edge group management function (EGMF) is incorporated in an edge enablement layer (EEL). The EGMF provides group management services to WTRU(s) (e.g., EEC), ECS, and EES. Group management services may include group management procedures for creating, joining, updating, and leaving a group, and may also include group operations for relocating groups of user sessions and notifying group participants. The methods used by these procedures, in addition to the methods to enable an EGMF to provide group management services, are discussed in detail in the following embodiments.

[0111] In one embodiment, referring to FIG. 6, an example architecture having an EGMF implemented as a standalone server and deployed in a central operator data network (DN) is provided. The EGMF may offer group management functionality via a service by defining an Edge Group Management Service (EGMS). The endpoints defined for an EGMS may offer group management functionality and may be used by different EEL entities when group management is required. In some examples, alternative EGMF implementations are possible, such as an EGMF implemented in an ECS or an EES. Accordingly, for some implementations, the endpoints defined for an EGMS may be offered in addition to the endpoints defined for the ECS and EES services. In some examples, the edge group management server could be deployed in a different environment such as a cloud network (not shown in FIG. 6).

[0112] Alternative deployments are provided and described later in “Alternative EGMF Deployments”.

[0113] Representative Procedure(s) for EGMF Discovery

[0114] In one embodiment, an EGMF may use services from the ECS and EES, for example, to obtain EDN configuration information and EES information from the ECS, and to obtain EAS information from the EES. The EGMF discovers the ECS via pre-configuration or by using CAPIF as specified in 3GPP TS 23.222. The EGMF discovers EES(s) by querying the ECS.

[0115] In one embodiment, an EGMF may register with the ECS to provide EGMF configuration information. EGMF configuration information may contain endpoint information (e.g. URI, FQDN, IP address) of the EGMF, and an EGMF Provider Identifier. EGMF configuration information is used to establish communication with the EGMF to access group management services.

[0116] In one embodiment, an EGMF may provide group management services to the EOS, EES and EEC. The ECS, EES, and EEC may discover the EGMF in a similar manner to how they discover the ECS in 3GPP TS 23.558. The ECS, EES, and EEC may also register to the EGMF to receive group notifications. [0117] In one embodiment, the ECS may discover the EGMF via pre-configuration or by using CAPIF as specified in 3GPP TS 23.222. Alternatively, if the EGMF registers to the ECS, the ECS may use the EGMF configuration information provided during registration to access EGMF services.

[0118] In one embodiment, the EES may discover the EGMF via pre-configuration or by using CAPIF as specified in 3GPP TS 23.222. If the EGMF registers with the ECS, the EES may request the EGMF configuration information from the ECS, for example using an enhanced EES registration procedure that may include EGMF configuration information. Alternatively, the EEC may provide EGMF configuration information to the EES, for example using an enhanced EEC registration procedure that may include EGMF configuration information.

[0119] In one embodiment, the EEC may discover the EGMF via: 1) pre-configuration in the EEC; 2) configuration by an edge-aware AC; 3) configuration by the user; 4) provisioning by the MNO through 5GC procedures, for example, using an enhanced PDU session establishment procedure that may include EGMF configuration information similar to how the ECS information is provided; or 5) by deriving the URI from the HPLMN identifier for non-roaming scenario or from the VPLMN identifier for roaming scenario; or 6) by requesting the EGMF configuration information from the ECS, for example, using an enhanced service provisioning procedure that may include EGMF configuration information.

[0120] Representative Procedure(s) for Group Management

[0121] Joining a Group

[0122] FIG. 7 illustrates an example procedure of a WTRU (e.g., AC or EEC) joining a group. In this example, as a pre-condition, the EEC has obtained EGMF configuration information.

[0123] In step 1 , the EEC may send a group join request to the EGMF and may include WTRU (AC/EEC) information, group information, and/or user session information. WTRU (AC/EEC) information may be used to provide information about the WTRU joining the session and may include a WTRU identifier, WTRU location, an EEC identifier, an AC Profile, EEC support for service continuity, and a notification URI. Group information may be used to provide information about the group that needs to be created or joined and may include a group identifier (GID), an application-layer group identifier, a group type, and group requirements such as QoS and KPI thresholds. User session information may be used to provide information about a preexisting user session and may include AC information including instance and endpoint identifiers, EAS information including instance and endpoint information, related EEL participants information such as EES identifier, AC identifier and ACR scenarios selected to provide service continuity to the user session. By providing a notification URI in the group join request, the EEC may receive notifications from the EGMF, for example when group related events happen such as group modification or service continuity.

[0124] A group identifier (GID) is an identifier of a group, for example, a globally unique identifier that may be assigned by the EGMF for each group instance when a new group is created. The GID may be provided in the group join request to join an existing group. The GID may be provided to the EEC by the AC. The AC may be configured with the GID via a graphical user interface or may receive the GID via application layer signaling.

[0125] An application-layer group identifier is a unique identifier for a group formed at the application layer and may have the same purpose as the GID in the application domain. The application-layer group identifier may be provided in the group join request to create or join a group instance for the application-layer group when the GID is not shared or known in the application domain. The application-layer group identifier may be provided to the EEC by the AC. The AC may be pre-configured with the application-layer group identifier, may be configured with the application-layer group identifier via a graphical user interface, or may receive the application-layer group identifier via application layer signaling.

[0126] A group type identifies the fundamental characteristics of the group and may provide guidance to the EGMF on how to perform certain management operations in the group. For example, “common EAS” may be a group type characterized by several WTRUs using the same EAS while “synchronized EAS” may be characterized by WTRUs communicating with their respective EAS while the EAS are being synchronized with each other.

[0127] In step 2, the EGMF may use the information provided in the group join request to determine whether the EEC should be added to an existing group or if a new group instance must be created. Each group may be assigned GID. If a GID is provided in the group join request and already exists in the EGMF, then the EGMF may determine to add the EEC to an existing group. If no GID was provided, then the EGMF may determine to create a new group and assign a GID to the group. In some cases, an alternative EGMF implementation may define distinct endpoints for group creation and group joining.

[0128] In step 3, the EGMF may use the information provided in the group join request to determine if user session contexts must be created or pre-provisioned for the new group participant. When pre-existing user session information is provided, the EGMF may evaluate if the pre-existing session meets the group requirements or needs to be modified or relocated to join the group, for example the EGMF may trigger a session relocation in step 4.

[0129] A user session context is a resource that contains information about a single user session and may be stored and managed by the EGMF. A user session context may contain a user session identifier (USID), user session endpoint information (e.g., AC, selected EAS), EEL participants information (e.g. EEC, selected EES and ECS), EDN configuration information, WTRU information such as location, metrics (e.g., QoS, KPIs), user session state (e.g. active, inactive), and user session historical events (e.g., ACR detected, ACR complete, etc.).

[0130] A user session identifier (USID) is an identifier of a user session, it may be assigned by the EGMF for each user session. A USID may be unique within a group instance and may be stored in a user session context.

[0131] When a new participant joins a group, the EGMF may determine how many user sessions contexts are needed for the group participant. The EGMF may create and populate the necessary user session contexts.

[0132] The number of user session contexts may vary depending on the group type and the number of EASIDs included in the AC Profile. For example, a common EAS group type may require one user session to accommodate for the single EASID provided in the AC profile. For example, a bundled EAS group type may require many user sessions to accommodate for multiple EASIDs provided in the AC Profile.

[0133] User session contexts may be assigned a USID upon creation. For example, in the case of creating a user session context for pre-provisioning, the user session context status may be set to 'inactive' until the EGMF receives confirmation that the user session has been established. In another example, in the case of creating a user session context for provisioning a pre-existing user session, the user session context status may be set to ‘active’ and the EGMF may proceed to evaluate if the pre-existing session meets the group requirements. In some cases (e.g., a different or alternative implementation), the EGMF may assign a USID when a user session context becomes active.

[0134] For each user session context, the EGMF may determine the selected EES and the selected EAS based on the user, group and user session information provided in the group join request. For example, the EGMF may obtain a list of available EDNs and EESs by querying the ECS using procedures like service provisioning. The EGMF may obtain a list of available EASs by querying the selected EES using procedures like EAS discovery. These procedures may consider the WTRU (AC/EEC) information and group information provided in the group join request and may also consider the status of other group participants. For example, the EGMF may request EES information from the ECS considering the coverage areas and KPI thresholds of all group participants for a common EAS group.

[0135] In step 4, the EGMF may decide to trigger group operations based on changes or updates to the group. For example, a new participant joining a common EAS group may not be in range of the current common EAS used by other group participants; in this case the EGM F may decide to switch to a new common EAS that meets the needs of the group by triggering group session relocation. For example, if a new user session requires EAS synchronization, then a group notification may be sent. [0136] In step 5, the EGMF may send a group join response to the EEC which may include a result, a GID and a list of user session information. User session information may include all information from the user session context.

[0137] The EEC may store the GID to provide it during subsequent interactions with the EGMF, and the EEC may provide the GID to the AC. If the EEC or AC has the capability for providing the GID to other group participants (e.g., via the application layer), the EEC or EC may provide the GID to other participants for them to join the same group.

[0138] In step 6, the EEC may connect to the selected EES that was provided by the EGMF for example to register, and the AC may establish the user sessions with the selected EAS(s) provided by the EGMF.

[0139] In step 7, the EEC may send a group update request to the EGMF to update information included in the group resource, for example to provide information about the newly established user session for the case where user session information was not provided in the group join request or the user session has changed. The request may include the GID and updates to WTRU (AC/EEC) information, group information and user session information. WTRU (AC/EEC) information, group information and user session information may include the same information as provided in the group join request. In an implementation, if a USID was not assigned to a user session context when the participant initially joined the group, the EGMF may assign one and store it in the user session context. The group update request may trigger the EGMF to re-evaluate user sessions to determine if any group operations are required.

[0140] Group updates may be sent to the EGMF at any time to provide event-driven or periodic updates to user session information. The EGMF may evaluate and determine how to manage the group based on user session information. For example, as users of a common EAS provide information about degraded or improved user session QoS, the EGMF may determine that a new common EAS is better suited to meet the needs of the group, and that group session relocation is required. For example, an EEC may detect WTRU mobility requiring ACR and inform the EGMF. The EGMF may then decide to trigger relocation of the bundled EAS group to a new EHE.

[0141] In an aspect, the EES may detect that a user session has been established and may send a group update request to the EGMF. The EES may send additional group update requests as it monitors and detects user session changes.

[0142] In step 8, the EGMF may send a group update response to the EEC including a USID and user session information. User session information may include all information from the user session context.

[0143] Leaving a Group

[0144] FIG. 8 illustrates an example procedure of a WTRU (e.g., AC or EEC) leaving a group. In this example, in step 1 , a WTRU may terminate user sessions. [0145] In step 2, the EEC may send a group leave request to the EGMF when a user leaves a group. The EGMF may remove the user resource from the group and may remove all user session contexts associated with the user. The EGMF may not consider any of the user sessions associated with the removed user in future group management operations. The request may include a GID and a user identifier (UID). The user identifier may allow the EGMF to identify the user session contexts that are associated with the user. For the cases where the EEC wants to remove a portion of the user sessions associated with a user without the user leaving the group, the EEC may issue a group update request, indicating which sessions to remove in the request.

[0146] In step 3, the EGMF may use the GID and the UID provided in the group leave request to remove the user from the group. The UID may identify uniquely a user in a group, for example, the identifier may be a globally unique identifier, or may be an identifier which is unique to the group. The user identifier may be assigned to the user by the EGMF when a user joins a group or the user identifier may be an identifier that is provided by the user, such as a WTRU identifier, an EEC identifier, or an AC identifier.

[0147] In step 4, the EGMF may use the USIDs associated with the UID provided in the group leave request to remove user session contexts that are no longer required. A change in group participants may impact the remaining user sessions; the EGMF may re-evaluate if the selected EES and the selected EAS meet the group requirements and may issue events to the remaining group members if new EES/EAS are selected.

[0148] In step 5, the EGMF may trigger any necessary group management operations. For example, if the removal of a user session requires a change of common EAS, then group session relocation may be triggered. For example, if a terminated user session required EAS synchronization, then a group session notification may be sent to inform synchronization peers.

[0149] In step 6, the EGMF may send a group session leave response with the result to the EEC. Upon receiving the response, the EEC may not use the user identifier again and must re-join the group if further group management support is required.

[0150] In some EGMF implementations, a group associated GID may be deleted when there is no longer a user present in the group. In such case, the GID cannot be used anymore, and a group needs to be created again if further group management support is required.

[0151] Obtaining Group Information

[0152] FIG. 9 illustrates an example procedure for obtaining group information (e.g., by a WTRU, AC/ EEC, ECS, or EES) from the EGMF. In this example, as a pre-condition, a requester may have obtained a GID and may have obtained a UID and USIDs. The GID, UID and USID may be obtained via enhanced 3GPP TS 23.558 procedures, new group management procedures, or application layer signaling. For example, the service provisioning and EAS discovery procedures may be updated to include the GID, UID and USIDs for each AC. In an example, the group session relocation procedures may include the GID, UID, and/or USID for the user sessions requiring relocation.

[0153] In step 1 , the requester may send a request (e.g., a group information request) to the EGMF to obtain information about a group. The request may include a GID, a UID, and/or one or more USIDs.

[0154] In step 2, the EGMF may determine the group using the GID. The EGMF may use the UID to identify the user sessions associated with a specific user and may use the provided USIDs to filter out the specific user sessions. If no USID is included in the request, then information about all USIDs associated with the UID may be provided. If no UID is included in the request, then information about all users may be provided.

[0155] In step 3, the EGMF may send a response (e.g., a group information response) to the EEC that may include a result, a GID, user information, and/or user session information according to the provided inputs.

[0156] Representative Procedure(s) for Group Operations

[0157] Group Management Sources

[0158] The EGMF may require group management information from various sources, such as group participants, the core network, the management system, and/or external cloud servers.

[0159] In one embodiment, group configuration and requirements may be provided by group participants when joining, updating, or leaving a group, as well as user session information such as WTRU location, QoS, and KPIs, may be provided in user session status updates.

[0160] In one embodiment, the core network may be used to obtain location information, QoS session information, and expected or predicted WTRU behavior.

[0161] In one embodiment, the management system may provide KPIs such as processor and memory load and network characteristics measurements.

[0162] In one embodiment, external sources, such as cloud servers, may provide additional application or group configuration information.

[0163] Group Session Relocation

[0164] The EGMF may use the group management input information originating from previously mentioned sources to determine that one or more of the user sessions in the group would be best served by a different EAS. The EGMF may perform group session relocation (GSR) to coordinate or combine application context relocation for a set of user sessions from the group. GSR may trigger application context relocation for one or more user sessions of the user(s) present in the group.

[0165] In one embodiment, an EEC may register for group notifications from the EGMF. The EGMF determines that a group session relocation (GSR) is required based on group management rules and group management inputs. The EGMF sends a GSR start request or notification to the EEL entities associated with the user session. Upon receiving the GSR start request, the ACR detection entity or entities (e.g., EEC or EES) use the information provided in the GSR start request to trigger ACR execution. The ACR execution entity or entities (e.g., EEC or EES) send a GSR complete request or notification to the EGMF. In some cases, the EGMF may evaluate if additional group operations are required.

[0166] FIG. 10 illustrates an example procedure for group session relocation. In this example, as preconditions, a group comprised of WTRU-1 and WTRU-2 is established, WTRU-1 has established a user session with the S-EAS, and WTRU-2 has established a user session with the same S-EAS.

[0167] In step 1 , the EGMF may detect and determine that a GSR is required based on group management rules and group management inputs.

[0168] Group management rules may specify management operations that the EGMF should perform based on group management inputs. Group management inputs may include group configuration and requirements, user session updates (e.g., ACR detection, QoS, etc.), and management system KPIs. For example, group management rules may indicate that the EGMF may trigger ACR for all user sessions to switch to a common EAS instance accessible to all group participants when a participant joins a common EAS group. For example, group management rules may indicate that the EGMF can notify all group participants about detected ACRs following user session updates for synchronized EAS groups. For example, group management rules may indicate that the EGMF can trigger user session relocation when CPU load is above a pre-defined threshold. For example, group management rules may indicate that the EGMF may select an EAS and change the group type to synchronized EAS when no common EAS can be found for all group participants.

[0169] Group management rules may, for example, be pre-configured in the EGMF, configured via a graphical user interface, received via application layer signaling, or provided by group participants when joining a group.

[0170] In step 2, the EGMF may act as an ACR trigger by sending a GSR start request, or GSR start notification if subscription to EGMF events is supported, to the EEL entities associated with the user session (e.g. EEC on WTRU-1 , EEC on WTRU-2, and S-EES). The GSR start request may include the GID, a UID, a list of USIDs requiring relocation, a list of user session information, a list of required ACR execution entities, a target EAS, a selected ACR scenario list, a relocation timeout, and a relocation type (ACR or SCP). The GSR start request may be sent to one or more EEL entities associated with the user session and that have been selected to perform ACR detection.

[0171] For example, the EGMF may trigger an ACR scenario (e.g. ‘EEC executed ACR via S-EES’) with EEC-1 for USID-1 and a different ACR scenario (e.g. ‘S-EES executed ACR') with the S-EES for USID-2 based on the selected ACR scenarios that were established based on ACR capabilities of the participants. For example, the EGMF may determine that only one user session requires relocation, may trigger ACR execution for one user session by including one USID in the GSR start request, may send the GSR start request to one EEL entity performing ACR detection for the user session, or may alternatively send the GSR start request to all EEL entities performing ACR detection for the user session based on the selected ACR list.

[0172] In step 3, upon receiving the GSR start request, the ACR detection entity or entities may use the information provided in the GSR start request to trigger ACR execution. Any ACR detection entity (e.g. EEC or EES) may start ACR execution for the user sessions provided in the USID list. If many ACR detection entities receive the GSR start request, ACR coordination may be managed by the EEL. If the relocation type is set to SCP, then the ACR detection entities may use SCP methodology for executing ACR. It may be appreciated that the EGMF may trigger ACR execution for one or more user sessions concurrently and that ACR triggering may be sent to many ACR detection entities concurrently.

[0173] The EGMF may provide a T-EES and T-EAS in the GSR start request as an input to the ACR procedure execution to avoid the T-EES and T-EAS discovery steps during ACR execution; otherwise, T- EES and T-EAS discovery may be performed with the EGMF during ACR execution using the GID, UID and USID. The GID, UID and USID may be used to send a group information request to the EGMF to obtain the selected EES and EAS information while performing one or more user session relocation procedures.

[0174] In step 4, the ACR execution entity or entities (e.g. EEC or EES) that have completed ACR execution may send a GSR complete request to the EGMF, or GSR complete notification if the EGMF has subscribed to such events, to indicate GSR completion. This may allow the EGMF to determine the outcome of the GSR for the entire group. A relocation status update may include a GID, a USID list, an ACR status, an SCP status, and a selected T-EAS.

[0175] In step 5, the EGMF may evaluate GSR status updates to determine if the group session relocation was successful and may decide if additional actions are required. For example, an EEC may inform the EGMF that an EGMF-triggered group session relocation for a bundled EAS has been successfully completed. The EGMF may wait to receive all GSR status updates, or a pre-defined timeout, before determining that the group session relocation was successful. Upon completion of the GSR, the EGMF may notify the group members, for example, using one or more group notification procedures described below. If the GSR fails for one or more group member, the EGMF may attempt to restore the group by triggering a new GSR as in step 1.

[0176] Group Notification(s)

[0177] By analyzing group management inputs, the EGMF may determine that group information should be shared with one or more of the group participants. The EGMF may send a group notification to provide the subscribers of group notifications about changes to a group that may require actions to be performed. For example, the EEL entities associated with user session(s) (e.g. EEC, EES) may subscribe to receive group notifications.

[0178] FIG. 11 illustrates an example procedure for group notification. In this example, as a prerequisite, a group of users is established. The EGMF may monitor various group management inputs for the underlying user sessions. Group notification subscribers have subscribed to group notifications and may have provided an endpoint for the EGMF to send the group notifications.

[0179] In step 1 , the EGMF may determine that a group notification should be sent to group notifications subscribers from analysis of group management inputs.

[0180] In step 2, the EGMF may send a group notification to the group notification subscribers. This notification may include all the information included in a group context, such as a GID, user information, user session information, and information about group session changes. For example, the EGMF may determine that one of the EAS instances it was using is no longer required when a user leaves a synchronized EAS group. In this case the other group participants should be informed that they no longer need to synchronize data with this EAS.

[0181] In step 3, group notification subscribers that receive a group notification may use the information provided in the group notification to update their representation of the group. In some examples, a changing group representation may trigger further processing related to the change. For example, a WTRU leaving a group may be notified to group notification subscribers which may cause a re-evaluation of the common EAS used by the group and may ultimately result in the re-selection of a common EAS with better characteristics, the resulting processing caused by receiving a group notification is not shown on FIG. 11 .

[0182] Representative Procedure(s) for Group Context Relocation

[0183] In various embodiments, a group context may be relocated from a S-EGMF to a T-EGMF in deployments with multiple EGMF instances. Roaming scenarios may also require group context relocation. For example, group context relocation may be required when EGMF is performed by multiple EESs and when it is determined that a group of moving users would be best served by a different EGMF. For example, a group of moving users that enter a V-PLMN service area may require a group context relocation from a S- EGMF in the H-PLMN to a T-EGMF in the V-PLMN.

[0184] Representative Procedurefs) for Alternative EGMF Deployments

[0185] ECS Performing EGMF

[0186] FIG. 12 illustrates an example deployment where the EGMF is performed by an ECS. In this deployment, the ECS implements an EGMF, the ECS maintains the EGMF data and the ECS offers the group management service functionality as part of its service API. [0187] In one embodiment, this deployment may require enhancements to the EDGE-1 , EDGE-4, and EDGE-6 reference points (specified in 3GPP TS 23.558) to include group management. Pre-existing procedures involving these reference points may need to be updated according to the new EOS capabilities. [0188] The EDGE-1 reference point may require enhancements to support discovery of edge services that are part of a group session. For example, EAS discovery procedures may be enhanced to include group information, for example the GID, used by the EES to obtain group information from the ECS (e.g. EGMF). [0189] The EDGE-4 reference point may be enhanced to support group session management interactions between the EEC and the ECS (e.g. EGMF). For example, the service provisioning procedure may be enhanced for the EEC to provide group configuration information and requirements to the ECS (e.g. EGMF) to indicate that a WTRU is joining a group session. For example, new procedures may be required for the EEC to provide user session status updates to the ECS (e.g. EGMF), and for the ECS (e.g. EGMF) to notify or start GSR in the EEC.

[0190] The EDGE-6 reference point may be enhanced to support group session management interactions between the EES and the ECS (e.g. EGMF). For example, the EES registration procedure may be enhanced to allow the EES to register for group session management notifications. For example, new procedures may be required for the EES to request user session information such as the selected EAS from the ECS (e.g. EGMF).

[0191] EES Performing EGMF

[0192] FIG. 13 illustrates an example deployment where the EGMF is performed by an EES. In this deployment, the EES implements an EGMF, the EES maintains the EGMF data and the EES offers the group management service functionality as part of its service API.

[0193] In one embodiment, this deployment may require enhancements to the EDGE-1 , EDGE-4, EDGE- 6, and EDGE-9 reference points (specified in 3GPP TS 23.558) to include group management. Pre-existing procedures involving these reference points may need to be updated according to the new EES capabilities. [0194] The EDGE-1 reference point may be enhanced to support group session management interactions between the EEC and the EES (e.g. EGMF). For example, EAS discovery procedure may be enhanced for the EEC to provide group configuration information and requirements to the EES (e.g. EGMF) to indicate that a WTRU is joining a group session. For example, new procedures may be required for the EEC to provide user session status updates to the EES (e.g. EGMF), and for the EES (e.g. EGMF) to notify or start GSR in the EEC.

[0195] The EDGE-4 reference point may require enhancements to support discovery of EESs (e.g. EGMFs) that are part of a group session. For example, service provisioning procedures may be enhanced to include group session information, for example the GID, used by the ECS to obtain group information from the EES (e.g. EGMF). [0196] The EDGE-6 reference point may be enhanced to support group session management interactions between the ECS and the EES (e.g. EGMF). For example, the EES registration procedure may be enhanced with group configuration information to make groups discoverable via the ECS. new procedures may be required for the ECS to request group information such as the selected EES from the EES (e.g. EGMF).

[0197] The EDGE-9 reference point may be enhanced to support discovery of EASs that are part of a group session. For example, new procedures may be required for the EES to obtain/receive the selected EAS from the EES (e.g., EGMF).

[0198] Conclusion

[0199] Although features and elements are provided above in particular combinations, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that each feature or element can be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particular embodiments described in this application, which are intended as illustrations of various aspects. Many modifications and variations may be made without departing from its spirit and scope, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the present application should be construed as critical or essential to the invention unless explicitly provided as such. Functionally equivalent methods and apparatuses within the scope of the disclosure, in addition to those enumerated herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing descriptions. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to particular methods or systems.

[0200] The foregoing embodiments are discussed, for simplicity, with regard to the terminology and structure of infrared capable devices, i.e., infrared emitters and receivers. However, the embodiments discussed are not limited to these systems but may be applied to other systems that use other forms of electromagnetic waves or non-electromagnetic waves such as acoustic waves.

[0201] It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the term "video” or the term "imagery" may mean any of a snapshot, single image and/or multiple images displayed over a time basis. As another example, when referred to herein, the terms "user equipment" and its abbreviation "UE", the term "remote" and/or the terms "head mounted display" or its abbreviation "HMD" may mean or include (I) a wireless transmit and/or receive unit (WTRU); (ii) any of a number of embodiments of a WTRU; (iii) a wireless-capable and/or wired-capable (e.g., tetherable) device configured with, inter alia, some or all structures and functionality of a WTRU; (iii) a wireless-capable and/or wired-capable device configured with less than all structures and functionality of a WTRU; or (iv) the like. Details of an example WTRU, which may be representative of any WTRU recited herein, are provided herein with respect to FIGs. 1A-1 D. As another example, various disclosed embodiments herein supra and infra are described as utilizing a head mounted display. Those skilled in the art will recognize that a device other than the head mounted display may be utilized and some or all of the disclosure and various disclosed embodiments can be modified accordingly without undue experimentation. Examples of such other device may include a drone or other device configured to stream information for providing the adapted reality experience.

[0202] In addition, the methods provided herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronic signals (transmitted over wired or wireless connections) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks, and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

[0203] Variations of the method, apparatus and system provided above are possible without departing from the scope of the invention. In view of the wide variety of embodiments that can be applied, it should be understood that the illustrated embodiments are examples only, and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the following claims. For instance, the embodiments provided herein include handheld devices, which may include or be utilized with any appropriate voltage source, such as a battery and the like, providing any appropriate voltage.

[0204] Moreover, in the embodiments provided above, processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and other devices that include processors are noted. These devices may include at least one Central Processing Unit ("CPU") and memory. In accordance with the practices of persons skilled in the art of computer programming, reference to acts and symbolic representations of operations or instructions may be performed by the various CPUs and memories. Such acts and operations or instructions may be referred to as being "executed," "computer executed" or "CPU executed."

[0205] One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the acts and symbolically represented operations or instructions include the manipulation of electrical signals by the CPU. An electrical system represents data bits that can cause a resulting transformation or reduction of the electrical signals and the maintenance of data bits at memory locations in a memory system to thereby reconfigure or otherwise alter the CPU's operation, as well as other processing of signals. The memory locations where data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties corresponding to or representative of the data bits. It should be understood that the embodiments are not limited to the above- mentioned platforms or CPUs and that other platforms and CPUs may support the provided methods. [0206] The data bits may also be maintained on a computer readable medium including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., Random Access Memory (RAM)) or non-volatile (e.g., Read-Only Memory (ROM)) mass storage system readable by the CPU. The computer readable medium may include cooperating or interconnected computer readable medium, which exist exclusively on the processing system or are distributed among multiple interconnected processing systems that may be local or remote to the processing system. It should be understood that the embodiments are not limited to the above-mentioned memories and that other platforms and memories may support the provided methods.

[0207] In an illustrative embodiment, any of the operations, processes, etc. described herein may be implemented as computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable medium. The computer- readable instructions may be executed by a processor of a mobile unit, a network element, and/or any other computing device.

[0208] There is little distinction left between hardware and software implementations of aspects of systems. The use of hardware or software is generally (but not always, in that in certain contexts the choice between hardware and software may become significant) a design choice representing cost versus efficiency tradeoffs. There may be various vehicles by which processes and/or systems and/or other technologies described herein may be effected (e.g., hardware, software, and/or firmware), and the preferred vehicle may vary with the context in which the processes and/or systems and/or other technologies are deployed. For example, if an implementer determines that speed and accuracy are paramount, the implementer may opt for a mainly hardware and/or firmware vehicle. If flexibility is paramount, the implementer may opt for a mainly software implementation. Alternatively, the implementer may opt for some combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware.

[0209] The foregoing detailed description has set forth various embodiments of the devices and/or processes via the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples. Insofar as such block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples include one or more functions and/or operations, it will be understood by those within the art that each function and/or operation within such block diagrams, flowcharts, or examples may be implemented, individually and/or collectively, by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or virtually any combination thereof. In an embodiment, several portions of the subject matter described herein may be implemented via Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and/or other integrated formats. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein, in whole or in part, may be equivalently implemented in integrated circuits, as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or as virtually any combination thereof, and that designing the circuitry and/or writing the code for the software and or firmware would be well within the skill of one of skill in the art in light of this disclosure. In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein may be distributed as a program product in a variety of forms, and that an illustrative embodiment of the subject matter described herein applies regardless of the particular type of signal bearing medium used to actually carry out the distribution. Examples of a signal bearing medium include, but are not limited to, the following: a recordable type medium such as a floppy disk, a hard disk drive, a CD, a DVD, a digital tape, a computer memory, etc., and a transmission type medium such as a digital and/or an analog communication medium (e.g. , a fiber optic cable, a waveguide, a wired communications link, a wireless communication link, etc.).

[0210] Those skilled in the art will recognize that it is common within the art to describe devices and/or processes in the fashion set forth herein, and thereafter use engineering practices to integrate such described devices and/or processes into data processing systems. That is, at least a portion of the devices and/or processes described herein may be integrated into a data processing system via a reasonable amount of experimentation. Those having skill in the art will recognize that a typical data processing system may generally include one or more of a system unit housing, a video display device, a memory such as volatile and non-volatile memory, processors such as microprocessors and digital signal processors, computational entities such as operating systems, drivers, graphical user interfaces, and applications programs, one or more interaction devices, such as a touch pad or screen, and/or control systems including feedback loops and control motors (e.g., feedback for sensing position and/or velocity, control motors for moving and/or adjusting components and/or quantities). A typical data processing system may be implemented utilizing any suitable commercially available components, such as those typically found in data computing/communication and/or network computing/communication systems.

[0211] The herein described subject matter sometimes illustrates different components included within, or connected with, different other components. It is to be understood that such depicted architectures are merely examples, and that in fact many other architectures may be implemented which achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively "associated" such that the desired functionality may be achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality may be seen as "associated with" each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermedial components. Likewise, any two components so associated may also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably coupled", to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated may also be viewed as being "operably couplable" to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable include but are not limited to physically mateable and/or physically interacting components and/or wirelessly interactable and/or wirelessly interacting components and/or logically interacting and/or logically interactable components.

[0212] With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

[0213] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, where only one item is intended, the term "single" or similar language may be used. As an aid to understanding, the following appended claims and/or the descriptions herein may include usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a” or "an" limits any particular claim including such introduced claim recitation to embodiments including only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"). The same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B." Further, the terms "any of" followed by a listing of a plurality of items and/or a plurality of categories of items, as used herein, are intended to include "any of," "any combination of," "any multiple of," and/or "any combination of multiples of" the items and/or the categories of items, individually or in conjunction with other items and/or other categories of items. Moreover, as used herein, the term "set" is intended to include any number of items, including zero. Additionally, as used herein, the term "number" is intended to include any number, including zero. And the term "multiple", as used herein, is intended to be synonymous with "a plurality".

[0214] In addition, where features or aspects of the disclosure are described in terms of Markush groups, those skilled in the art will recognize that the disclosure is also thereby described in terms of any individual member or subgroup of members of the Markush group.

[0215] As will be understood by one skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, such as in terms of providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations of subranges thereof. Any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etc. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein may be readily broken down into a lower third, middle third and upper third, etc. As will also be understood by one skilled in the art all language such as "up to," "at least," "greater than," "less than," and the like includes the number recited and refers to ranges which can be subsequently broken down into subranges as discussed above. Finally, as will be understood by one skilled in the art, a range includes each individual member. Thus, for example, a group having 1-3 cells refers to groups having 1 , 2, or 3 cells. Similarly, a group having 1-5 cells refers to groups having 1 , 2, 3, 4, or 5 cells, and so forth.

[0216] Moreover, the claims should not be read as limited to the provided order or elements unless stated to that effect. In addition, use of the terms "means for" in any claim is intended to invoke 35 U.S.C. §112, fl 6 or means-plus-function claim format, and any claim without the terms "means for" is not so intended.

[0217] A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU), user equipment (UE), terminal, base station, Mobility Management Entity (MME) or Evolved Packet Core (EPC), or any host computer. The WTRU may be used conjunction with modules, implemented in hardware and/or software including a Software Defined Radio (SDR), and other components such as a camera, a video camera module, a videophone, a speakerphone, a vibration device, a speaker, a microphone, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a keyboard, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a Near Field Communication (NFC) Module, a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit, an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, and/or any Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) or Ultra Wide Band (UWB) module.

[0218] Although the invention has been described in terms of communication systems, it is contemplated that the systems may be implemented in software on microprocessors/general purpose computers (not shown). In certain embodiments, one or more of the functions of the various components may be implemented in software that controls a general-purpose computer.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. A method implemented by a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) for wireless communications, the method comprising: receiving a first indication indicating information of a group session relocation associated with a group of user sessions; performing, based on the information of the group session relocation, an application context relocation procedure on at least one user session of the group of user sessions; and transmitting a second indication indicating the application context relocation procedure being completed in the WTRU.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first indication is received from an edge group management function (EGMF).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the information indicates a start request for the group session relocation.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the information comprises any of: a group identifier (GID), a user identifier (UID), a list of user session identifiers (USIDs) requiring relocation, a list of user session information, a list of required application context relocation (ACR) execution entities, a target edge application server (EAS), a selected ACR scenario list, a relocation timeout, and/or a relocation type.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the relocation type comprises an application context relocation (ACR) or a service continuity planning (SCP).

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second indication is transmitted to an edge group management function (EGMF)

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second indication indicates a complete request for the group session relocation.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising registering for receiving group notifications from an EGMF.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising sending a group update request to an EGMF.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving a group update response from an EGMF.

11 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising: receiving group information from an edge group management function (EGMF); determining configuration information indicating a group related to a common EAS, a bundle of EASs, or EASs being synchronized; and maintaining service continuity according to the group information and the configuration information.

12. A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) for wireless communications, comprising circuitry, including a transmitter, a receiver, a processor, and memory, configured to: receive a first indication indicating information of a group session relocation associated with a group of user sessions; perform, based on the information of the group session relocation, an application context relocation procedure on at least one user session of the group of user sessions; and transmit a second indication indicating the application context relocation procedure being completed in the WTRU.

13. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the first indication is received from an edge group management function (EGMF).

14. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the information indicates a start request for the group session relocation.

15. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the information comprises any of: a group identifier (GID), a user identifier (UID), a list of user session identifiers (USIDs) requiring relocation, a list of user session information, a list of required application context relocation (ACR) execution entities, a target edge application server (EAS), a selected ACR scenario list, a relocation timeout, and/or a relocation type.

16. The WTRU of claim 15, wherein the relocation type comprises an application context relocation (ACR) or a service continuity planning (SCR).

17. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the second indication is transmitted to an edge group management function (EGMF).

18. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the second indication indicates a complete request for the group session relocation.

19. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the WTRU is further configured to register for receiving group notifications from an EGMF.

20. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the WTRU is further configured to send a group update request to an EGMF.

21 .The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the WTRU is further configured to receive a group update response from an EGMF.

22. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the WTRU is further configured to: receive group information from an edge group management function (EGMF); determine configuration information indicating a group related to a common EAS, a bundle of EASs, or EASs being synchronized; and maintain service continuity according to the group information and the configuration information.