Coordinated grouping for machine type communications group based services

• US 10,136,284 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2015
• Issued: 11/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Convida Wireless LLC
• Inventors: Palanisamy, Suresh, Starsinic, Michael F, Murthy, Prashanth, Singh, Anoop
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Nay A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fleming-Hall, Erica
• Application Number:
  US14/793,072
• Publication Number:
  US 20160007138A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,232 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/28 characterised by path configuration, e.g. LAN [Local Area Networks] or WAN [Wide Area Networks] wireless communication networks H04W ; arrangements for dividing the transmission path H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1044 Group management mechanisms management of multicast group membership H04L12/185; reconfiguring of node membership in a computing system to eliminate errors G06F11/1425
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/22 with access to wired networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

A system is disclosed for the coordinated grouping of devices for receipt of network layer group based services. A service layer system such as an SCS generates a request to generate a group of devices to receive network layer services. The request is received at a network layer system such as, for example, an MTC-IWF. Network layer systems such as, for example, an HSS, identifies a manner of communicating the requested service to identified devices and communicates with the devices to provision the devices so as to be included in the requested group. The network layer systems communicate an identifier to the service layer system which the service layer may subsequently use to request execution of the service by the identified group of devices.

Claims

1. In a communications network adapted to provide machine to machine communication, a method of accessing group services comprising:

a services capability server determining, based on at least one of a condition or information at the services capability server, to modify a group of devices for accessing group based network layer services;

the services capability server transmitting a request to modify the group of devices, the request comprising information specifying a requested service for the group;

a first network node receiving the request to modify the group of devices;

the first network node transmitting a request to modify the group of devices to a second network node;

the second network node identifying devices affected by the request to modify the group of devices; and

the second network node generating and transmitting a request to a third network node relating to the request to modify the group of devices.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the third network node transmitting a response to the second network node.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

the second network node generating and transmitting a response to the first network node; and

the first network node generating and transmitting a response to the services capability server.

4. The method of claim 1,

wherein the first network node is an interworking server or a service capability server, and

wherein the second network node is a home subscriber server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the group based network layer service is a group messaging service.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request transmitted by the services capability service comprises an external identifier of the group.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first network node comprises an MTC-IWF.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the second network node comprises a BM-SC.

5. In a communications network adapted to provide machine to machine communication, a method of accessing group services comprising:

a services capability server determining, based on at least one of a condition or information at the services capability server, to execute group based network layer services on a group of devices;

the services capability server transmitting to a first network node a request to execute the group based network layer services on the group of devices, the request identifying one or more events that should be monitored for and comprising information specifying a requested service for the group;

the first network node receiving the request to execute group based network layer services on the group of devices;

the first network node transmitting a request for information relating to handling the request to execute group based network layer services to a second network node;

the second network node identifying devices for implementing the request to execute the group based network layer services on the group of devices; and

the second network node generating and transmitting to a third network node information specifying the identified devices for implementing the request to execute group based network layer services on the group of devices.

6. The method of claim 5,

wherein the first network node is an interworking server or a service capability server, and

wherein the second network node is a home subscriber server, and

wherein the third network node is a mobility management entity or SGSN.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein the group based network layer service is a group messaging service.

12. The method of claim 5, wherein the request transmitted by the services capability service comprises an external identifier of the group.

13. The method of claim 5, wherein the first network node comprises an MTC-IWF.

14. The method of claim 5, wherein the second network node comprises a BM-SC.