Method and system for monitoring telecommunications traffic

Details Method and system for monitoring telecommunications traffic Method and system for monitoring telecommunications traffic

1999-09-09

2002-04-16

Tieu, Binh (Department: 2743)

Telephonic communications

With usage measurement

Call charge metering or monitoring

C379S114170, C379S114200, C379S114290, C379S144010, C379S230000, C455S406000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06373930

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to telecommunications systems and more particularly to a method and system for monitoring telecommunications traffic. The invention can be used to facilitate numerous enhanced telecommunications services. For purposes of illustration, however, the invention will be described principally in the context of facilitating account-balance based telecommunications services, such as prepaid calling. Further, the invention is useful both in landline and wireless communication networks.
2. Description of Related Art
For many years, the telecommunications industry has recognized the need to provide a mechanism for restricting or otherwise managing use of communication services based on a measure of subscriber account balance. In such systems, a subscriber (e.g., a corporation, an individual or another party) typically arranges with a service carrier to establish an account balance that typically represents a measure, such as time or dollar value, of telecommunications services that the subscriber is authorized to use. As the subscriber uses the services, the carrier may then continuously monitor and decrement the account balance. When the balance drops to a low threshold level, the carrier may notify the subscriber. And once the balance is exhausted, the carrier may refuse to provide additional services or may continue to provide service and then bill the subscriber for the excess use.
Traditionally, such “account balance” services have taken the form of “prepaid” service, where a subscriber deposits a prepayment amount with a service provider, and the service provider allows the subscriber to use services only up to the amount prepaid. When the subscriber approaches the prepaid limit during a call, the service provider might then prompt the subscriber to recharge or refill the account, and the subscriber may add to the account balance by making an additional prepayment, as for instance with a credit card.
Offered for years in both landline and wireless systems, prepaid service has been viewed largely as a tool to attract “credit challenged” consumers, that is, potential customers with poor credit histories or who otherwise lack adequate credit references. In addition, prepaid service appeals to consumers who do not want to be burdened with contracts and bills, who want to maintain fixed budgets, or who simply wish to remain anonymous. For example, travelers who
require temporary phone service can benefit from prepaid service in the form of a prepaid calling card or a rented wireless phone that has been activated with prepaid minutes. Similarly, a calling card or pre-activated wireless phone with initial prepaid minutes can be given, sold or rented through various channels, including supermarkets and convenience stores.
The concept of account balance services, however, encompasses more than just traditional prepaid communications. In general, an account balance service can involve establishing or applying any type of account balance that serves as an actual or suggested limit on use of communications services. The account balance could represent a time limit such as minutes of use, or a financial limit such as dollars of use, for example. Further, the account balance that defines the actual or suggested limit on use need not necessarily come from a prepayment by a subscriber or other party. Rather, the account balance could simply represent an assigned limit on use, which the subscriber may or may not be allowed to exceed.
For example, a corporation may arrange with a telecommunications carrier to provide wireless communication service for its employees and may set up an account balance for each employee defining a maximum time or cost of use by the employee per month. The carrier may then bill the corporation for the use per employee up to the preset limit and may bill the corporation or employee for any excess use. As another example, parents may subscribe to an account balance service for a child in order to limit the child's use to a preset limit per month. At the end of each month, the carrier may then bill for the child's actual use, up to the preset limit.
In order to provide account balance service, a telecommunications network should include some mechanism to track the start and stop of calls, to monitor and adjust a subscriber's balance during a call, and to maintain control of the call in order to facilitate an appropriate response to a low or zero balance. Several methods currently exist to provide this functionality in today's intelligent telecommunications networks.
A general example of an advanced intelligent network (“AIN”) is depicted in FIG.
1
and is designated generally by reference numeral
10
. In this figure, circuit-switched pathways (i.e., trunks) that carry voice and data are represented by solid lines, and signaling pathways and other logical connections are represented by dotted lines.
In exemplary network
10
, a first station
12
is connected to the public switched telephone network (“PSTN”)
14
via a first service switching point (“SSP”)
16
, and a second station
18
is connected to PSTN
14
via a second SSP
20
. Stations
12
and
18
may be telephones, fax machines, modems, or other such devices. SSPs
16
and
20
are connected to each other and to a centralized service control point (“SCP”)
22
by a signaling network that includes a first and second signal transfer points (“STP”)
24
and
26
. This signaling network carries out-of-band signals that are used to control the switches and to set up and tear down the circuit between the calling party and called party. Currently, Signaling System 7 (“SS7”) is the most commonly used signaling system.
SCP
22
contains control information and call processing logic to assist SSPs
16
and
20
in handling calls. For this purpose, SSP
16
is programmed with logic that defines “trigger points” at which SSP
16
should seek guidance from SCP
22
. At these trigger points, SSP
16
sends a query message to SCP
22
, and SCP
22
returns a response message to SSP
16
. According to SS7,these query and response messages are known as Transaction Capabilities Application Part (“TCAP”) messages.
For example, SSP
16
may include a table that identifies a range of subscriber numbers associated with special services, and SSP
16
may be programmed with a trigger that causes SSP
16
to query SCP
22
in response to a call origination or termination attempt involving one of those numbers. At that trigger point, SSP
16
would send a TCAP query to SCP
22
, providing various parameters such as the calling number and the called number. In turn, SCP
22
would execute service logic to determine what SSP
16
should do with the call, and SCP
22
would then send a TCAP response back to SSP
16
. The TCAP response may instruct SSP
16
to route the call to a particular destination or may provide various other instructions or information.
Alternatively, SSP
16
may itself be programmed with logic that indicates how to handle special service calls, without requiring SSP
16
to “dip” into the logic of SCP
22
. For instance, in response to a call origination or termination attempt involving a particular number, SSP
16
may execute its own logic to determine what to do with the call. Internal tables and service logic programmed into SSP
16
may then instruct the SSP to route the call via a particular trunk group to a remote destination in the network.
On call origination, once an SSP receives routing instructions from SCP
22
or otherwise determines where in the network to route a call, the SSP may seek to set up a call with a switch serving the terminating location, by engaging in an SS7 signaling session. According to SS7, call setup and tear down between switches is accomplished by a series of messages in the Integrated Services Digital Network User Part (“ISUP”) layer. These messages include the initial address message (“IAM”), the address complete message (“ACM”), the answer message (“ANM”), the rel

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