Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Zoned or cellular telephone system
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-28
2002-10-08
Trost, William (Department: 2683)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Zoned or cellular telephone system
C455S435100, C455S512000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06463284
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a method and a device for controlling subscriber data of mobile stations in a mobile-communication system, and particularly relates to a method and a device for controlling subscriber data which store or delete subscriber data of mobile stations in or from a visitor location register of a cellular-mobile-communication system.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 16
is an illustrative drawing showing a configuration of a cellular-mobile-communication system. A cellular-mobile-communication system includes a home-location register HLR, a visitor-location register VLR, a mobile-service-switching center MSC, base stations BSS, and mobile stations MS.
The home-location register HLR stores subscriber data (mobile customer data) such as an identification number, a location, and an identification key with respect to each of the mobile stations MS covered by a home network. The home-location register HLR transmits subscriber data to a visitor-location register VLR of a given area when a mobile station MS moves to this area.
The visitor-location register VLR receives and stores the subscriber data of each mobile station MS residing in its area of control when the home-location register HLR of each mobile station MS transmits the subscriber data.
The mobile-service-switching center MSC receives a location-update request from the mobile stations MS via the base stations BSS, and requests the visitor-location register VLR to attend to location-update processing. Further, the mobile-service-switching center MSC attends to switch control of receipt and transmission of calls with respect to the location-registered mobile stations MS via the base stations BSS.
FIG. 17
is a flowchart of a process of registering a location.
FIGS. 18A through 18E
are illustrative drawings showing data structures of messages and data which are exchanged during the process of registering a location.
When a mobile station MS moves from a wireless service area to another wireless service area, or when a power switch of a mobile station MS is turned on, the mobile station MS receives information on the wireless service area sent from the base station BSS. When the mobile station MS detects that the received information is different from information stored in the mobile station MS, the mobile station MS transmits a signal requesting updating of a location.
Upon receiving the signal for requesting location update, the base station BSS transmits a location-update-request message
13
-
1
to the mobile-service-switching center MSC (step S
12
-
1
in FIG.
17
).
Upon receiving the location-update-request message
13
-
1
, the mobile-service-switching center MSC transmits an authentication-request message to the visitor-location register VLR in order to check if the mobile station MS that requested location update is a legitimate registered station (step S
12
-
2
).
Upon receiving the authentication-request message, the visitor-location register VLR searches for a home-location register HLR that is home to the relevant mobile station MS. This search is made based on a mobile identification number of the mobile station MS. Then, the visitor-location register VLR sends the authentication-request message to the home-location register HLR that is found in the search (step S
12
-
3
).
In response to the authentication-request message, the home-location register HLR refers to the subscriber data of the mobile station MS by using the mobile identification number, and notifies the visitor-location register VLR of an authentication-request acknowledgement (step S
12
-
4
).
The visitor-location register VLR forwards the authentication-request acknowledgement to the mobile-service-switching center MSC (step S
12
-
5
).
In accordance with the authentication-request acknowledgement, the mobile-service-switching center MSC transmits a registration-notification message
13
-
2
to the visitor-location register VLR (step S
12
-
6
).
Upon receiving the registration-notification message
13
-
2
from the mobile-service-switching center MSC, the visitor-location register VLR forwards the registration-notification message
13
-
2
to the home-location register HLR (step S
12
-
7
).
In response to the registration-notification message
13
-
2
sent from the visitor-location register VLR, the home-location register HLR reads subscriber data of the relevant mobile station MS from a subscriber-data-storage area
13
-
3
, and sends a subscriber-data message
13
-
4
to the visitor-location register VLR (step S
12
-
8
).
The visitor-location register VLR stores the subscriber data of the relevant mobile station MS sent from the home-location register HLR, and notifies the mobile-service-switching center MSC of a registration-notification acknowledgement (step S
12
-
9
).
Upon receiving the registration-notification acknowledgement from the visitor-location register VLR, the mobile-service-switching center MSC informs the base station BSS of a result of the location update (step S
12
-
10
).
With reference to
FIG. 18A
, the location-update-request message
13
-
1
includes a mobile identification number and a mobile-station electronic serial number of the relevant mobile station MS as well as a base-station ID of a wireless service area where the mobile station MS is currently located. The location-update-request message
13
-
1
is sent from the base station BSS to the mobile-service-switching center MSC.
With reference to
FIG. 18B
, the registration-notification message
13
-
2
includes the mobile identification number and the mobile-station electronic serial number of the relevant mobile station MS as well as a mobile-service-switching-center ID of the wireless service area where the mobile station MS is currently located. The registration-notification message
13
-
2
is sent from the mobile-service-switching center MSC to the visitor-location register VLR and from the visitor-location register VLR to the home-location register HLR.
With reference to
FIG. 18D
, the subscriber-data-storage area
13
-
3
of the home-location register HLR stores a mobile identification number, a mobile directory number, location information including a mobile-service-switching-center ID of an area of a current location, a priority parameter, etc., with respect to each mobile station MS that belongs to the home network.
The priority parameter indicates priority that is given to a subscriber service class of a relevant mobile station MS. The priority parameter may range from 0 to 15, for example, as shown in FIG.
18
E.
With reference to
FIG. 18C
, the subscriber-data message
13
-
4
includes the mobile identification number, the mobile-service-switching-center ID, the mobile directory number, and the priority parameter. The subscriber-data message
13
-
4
is sent from the home-location register HLR to the visitor-location register VLR as a response to the registration notification, and is stored in the visitor-location register VLR.
The subscriber data stored in the visitor-location register VLR is generally deleted when the mobile station MS moves to another wireless service area. The deletion of the subscriber data is prompted by a notice sent from the home-location register HLR when a visitor-location register VLR of the new wireless service area receives and stores the subscriber data in response to a location-update request.
FIG. 19
is a flowchart of a process of deleting a location update. Here, a new visitor-location register VLR is one that is provided in an area into which the mobile station MS moves, and an old visitor-location register VLR is one that is provided in an area from which the mobile stations MS moves out. The old visitor-location register VLR has subscriber data of the mobile station MS stored therein.
From steps S
14
-
1
to S
14
-
7
, a process of updating a location is performed with respect to the new visitor-location register VLR in the same manner as in the steps S
12
-
1
through S
12
-
7
of FIG.
17
.
Upon receiving the regi
Mamiya Keiko
Nakamura Shinji
Fujtisu Limited
Nguyen Simon
Trost William
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