Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Zoned or cellular telephone system
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-30
2003-03-18
Urban, Edward F. (Department: 2685)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Zoned or cellular telephone system
C455S428000, C379S221090, C379S221100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06535741
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The invention relates, in general, to a telecommunications network and a method of operating a telecommunications network, and in particular, to a telecommunications network having a service control point for controlling and carrying out intelligent services, and service switching points which, in order to switch service components of intelligent services, each support a predetermined performance level in accordance with a predetermined application protocol.
The invention likewise relates, in particular, to a method for routing an incoming communications link in a telecommunications network of the type mentioned above, in which a service initialization message is sent to the service control point by a first service switching point in the network as a consequence of a call request arriving at it for a communications link to a subscriber in the network who has subscribed to at least one intelligent service which can be activated for incoming calls.
In conjunction with modern telecommunications networks, it is known that, in addition to basic services such as the telephone services and fax services in a telephone network, other connection-oriented services are set up which can be addressed by a subscriber to the network. These other connection-oriented services are referred to as intelligent services in the following text. The network that supports these services is referred to as an intelligent network (IN). The conventional architecture of the intelligent network provides, in addition to network devices having a service switching function, the so-called service switching points or SSP nodes, and service control points (SCP) as devices for controlling and carrying out intelligent additional services in the intelligent network. The service switching nodes and service control nodes are connected to one another via signaling paths.
For mobile radio networks according to the GSM Standard (“Global System for Mobile Communication”), a so-called CAMEL platform (“Customized Applications for Mobile network Enhanced Logic”) has been defined in order to allow world-wide use of the service features of the intelligent network. In a mobile radio network, the service switching nodes are normally referred to as M-SSP (“Mobile SSP”). A specific protocol is in this case used as the “application part” and for the mobile radio network, comprises the CAP protocol (“CAMEL Application Part”, see GSM 09.78).
For further information relating to CAMEL and the CAP protocol, reference should be made to the following GSM Standards: GSM 02.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 2+, Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL) Service Definition (Stage 1);” GSM 03.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 2+), Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL Phase) (Stage 2);” and GSM 09.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 2+), Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL) CAMEL Application Part (CAP) specification.”.
The CAP for the first time created a protocol between M-SSP and SCP which offered roaming IN subscribers, that is subscribers who also move beyond the supply area of their home network (HPLMN, “Home Public Line Mobile Network”) into other visited networks (VPLMN, “Visited Public Line Mobile Network”), intelligent services outside their home network as well while making the services available to subscribers in the home network itself. According to GSM 09.78, the CAP protocol provides a fixed set of functions, the so-called Capability Set 1 (CSI). When the CAP protocol was introduced, CAP phase 1, according to the GSM Standard relating to GSM 02.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 1), Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL) Service Definition (Stage 1);” GSM 03.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 1), Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL Phase) (Stage 2);” and GSM 09.78 “Digital cellular telecommunications system (Phase 1), Customized Applications for Mobile Network Enhanced Logic (CAMEL) CAMEL Application Part (CAP) specification,” provided only a subset of the CS1. Therefore, CAP Phase 1 includes only a very limited instruction set of the intended CS1. Using the seven operations implemented in CAP Phase 1 (instead of the 29 CS1), it is not possible to implement complex intelligent services. These services require a more comprehensive set of instructions, such as those that would be available, in particular, from the CS1. In order to implement such an intelligent service, the link to an M-SSP is routed in a known way on the basis of the intermediate exchange signaling process in the ISUP, which M-SSP can manage the dialog with the SCP via an INAP protocol (“Intelligent Network Application Part”), since the operational scope of the CS1 is implemented in the INAP protocol. On the other hand, intelligent services that can be implemented within the scope of the CAP Phase 1 are not passed on, but are carried out in the relevant M-SSP.
For intelligent services which are started for outgoing calls from visitor networks, a so-called MOC Scenario (MOC=“Mobile Originating Calls”), the published, non-prosecuted German Patent Application DE 198 14 162 A1 from the applicant describes a method for information transmission. Data and parameters can be transmitted between SCP and M-SSP, without the range of messages between the switching point associated with the connection of the calling subscriber, the home registers and that of the M-SSP having to be changed from those of the existing CAP and INAP protocols. Accordingly, during a first dialog via CAP of the M-SSP in the visitor network of the calling subscriber with an SCP in the home network of the calling subscriber, all the parameters for the start operation which is carried out, in accordance with the GSM Standard by means of an IDP message (“Initial Detection Part”) are temporarily stored and the call is then passed on to an INAP-compatible M-SSP in the home network. A second dialog is set up there via the INAP protocol to the same SCP in which the original parameters of the start operation (IDP message) are found again by means of correlation information (“correlation id”) which is likewise transmitted so that the originally desired intelligent service can then be started by the INAP-compatible M-SSP.
However, the described MOC solution cannot be directly transferred to the situation where the intelligent service is initiated by the called subscriber, the so-called MTC scenario (MTC=“Mobile Terminating Calls”, “incoming calls”). This is because this would necessitate three dialogs with the SCP. A first connect dialog in accordance with the CAP, protocol to an IMAP-compatible M-SSP, a second connect dialog via the INAP protocol for the purpose of home-register interrogation between the INAP-compatible M-SSP and the home register, as well as a third dialog via the INAP protocol for carrying out operations which are demanded by the service logic, such as charging applications (so-called “apply charging”) and routing operations. This would result in considerable signaling traffic. Such a solution therefore, appears to be virtually unacceptable for manufacturers as well as network operators.
In this context, it should be noted that there is no need to pass on incoming calls for an MTC service, provided the relevant mobile radio network is a fully integrated network, in which all switching points support an INAP protocol. For this purpose, suitable administration of the M-SSP nodes on the network can be used to ensure that the INAP protocol is used for an MTC service, although the visitor register and home register of the network in accordance with the GSM Standard support the MAP protocol (Mobile Application Part), and in particular MAP Version 3, and thus offer support for CAP Phase 1. However, networks in which not all the network nodes are INAP-compatible, so-called overlay networks, frequ
Aschir Alexander
Berg Andreas
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
Smith Sheila
Urban Edward F.
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