TRACKING USER EQUIPMENT AT RADIO ACCESS NETWORK LEVEL

Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of networks, and more particularly, to apparatuses, systems, and methods for tracking at a radio access network level.

Background

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. The

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

In long term evolution ("LTE"), core network ("CN")-based tracking is done for user equipment ("UEs") that are in an idle state at the CN level. For CN-based tracking, an evolved node B ("eNB") may broadcast a tracking area update message in each cell. When the UE crosses a tracking area, it does a tracking area update to the CN. This provides the CN with information about the location of the UE at the tracking area level. When there is downlink data for the UE, the CN pages the UE in the tracking area to locate the UE. Radio access network ("RAN")-based mobility handling relates to handling inactive UEs, for example, UEs that are not in active communication and are put in suspended state. This may be the RAN equivalent of an idle state. A mechanism to track the UE location needs to be defined to facilitate RAN-based mobility handling.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments will be readily understood by the following detailed description

in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. To facilitate this description, like reference numerals designate like structural elements. Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 illustrates an architecture of a system in accordance with some embodiments. Figure 2 illustrates a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments. Figure 3 illustrates a message flow in accordance with some embodiments.

Figure 4 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure of a user equipment according to some embodiments.

Figure 5 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure of an access node according to some embodiments.

Figure 6 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure of an access node according to some embodiments.

Figure 7 illustrates an electronic device according to some embodiments.

Figure 8 illustrates baseband circuitry according to some embodiments.

Figure 9 illustrates hardware resources in accordance with some embodiments.

Detailed Description

In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying

drawings, which form a part hereof wherein like numerals designate like parts throughout, and in which is shown by way of illustration embodiments that may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural or logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

Various operations may be described as multiple discrete actions or operations in turn, in a manner that is most helpful in understanding the claimed subject matter. However, the order of description should not be construed as to imply that these operations are necessarily order dependent. In particular, these operations may not be performed in the order of presentation. Operations described may be performed in a different order than the described embodiment. Various additional operations may be performed or described operations may be omitted in additional embodiments.

For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrases "A or B," "A and/or B," and "A/B" mean (A), (B), or (A and B).

The description may use the phrases "in an embodiment," or "in embodiments," which may each refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," "having," and the like, as used with respect to embodiments of the present disclosure, are synonymous.

Embodiments of the present disclosure describe mechanisms to enable RAN-level tracking without having to broadcast two area identifiers and having the UE perform two levels of update signaling (for example, tracking area update ("TAU") procedures at core network ("CN") and radio access network ("RAN") level). This may significantly reduce the amount of data that is broadcast and may also reduce uplink and downlink signaling. These spectrally efficiencies may result in less processing by the UE and network, which may save battery in the UE.

As will be described, some embodiments may re-use the CN-level tracking area mechanisms at the RAN level. In some embodiments, the UE may only perform a CN- based tracking area update by sending, for example, a CN-level TAU message. A RAN node can detect and use these CN-level TAU messages sent by the UE to also track the UE at the RAN level. This can then be used to identify the paging area (for example, the area in which UE needs to be paged) to reach the UE. Note that the RAN (for example, an access node ("AN")) may not necessarily use the CN-level TAU message as such but just as evidence that the UE did an access in a cell. Thus, the AN can infer the TA in which the UE made the access from the cell. The AN can be certain UE will originate a

message when it crosses the TA boundary because UE has to update the CN with a non- access stratum ("NAS") TAU. This RAN-level tracking may be applied when the UE is inactive, which in some contexts may also be referred to as suspended or lightly - connected.

Figure 1 illustrates an architecture of a system 100 of a network in accordance with some embodiments. The system 100 is shown to include UE 101. The UE 101 is illustrated as a smartphone (for example, handheld touchscreen mobile computing devices connectable to one or more cellular networks), but may also comprise any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as a personal data assistants ("PDA"), pager, laptop

computer, desktop computer, wireless handset, or any computing device including a wireless communications interface.

In some embodiments, the UE 101 can comprise an Internet of Things ("IoT") UE, which can comprise a network access layer designed for low-power IoT applications utilizing short-lived UE connections. An IoT UE can utilize technologies such as machine-to- machine ("M2M") or machine-type communications ("MTC") for exchanging data with an MTC server or device via a public land mobile network ("PLMN"), Proximity- Based Service ("ProSe") or device-to-device ("D2D") communication, sensor networks, or IoT networks. The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiated exchange of data. An IoT network describes interconnecting IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure), with shortlived connections. The IoT UEs may execute background applications (for example, keep- alive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the IoT network. The UE 101 may be configured to connect, for example, communicatively couple, with an AN, for example, AN 1 11 or AN 1 12, of RAN 10 via a Uu interface. For purposes of description of various embodiments, the UE 101 may first connect with a source AN, which may be either AN 1 11 or AN 112, and later connect with a target AN, which may be the other of AN 1 11 or AN 1 12. In some embodiments, a source AN may configure the UE 101 for RAN-level or CN-level TAU procedures, while the UE 101 may perform at least part of the configured procedures with the target AN.

The RAN 110 may be, for example, an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network ("E-UTRAN") in which case the AN may be an evolved node B ("eNB"), a NextGen RAN ("NG RAN") in which case the AN may be a next generation node B

("gNB"), or some other type of RAN. The UE 101 may utilize an air-interface protocol to enable communicative coupling over the Uu interface. The air-interface protocol can be consistent with cellular communications protocols such as a Global System for Mobile Communications ("GSM") protocol, a code-division multiple access ("CDMA") network protocol, a push-to-talk ("PTT") protocol, a PTT over cellular ("POC") protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System ("UMTS") protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution ("LTE") protocol, a fifth generation ("5G") protocol, a New Radio ("NR") protocol, and the like.

The RAN 110 can include one or more ANs that enable connection 103. These ANs can be referred to as base stations ("BSs"), NodeBs, eNBs, gNBs, RAN nodes, and so forth, and can comprise ground stations (for example, terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (for example, a cell). The RAN 1 10 may include one or more RAN nodes for providing macrocells and one or more RAN nodes for providing femtocells or picocells (for example, cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells).

Any of the ANs 11 1 and 1 12 can terminate the air interface protocol and can be the first point of contact for the UE 101. In some embodiments, any of the ANs 11 1 and 1 12 can fulfill various logical functions for the RAN 110 including, but not limited to, radio network controller ("RNC") functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobility management.

An AN 1 11/112 of the RAN 110 may communicate with the other AN 112/1 11 (or some other AN) through an X2 signaling interface. In accordance with some embodiments, the UE 101 can be configured to communicate using Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing ("OFDM") communication signals with any of the ANs 111 and 112 or other UEs over a multicarrier communication channel in accordance various communication techniques, such as, but not limited to, an

Orthogonal Frequency -Division Multiple Access ("OFDMA") communication technique (for example, for downlink communications) or a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access ("SC-FDMA") communication technique (for example, for uplink and ProSe or sidelink communications), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. The OFDM signals can comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers. In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlink transmissions from any of the ANs 111 and 112 to the UE 101, while uplink transmissions can utilize similar techniques. The grid can be a time-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time- frequency resource grid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in each slot. Such a time-frequency plane representation is a common practice for OFDM systems, which makes it intuitive for radio resource allocation. Each column and each row of the resource grid corresponds to one OFDM symbol and one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to one slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is denoted as a resource element. Each resource grid comprises a number of resource blocks, which describe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block comprises a collection of resource elements; in the frequency domain, this may represent the smallest quantity of resources that currently can be allocated. There are several different physical downlink channels that are conveyed using such resource blocks.

The physical downlink shared channel ("PDSCH") may carry user data and higher-layer signaling to the UE 101. The physical downlink control channel ("PDCCH") may carry information about the transport format and resource allocations related to the

PDSCH channel, among other things. It may also inform the UE 101 about the transport format, resource allocation, and hybrid automatic repeat request ("H-ARQ") information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling

(assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to the UE 101 within a cell) may be performed at any of the ANs 111 and 112 based on channel quality information fed back from the UE 101. The downlink resource assignment information may be sent on the PDCCH used for (for example, assigned to) the UE 101. The PDCCH may use control channel elements ("CCEs") to convey the

control information. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCH complex- valued symbols may first be organized into quadruplets, which may then be permuted using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching. Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as resource element groups ("REGs"). Four Quadrature Phase Shift Keying ("QPSK") symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH can be transmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of the downlink control information ("DO") and the channel condition. There can be four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (for

example, aggregation level, L=l, 2, 4, or 8).

Some embodiments may use concepts for resource allocation for control

channel information that are an extension of the above-described concepts. For example, some embodiments may utilize an enhanced physical downlink control channel

("EPDCCH") that uses PDSCH resources for control information transmission. The

EPDCCH may be transmitted using one or more enhanced the control channel elements ("ECCEs"). Similar to above, each ECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as an enhanced enhanced resource element groups (EREGs). An ECCE may have other numbers of EREGs in some situations.

The RAN 110 is shown to be communicatively coupled to a CN 120 via an SI interface

113. In this embodiment the SI interface 113 is split into two parts: the Sl-U interface

114, which carries traffic data between the ANs 111 and 112 and the serving gateway ("S- GW") 122, and the SI -mobility management entity ("MME") interface 115, which is a signaling interface between the ANs 111 and 112 and MMEs 121.

In this embodiment, the CN 120 comprises the MMEs 121, the S-GW 122, the Packet Data Network ("PDN") Gateway ("P-GW") 123, and a home subscriber server ("HSS") 124. The MMEs 121 may be similar in function to the control plane of legacy Serving General Packet Radio Service ("GPRS") Support Nodes ("SGSN"). The MMEs 121 may manage mobility aspects in access such as gateway selection and tracking area list management. The HSS 124 may comprise a database for network users, including subscription-related information to support the network entities' handling of

communication sessions. The CN 120 may comprise one or several HSSs 124, depending on the number of mobile subscribers, on the capacity of the equipment, on the

organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS 124 can provide support for routing/roaming, authentication, authorization, naming/addressing resolution, location dependencies, etc.

The S-GW 122 may terminate the SI interface 113 towards the RAN 110, and route data packets between the RAN 110 and the EPC network 120. In addition, the S-GW 122 may be a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN node handovers and also may provide an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policy enforcement.

The P-GW 123 may terminate an SGi interface toward a PDN. The P-GW 123 may route data packets between the CN 123 and external networks such as a network including the application server 130 (alternatively referred to as application function ("AF")) via an Intemet Protocol ("IP") interface 125. Generally, the application server 130 may be an element offering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (for example, UMTS Packet Services ("PS") domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). In this embodiment, the P-GW 123 is shown to be communicatively coupled to the application server 130 via an IP communications interface 125. The application server 130 can also be configured to support one or more communication services (for example, Voice-over- Internet Protocol (VoIP) sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.) for the UE 101 via the CN 120.

The P-GW 123 may further be a node for policy enforcement and charging data collection. Policy and Charging Rules Function ("PCRF") 126 is the policy and charging control element of the CN 120. In a non-roaming scenario, there may be a single PCRF in the Home Public Land Mobile Network ("HPLMN") associated with a UE's Intemet Protocol Connectivity Access Network ("IP-CAN") session. In a roaming scenario with

local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE's IP-CAN session: a Home PCRF ("H-PCRF") within a HPLMN and a Visited PCRF ("V-PCRF") within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network ("VPLMN"). The PCRF 126 may be

communicatively coupled to the application server 130 via the P-GW 123. The application server 130 may signal the PCRF 126 to indicate a new service flow and select the appropriate Quality of Service ("QoS") and charging parameters. The PCRF 126 may provision this rule into a Policy and Charging Enforcement Function ("PCEF") (not shown) with the appropriate traffic flow template ("TFT") and QoS class of identifier ("QCI"), which commences the QoS and charging as specified by the application server 130. Figure 2 illustrates a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments. In this embodiment, a control plane 200 is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE 101, AN 111/112, and the MME 124.

The PHY layer 204 may transmit/receive information used by the MAC layer 208 over one or more air interfaces. The PHY layer 204 may further perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding ("AMC"), power control, cell search (for example, for initial synchronization and handover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, such as the RRC layer 220. The PHY layer 204 may still further perform error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction ("FEC") coding/decoding of the transport channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, and multiple input multiple output ("MIMO") antenna processing.

The MAC layer 208 may perform mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC service data units ("SDUs") from one or more logical channels onto transport blocks to be delivered to the PHY layer 204 via transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or more logical channels from transport blocks delivered from the PHY layer 204 via transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto transport blocks, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request ("HARQ"), and logical channel prioritization.

The RLC layer 212 may operate in a plurality of modes of operation,

including: Transparent Mode ("TM"), Unacknowledged Mode ("UM"), and

Acknowledged Mode ("AM"). The RLC layer 212 may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units ("PDUs"), error correction through automatic repeat request ("ARQ") for AM data transfers, and concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers. The RLC layer 212 may also execute re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transfers, reorder RLC data PDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect duplicate data for UM and AM data transfers, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect protocol errors for AM data transfers, and perform RLC re- establishment.

The PDCP layer 216 may execute header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP Sequence Numbers ("SNs"), perform in-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUs at re-establishment of lower layers, eliminate duplicates of lower layer SDUs at re-establishment of lower layers for radio bearers mapped on RLC AM, cipher and decipher control plane data, perform integrity protection and integrity verification of control plane data, control timer-based discard of data, and perform security operations (for example, ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.). The main services and functions of the RRC layer 220 may include broadcast of system information (for example, included in Master Information Blocks ("MIBs") or

System Information Blocks ("SIBs") related to the non-access stratum ("NAS")), broadcast of system information related to the access stratum ("AS"), paging,

establishment, maintenance and release of an RRC connection between the UE and RAN (for example, RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), establishment, configuration, maintenance and release of point to point Radio Bearers, security functions including key management, inter radio access technology ("RAT") mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting. Said MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or more information elements ("IEs"), which may each comprise individual data fields or data structures. In some embodiments, the system information broadcast by an RRC layer 220 may include a CN-level TA identifier. The UE 101 may reference the CN-level TA identifier to determine whether the UE 101 needs to perform a tracking area update as will be described in further detail below.

The RRC layer 220 and below layers may be generically referred to as the AS.

The UE 101 and the AN 111/112 may utilize a Uu interface (for example, an LTE-Uu interface) to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the AS, for example, the PHY layer 204, the MAC layer 208, the RLC layer 212, the PDCP layer 216, and the RRC layer 220.

The NAS layer 224 may form the highest stratum of the control plane between the UE 104 and the MME 124. The NAS layer 224 may support the mobility of the UE 104 and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE 104 and the P-GW. In some embodiments, the NAS layer 224 of the MME 124 may configure the NAS layer 224 of the UE 101 with CN-level TA. For example, the MME 124 may transmit, to the UE 101, configuration information that includes a CN-level tracking area list. The CN-level tracking area list may include one or more tracking area identifiers that, collectively, define a CN-level TA for the UE 101. The UE 101 may be triggered to provide a tracking area update message when it moves to a tracking area having an identifier that is not in the CN-level tracking area list.

In some embodiments, the AS of the AN 111/112 may configure the AS of the UE 101 with RAN-level TA. For example, the AN 111/112 may transmit, to the UE 101, configuration information that includes a RAN-level tracking area list. The RAN-level tracking area list may include one or more tracking area identifiers that, collectively, define a RAN-level TA for the UE 101. The UE 101 may be triggered to provide a tracking area update message when it moves to a tracking area having an identifier that is not in the RAN-level tracking area list.

The tracking area identifiers in the CN-level tracking area list may be the same, or different than, the tracking area identifiers in the RAN-level tracking area list. In some embodiments, only one tracking area list may be used. This may be the tracking area list configured by the NAS layer 224 of the MME 124.

The S 1 Application Protocol ("S 1 -AP") layer 228 may support the functions of the S 1 interface and comprise Elementary Procedures ("EPs"). An EP may be a unit of interaction between the AN 111/112 and the CN 120. The Sl-AP layer services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services and non UE-associated services. These services perform functions including, but not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer ("E-RAB") management, UE capability indication, mobility, NAS signalling transport, RAN Information Management ("RIM"), and configuration transfer.

The Stream Control Transmission Protocol ("SCTP") layer (altematively referred to as the SCTP/IP layer) 232 may ensure reliable delivery of signalling messages between the AN 111/112 and the MME 124 based on the IP protocol supported by the IP layer 236. The L2 layer 240 and the LI layer 244 may refer to communication links (for example, wired or wireless) used by the AN 111/112 and the MME 124 to exchange information.

The AN 111/112 and the MME 124 may utilize an S I -MME interface to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the LI layer 244, the L2 layer 240, the IP layer 236, the SCTP layer 232, and the Sl-AP layer 228.

Referring again to Figure 1, in some embodiments the AN 111/112 may only broadcast CN-level tracking area IDs and the UE 101 may only perform CN-level tracking area updates. When the AN 111/112 receives a transmission from the UE 101, the AN 111/112 may record an indication of the cell and tracking area in which the UE 101 performs some activity, for example, sends a transmission. The transmission may be a TAU message. The recorded indication of the cell and tracking area in which the UE 101 performs the activity may be used by the AN 111/112 as a RAN-level paging area. The RAN-level paging area may be an area in which the UE 101 is allowed to move without generating a TAU message and, therefore, it is the area in which the AN 111/112 may need to page the UE 101 in order to locate the UE 101. In some embodiments, the AN 111/112 may use an algorithm to determine which cells of a tracking area to page. For example, the AN 111/112 may page a cell in which the UE 101 sent the TAU message first and then in widening areas to page the rest of the tracking area.

The activity performed by the UE 101 may or may not be a tracking area update. For example, the activity could be UL or DL data transfer or it could be a TAU procedure. In most cases, the AN 111/112 does not need to be aware that a TAU has been performed by the UE, as the AN 111/112 can simply assume that the tracking area where the most recent activity occurred is the registered tracking area of the UE 101. An exception to this is the case where the CN 120 assigns the UE 101 with a list of tracking areas as described in more detail below.

A RAN-level paging area is the area that denotes the region of uncertainty of the location of the UE 101 from the perspective of the RAN 110. Thus, the RAN-level paging area corresponds to the area in which the UE 101 must be paged to locate the UE 101. During mobility for an inactive UE, if a RAN-level paging area includes a group of cells, some of the cells may be provided by different ANs. Thus, X2 signalling may be considered. Whenever there is downlink data for the UE 101, X2 signalling may be used to carry paging message to other ANs in the RAN-level paging area. The RAN-level paging area may also correspond to RAN-level tracking area as described in this document.

Similar to above, a CN-level tracking/paging area is a region of uncertainty of the location of the UE 101 from the perspective of the CN 120.

To enable the AN 111/112 to associate a CN-level tracking area update with a context of the UE 101, a known RAN-level UE identifier should be used by the UE 101 as part of the tracking area update. This can be the resume identifier provided to the UE 101 at the time it was suspended (or otherwise put into an inactive state). Alternatively, a CN-level identifier may be used as the RAN-level identifier. For example, a CN-level system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI"), which the UE 101 will need to provide to the AN 111/112 during the CN-level TAU, may be used as the RAN-level identifier. If the S-TMSI is used as the RAN-level identifier, the CN 120 must provide the AN 111/112 with the S-TMSI of the UE 101. Similar CN level tracking can apply for 5G or next generation core network and also for future systems. In these cases, the messages and details may be different but the same concept of tracking as above applies, which can then be used by ANs of future technologies. When the network is using multiple TA lists for tracking the UE 101, this information may be made available to AN 11 1/112 by a node of the CN 120 (for example, the MME 121) so that the AN 1 11/112 is aware of the area (list of TAs) that the AN 11 1/1 12 might need to page to reach the UE 101. In some embodiments, a TA list may be provided as a list of TA identifiers, ANs, cells, etc. If there is a single TA list, the MME 121 may not need to provide a TA list to the AN 1 11/112 as it may be inferred by the AN 11 1/1 12. In some embodiments, an AN 1 11/112 may use any access attempt by the UE 101 to note the current tracking area for the UE 101. This UE access can be, for example, to send data, to request bearers, to perform a CN-level TAU, etc. The exact reason or the NAS message itself may not be relevant to the AN 1 11/112.

Figure 3 illustrates a flow 300 for using RAN-level tracking using a CN-level identifier and tracking area update in accordance with some embodiments.

The flow 300 assumes that the UE 101 is initially connected with AN1 1 11. At 304, the UE 101 may determine that the UE 101 has crossed a TA boundary. The UE 101 may receive system information broadcast by the AN2 112. The system information may include a TA identifier associated with the AN2 1 12. If the TA identifier does not match the TA list(s) with which the UE 101 has been configured, the UE 101 may know that has crossed the TA boundary and needs to perform the TA update.

At 304, the UE 101 may transmit a resume request message to the AN2 1 12. The resume request message may include a UE resume identifier. The UE resume identifier may have been provided to the UE 101 by the AN1 11 1 when it was inactivated. When the AN 1 11 inactivates the UE 101 , it may store a context of the UE 101 along with the associated UE resume identifier. This may allow the UE 101 to quickly activate and resume

communication with the network when needed.

Upon receipt of the resume request message, the AN2 1 12 may, at 312, note a location of the UE 101 based on the cell in which the resume request message was received.

The AN2 112 may use the UE resume ID to transmit a request, at 316, to fetch the context of the UE 101 stored by the AN1 1 11. The AN1 1 11 may respond to the request by transmitting the UE context at 320.

The AN2 112 may, at 324, store the UE context and location (for example, cell and TA) in which the UE 101 did the TA update.

The flow 400 may include, at 328, the MME 121 and the AN 112 may engage in a path switch procedure. The path switch procedure may include the AN 1 12 sending a path switch request to the MME 121 to inform the MME 121 that the UE 101 has switched cells. The MME 121 may then respond with a path switch acknowledgment.

Following the path switch procedure, the UE may perform a CN-level TAU by transmitting a TAU message, which may be a NAS message, to the CN 120 at 332. The AN 1 12 may receive and forward the TAU message to the MME 121.

At 336, the MME 121 may transmit a TA list to the AN2 1 12. The TA list may be a CN- level TA list that defines the CN-level tracking area. In this embodiment, the RAN-level TA list may be the same as, for example, have a one-to-one correspondence with, the CN- level TA list.

The AN2 112 may forward the TA list to the UE 101 in a TA accept message at 340.

At 344, the AN2 112 may decide to inactivate the UE 101 and send the UE 101 a suspend message. The suspend message may be transmitted after a period of non-communication by the UE 101.

At 348, the AN2 may receive DL data directed to the UE 101. The AN2 1 12 may then page the cells of the list of TAs in which the UE 101 did the TA update at 352. As described above, in some embodiments, the AN2 1 12 may initially page the cell corresponding to the location saved at 312. If the UE 101 does not respond, the AN 1 12 may page one or more cells in the TA list provided to the AN2 1 12 at 336.

Figure 4 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure of the UE 101 according to some embodiments.

The flow/structure 400 may include, at 404, identifying a RAN-level identifier. The RAN- level identifier identified at 404 may be an identifier that is to be used in a RAN-level TA operation. The RAN-level identifier may be a UE resume identifier that is provided to the UE 101 when an access node inactivates the UE 101. In some embodiments, the RAN- level identifier may be an S-TMSI.

The flow/structure 400 may include, at 408, receiving broadcast system information that includes a TA ID. The UE 101 may cross-reference the TA ID received in the broadcast system information with one or more TA lists that define TAs for the UE 101. In various embodiments, the UE 101 may include only one TA with which it is associated. If the TA ID received in the broadcast system information does not match the TA with which the UE 101 is currently associated, the UE 101 may determine that it is necessary to provide an update to the network. In some embodiments, the UE 101 may include one or more TA lists. For example, the UE 101 may include a RAN-level TA list or a CN-level TA list. The UE 101 may determine whether the TA ID received in the broadcast system information matches any of the TA identifiers stored in the CN/RAN-level TA list(s). If the TA ID does not match any TA identifiers in at least one TA list, the flow/structure 400 may advance to 412 for the UE 101 to perform an update.

The flow/structure 400 may include, at 412, transmit the RAN-level identifier to the AN 111/112. If the UE 101 is configured with a CN-level TA list and the TA ID received in the broadcast system information does not match the identifiers and the CN-level TA list, the UE 101 may follow the transmission of the RAN-level identifier by transmitting a NAS message to the MME 121. The NAS message may be, for example, a TAU that includes a CN-level ID, for example, an S-TMSI. The TAU may allow the CN 120 to perform a CN-level TA update.

In some embodiments, the UE 101 may be configured with a RAN-level TA list that is different from a CN-level TA list. For example, the RAN-level TA list may be a subset of the CN-level TA list. In these embodiments, if the TA ID received in the broadcast system information matches an identifier in the CN-level TA list but not an identifier in the RAN- level TA list, then the UE 101 may transmit the RAN-level ID to the AN 111/112 to perform a RAN-level TAU, but may not need to perform a separate TAU with the CN 120 and, therefore, may not send the NAS message TAU.

Figure 5 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure 500 of AN 111/112 according to some embodiments.

The flow/structure 500 may include, at 504, receiving a message from the UE 101. In some embodiments, the message received from the UE 101 may include a RAN-level identifier, for example, a UE resume identifier.

The flow/structure 500 may further include, at 508, determining that the UE 101 is located in a RAN-level paging area. In some embodiments, the AN 111/112 may determine that the UE 101 is in a particular cell in which the message is received. The AN 111/112 may cross-reference that cell with a RAN/CN-level TA list to determine the RAN-level paging area. If the AN 111/112 is to cross-reference the cell with the CN-level TA list, the AN 111/112 may have previously received the CN-level TA list from the CN 120, for example, MME 121.

The flow/structure 500 may further include, at 512, receiving downlink data from the CN 120. The downlink data may be directed to the UE 101, which may be in an inactive state. The flow/structure 500 may further include, at 516, paging the UE 101 within the RAN- level paging area. In some embodiments, the AN 111/112 may perform a first round of paging in the cell in which the message was received from the UE at 504. If the UE 101 does not respond to the first round of paging, one or more additional rounds of paging in other cells of the RAN-level paging area may be performed.

Figure 6 illustrates an example operation flow/algorithmic structure 600 of the AN 1 1 1/1 12 according to some embodiments.

The flow/structure 600 may include, at 604, transmitting configuration information to the UE 101. The configuration information may include information to configure the UE 101 with a RAN-level TA list. The RAN-level TA list may include one or more TA identifiers that, collectively, define a RAN-level paging area.

The flow/structure 600 may further include, at 608, broadcasting system information that includes a tracking area identifier associated with a cell in which the system information is broadcast. The tracking area identifier may be used by UEs to perform both RAN-level tracking and CN-level tracking as described herein.

Embodiments described herein may be implemented into a system using any

suitably configured hardware or software. Figure 7 illustrates, for one embodiment, example components of an electronic device 700. In embodiments, the electronic device 100 may be, implement, be incorporated into, or otherwise be a part of UE 101 , AN 1 11 , AN 1 12, MME 121, or some other electronic device. In some embodiments, the electronic device 100 may include application circuitry 702, baseband circuitry 704, Radio

Frequency ("RF") circuitry 106, front-end module ("FEM") circuitry 708 and one or more antennas 710, coupled together at least as shown.

The application circuitry 702 may include one or more application processors.

For example, the application circuitry 702 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination of general-purpose processors and dedicated processors (for example, graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupled with or may include memory /storage and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory /storage to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the system. The baseband circuitry 704 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors, to perform the various CN/RAN-level tracking operations described herein. The baseband circuitry 704 may include one or

more baseband processors or control logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signal path of the RF circuitry 706 and to generate baseband signals for a transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 706. Baseband processing circuity 704 may interface with the application circuitry 702 for generation and processing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of the RF circuitry 706. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may include a second generation ("2G") baseband processor 704a, third generation ("3G") baseband processor 704b, fourth generation ("4G") baseband processor 704c, a fifth generation ("5G") baseband processor 704h, or other

baseband processor(s) 704d for other existing generations, generations in development, or to be developed in the future (for example, 6G, etc.).

The baseband circuitry 704 (for example, one or more of baseband processors 704a-d, h) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 706. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio

frequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, modulation/demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 704 may include Fast-Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping/demapping functionality. In some embodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 704 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functionality.

Embodiments of modulation/demodulation and encoder/decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functionality in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may include elements of a

protocol stack such as, for example, elements of an EUTRAN protocol including, for example, PHY, MAC, RLC, PDCP, or RRC elements. A central processing unit ("CPU") 704e of the baseband circuitry 704 may be configured to run elements of the protocol stack for signaling of the PHY, MAC, RLC, PDCP, or RRC layers. In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may also include NAS elements that are configured to be run by the CPU 704e. In other embodiments, the NAS elements may reside in the application circuitry 702.

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry may include one or more audio digital signal processor(s) ("DSP") 704f. The audio DSP(s) 704f may be include elements

for compression/decompression and echo cancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments.

The baseband circuitry 704 may further include memory /storage 704g.

The memory /storage 704g may be used to load and store data or instructions for operations performed by the processors of the baseband circuitry 704. Memory /storage for one embodiment may include any combination of suitable volatile memory or non- volatile memory. The memory /storage 704g may include any combination of various levels of memory /storage including, but not limited to, read-only memory ("ROM") having embedded software instructions (for example, firmware), random access memory (for example, dynamic random access memory ("DRAM")), cache, buffers, etc. The memory /storage 704g may be shared among the various processors or dedicated to particular processors.

Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board in some embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituent components of the baseband circuitry 704 and the application circuitry 702 may be implemented together such as, for example, on a system on a chip ("SOC").

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may provide for

communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may support communication with a RAN, for example, an EUTRAN or next generation RAN ("NG RAN"), or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN). Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 704 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

RF circuitry 706 may enable communication with wireless networks

using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, the RF circuitry 106 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wireless network. RF circuitry 706 may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 708 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry 704. RF circuitry 706 may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up- convert baseband signals provided by the baseband circuitry 704 and provide RF output signals to the FEM circuitry 708 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the RF circuitry 706 may include mixer circuitry 106a, amplifier circuitry 706b and filter circuitry 706c. The transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 706 may include filter circuitry 706c and mixer circuitry 706a. RF circuitry 706 may also include synthesizer circuitry 706d for synthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 708 based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 706d. The amplifier circuitry 706b may be configured to amplify the down-converted signals and the filter circuitry 706c may be a low-pass filter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the baseband circuitry 704 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband

signals, although this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the transmit signal path may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 706d to generate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 708. The baseband signals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 704 and may be filtered by filter circuitry 706c. The filter circuitry 706c may include a low-pass filter (LPF), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 706a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature downconversion or upconversion respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 706a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image rejection (for example, Hartley image rejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 706a may be arranged for direct downconversion or direct upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 706a of the transmit signal path may be configured for super-heterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternate embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry 704 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuitry 706. In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may be provided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 706d may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuitry 706d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider.

The synthesizer circuitry 706d may be configured to synthesize an output frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 706a of the RF circuitry 706 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 706d may be a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator ("VCO"), although that is not a requirement. Divider control input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry 704 or the applications processor 702 depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (for example, N) may be determined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by the applications processor 702.

Synthesizer circuitry 706d of the RF circuitry 706 may include a divider, a delay - locked loop ("DLL"), a multiplexer and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulus divider ("DMD") and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator ("DP A"). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by either N or N+1 (for example, based on a carry out) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, the DLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Nd equal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 706d may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (for example, twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and divider circuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency with multiple different phases with respect to each other. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 708 may include a receive signal path which may include

circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas 710, amplify the received signals and provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 706 for further processing. FEM circuitry 708 may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals for transmission provided by the RF circuitry 706 for transmission by one or more of the one or more antennas 710.

In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 708 may include a TX/RX switch to

switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include a low-noise amplifier ("LNA") to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RF signals as an output (for example, to the RF circuitry 706). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 108 may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (for example, provided by RF circuitry 706), and one or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmission (for example, by one or more of the one or more antennas 710).

In some embodiments, the electronic device 700 may include additional elements such as, for example, memory /storage, display, camera, sensor, or input/output (I/O) interface. In some embodiments, the electronic device 700 of Figure 7 may be configured to perform one or more processes, techniques, or methods as described herein, or portions thereof. For example, an electronic device 700 may perform operations described in Figures 3-6.

Figure 8 illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry 804 in accordance with some embodiments. The baseband circuitry 804 may be similar to, and substantially

interchangeable with, baseband circuitry 704. As discussed above, the baseband circuitry 804 of Figure 8 may comprise processors 804A-804E and 804H and a memory 804G utilized by said processors. Each of the processors 804A-804E and 804H may include a memory interface, 804A-804E, and 804H, respectively, to send/receive data to/from the memory 804G.

The baseband circuitry 804 may further include one or more interfaces

to communicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as a memory interface 812 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from memory external to the baseband circuitry 804), an application circuitry interface 814 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from the application circuitry 802 of Figure 8), an RF circuitry interface 816 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry 806 of Figure 8), and a wireless hardware connectivity interface 818 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components).

Figure 9 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some

example embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable or computer- readable medium (for example, a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the RAN/CN-level tracking methodologies discussed herein. Specifically, Figure 9 shows a diagrammatic representation of hardware resources 900 including one or more processors (or processor cores) 910, one or more memory /storage devices 920, and one or more communication resources 930, each of which may be communicatively coupled via a bus 940. For embodiments where node virtualization (for example, network function virtualization ("NFV")) is utilized, a hypervisor 902 may be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices/sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources 900.

The processors 910 (for example, a CPU, a reduced instruction set computing ("RISC") processor, a complex instruction set computing ("CISC") processor, a graphics processing unit ("GPU"), a digital signal processor ("DSP") such as a baseband processor, an application specific integrated circuit ("ASIC"), a radio-frequency integrated circuit ("RFIC"), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, a processor 912 and a processor 914.

The memory /storage devices 920 may include main memory, disk storage, or any suitable combination thereof. The memory /storage devices 920 may include, but are not limited to any type of volatile or non-volatile memory such as dynamic random access memory ("DRAM"), static random-access memory ("SRAM"), erasable programmable read-only memory ("EPROM"), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory

("EEPROM"), Flash memory, solid-state storage, etc.

The communication resources 930 may include interconnection or network

interface components or other suitable devices to communicate with one or more peripheral devices 904 or one or more databases 906 via a network 908. For example, the communication resources 930 may include wired communication components (for example, for coupling via a Universal Serial Bus ("USB")), cellular communication components, near-field communication ("NFC") components, Bluetooth®

components (for example, Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components.

Instructions 950 may comprise software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least any of the processors 910 to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

In embodiments in which the hardware resources 900 are incorporated into the UE 101 , the instructions 950 may cause the processors 910 to perform the operation

flow/algorithmic structure 400; operations of a UE described, for example, in the flows of Figure 3; or other operations of a UE described, for example, with respect to Figures 1 and 2.

In embodiments in which the hardware resources 900 are incorporated into the AN 1 11/1 12, the instructions 950 may cause the processors 910 to perform the operation flow/algorithmic structure 500 or 600; operations of an AN described, for example, in the flow of Figure 3; or other operations of an AN as described, for example, with respect to Figures 1 and 2.

In embodiments in which the hardware resources 900 are incorporated into the MME 124, the instructions 950 may cause the processors 910 to perform operations of an MME described, for example, in the flow of Figure 3 or with respect to Figures 1 and 2.

The instructions 950 may reside, completely or partially, within at least one of the processors 910 (for example, within the processor's cache memory), the memory /storage devices 920, or any suitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of the instructions 950 may be transferred to the hardware resources 900 from any combination of the peripheral devices 904 or the databases 906. Accordingly, the memory of processors 910, the memory /storage devices 920, the peripheral devices 904, and the databases 906 are examples of computer-readable and machine-readable media.

Some non-limiting examples are provided below.

Example 1 may include a user equipment having circuitry to: identify a radio

access network ("RAN")-level identifier to use in a radio access network ("RAN")-level tracking area ("TA") operation; receive broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and transmit, based on the tracking area identifier, the RAN-level ID to allow a RAN to perform the RAN-level TA update. Example 2 may include the UE of example 1 or some other example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: transmit a tracking area update to allow a core network to perform a CN-level TA update.

Example 3 may include the UE of example 2 or some other example herein, wherein the tracking area update includes a CN-level identifier.

Example 4 may include the UE of example 3 or some other example herein, wherein the CN-level identifier is a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI").

Example 5 may include the UE of example 1 or some other example herein, wherein the RAN-level identifier is a resume identifier provided to the UE when the UE was suspended or a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S- TMSI").

Example 6 may include the UE of example 1 or some other example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to:

receive configuration information from the RAN, the configuration information to include a RAN-level tracking area list that includes one or more tracking area identifiers; and

transmit the RAN-level identifier based on a determination that the tracking area identifier is no in the RAN-level tracking area list.

Example 7 may include the UE of example 6 or some other example herein, wherein the configuration information is first configuration information and the circuitry is further to:

receive second configuration information from a CN, the second configuration information to include a CN-tracking area list that includes at least one tracking area identifier.

Example 8 may include the UE of example 7 or some other example herein, wherein the CN-level tracking area list has a one-to-one correspondence with the RN-level tracking area list.

Example 9 may include an AN having circuitry to: receive a message from a

user equipment ("UE"), the message to include a radio access network ("RAN")-level identifier; determine, based on the uplink message, that the UE is located in a RAN-level paging area;

receive downlink data directed to the UE; and stop page the UE within one or more cells of the RAN-level paging area. Example 10 may include the AN of example 9 or some other example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and receive the uplink message from the UE based on the tracking area message.

Example 11 may include the AN of example 9 or some other example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: transmit, a request for a context of the UE from another AN with which the UE was previously associated, the request to include the RAN-level identifier.

Example 12 may include the AN of any one of examples 9-11 or some other

example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: receive a tracking area list from a mobility management entity; and determine cells of the RAN-level paging area based on the tracking area list.

Example 13 may include the AN of any one of examples 9-12 or some other

example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: determine a cell in which the uplink message from the UE was transmitted; page the UE within the cell; and page the UE within one or more other cells of the RAN-level paging area if the UE does not respond to the page within the cell.

Example 14 may include an access node ("AN") having circuitry to: transmit

configuration information to a user equipment ("UE") to configure the UE with a radio access network ("RAN")-level tracking area ("TA") list; and broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier associated with a cell, the tracking area identifier to be used to perform both RAN-level and CN-level tracking.

Example 15 may include the AN of example 14 or some other example herein, wherein the RAN-level TA list includes one or more TA identifiers.

Example 16 may include the AN of example 14 or 15 or some other example

herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: transmit a RAN-level identifier to the UE to use in a RAN-level TA operation.

Example 17 may include the AN of example 16 or some other example herein, wherein the circuitry is further to: transmit a suspend message to the UE, the suspend message to include a resume identifier that corresponds to the RAN-level identifier.

18. One or more computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause a user equipment ("UE") to: identify a radio access network ("RAN")-level identifier to use in a radio access network ("RAN")-level tracking area ("TA") operation; receive broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and transmit, based on the tracking area identifier, the RAN-level ID to allow a RAN to perform the RAN-level TA update.

Example 19 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 18 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to: transmit a tracking area update to allow a core network to perform a CN-level TA update. Example 20 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 19 or some other example herein, wherein the tracking area update includes a CN-level identifier. Example 21 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 20 or some other example herein, wherein the CN-level identifier is a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI").

Example 22 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 18 or some other example herein, wherein the RAN-level identifier is a resume identifier provided to the UE when the UE was suspended or a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI").

Example 23 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 18 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to: receive configuration information from the RAN, the configuration information to include a RAN-level tracking area list that includes one or more tracking area identifiers; and transmit the RAN-level identifier based on a determination that the tracking area identifier is no in the RAN-level tracking area list.

Example 24 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 23 or some other example herein, wherein the configuration information is first

configuration information and the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to: receive second configuration information from a CN, the second configuration information to include a CN-tracking area list that includes at least one tracking area identifier.

Example 25 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 24 or some other example herein, wherein the CN-level tracking area list has a one-to- one correspondence with the RN-level tracking area list.

Example 26 may include one or more computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause an access node ("AN") to: receive a message from a user equipment ("UE"), the message to include a radio access network ("RAN")-level identifier; determine, based on the uplink message, that the UE is located in a RAN-level paging area; receive downlink data directed to the UE; and page the UE within one or more cells of the RAN-level paging area. Example 27 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 26 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the AN to: broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and receive the uplink message from the UE based on the tracking area message.

Example 28 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 26 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the AN to: transmit, a request for a context of the UE from another AN with which the UE was previously associated, the request to include the RAN-level identifier.

Example 29 may include the one or more computer-readable media of any one of examples 26-28 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the AN to: receive a tracking area list from a mobility management entity; and determine cells of the RAN-level paging area based on the tracking area list. Example 30 may include the one or more computer-readable media of any one of examples 26-29 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the AN to: determine a cell in which the uplink message from the UE was transmitted; page the UE within the cell; page the UE within one or more other cells of the RAN-level paging area if the UE does not respond to the page within the cell. Example 31 may include one or more computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause an access node ("AN") to: transmit configuration information to a user equipment ("UE") to configure the UE with a radio access network ("RAN")- level tracking area ("TA") list; and broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier associated with a cell, the tracking area identifier to be used to perform both RAN-level and CN-level tracking.

Example 32 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 31 or some other example herein, wherein the RAN-level TA list includes one or more TA identifiers.

Example 33 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 31 or 32 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the AN to: transmit a RAN-level identifier to the UE to use in a RAN-level TA operation.

Example 34 may include the one or more computer-readable media of example 33 or some other example herein, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the AN to: transmit a suspend message to the UE, the suspend message to include a resume identifier that corresponds to the RAN-level identifier.

Example 35 may include a method comprising: identifying a radio access

network ("RAN")-level identifier to use in a radio access network ("RAN")-level tracking area ("TA") operation; receiving broadcast system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and transmitting, based on the tracking area identifier, the RAN-level ID to allow a RAN to perform the RAN-level TA update.

Example 36 may include the method of example 35 or some other example herein, further comprising: transmitting a tracking area update to allow a core network to perform a CN-level TA update.

Example 37 may include the method of example 36 or some other example

herein, wherein the tracking area update includes a CN-level identifier.

Example 38 may include the method of example 37 or some other example

herein, wherein the CN-level identifier is a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI").

Example 39 may include the method of example 35 or some other example

herein, wherein the RAN-level identifier is a resume identifier provided to the UE when the UE was suspended or a system architecture evolution temporary mobile subscriber identity ("S-TMSI").

Example 40 may include the method of example 35 or some other example herein, further comprising: receiving configuration information from the RAN, the configuration information to include a RAN-level tracking area list that includes one or more tracking area identifiers; and transmitting the RAN-level identifier based on a determination that the tracking area identifier is no in the RAN-level tracking area list.

Example 41 may include the method of example 40 or some other example

herein, wherein the configuration information is first configuration information the method further comprises: receiving second configuration information from a CN, the second configuration information to include a CN-tracking area list that includes at least one tracking area identifier.

Example 42 may include the method of example 41 or some other example

herein, wherein the CN-level tracking area list has a one-to-one correspondence with the

RN-level tracking area list.

Example 43 may include a method comprising: receiving a message from a

user equipment ("UE"), the message to include a radio access network ("RAN")-level identifier; determining, based on the uplink message, that the UE is located in a RAN- level paging area; receiving downlink data directed to the UE; and paging the UE within one or more cells of the RAN-level paging area. Example 44 may include the method of example 43 or some other example herein, further comprising: broadcasting system information that includes a tracking area identifier; and receiving the uplink message from the UE based on the tracking area message.

Example 45 may include the method of example 43 or some other example herein, further comprising: transmit, a request for a context of the UE from another AN with which the UE was previously associated, the request to include the RAN-level identifier. Example 46 may include the method of any one of examples 43-45 or some other example herein, further comprising: receiving a tracking area list from a mobility management entity; and

determining cells of the RAN-level paging area based on the tracking area list.

Example 47 may include the method of any one of examples 43-46 or some other example herein, further comprising: determining a cell in which the uplink message from the UE was transmitted; paging the UE within the cell; paging the UE within one or more other cells of the RAN-level paging area if the UE does not respond to the page within the cell. Example 48 may include a method comprising: transmitting configuration information to a user equipment ("UE") to configure the UE with a radio access network ("RAN")- level tracking area ("TA") list; and broadcasting system information that includes a tracking area identifier associated with a cell, the tracking area identifier to be used to perform both RAN-level and CN-level tracking.

Example 49 may include the method of example 48 or some other example

herein, wherein the RAN-level TA list includes one or more TA identifiers.

Example 50 may include the method of example 48 or 49 or some other example herein, further comprising: transmitting a RAN-level identifier to the UE to use in a RAN- level TA operation.

Example 51 may include the method of example 50 or some other example herein, further comprising: transmitting a suspend message to the UE, the suspend message to include a resume identifier that corresponds to the RAN-level identifier.

Example 52 may include a method of using a common tracking area to track

a user equipment (UE) at a core network (CN) and radio access network (RAN) level. Example 53 may include the method of example 52 or some other example

herein, wherein only one level of tracking area is broadcast. Example 54 may include the method of example 52 or some other example

herein, wherein the UE does only one level of tracking area update procedure in idle, when

UE is suspended or connected mode.

Example 55 may include the method of any one of examples 52-54 or some other example herein, where an access node uses CN-level tracking area update to also perform RAN- level tracking.

Example 56 may include the method of any one of examples 52-54 or some other example herein, wherein an access node uses any access by the UE to perform RAN-level tracking. Example 57 may include the method of any one of examples 52-54 or some other example herein, wherein the CN uses RAN-level tracking area updates to also perform CN-level tracking.

Example 58 may include the method of example 57 or some other example

herein,where the RAN informs the CN with UE location based on RAN level tracking area updates.

Example 59 may include the method of any one of examples 52-58 or some other example herein, wherein a UE identify, either CN or RAN level UE identifier, is used to identify and associate the tracking area update at CN and RAN level.

Example 60 may include the method of example 59 or some other example

herein, wherein the UE provides the UE identifier

Example 61 may include the method of any one of examples 52-58 or some other example herein, wherein the UE provides both NAS and RAN level UE identifiers in a common tracking area update.

Example 62 may include the method of any one of examples 59-61 or some other example herein, wherein the UE identifier provided by the UE is a UE resume ID.

Example 63 may include the method of any one of examples 52-62 or some other example herein, where an AN retrieves the UE context from a previous AN storing the UE context during a tracking area update, where the UE context and previous AN is identified using a UE Resume ID provided by the UE during the tracking area update.

Example 64 may include the method of any one of examples 52-63 or some other example herein, where the CN provides the RAN with CN-level identifier for the RAN to associate the UE with both tracking areas.

Example 65 may include the method of any one of examples 52-64 or some other example herein, where the CN provides the RAN with the list of tracking areas used by the CN to track the UE. Example 66 may include the method of example 65 or some other example

herein, where the RAN node uses the list of tracking area provided by the CN to determine the paging area to locate the UE.

Example 67 may include the method of any one of examples 52-66 or some other example herein, wherein the CN and RAN are LTE or 5G networks.

Example 68 may include an apparatus comprising means to perform one or

more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 35-67 or some other example herein,or any other method or process described herein.

Example 69 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable

media comprising instructions to cause an electronic device, upon execution of the instructions by one or more processors of the electronic device, to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 35-67 or some other example herein,or any other method or process described herein.

Example 70 may include an apparatus comprising logic, modules, and/or

circuitry to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 35-67 or some other example herein,or any other method or process described herein.

Example 71 may include a method, technique, or process as described in or related to any of examples 35-67 or some other example herein,or portions or parts thereof. Example 72 may include an apparatus comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer readable media comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the

method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples 35-67 or some other example herein,or portions thereof.

The description herein of illustrated implementations, including what is described in the Abstract, is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed. While specific implementations and examples are described herein for illustrative purposes, a variety of alternate or equivalent embodiments or implementations calculated to achieve the same purposes may be made in light of the above detailed description, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, as those skilled in the relevant art will recognize.