Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Special service
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-21
2003-06-03
Le, Thanh Cong (Department: 2684)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Special service
C455S406000, C455S558000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06574467
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention is concerned with a method, in a telecommunications terminal having an identification module with several subscriber numbers, of invoking desired services in a desired way and a telecommunications terminal with several subscriber numbers as well as the use of such a terminal. The telecommunications terminal may e.g. be a mobile phone used in a network system, such as GSM, D-AMPS etc. The invention is also concerned with the use of the terminal.
DESCRIPTION OF BACKGROUND ART
Mobile phones are part of telecommunications networks comprising base stations, mobile terminals and links between them in form of radio carriers. A company administrating a telecommunications network is called an operator. The operators offer carrier services and tele services for the clients and users. The carrier service is the transport system and the tele service comprises functions for connection of the terminals and forming of information. By means of the most common basic teleservice, two users can communicate with each other by means of terminals connected to each other via the telecommunications network.
The tele services can in addition to the basic service (e.g. a speech communication between two users) be value-added services (like information data bases, telephone number information services) or distributed additional services as wake up services etc. or IN-services. IN-services are based on the fact that a network has a central intelligence that makes a flexible handling of debiting possible, credit card calls being an example. The centralization of the additional services in special nodes in a network is made by a technique named IN (intelligent networks or network intelligence).
Different groups of interest can be identified in the handling and the using of services. In addition to the network operators, we may have independent service providers, which by using the networks operated by the network operators offer interesting services to the end users. These services can be implemented by independent service providers by adding service nodes at the periphery of the network. The services are paid by the subscribers who are using them or by organizations to which they belong. The networks and the nodes of the operators' networks are used to distribute the services and the gain is shared by operator and service provider.
The drawbacks of the IN-technique are that the services are tied to the networks providing the network intelligence. This leads to problems when users use different networks offering different services. Also if a user switches from one network to another the services that are available may change.
A service node has functions to handle incoming calls with different call handling functions. The call handling functions are used to make calls charged to the service providers.
Universal personal telecommunications (UPT) means that a directory number is not coupled to a given terminal but to a certain person. UPT is akind of service implemented by traditional network intelligence. It is a future object to have a personal number to all services. In UPT the basic functions has to do with incoming and outgoing calls and the call handling functions in connection with those.
Mobile phones today may be given different numbers that may e.g. be used to differentiate between private and professional use. There often exists the option to pay for privet use privately and for professional use by the employer. It is therefore common that operators offer a user the possibility to have two numbers associated with the terminal in order to distinguish between private calls and other calls. Other calls than private are then paid by a corresponding organization, e.g. an employer. The operator keeps separate billing records for different categories of calls.
The network subscription of the mobile phone is defined by a s.c. Subscriber Identity Module, also called SIM card. If a mobile phone has two or more subscriber numbers, they are conventionally defined by the same SIM card and thus tied to one operator.
Usually, a subscription with a mobile telephone operator gives the user access to certain services provided and charged by the operator. The subscription, defined by a SIM card in the mobile terminal, is associated with a set of services managed and charged by the operator. However, the user is usually limited in the choice and kind of services to what the selected operator offers. In conventional mobile phones it is not usually possible to choose e.g. a private service with a service provider that is not the same as the service provider associated with the operator providing the SIM-card, obtained from e.g. the employer, without a need for separate phones.
A multinumber SIM card is known from U.S. Pat. No. 0,859,194 which is presented as prior art. The SIM card contains a first identification number and a second identification number. The numbers allow the phone to respond to incoming calls for the different telephone numbers at any specific time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of the invention is to support a user to use a single terminal in different roles, i.e. as a private person, an employee, a member in an organization etc.
Another object of the invention is to make it possible for a user to see in which of these roles an incoming call has been made.
A further object of the invention is to make different services available to support these roles.
Thus, there is a need for more practical solutions to make it possible to choose among different service providers, thereby extending the possibilities for different services, increasing the possibilities of invoking different services and the ways of charging the services used in the desired way.
Still one object of the invention is to provide a possibility while having one subscription with one network operator to select among several separate services, e.g. associated with membership in various associations, by the same mobile phone so that the one or more of the above requirements are fulfilled.
A further object of the invention is to provide a possibility to connect desired services during an ongoing call.
Still one object of the invention is to provide a possibility, wherein the call in connection with the service selected can be registered to be paid as wished either by the user of the phone, the caller or a preferred service provider.
The method of the invention is used in a telecommunications terminal, comprising an identification module with several subscriber numbers, for invoking desired services provided by different service providers. The invention is especially advantageous in connection with mobile phones but is equally useful in other kinds of radio terminals.
The method of the invention is mainly characterized by determining a category for an incoming or outgoing call, and in accordance with the category determined, selecting a desired service among the services provided by a service provider associated with the terminal through service access numbers stored in the identification module. A service access number of a service provider providing a desired service is then used in accordance with a certain call handling function by means of which the desired service can be invoked and charged in different ways, whereafter the service provided by the service provider is invoked.
There can be a number of different such services supporting different user roles.
The category of the call can be determined by means of associations defined between at least one of the subscriber numbers in the module with at least one service provider providing one or more of different services. Each of the subscriber numbers of the mobile phone may be associated with different service access numbers of different service providers. It may also be possible for the user to explicitly order a specific service.
In accordance with the first and second call categories, the desired service is selected by the user alternatively, on the basis of the called or calling subscriber number of an incoming call. In these cases the desire
Burns Doane Swecker & Mathis L.L.P.
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
Trinh Tan
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