Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Zoned or cellular telephone system
Reexamination Certificate
1997-11-21
2001-07-03
Maung, Nay (Department: 2681)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Zoned or cellular telephone system
C455S403000, C455S406000, C455S422100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06256504
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to billing calls in a wireless communication system.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A telephone concept known as “One Number” service that allows a person to be reached at any time, anywhere, by a single number to provide personal mobility is becoming quite popular. One method of providing such a one number telephone service is to classify telephone calls as residential, business, or cellular.
In conventional wireless networks, one number service is typically offered by either using specialized infrastructure equipment at a subscriber location or by requiring a subscriber to perform some form of manual intervention. The specialized infrastructure equipment approach usually provides a personal base station at the subscriber's home and a wireless private branch exchange at the office. However, the specialized infrastructure equipment adds extra cost and complexity to the system. In addition, to support such a service, this system requires changes to the air interface used by the wireless network, forcing subscribers to purchase new subscriber mobile units.
Another conventional system provides a one number service by requiring manual actions by subscribers. In this system, a subscriber that transitions from a mobile environment, such as in an automobile, to a residential location informs the system of the subscriber's change in location by taking a manual action, such as by pressing certain keys on the mobile unit in a fashion similar to conventional call forwarding. The system then routes calls to the subscriber's residence. However, relaying on a subscriber's manual actions is inconvenient for many users and may cause incorrect billing, such as when a subscriber forgets to take the appropriate action.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method and apparatus to provide one number service without requiring manual intervention by the subscriber and reducing the amount of specialized infrastructure equipment used to provide the service.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to address this need and others, the present invention provides a method and an apparatus for billing in a wireless communication system. The method includes the steps of receiving a mobile identification number uniquely identifying a mobile unit, performing a multilateration location measurement based on a nonperiodic signal received from the mobile unit, retrieving a location zone from a memory based on the mobile identification number, comparing the multilateration location measurement with the location zone, and generating a billing record for the mobile unit.
The apparatus includes a base station, a location measurement device and a memory in communication with the base station, and a processor responsive to the base station and the memory. The base station receives a mobile identification number uniquely identifying a mobile unit. The location measurement device performs a multilateration location measurement based on a nonperiodic signal received from the mobile unit. The memory includes a location zone associated with the mobile identification number. The processor compares the multilateration location measurement with a retrieved location zone and generates a billing record for the mobile unit.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a wireless communication system is provided. The wireless communication system comprises a base transceiver station, a mobile unit location module, a transcoder responsive to the base transceiver station and the mobile unit location module, and a location storage module comprising a location function controller and a location cache.
The invention itself, together with its intended advantages, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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Fitch James A.
Hose David A.
Scanlon John M.
Singer Marty H.
Tell Daniel Francis
Marsh & Fischmann & Breyfogle LLP
Maung Nay
Motorola Inc.
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