| 摘要 |
Aspects and embodiments described may provide: a method of identifying a network node to operate as a local core network for a wireless access network node within a group of mutually reachable wireless access network nodes; a wireless access node and computer program product operable to perform that method; and a method of declaring a network node to be a local core network node for a wireless access network node within a group of mutually reachable wireless access network nodes; a network node and computer program product operable to perform that method. The method of identifying a network node to operate as a local core network for a wireless access network node within a group of mutually reachable wireless access network nodes comprises: determining, at the wireless access network node, that access to a central core network is prevented; transmitting a discovery message including an indication that the wireless access node is seeking a local core network to candidate local core network nodes; awaiting receipt of a discovery message acknowledgement comprising a selection indicator from at least one of the candidate local core network nodes; assessing, based on the selection indicator included in the received discovery message acknowledgement from at least one of the candidate local core network nodes, which of the candidate local core network nodes from which a discovery message acknowledgement has been received is to be selected as the local core network node; transmitting a local core network node selection message including an indication of the selected local core network node to the candidate local core network nodes; and awaiting receipt of an acknowledgement of the local core network node selection message from the selected local core network node. Aspects described herein recognise that radio access network nodes, for example, eNodeBs, which are isolated from the rest of the world (i.e. do not have backhaul connection to a core network) can still be used within a network environment to extend the reach of communication beyond what may be available in a basic user equipment device-to-device communication arrangement. |
