5 High-level requirements – user and operational aspects
22.2783GPPService requirements for the Evolved Packet System (EPS)TS
5.0 General
The Evolved Packet System shall be capable of accommodating a variety of different access systems thus providing a multi-access system environment to the user.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide mobility functionality within and across the different access systems.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide capabilities to support the efficient integration of E-UTRAN PS Core Network Nodes and GERAN/UTRAN PS Core Network Nodes.
The Evolved Packet System shall optimize mobility functionality meaning that it shall offer minimal signalling overhead, minimal handover interruption time, secure handover procedure and local breakout.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide capabilities to inter-work with a variety of broadband networks based on IP technologies including those not specified by 3GPP.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide enhanced performance e.g., low communication delay, low connection set-up time and high communication quality.
The Evolved Packet System shall be able to efficiently support a variety of traffic models e.g. user-to-user, user-to-group and traffic models generated by ubiquitous services.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide functionality to support outbound roaming subscribers on other Evolved Packet Systems and legacy networks.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide functionality to support inbound roaming subscribers from other Evolved Packet Systems and legacy networks.
The Evolved Packet System shall be capable of supporting and inter-working with PS services provided on Rel-7 and earlier networks. The Evolved Packet System shall be capable of inter-working with CS services provided on Rel-7 and earlier networks.
The Evolved Packet System shall support service continuity between 3GPP access systems and also between 3GPP access systems and non 3GPP access systems whether the UE supports simultaneous radio transmission or not.
The Evolved Packet System shall be able to accommodate fixed access systems and to inter-work with fixed networks in order to provide service continuity over fixed/mobile converged networks.
The Evolved Packet System service capability set shall include, as a minimum, support for the following categories of services that are likely to be used by the majority of operators:
– Voice
– Video
– Messaging
– Data file exchange
The Evolved Packet System shall provide for efficient usage of system resources, especially of radio resources through both signalling and transport optimization, e.g. overhead, terminal power, radio resources, mobility state, signalling load.
The Evolved Packet System shall support efficient delivery of text-based broadcast messages received from a legacy CBC.
The Evolved Packet System shall support E-UTRAN only operators. The system shall allow these operators to offer national roaming to their subscribers.
The Evolved Packet System shall be capable of uniquely identifying each device that connects via 3GPP access networks and 3GPP2 access networks. For a dual mode device supporting both 3GPP and 3GPP2 access technologies, there shall be a single persistent identifier used to identify the device. This device identifier shall be the same even when the device moves between 3GPP and 3GPP2 access types.
NOTE: The 3GPP2 device identifier structure is consistent with the IMEI structure [26].
The EPC shall be capable of restricting access of specific 3GPP devices, 3GPP2 devices and dual mode 3GPP/3GPP2 devices.
5.1 Requirements for Fixed Mobile Interworking
The Evolved Packet System shall support the following scenarios: a single Operator offering both fixed and mobile access; different Operators collaborating to deliver services across both networks. These scenarios will be supported by interworking between the access networks.
The Evolved Packet System shall support access to services on the mobile network via interworking with a fixed access network for the following scenarios:
– Residential scenarios for operators that own both wireless and wireline access networks
– Residential scenarios for operators that own wireless access networks only
– Enterprise scenarios with managed connectivity between mobile operators and enterprise networks
The Evolved Packet System shall be able to support the following functions for interworking between the fixed access in the above scenarios and Evolved Packet Core:
– connectivity,
– subscriber authentication/authorization,
– offline charging
– online charging for traffic routed via the Evolved Packet Core
– Policy Control and
– Quality of Service.
The Evolved Packet Core shall support the following for fixed access:
– policy management,
– authentication for WLAN terminals and fixed devices,
– charging
The EPS shall be capable to set operator policies to support simultaneous access to PLMN services and traffic offloading to the fixed network.
Interworking shall support the following scenarios:
When traffic is routed via EPC
– When H(e)NB is being used and traffic is offloaded in the local wireline network
– When WLAN is being used and traffic is offloaded in the local wireline network (i.e. non-seamless WLAN offloading)
Additionally the Evolved Packet System shall be able:
– to minimize QoS and Policy management signalling overhead while interworking between the fixed access and Evolved Packet Core.
– to route different simultaneously active PDN connections through different accesses while interworking between the fixed access and Evolved Packet Core.
– to route different IP flows belonging to the same PDN connection through different accesses while interworking between the fixed access and Evolved Packet Core.
The requirements for mobility in chapter 7.1.3 apply also to interworking between the fixed access and Evolved Packet Core.
5.2 Requirements for Fixed Mobile Convergence
The Evolved Packet System shall be able to accommodate fixed access systems to provide services over a converged network supporting both fixed and mobile accesses. The Evolved Packet System shall support common functions (e.g. for policy management, accounting) when a single operator operates both fixed and mobile accesses.
The Evolved Packet System shall be capable of providing an equivalent experience to users consuming converged services on different accesses, subject to different accesses capabilities.
The Evolved Packet System shall provide the following, while providing converged services:
– common operational and management procedures,
– common subscriber profiles,
– common services profiles,
– common charging procedures (e.g. a common post-paid bill).
The Evolved Packet System should optimize QoS and Policy management.
The requirements for mobility in clause 7.1.3 of this specification also apply to a converged network supporting both fixed and mobile accesses.
The Evolved Packet System shall support requests for allocation and enforcement of QoS for layer 2 and layer 3 in fixed broadband networks as defined in [27].
The Evolved Packet System shall support operator network policies for application sessions to request QoS in fixed broadband networks as defined in [27].
The Evolved Packet System shall support user requests for authorization of QoS for application sessions in fixed broadband access network as defined in [27].
The Evolved Packet System shall support policy management for QoS attributes of fixed broadband access network services (e.g. voice, VPN, IPTV) as defined in [28].
The Evolved Packet System shall support policy management for unicast and multicast traffic for fixed devices and IPTV services in fixed broadband access network as defined in [27].
5.3 Requirements for Interworking with Data Application Providers
The Evolved Packet System shall support the following interworking scenarios between a mobile operator and data application providers:
– Scenario #1: access/IP connectivity and non-IMS/non-OSA based data applications provided by the same mobile operator
– Scenario #2: collaboration between mobile operator providing access/IP connectivity and non-IMS/non-OSA based data applications provided by 3rd party providers
– Scenario #3: no collaboration between mobile operator providing access/IP connectivity and non-IMS/non-OSA based data applications provided by 3rd party providers
The Evolved Packet System shall support all scenarios in non-roaming and roaming configurations.
The Evolved Packet System shall support all scenarios for home routed and local breakout roaming traffic except for authentication and authorization as identified below.
For scenario#2, the Evolved Packet System shall enable 3rd party data applications to rely on security derived from the security provided by the operator.
For scenario#2, the Evolved Packet System shall support authorization and allocation of resources on 3GPP accesses for 3rd party data applications. The home network performs authentication and authorisation in the local-breakout roaming scenario.
The Evolved Packet System shall support policy control interactions between a mobile operator and data applications for all scenarios triggered by application layer signalling or by user plane traffic.
For scenario #3, the Evolved Packet System shall support UE initiated requests for prioritised traffic handling through authorisation and allocation of resources on 3GPP access for 3rd party data applications. The Evolved Packet System shall revert to normal traffic handling if the request is not confirmed by the UE within a specified preview period.
The Evolved Packet System shall support online and offline charging models (e.g., user pays, application provider pays, etc.) for all scenarios.