Preferred roaming list and system select feature

Details Preferred roaming list and system select feature Preferred roaming list and system select feature

1999-12-29

2003-09-23

Bost, Dwayne (Department: 2681)

Telecommunications

Radiotelephone system

Zoned or cellular telephone system

C455S432300, C455S435100, C455S552100

Reexamination Certificate

active

06625451

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to programming of mobile radiotelephones or the like, such as stations used in cellular service or personal communication service (PCS), to select systems using a carefully defined hierarchy of preferences but still allow the user certain options to select an available system even where the home and preferred systems may not be available. The invention also relates to a substantially one-rate type service, using stations implementing the system select feature.
BACKGROUND
Modern public wireless communication systems utilize a variety of cellluar and PCS technologies to offer customers mobility, specifically, the ability to make and receive telecom calls from anywhere that the wireless systems service. The networks or systems offering such services are becoming virtually ubiquitous. However, the systems are not homogenous. Different carriers operate different systems in different areas. In some cases, a station may operate with a large number of different systems, some of which may even implement different communications interfaces over the air-link.
Normally, a customer purchases service from a wireless carrier and obtains a mobile station compatible with the systems operated by that carrier. The carrier assigns the customer's station to one of the systems that the carrier operates, as that customer's “home” system. The station will often operate through that system, while the customer remains in the geographic area serviced by the home system. However, as the customer roams, the customer's mobile wireless station must register with and operate through other public wireless systems, some of which are operated by the service provider and many of which are operated by other carriers.
Throughout much of the United States, multiple carriers offer competing wireless communication services in the same or overlapping areas. Some competing systems utilize different technologies, but in many areas there may actually be two or more systems offering service in a manner compatible with a customer's station. Basic cellular service is divided into two bands, designated “A” and “B.” Typically, different carriers operate competing systems on the two bands. Originally, if a local landline telephone company operated a cellular system in their region, they were assigned to operate on the “B” band, and independent cellular providers were assigned to the “A” band. Over time, the systems and attendant air rights have changed hands, so that today, many major carriers operate A-side systems in some regions and B-side systems in other regions. Most cellular phones today actually are capable of operating on both bands. As the customer roams, the station therefore needs to select and register with an available system offering a compatible service on one or more of the bands of normal operation.
With many of the early cellular services, the customer set the mobile station to one of several modes, and once set, the mobile station performed a specific type of system selection defined by the mode until the customer changed the setting to a different mode. For example, the customer might set the station to operate with an assigned “home” system. In this mode, the station would operate with only the home system until the user changed the mode. If the station was out of range of the home system, the station did not operate but continually scanned to try to find and register with the home system.
Similarly, the user could set the station to the “A” side or to the “B” side. In either mode, the station would scan for a system on the particular band, but would not look for or select a system on the opposite band unless or until the user changed the selection mode setting. In many cases, the customer actually set the station to a selection mode to obtain service while roaming in one area but left the station in that setting when roaming to another area or even returning home. This often resulted in the station selecting a system that implemented less than favorable roaming charges. For example, if the home system was on the “A” side, the favorable roaming arrangements typically were with other systems operating of the same band. However, if the customer set the station to the “B” side, for example, to obtain roaming service in an area where there was no “A” side service, the station might remain in that mode. The station would continue to select more expensive “B” side systems even if an “A” side system became available, for example to the exclusion of even the home system.
Later mobile stations allowed the user to selected “preferred” bands, typically A-preferred and B-preferred. In one of these modes, the station would first attempt to find a station on the preferred band and would scan the alternate band only if there was no system available on the preferred band. However, if the user set the station to the opposite preferred mode while roaming, the station would continue to operate in that mode, preferentially selecting the opposite-side systems over the home-side systems regardless of need or cost. Situations arose where an A-side agreement might be preferred in one area but a B-side roaming agreement might be more favorable in another area. For example, as carriers purchased different air-rights in different regions, the situation arose where a service provider might operate an A-side property in one region and operate one or more B-side properties in adjacent or surrounding regions. Selection of the service provider's own systems would provide the optimum operation and financial arrangements for the subscriber and the service provider. However, the “preferred” side selection techniques often result in selection of the unfavorable competing carriers' services even if the provider itself has a system available to service the roaming subscriber. In the example, if the subscriber selects A-preferred while in the home region and roams to an adjacent region, if a competitor's A-side system is available, the station selects the competing system even though the provider operates a B-side system in the adjacent area.
A number of automatic techniques have been developed and described in prior patents, to allow mobile telephone stations to more efficiently select service from available mobile telephone systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,338 to Lynch et al. teaches upgrading a cellular telephone system by modifying subscriber units for selective service provider acquisition during roaming. Priority of acquisition is given to those service providers associated with the home service provider. These preferred service providers are identified by System Identification (SIDs) numbers. A roaming subscriber unit will tune to control frequencies to identify all of the system providers operating in a physical area to which the subscriber has roamed. The subscriber station compares identified SIDs of the available systems to a list stored within the subscriber station. Selection is made based upon a priority of those system providers having arrangements with the home system provider.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,625 to Zicker teaches remote programming of system selection operations of a cellular mobile radiotelephone. More specifically, the programming causes the mobile telephone to select one of two or more frequency sets available for communication. The mobile telephone stores a list of system identification numbers (SIDs) that identify cellular systems for which cellular radiotelephone communication is to be prevented. In operation, the mobile telephone detects and displays when it is roaming. When roaming, the mobile telephone obtains a SID for the foreign cellular system upon which the telephone is currently configured to operate. The mobile telephone utilizes a first system selection process to select this foreign cellular system, which communicates on a first one of the sets of frequencies. The mobile telephone compares the SID of the foreign system to the stored list. If the default system's SID is not on the list, operation continues normally.

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