Handling of timers

• US 10,015,292 B2
• Filed: 04/05/2013
• Issued: 07/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Baer, Anders, Austrell, Tobias, Forsman, Timo, Tellinger, Jan Anders
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Asefa, Debebe
• Application Number:
  US14/780,664
• Publication Number:
  US 20160057257A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,915 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/28 Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols

Abstract

System, methods, entities, and computer program for handling timers in a communication network are described. The communication network comprises a plurality of entities (100-108). The method in a first entity (100) comprises determining (301) whether a supervision condition for supervising a communication procedure is fulfilled. The method further comprises adding (308), based on a result of the step of determining the supervision condition (301), a timer validity information to a signaling message related to the communication procedure, and sending (308) the signaling message to a second entity (102). The method in a second entity (102-108) comprises receiving (400) a signaling message associated with a communication procedure, the signaling message containing a timer validity information. The method further comprises determining (401) whether a further processing condition for performing further steps of the communication procedure is fulfilled, the further processing condition being associated with the timer validity information. The system, entities (100-108) and computer program associated with these methods are also described. Therefore an improved handling of time supervisions in a communication network is achieved in terms of accuracy of supervision timeout, and eliminating a triggering of unwanted remote actions after local timeout.

Claims

1. A method for handling time supervision in a communication network comprising a plurality of entities, the method comprising:

receiving, by a second entity, a first signaling message associated with a communication procedure from a first entity, the first signaling message containing a first timer validity information;

determining, by the second entity, whether a further processing condition for performing a further step of the communication procedure is fulfilled, the further processing condition being associated with the first timer validity information, wherein the further processing condition is associated with any one of the following conditions;

expiry, before expiry of the first timer validity information, of a supervision timer supervising the reception of a response to a signaling message associated with the communication procedure;

expiry of the first timer validity information;

reception, before expiry of the first timer validity information, of a response to a signaling message associated with the communication procedure; and

determining that a remaining time period before expiry of the first timer validity information reaches a threshold.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the further step of the communication procedure is any of the following:

sending, by the second entity, a further signaling message associated with the communication procedure to a further entity of the plurality of entities of the communication network, the further signaling message containing a further timer validity information;

sending, by the second entity, a further signaling message associated with a further communication procedure to a further entity of the plurality of entities of the communication network, the further signaling message containing a further timer validity information;

sending, by the second entity, a response to the first signaling message to the first entity; and

terminating, by the second entity, the communication procedure.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, if a supervision period of the further signaling message expires before expiration of the first timer validity information, the second timer validity information is set equal to a current time plus a supervision period of the further signaling message, or else the second timer validity information is set equal to the first timer validity information.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining, by the second entity, that a remaining time period before expiry of the first timer validity information reaches a threshold, wherein the threshold for remaining time period before expiry of the first timer validity information in the second entity is based on a signaling delay time for a signaling message to traverse between the first entity and the second entity of the communication network.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the timer validity information indicates an absolute point in time comprising year, date, time, and time zone information.

6. The method according to claim 1, comprising:

determining, by the first entity, whether a supervision condition for supervising the communication procedure is fulfilled; and

based on a result of the step of determining whether the supervision condition is fulfilled, adding, by the first entity, the timer validity information to the first signaling message, and sending the first signaling message to the second entity.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the supervision condition is associated with a type of the communication procedure.

8. A network entity for handling time supervision in a communication network comprising a plurality of entities, the network entity comprising:

one or more processing circuits configured to cause the network entity to;

receive a first signaling message related to a communication procedure, the first signaling message comprising a first timer validity information;

determine a further step of the communication procedure;

determine a current time;

determine a time supervision period associated with a further signaling message related to the communication procedure or to a further communication procedure;

determining a second timer validity information based on the current time and the time supervision period for the further signaling message;

send the further signaling message to a further entity in the communication system, the further signaling message comprising said second timer validity information;

time supervise a reception of a response to the further signaling message;

terminate the communication procedure at expiry of the first timer validity information;

determining that a remaining time period before expiry of the first timer validity information reaches a threshold, and

sending a response associated with the first signaling message related to the communication procedure, based on the reception of a response to the further signaling message.

9. The network entity of claim 8, wherein the one or more processing circuits are configured to cause the network entity to:

determine whether a supervision condition for supervising the communication procedure is fulfilled; and

based on a result of the determining whether the supervision condition is fulfilled;

add the timer validity information to the first signaling message, and

send the first signaling message to the second entity.

10. A system for handling time supervision in a communication network comprising a plurality of entities, the system comprising at least one network entity, and a further network entity for handling time supervision in a communication network comprising a plurality of entities, the network entity being capable of:

determining whether a communication procedure is to be started which requires time supervision;

determine a current time;

determine a time supervision period associated with the communication procedure;

send a signaling message related to the communication procedure, the signaling message comprising the timer validity information based on the current time and the time supervision period;

time supervise the reception of a response to the signaling message;

terminate the communication procedure at expiry of the time supervision period; and

finish the communication procedure in response to the reception of a response to the signaling message.

11. A computer program product which, when being executed by one or more processing circuits of a second entity, causes the second entity to:

receive a first signaling message associated with a communication procedure from a first entity, the first signaling message containing a first timer validity information; and

determine whether a further processing condition for performing a further step of the communication procedure is fulfilled, the further processing condition being associated with the first timer validity information, wherein the further processing condition is associated with any one of the following conditions;

expiry of a supervision timer supervising the reception of a response to a signaling message associated with the communication procedure, before expiry of the first timer validity information,

expiry of the first timer validity information,

reception of a response to a signaling message associated with the communication procedure, before expiry of the first timer validity information, or

determining that a remaining time period before expiry of the first timer validity information reaches a threshold.