Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Special service
Reexamination Certificate
1997-11-26
2001-02-13
Eisenzopf, Reinhard J. (Department: 2745)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Special service
C455S414200, C455S412100, C455S466000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06188887
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cellular telephone networks and, in particular, to the distributed storage and delivery of data associated with cellular telephone network supported subscriber data services (such as short message, facsimile, voice mail and electronic mail delivery).
2. Description of Related Art
Reference is now made to
FIG. 1
wherein there is shown a block diagram of a conventional digital cellular telephone network
10
. The network
10
supports one or more subscriber data services (such as short message, facsimile, voice mail and electronic mail delivery) for use by subscribers in conjunction with their conventional cellular telephone service. The purpose of the subscriber data services is to provide a means for transferring subscriber data messages between message entities (MEs)
12
using the communications environment provided by the cellular telephone network
10
.
The message entities
12
participating in the subscriber data service comprise data terminals (DTs)
14
connected to the fixed telephone network
16
(comprising a public switched telephone network (PSTN) or other equivalent/similar telephone network). The message entities
12
further comprise the subscriber mobile stations (MS)
18
operating within the cellular telephone network
10
. Subscriber data messages must originate with or terminate at one of the subscriber mobile stations
18
.
Multiple message centers (MC)
20
are provided and connected to the fixed telephone network
16
and to the cellular telephone network
10
. Each message center
20
is a multi-media platform that functions as a store and forward/retrieve center for receiving and delivering subscriber data messages between the message entities
12
. When a subscriber data message is originated, it is first sent to a message center
20
associated with that addressor subscriber. The message is then forwarded to another message center
20
associated with the addressee subscriber. At that point, the message is then delivered to (for example, forwarded to or retrieved by) the addressee message entity at an appropriate time.
The cellular telephone network
10
further includes a plurality of base stations
24
for effectuating radio frequency communications over an air interface
26
with the mobile stations
18
. Each base station
24
is connected to a mobile switching center (MSC)
30
. The mobile switching center
30
operates to control base station
24
operation, maintain a record (in a home location register
42
and a visitor location register—not shown) of mobile station
18
operating parameters and location within the network
10
and switch, either within the network
10
or with the fixed telephone network
16
, those cellular telephone calls originated by or terminated at the mobile stations
18
. The mobile switching centers
30
are further connected to the message centers
20
used in providing the subscriber data services.
A mobile station
18
is typically assigned a “home” message center
20
in much the same way that the mobile station is assigned a home location register
42
. It is in this message center
20
that a mailbox
46
assigned to the given mobile station is maintained. Any subscriber data message intended for delivery to that given mobile station
18
passes through, for store and forward/retrieve delivery, the mailbox
46
assigned to and maintained in the associated home message center
20
for that given mobile station. Inefficiencies with this “home” message center
20
based network architecture and topology, however, often arise in connection with roaming mobile stations
18
.
First, with respect to message center
20
store and forward operation, all subscriber data messages are initially stored in the home message center (of a home service area within the cellular telephone network
10
h
) for the addressee roaming subscriber mobile station
18
. This message center
20
then must query the home location register
42
for that subscriber mobile station
18
in order to obtain location information, and then attempt to forward the subscriber data message over the network
10
to the roaming subscriber mobile station in a visited service area within the cellular telephone network
10
v.
Due to latency in updating the location information, or the mobile station being in inactive mode, or congestion in the network or air interface, forwarding of the subscriber data message may fail. Failure of the message forwarding operation results in a waste of valuable network communications resources and added user/service provider costs. This is especially a problem with subscriber data messages (such as facsimile, voice or the like) which require the establishment of a circuit connection to effectuate delivery.
Second, with respect to message center
20
store and retrieve operation, all subscriber data messages are again initially stored in the home message center (of a home service area within the cellular telephone network
10
h
) for the addressee roaming/moving subscriber mobile station
18
. This message center
20
then must then be queried by the roaming subscriber mobile station
18
from the visited service area within the cellular telephone network
10
v
to collect the stored messages. When roaming, in particular, this querying operation to retrieve messages can be costly and inefficient. This is especially a problem with subscriber data messages (such as facsimile, voice or the like) which require the establishment of a circuit connection to effectuate delivery.
What is needed then is a more efficient network architecture and topology for handling stored subscriber data message delivery (either forwarding or retrieval) to roaming/moving subscriber mobile stations.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In a first embodiment of the present invention, the prior art “home” message center network architecture and topology is abandoned in favor of a distributed message center network architecture and topology. In this distributed architecture and topology, a received subscriber data message is routed for storage and subsequent forwarding, not to a “home” message center conventionally provided for an addressee subscriber mobile station, but instead to a message center optimally positioned with respect to the subscriber mobile station or associated with an initially receiving mobile switching center. That optimally positioned message center is identified by querying the home location register for the addressee subscriber mobile station and processing current location information. Following receipt of the subscriber data message, the storing message center performs any requisite operations needed to facilitate message forwarding to the addressee subscriber mobile station.
In a second embodiment of the present invention, a mailbox established for a given subscriber mobile station in the home message center is given an optional portability characteristic implemented when the owning subscriber mobile station is roaming. In such cases, the roaming subscriber mobile station may instruct the establishment of a local mailbox in a proximate message center. The contents (subscriber data messages) of the mailbox maintained in the home message center are then transferred (perhaps additionally on a periodic basis) to the local mailbox. Responsive to any subscriber data messages sent to the mailbox in the home message center thereafter, a notification is then instead given to the addressor of the subscriber data message to make a storage of the message in the local mailbox of the proximate message center. Delivery of the subscriber data messages is then effectuated (through either forwarding or retrieval) by the proximate message center.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4759056 (1988-07-01), Akiyama
patent: 5251248 (1993-10-01), Tokunaga et al.
patent: 5274845 (1993-12-01), Wang
patent: 5329578 (1994-07-01), Brennan et al.
patent: 5440541 (1995-08-01), Iida et al.
patent: 5493607 (1996-02-01), Arumainayagam et al.
patent: 5497412 (1996-03-01), Lannen et al.
pat
Joong Donald
Katinakis Nikos
Rahman Akbar
Eisenzopf Reinhard J.
Jenkens & Gilchrist
Ramos-Feliciano Eliseo
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)
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