Multi-user chat service in a cellular network

• US 20030003953A1
• Filed: 06/18/2001
• Published: 01/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Comverse Network Systems Limited
• Original Assignee: Comverse Network Systems Limited
• Inventors: Houplain, Jean-Francois
• Application Number:
  US09/881,845
• Publication Number:
  US 20030003953A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/553.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/184 Messaging devices, e.g. message centre

Abstract

A system and a method for supporting a multi-user text chat service in a mobile network uses existing standards and products while providing efficient use of radio frequency and signaling resources. The system includes a computing element for converting messages between two known formats and which further provides security, billing and other administrative functions. The system is thus able to combine a point-to-point messaging protocol for originating a message and a broadcast protocol for receiving the message.

Claims

1. A cellular communication system operable to support a multi-user messaging service comprising:

a mobile subscriber unit operable to originate a message using a format of a first standard protocol; and

a computing element to reformat the message received from the subscriber unit transmitted in the first standard protocol to a format of a second standard protocol, said second standard protocol comprising a broadcast protocol

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a location server and wherein the computing element determines one or more cells for broadcast using said second standard protocol based on a location result of the mobile subscriber unit which originates a message, said location result being provided by the location server.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the second standard protocol comprises delivery of unacknowledged data packets over a logical channel in broadcast mode.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing element extracts message data from the message and a source address and a destination address of the message of the first standard protocol and adds reformatting information to the message data according to the second standard protocol.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the computing element determines a length of the message data and creates at least first and second messages in the second standard protocol when the length of the message data exceeds a predetermined length, each of the first and second messages in the second standard protocol conveying a portion of the message data.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the computing element extracts a data length indicator to determine the length of the message data.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the first standard protocol comprises MO-SMS in a GSM system, and wherein the second standard protocol comprises cell broadcast CELL-B in the GSM system.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing element determines one or more logical channels based on at least one of a source address and a destination address of a message received from one of said plurality of subscriber units, and the reformatted message is sent over the determined logical channels.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the computing element extracts identifying information from the message sent according to the first standard protocol to provide at least one of billing and authorization information.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computing element queues a plurality of messages prior to sending the plurality of messages.

29. The system of claim 8, further comprising a location server and wherein the computing element determines one or more cells for broadcast using said second standard protocol based on a location result for one of the plurality mobile subscriber units originating a message, said location result being provided by the location server.

38. The cellular communication system of claim 1, wherein said second broadcast protocol comprises an over-the-air broadcast to a plurality of subscribers simultaneously.

11. A computing element operable to receive a message formatted according to a first standard protocol for over-the-air transmissions and to reformat the message to a format of a second standard protocol for over-the-air transmissions, said second standard protocol comprising a broadcast protocol operable to send the reformatted message to a plurality of receiving subscriber units at one time, said computing element comprising:

a data extractor to isolate message data, an origination address and a destination address; and

a packaging element operable to reformat the message data according to the second standard protocol.

12. The computing element of claim 11 further comprising a connection port to interface with a location server;

and a determination device to determine a geographic area for the over-the-air transmissions based on a result returned by said location server.

13. The computing element of claim 12, wherein the second standard protocol comprises delivery of unacknowledged data packets.

14. The computing element of claim 11, further comprising an authorization determining element receiving the origination address and comparing the source address with a database to determine whether the computing element will reformat the message according to the second protocol for transmission.

15. The computing element of claim 11, wherein said data extractor further includes a data length determining device for determining a length of message data, and said packaging element further includes a message queue to store at least first and second messages of the second standard protocol when the length of the message data exceeds a predetermined length, said first and second messages each containing a portion of said message data.

16. The computing element of claim 15 wherein said data length determining device determines the length of the message data according to a data length indicator in the message of the first standard protocol.

17. The computing element of claim 16, wherein the first standard protocol comprises MO-SMS in a GSM system, and wherein the second standard protocol comprises cell broadcast CELL-B in the GSM system.

18. The computing element according to claim 11, further comprising a message filter, said message filter receiving at least one of the origination address and the destination address to determine a logical channel in which the reformatted message will be broadcast.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising determining one or more cells for the over-the-air transmissions.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the second standard protocol comprises delivery of unacknowledged data packets.

22. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

extracting message data, a source address and a destination address from the message of the first standard protocol, and wherein the reformatting of the message comprises adding framing bits to the message data according to the second standard protocol.

23. The method of claim 22 further comprising determining a length of the message data wherein said reformatting of the message comprises creating at least a first and a second message in the second standard protocol, each of the first and second messages conveying a portion of the message data when the length of the message exceeds a predetermined length.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said determining of the length of the message comprises extracting a data length indicator from the message of the first standard protocol to determine the length of the message data.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the first standard protocol comprises MO-SMS in a GSM system, and wherein the second standard protocol comprises cell broadcast CELL-B in the GSM system.

26. The method claim 22 further comprising filtering the message according to at least one of the source and the destination address contained in said message to determine a logical channel in which the reformatted message will be broadcast.

27. The method of claim 19, further comprising extracting identifying information from the message sent according to the first standard protocol to provide at least one of billing and authorization information.

28. The method according to claim 19, further comprising queuing a plurality of messages prior to forwarding the plurality of messages to the transmission unit.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the determined cell corresponds to a cell in which the originating mobile subscriber unit is located.

31. The system of claim 29, wherein the determined cells correspond to all cells in a mobile subscriber network.

32. The computing element of claim 18 further including a connection port to interface with a location server;

and a determination device to determine one or more cells for the over-the-air transmissions based on a result returned by said location server.

33. The computing element of claim 32, wherein the determined cell corresponds to a cell in which a mobile subscriber unit corresponding to the extracted origination address is located.

34. The system of claim 32, wherein the determined cells correspond to all cells in a mobile subscriber network.

35. The method of claim 26, further comprising determining one or more cells for the over-the-air transmissions.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the determined cell corresponds to a cell in which an originating mobile subscriber unit which originated the message according to the first standard protocol is located.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein the determined cells correspond to all cells in a mobile subscriber network.

39. The method of claim 19, wherein said second standard protocol comprises an over-the-air broadcast to a plurality of subscribers simultaneously.

42. The method according to claim 19 further comprising:

transmitting the reformatted message to a plurality of receiving subscriber units using the second standard protocol.

19. A method of providing a multi-user messaging service in a cellular network comprising:

receiving a message transmitted according to a first standard protocol for over-the-air transmissions; and

reformatting the message of the first standard protocol to a format of a second standard protocol for over-the-air transmissions, said second standard protocol comprising a broadcast protocol.

40. An article of manufacture comprising a computer readable medium including:

a computer program means for receiving a message transmitted according to a first standard protocol of over-the-air transmissions; and

a computer program means for reformatting the message of the first standard protocol to a format of a second standard protocol for over-the-air transmissions, said second standard protocol comprising a broadcast protocol.

41. The article of manufacture according to claim 40, wherein said second standard protocol comprises an over-the-air broadcast to a plurality of subscribers simultaneously.