FORM 2
HE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970) PATENTS RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

TITLE OF THE INVENTION
FOR TRANSFERRING COMPLETE FILTER SESSION MANAGEMENT FUNCTION
APPLICANT


JIO PLATFORMS LIMITED
Nr. Centre Point, Panchwati 5 Rasta, Ambawadi, 380006, Gujarat, India; Nationality : India
following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed

RESERVATION OF RIGHTS
[0001] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material,
which is subject to intellectual property rights such as, but are not limited to,
copyright, design, trademark, Integrated Circuit (IC) layout design, and/or trade
5 dress protection, belonging to Jio Platforms Limited (JPL) or its affiliates (herein
after referred as owner). The owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all rights whatsoever. All rights to such intellectual property are fully reserved by the owner. 10
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure relates to wireless cellular communications,
and specifically to a system and method for ensuring by a Policy Control Function
(PCF) to send complete and sufficient filter information (e.g., internet protocol (IP)
15 address, source/destination port number(s), status (e.g., enable uplink), etc.) in a
preliminary Authorization Authentication Request (AAR) message to a Session Management Function (SMF).
DEFINITIONS
20 [0003] As used in the present disclosure, the following terms are generally
intended to have the meaning as set forth below, except to the extent that the context
in which they are used to indicate otherwise.
[0004] The term AF as used therein, refers to Application Function. The AF
is a network function responsible for providing application-specific capabilities and
25 services within the 5G Core architecture. The AF is an element offering applications
that require the policy and charging control of traffic plane resources (e.g. universal
mobile telecommunication system packet switched (UMTS PS) domain/ general
packet radio service (GPRS) domain resources).
[0005] The term SMF as used herein, refers to Session Management
30 Function. The SMF plays a crucial role in establishing, managing, and terminating
communication sessions between User Equipment (UE) and 5G network services.
2

[0006] The term PCF as used herein, refers to Policy Control Function. The
PCF is a key component of the 5G architecture and plays a crucial role in enforcing
policy decisions related to Quality of Service (QoS), traffic management, and
network resource allocation.
5 [0007] The term PCRF as used herein, refers to Policy and Charging Rules
Function. The PCRF plays a central role in controlling and enforcing policies related to network resource allocation, quality of service (QoS), and charging for subscriber sessions.
[0008] The term P-CSCF as used herein, refers to Proxy Call Session
10 Control Function. The P-CSCF is a core component in the IP Multimedia
Subsystem (IMS) architecture used in mobile and fixed networks. It serves as the first point of contact for the User Equipment (UE) within the IMS network.
BACKGROUND
15 [0009] The following description of related art is intended to provide
background information pertaining to the field of the disclosure. This section may include certain aspects of the art that may be related to various features of the present disclosure. However, it should be appreciated that this section be used only to enhance the understanding of the reader with respect to the present disclosure,
20 and not as admissions of prior art.
[0010] In prevalent scenarios when sending an update-notify message,
incomplete or insufficient filter information may be sent in a preliminary Authorization Authentication Request (AAR) to a Session Management Function (SMF). This may result in the SMF receiving partial or inaccurate information and
25 may potentially lead to disrupting policy control and session management
procedures.
[0011] There is, therefore, a need in the art to provide an improved
mechanism that uses a Policy Control Function (PCF) to distinguish between the preliminary and final AARs and trigger an update-notify message towards the SMF
30 only upon receiving the final AAR having the complete filter information.
3

OBJECTS OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE
[0012] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system and
method that uses a Policy Control Function (PCF) to distinguish between
preliminary and final Authorization Authentication Requests (AARs), and trigger
5 an update-notify message, towards a Session Management Function (SMF) when
the final AAR having complete filter information is received.
[0013] It is an object of the present disclosure to enable efficient resource
allocation by allocating network resources to a deserving user or an application.
[0014] It is an object of the present disclosure to allow authorized access to
10 network services based on the use of sufficient filter information present in the
AAR.
[0015] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a high user
experience by sending accurate and complete filter information in the final AAR.
[0016] It is an object of the present disclosure to selectively send update-
15 notify message based on availability of complete filter information, resulting in the
PCF to adapt to varying network conditions and ensuring efficient utilization of
resources.
SUMMARY
20 [0017] In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention discloses a
method for handling a request in a network. The method comprising receiving, by a policy control function (PCF), a request from a network node of the network. The method comprising determining, by the PCF, whether the request meets a predefined set of criteria. If the request meets the predefined set of criteria, the
25 method allows communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards a
session management function (SMF). If the request does not meet the predefined
set of criteria, the method allows to suppress communicating, by the PCF, an
update-notify message towards the SMF.
[0018] In an embodiment, the request is an authorization authentication
30 request (AAR) that includes a filter information.
[0019] In an embodiment, the filter information includes one or more
4

parameters from a group comprising of an internet protocol (IP) address, a port number, and a status.
[0020] In an embodiment, the AAR request containing the filter information
is checked to determine whether it meets the predefined set of criteria.
5 [0021] In an embodiment, the predefined set of criteria comprises one or
more parameters from a group comprising of an internet protocol (IP) address, a port number, and a status.
[0022] In an embodiment, the network node is an application function (AF).
[0023] In an embodiment, a user equipment (UE) is communicatively
10 coupled with a network, the coupling comprises steps of (i) receiving, by the
network, a connection request from the UE, (ii) sending, by the network, an
acknowledgment of the connection request to the UE, and (iii) transmitting a
plurality of signals in response to the connection request.
[0024] In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention discloses a
15 system for handling a request in a network. The system comprising a receiving unit
to receive the request from a network node of the network. The system comprising a processing engine to: (i) receive, by a processing engine, a request from a network node of the network, and (ii) determine, by the processing engine, whether the request meets a predefined set of criteria. If the request meets the predefined set of
20 criteria, the system allows communicating, by the processing engine, an update-
notify message towards a session management function (SMF). If the request does
not meet the predefined set of criteria, the system suppresses communicating, by
the processing engine, an update-notify message towards the SMF.
[0025] In an exemplary embodiment, the request is an authorization
25 authentication request (AAR) that includes a filter information.
[0026] In an exemplary embodiment, the filter information includes one or
more parameters from a group comprising of an internet protocol (IP) address, a
port number, and a status.
[0027] In an exemplary embodiment, the AAR request containing the filter
30 information is checked to determine whether it meets the predefined set of criteria.
[0028] In an exemplary embodiment, the predefined set of criteria
5

comprises determining whether the request comprises complete filter information.
[0029] In an exemplary embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a user
equipment (UE) communicatively coupled with a network. The coupling comprises
steps of receiving, by the network, a connection request from the UE, sending, by
5 the network, an acknowledgment of the connection request to the UE and
transmitting a plurality of signals in response to the connection request. A request
is handled in the network by a method comprising receiving, by a policy control
function (PCF), a request from a network node of the network. The method
comprising determining, by the PCF, whether the request meets a predefined set of
10 criteria. If the request meets the predefined set of criteria, the method allows
communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards a session management function (SMF). If the request does not meet the predefined set of criteria, the method allows to suppress communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards the SMF.
15 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0030] In the figures, similar components and/or features may have the
same reference label. Further, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label with a second label that distinguishes among the similar components. If only the first reference label is used in the
20 specification, the description is applicable to any one of the similar components
having the same first reference label irrespective of the second reference label.
[0031] The diagrams are for illustration only, which thus is not a limitation
of the present disclosure, and wherein:
[0032] FIG. 1A illustrates an example network architecture for
25 implementing a proposed system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present
disclosure.
[0033] FIG. 1B illustrates an example block diagram of a proposed system
(108), in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0034] FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary process flow for a Policy Control
30 Function (PCF) suppressing sending of an update message towards Session
6

Management Function (SMF) when a preliminary Authorization Authentication Request (AAR) is received from the Proxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF), in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0035] FIG. 2B illustrates an exemplary representation of inter exchange of
5 messages between a Proxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) and a Policy
and Charging Rules Function (PCRF)/the PCF, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0036] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a computer system
in which or with which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.
10 [0037] FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary process flow for checking whether
filter information in the received preliminary AAR is complete or not, in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0038] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flow diagram of a method for
handling a request in a network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present
15 disclosure.
LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS
100A – Network Architecture
102-1 – 102-N - Users
20 104-1 – 104-N - User Equipments (UEs)
106 – Network
108 – System
100B – Block diagram
150 – One or more processor(s)
25 152 – Memory
154 – Interface(s)
156 – Processing engine(s)
158 – Database
160 – Receiving unit
30 200A – Flow diagram
200B – Exemplary representation of inter exchange of messages
7

230 – Proxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF)
232 – Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF)/ Policy Control Function (PCF)
300 – Computer system
310 – External storage device
5 320 – Bus
330 – Main memory
340 – Read-only memory
350 – Mass storage device
360 – Communication port(s)
10 370 – Processor
400 – Flow diagram 500 – Flow diagram
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
15 [0039] In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, various
specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described hereafter can each be used independently of one
20 another or with any combination of other features. An individual feature may not
address all of the problems discussed above or might address only some of the
problems discussed above. Some of the problems discussed above might not be
fully addressed by any of the features described herein.
[0040] The ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only, and
25 is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the disclosure.
Rather, the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing an exemplary embodiment. It should be understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope
30 of the invention as set forth.
[0041] Specific details are given in the following description to provide a
8

thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one
of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these
specific details. For example, circuits, systems, networks, processes, and other
components may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to
5 obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail. In other instances, well-known
circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments.
[0042] Also, it is noted that individual embodiments may be described as a
process which is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a data flow diagram, a
10 structure diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart may describe the
operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be re-arranged. A process is terminated when its operations are completed but could have additional steps not included in a figure. A process may correspond to a method, a function, a
15 procedure, a subroutine, a subprogram, etc. When a process corresponds to a
function, its termination can correspond to a return of the function to the calling function or the main function.
[0043] The word “exemplary” and/or “demonstrative” is used herein to
mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. For the avoidance of doubt,
20 the subject matter disclosed herein is not limited by such examples. In addition, any
aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” and/or “demonstrative” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs, nor is it meant to preclude equivalent exemplary structures and techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms
25 “includes,” “has,” “contains,” and other similar words are used in either the detailed
description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive—in a manner
similar to the term “comprising” as an open transition word—without precluding
any additional or other elements.
[0044] Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an
30 embodiment” or “an instance” or “one instance” means that a particular feature,
structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included
9

in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of the
phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout
this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.
Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined
5 in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
[0045] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing
particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further
10 understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this
specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations
15 of one or more of the associated listed items.
[0046] In the current wireless cellular communications, network resources
may be allocated to the undeserving user(s) or application(s) resulting in the wastage of resources. Further, insufficient filter information in an authorization authentication request (AAR) may also lead to unauthorized access to network
20 services (e.g., audio call or video call). Without proper filtering, users or the
application(s) will get access which they should not have to. This can lead to security breaches or misuse of network resources (e.g., bandwidth). Additionally, if a policy control function (PCF) does not suppress the AAR and sends update-notify request to a session management function (SMF) without adequate filter
25 information, it may result in compromised quality of service (QoS).
[0047] There is therefore a need in the art to provide an improved
mechanism that uses the PCF to distinguish between the preliminary and final AARs, and trigger an update-notify message, towards the SMF, only upon receiving the final AAR having the complete filter information (e.g., internet protocol (IP)
30 address, source/destination port number(s), status (e.g., enable uplink), etc.).
[0048] The disclosed system and method address an issue of sending
10

incomplete or insufficient filter information in the AAR. By suppressing an update-
notify message in such cases, the PCF may ensure that the SMF does not receive
partial or inaccurate information that may potentially disrupt policy control and
session management procedures. The disclosure introduces a mechanism where the
5 PCF may distinguish between preliminary and final AARs by examining values in
a codec data (such as during uplink/downlink/offer/answer) within a policy rule
engine. Only when the PCF receives the final AAR with complete filter
information, the PCF may trigger an update notification message towards the SMF.
[0049] In an embodiment, the PCF may suppress sending of an update-
10 notify message towards the SMF when a preliminary AAR with incomplete filter
information is received by the PCF. Instead, the PCF may only send an update-notify message when the final AAR with complete filter information is received at the PCF.
[0050] The disclosure provides a mechanism that facilitates to differentiate
15 between the preliminary and the final AAR by examining the values in codec data
such as uplink/downlink, offer, and answer are utilized in the policy rule engine.
This mechanism helps to ensure that the PCF sends an update-notify message to the
SMF only when it has received all the necessary information regarding a filter
leading to improving accuracy and completeness of a policy control process.
20 [0051] The various embodiments throughout the disclosure will be
explained in more detail with reference to FIGs. 1A- 5.
[0052] FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary network architecture (100A) in
which or with which a system (108) for managing a plurality of stale sessions in a
wireless network is implemented, in accordance with embodiments of the present
25 disclosure.
[0053] Referring to FIG. 1A, the network architecture (100) includes one or
more computing devices or user equipments (104-1, 104-2…104-N) associated
with one or more users (102-1, 102-2…102-N) in an environment. A person of
ordinary skill in the art will understand that one or more users (102-1, 102-2…102-
30 N) may be individually referred to as the user (102) and collectively referred to as
the users (102). Similarly, a person of ordinary skill in the art will understand that
11

one or more user equipments (104-1, 104-2…104-N) may be individually referred
to as the user equipment (104) and collectively referred to as the user equipment
(104). A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the terms “computing
device(s)” and “user equipment” may be used interchangeably throughout the
5 disclosure. Although three user equipments (104) are depicted in FIG. 1A, however
any number of the user equipments (104) may be included without departing from the scope of the ongoing description.
[0054] In an embodiment, the user equipment (104) includes smart devices
operating in a smart environment, for example, an Internet of Things (IoT) system.
10 In such an embodiment, the user equipment (104) may include, but is not limited
to, smart phones, smart watches, smart sensors (e.g., mechanical, thermal,
electrical, magnetic, etc.), networked appliances, networked peripheral devices,
networked lighting system, communication devices, networked vehicle accessories,
networked vehicular devices, smart accessories, tablets, smart television (TV),
15 computers, smart security system, smart home system, other devices for monitoring
or interacting with or for the users (102) and/or entities, or any combination thereof.
A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the user equipment (104)
may include, but is not limited to, intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected
devices, that can integrate seamlessly with each other and/or with a central server
20 or a cloud-computing system or any other device that is network-connected.
[0055] In an embodiment, the user equipment (104) includes, but is not
limited to, a handheld wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a smart
phone, a phablet device, and so on), a wearable computer device(e.g., a head-
mounted display computer device, a head-mounted camera device, a wristwatch
25 computer device, and so on), a Global Positioning System (GPS) device, a laptop
computer, a tablet computer, or another type of portable computer, a media playing
device, a portable gaming system, and/or any other type of computer device with
wireless communication capabilities, and the like. In an embodiment, the user
equipment (104) includes, but is not limited to, any electrical, electronic, electro-
30 mechanical, or an equipment, or a combination of one or more of the above devices
such as virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, laptop, a
12

general-purpose computer, desktop, personal digital assistant, tablet computer,
mainframe computer, or any other computing device. The user equipment (104)
may include one or more in-built or externally coupled accessories including, but
not limited to, a visual aid device such as a camera, an audio aid, a microphone, a
5 keyboard, and input devices for receiving input from the user (102), or the entity
such as touch pad, touch enabled screen, electronic pen, and the like. A person of
ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the user equipment (104) may not be
restricted to the mentioned devices and various other devices may be used.
[0056] Referring to FIG. 1A, the user equipment (104) communicates with
10 a system (108), for example, a stale session management system, through a network
(106). In an embodiment, the network (106) includes at least one of a Fifth Generation (5G) network, 6G network, or the like. The network (106) enables the user equipment (104) to communicate with other devices in the network architecture (100) and/or with the system (108). The network (106) includes a
15 wireless card or some other transceiver connection to facilitate this communication.
In another embodiment, the network (106) is implemented as, or include any of a variety of different communication technologies such as a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless network, a mobile network, a Virtual Private Network (VPN), the Internet, the Public Switched Telephone
20 Network (PSTN), or the like.
[0057] Referring to FIG. 1A, the network architecture (100) may include
the user equipment (UE) (104), the network (106) and the system (108). The UE (104) may be communicatively coupled with the network (106). The communicatively coupling comprises of receiving, from the UE (104), a connection
25 request by the network (106), sending an acknowledgment of the connection
request, and transmitting a plurality of signals in response to the connection request.
[0058] In another exemplary embodiment, the system (108) includes or
comprise, by way of example but not limitation, one or more of: a stand-alone server, a server blade, a server rack, a bank of servers, a server farm, hardware
30 supporting a part of a cloud service or system, a home server, hardware running a
virtualized server, one or more processors executing code to function as a server,
13

one or more machines performing server-side functionality as described herein, at least a portion of any of the above, some combination thereof.
[0059] FIG. 1B illustrates an example block diagram (100B) of a proposed
system (108), in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
5 [0060] The system (108) may include one or more processor(s) (150). The
one or more processor(s) (150) may be implemented as one or more microprocessors, microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, central processing units, logic circuitries, and/or any devices that process data based on operational instructions. Among other capabilities, the one or more processor(s)
10 (150) may be configured to fetch and execute computer-readable instructions stored
in a memory (152) of the system (108).
[0061] The memory (152) may be configured to store one or more
computer-readable instructions or routines in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which may be fetched and executed to create or share data packets
15 over a network service. The memory (152) may comprise any non-transitory
storage device including, for example, volatile memory such as random-access
memory (RAM), or non-volatile memory such as erasable programmable read-only
memory (EPROM), flash memory, and the like.
[0062] In an embodiment, the system (108) may include an interface(s)
20 (154). The interface(s) (154) may comprise a variety of interfaces, for example,
interfaces for data input and output devices (I/O), storage devices, and the like. The interface(s) (154) may facilitate communication through the system (108). The interface(s) (154) may also provide a communication pathway for one or more components of the system (108). In an embodiment, the system (108) may include
25 a receiving unit (160) to receive a request. Examples of such components include,
but are not limited to, processing engine(s) (156) and a database (158).
[0063] The processing engine(s) (156) may be implemented as a
combination of hardware and programming (for example, programmable instructions) to implement one or more functionalities of the processing engine(s)
30 (156). Such combinations of hardware and programming may be implemented in
several different ways. For example, the programming for the processing engine(s)
14

(156) may be processor-executable instructions stored on a non-transitory machine-
readable storage medium and the hardware for the processing engine(s) (156) may
comprise a processing resource (for example, one or more processors) to execute
such instructions.
5 [0064] In some examples, the machine-readable storage medium may store
instructions that, when executed by the processing resource, implement the processing engine(s) (156). In such examples, the system may comprise the machine-readable storage medium storing the instructions and the processing resource to execute the instructions, or the machine-readable storage medium may
10 be separate but accessible to the system and the processing resource. In other
examples, the processing engine(s) (156) may be implemented by electronic
circuitry. In an embodiment, the processing engine(s) (156) may be implemented
as a policy control function (PCF) for the network.
[0065] In an embodiment, the receiving unit (160) may receive the AAR
15 information from the AF via the interface (154). In an embodiment, the AAR may
contain preliminary AAR information which may include, but are not limited to, filter information internet protocol (IP) address, source/destination port number(s), status (e.g., enable uplink), etc. In an embodiment, the processing engine(s) (156) receives the AAR (e.g., preliminary AAR) having the filter information via the
20 receiving unit (160) and determines whether the filter information is complete or
not. In an embodiment, if the filter information is found incomplete or does not satisfy a predefined set of criteria (e.g., whether the filter information is complete including IP address, source/destination port number, etc.), the processing engine(s) (156) may suppress the preliminary AAR until a final AAR is received with
25 complete filter information. In an embodiment, processing engine(s) (156) may
receive the final AAR with complete filter information. The complete filter information may be obtained from the AF. Once the complete filter information is received, the processing engine(s) (156) sends update-notify message to the SMF. In an embodiment, the predefined set of criteria may include filter information in
30 the form of one or more or any combination of the parameters like IP address,
source/destination port number, status (e.g., enable uplink), etc. In an embodiment,
15

to differentiate between the preliminary and final/complete AAR, values in the
codec data (e.g., received from the AF) such as uplink/downlink, offer, and answer
are utilized in a policy rule engine. In an embodiment, the AF may include
information like attribute value pair (AVP) into the AAR in order to indicate the
5 particular service that the AF session belongs to. For example, the AVP may include
the codec data such as uplink (indicating that Session Description Protocol (SDP) was received from the UE and sent to the network), downlink (indicating that the SDP was received from the network and sent to the UE), offer (indicating that the SDP lines from an SDP offer are being provisioned), answer (indicating that the
10 SDP lines from an SDP answer are being provisioned), etc.
[0066] FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary process flow (200A) for the PCF
suppressing the communication of an update message towards the SMF when a preliminary AAR is received from the Proxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) (202), in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure. As illustrated,
15 at step (208), the PCF (204) may receive a create request for an IP Multimedia
Subsystem (IMS) session creation from the SMF node. In an embodiment, at step (210), when a preliminary AAR is received from the P-CSCF (202) with incomplete filter information, the PCF (204) may not send an update notification to the SMF. Thereafter, the PCF (204) may suppress the received preliminary AAR. In an
20 embodiment, at step (212), PCF (204) may send an Authentication, Authorization,
and Accounting (AAA) success result code or a message to the (P-CSCF) (202).
[0067] In an embodiment, further at step (214), when a final AAR is
received from the P-CSCF (202) with complete filter information, then the PCF (204) may send an update notification request (i.e., for installation of policy and
25 charging control (PCC) rules) to the SMF (206) at step (216). In response to this, at
step (218), an update-notify response (i.e., success) is received from the SMF (206)
at the PCF (204). This indicates, at step (220), the success of the AAA and the call
may get connected.
[0068] FIG. 2B illustrates an exemplary representation of inter exchange of
30 messages (200B) between a Proxy Call Session Control Function (P-CSCF) and a
Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF)/the PCF, in accordance with an
16

embodiment of the disclosure. In an embodiment, one example of the application
function (AF) is the proxy call session control function (P-CSCF). In an
embodiment, application function or the P-CSCF can be a network node. In an
embodiment, the P-CSCF may use Rx interface to communicate with the
5 PCRF/PCF. For example, in an embodiment, the Rx interface may allow the P-
CSCF to request policy decisions from the PCRF/PCF, facilitate the exchange of information related to resource usage for billing, etc. In an embodiment, Rx interface may use RESTful (representational state transfer) hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) and/or extensible markup language (XML) for the
10 communication.
[0069] In an embodiment, the PCF may receive a create request for session
creation from the SMF node. In an embodiment, after sending the create response,
a session gets created at the PCF.
[0070] In an embodiment, if a preliminary AAR received from the AF
15 includes incomplete filter information, then PCF may not send update-notify to the
SMF, and further the PCF may suppress the preliminary AAR.
[0071] In an embodiment, if a final AAR is received from the AF with
complete filter information, then PCF may send update-notify to the SMF and connect the audio or video call.
20 [0072] The disclosed system and method facilitate to reduce signalling
traffic. By suppressing the update-notify message for the preliminary AARs with incomplete filter information, unnecessary signalling traffic between the PCF and SMF may be avoided. This may result in a more efficient and optimized network operation.
25 [0073] Further, the disclosed system and method facilitates to improve
resource utilization. Filtering information plays a crucial role in managing network resources effectively. By waiting for the final AAR with complete filter information before sending an update-notify message, the PCF may ensure that available network resources are allocated appropriately based on accurate and complete
30 information.
[0074] The disclosed system and method facilitate to improve user
17

experience. With more accurate and complete filter information available in the
final AAR, the PCF may make better policy decisions that align with user
preferences and requirements. This may result in an improved user experience,
including optimized services quality, reduced latency, and enhanced network
5 performance.
[0075] The disclosed system and method allow for a flexibility to
accommodate different scenarios and requirements. By selectively sending an update notification message based on availability of complete filter information, the PCF may adapt to varying network conditions, and ensure efficient utilization of
10 resources. In an embodiment, for example, if the filter information is found
incomplete or does not satisfy a predefined set of criteria (e.g., source/destination IP address, source/destination port number, protocol, status, etc. is/are not mentioned), the PCF may adapt by suppressing the preliminary AAR until a final AAR is received with complete filter information. In an embodiment, if the filter
15 information does not contain any one or more parameters like source/destination IP
address, source/destination port number, protocol, status, etc., it is considered as incomplete filter information.
[0076] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary computer system (300) in which or
with which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. As shown
20 in FIG. 3, the computer system may include an external storage device (310), a bus
(320), a main memory (330), a read-only memory (340), a mass storage device (350), communication port(s) (360), and a processor (370). A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the computer system may include more than one processor and communication ports. The processor (370) may include various modules
25 associated with embodiments of the present disclosure. The communication port(s)
(360) may be any of an RS-232 port for use with a modem-based dialup connection, a 10/100 Ethernet port, a Gigabit or 10 Gigabit port using copper or fiber, a serial port, a parallel port, or other existing or future ports. The communication port(s) (360) may be chosen depending on a network, such a Local Area Network (LAN),
30 Wide Area Network (WAN), or any network to which the computer system
connects.
18

[0077] The main memory (330) may be random access memory (RAM), or
any other dynamic storage device commonly known in the art. The read-only
memory (340) may be any static storage device(s) e.g., but not limited to, a
Programmable Read Only Memory (PROM) chips for storing static information
5 e.g., start-up or Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) instructions for the processor
(370). The mass storage device (350) may be any current or future mass storage solution, which can be used to store information and/or instructions. Exemplary mass storage device (350) includes, but is not limited to, Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment (PATA) or Serial Advanced Technology Attachment
10 (SATA) hard disk drives or solid-state drives (internal or external, e.g., having
Universal Serial Bus (USB) and/or Firewire interfaces), one or more optical discs,
Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) storage, e.g., an array of disks.
[0078] The bus (320) communicatively couples the processor (370) with the
other memory, storage, and communication blocks. The bus (320) may be, e.g., a
15 Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI)/PCI Extended (PCI-X) bus, Small
Computer System Interface (SCSI), Universal Serial Bus (USB), or the like, for connecting expansion cards, drives, and other subsystems as well as other buses, such a front side bus (FSB), which connects the processor (370) to the computer system.
20 [0079] Optionally, operator and administrative interfaces, e.g., a display,
keyboard, joystick, and a cursor control device, may also be coupled to the bus (320) to support direct operator interaction with the computer system. Other operator and administrative interfaces can be provided through network connections connected through the communication port(s) (360). Components
25 described above are meant only to exemplify various possibilities. In no way should
the aforementioned exemplary computer system limit the scope of the present disclosure.
[0080] FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary process flow (400) for checking
whether the filter information in the received preliminary AAR is complete or not,
30 in accordance with an embodiment of the disclosure.
[0081] In an embodiment, at step (402), an application function (AF) sends
19

the AAR to the PCF. In an embodiment, step (402) may also indicate a precondition
in which an IMS packet data unit (PDU) session should be established between the
SMF and PCF. After this, the PCF may receive an AAR diameter message from the
P-CSCF. In an embodiment, the AAR may contain preliminary AAR information
5 which may include filter information like internet protocol (IP) address,
source/destination port number(s), status (e.g., enable uplink), etc. In an embodiment, at step (404), the PCF receives the AAR (e.g., preliminary AAR) having the filter information and determines whether the filter information is complete or not at step (406). In an embodiment, at step (408), if the filter
10 information is found incomplete or does not satisfy a predefined set of criteria (e.g.,
IP address, source/destination port number, status, etc. is/are not mentioned), the PCF may suppress the preliminary AAR at step (408) until a final AAR is received with complete filter information. In an embodiment, at step (412), the PCF receives the final AAR with complete filter information. The complete filter information
15 may be obtained from the AF. Once the complete filter information is received at
step (414), the PCF sends an update notification to the SMF. In an embodiment, the predefined set of criteria may include filter information in the form of one or more or any combination of the parameters like IP address, source/destination port number, status (e.g., enable uplink), etc. In an embodiment, to differentiate between
20 the preliminary and final/complete AAR, values in the codec data (e.g., received
from the AF) such as uplink/downlink, offer, and answer are utilized in a policy rule engine. In an embodiment, the AF may include information like attribute value pair (AVP) into the AAR in order to indicate the particular service that the AF session belongs to. For example, the AVP may include the codec data such as uplink
25 (indicating that Session Description Protocol (SDP) was received from the UE and
sent to the network), downlink (indicating that the SDP was received from the network and sent to the UE), offer (indicating that the SDP lines from an SDP offer are being provisioned), answer (indicating that the SDP lines from an SDP answer are being provisioned), etc. In an embodiment, if the AAR received by the PCF is
30 preliminary, the PCF may further negotiate to obtain the final/complete AAR.
[0082] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flow diagram of a method (500) for
20

handling a request (e.g., the request to establish an audio or a video call) in a
network, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0083] At step (502), the method receives, by a policy control function
(PCF), a request from a network node of the network.
5 [0084] At step (504), the method determines, by the PCF, whether the
request meets a predefined set of criteria. For example, the predefined set of criteria may include one or more parameters like source IP address, destination IP address, source port number, destination port number, protocol, status, etc. So, when the request is received by the PCF, it checks whether or not the request contains all the
10 required parameters (e.g., by comparing the parameters mentioned in the request
with the parameters mentioned in the predefined set of criteria). In an embodiment,
the predefined set of criteria may be stored in the database (158) and can be
updated/configured by the user.
[0085] At step (506), if the request meets the predefined set of criteria, the
15 method allows communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards a
session management function (SMF). In an embodiment, the update-notify message
may contain PCC rule definitions that need to be installed/removed at the SMF.
[0086] At step (508), if the request does not meet the predefined set of
criteria, the method suppresses communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify
20 message towards the SMF. For example, when the request is received by the PCF,
it checks whether or not the request contains all the required parameters (e.g., by comparing the parameters mentioned in the request with the parameters mentioned in the predefined set of criteria). If one or more parameters in the request are not mentioned, the PCF suppresses the update-notify message towards the SMF. In an
25 embodiment, suppressing the update-notify message may represent not installing or
removing the PCC rule definitions on the SMF.
[0087] In an embodiment, the request is an authorization authentication
request (AAR) that includes a filter information.
[0088] In an embodiment, the filter information includes one or more
30 parameters from a group comprising of an internet protocol (IP) address, a port
number, and a status.

[0089] In an embodiment, the AAR request containing the filter information
is checked to determine whether it meets the predefined set of criteria.
[0090] In an embodiment, the predefined set of criteria comprises one or
more parameters from a group comprising of an internet protocol (IP) address, a
5 port number, and a status.
[0091] In an embodiment, the network node is an application function (AF).
[0092] In an exemplary embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a user
equipment (UE) communicatively coupled with a network. The coupling comprises steps of receiving, by the network, a connection request from the UE, sending, by
10 the network, an acknowledgment of the connection request to the UE and
transmitting a plurality of signals in response to the connection request. A request is handled in the network by a method comprising receiving, by a policy control function (PCF), a request from a network node of the network. The method comprising determining, by the PCF, whether the request meets a predefined set of
15 criteria. If the request meets the predefined set of criteria, the method allows
communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards a session management function (SMF). If the request does not meet the predefined set of criteria, the method allows to suppress communicating, by the PCF, an update-notify message towards the SMF.
20 [0093] The present disclosure provides technical advancement related to
handling Authorization Authentication Request (AAR) requests in the network. This advancement addresses the limitations of existing solutions that do not provide a mechanism to handle AAR requests when sufficient filter information is not provided in the AAR. The disclosure enables distinguishing between the
25 preliminary and final AARs and triggers an update-notify message towards the
Session Management Function (SMF) only upon receiving the final AAR having
the complete filter information, which offers significant improvements in
minimizing disruptions in policy control and session management procedures.
[0094] While the foregoing describes various embodiments of the
30 invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without
departing from the basic scope thereof. The scope of the invention is determined by

the claims that follow. The invention is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.
5 ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE
[0095] The present disclosure facilitates to provide a system and method
that uses a Policy Control Function (PCF) to distinguish between preliminary and final AARs, and trigger an update-notify message, towards a Session Management Function (SMF) when the final AAR having complete filter information is received.
10 [0096] The present disclosure facilitates efficient resource allocation by
allocating network resources to a deserving user or an application.
[0097] The present disclosure facilitates to allow an authorised access to
network services based on use of sufficient filter information present in the AAR.
[0098] The present disclosure facilitates to provide a high user experience
15 by sending accurate and complete filter information in the final AAR.
[0099] The present disclosure facilitates to selectively send an update-notify
message based on availability of complete filter information, resulting in the PCF adapting to varying network conditions and ensuring efficient utilization of resources.
20

WE CLAIM:
1. A method (500) for handling a request in a network, the method (500)
5 comprising:
receiving (502), by a policy control function (PCF), the request from a network node of the network;
determining (504), by the PCF, whether the request meets a
predefined set of criteria;
10 communicating (506), by the PCF, an update-notify message
towards a session management function (SMF) when the request meets the predefined set of criteria; and
suppressing (508) the communication, by the PCF, the update-notify
message towards the SMF, when the request does not meet the predefined
15 set of criteria.
2. The method (500) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the request is an
authorization authentication request (AAR) that includes a filter
information.
20
3. The method (500) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the filter information
includes one or more parameters from a group comprising of an internet
protocol (IP) address, a port number, and a status.
25 4. The method (500) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the AAR request
containing the filter information is checked to determine whether it meets the predefined set of criteria.
5. The method (500) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predefined set of
30 criteria comprises determining whether the request comprises complete
filter information.

6. The method (500) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the network node is an
application function (AF).
7. A system (108) for handling a request in a network, the system (108)
5 comprising:
a receiving unit (160) to receive the request from a network node of the network;
a processing engine (156) to:
determine whether the request meets a predefined set
10 of criteria;
communicate an update-notify message towards a session management function (SMF), when the request meets the predefined set of criteria; and
suppress the communication comprising the update-
15 notify message towards the SMF, when the request does not
meet the predefined set of criteria.
8. The system (108) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the request is an
authorization authentication request (AAR) that includes a filter
20 information.
9. The system (108) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the filter information
includes one or more parameters from a group comprising of an internet
protocol (IP) address, a port number, and a status.
25
10. The system (108) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the AAR request
containing the filter information is checked to determine whether it meets
the predefined set of criteria.
11. The system (108) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the predefined set of
30 criteria comprises determining whether the request comprises complete
filter information.

12. The system (108) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the network node is an
application function (AF).

5
10

13. A user equipment (UE) (104) communicatively coupled with a network
(106), the coupling comprises steps of:
receiving, by the network (106), a connection request from the UE (104);
sending, by the network (106), an acknowledgment of the connection request to the UE (104); and
transmitting a plurality of signals in response to the connection request, wherein handling a request in the network (106) is performed by a method as claimed in claim 1.