Communication system and line selecting method

• US 20030078056A1
• Filed: 10/15/2002
• Published: 04/24/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: YOZAN, Inc.
• Original Assignee: YOZAN, Inc.
• Inventors: Kiyomatsu, Hisanori, Takatori, Sunao
• Application Number:
  US10/257,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20030078056A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2854 Wide area networks, e.g. public data networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/16 according to connection obtained
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/30 the meter or calculation of charges not being controlled from an exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/31 Distributed metering or calculation of charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/41 Billing record details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure of call data record [CDR]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/43 Billing software details
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/49 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8033 location-dependent, e.g. business or home
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8044 Least cost routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/83 Notification aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0164 Billing record, e.g. Call Data Record [CDR], Toll Ticket[TT], Automatic Message Accounting [AMA], Call Line Identifier [CLI], details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/32 Involving wireless systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/42 Least cost routing, i.e. provision for selecting the lowest cost tariff
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/46 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7435 Location dependent, e.g. Bussiness or home
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/745 Least cost routing, e.g. Automatic or manual, call by call or by preselection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/82 Advice-of-Charge [AOC], i.e. notify subscriber of charges/cumulative charge; meter at the substation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/92 : Autonomous calculations of charges in terminal, i.e. meter not controlled from exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/96 : Distributed calculation of charges, e.g. in different nodes like for mobiles between HLR and VLR, or between the terminal and the billing function
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 : Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42229 : Personal communication services, i.e. services related to one subscriber independent of his terminal and/or location diverting calls from one subscriber to another subscriber, i.e. two different subscriptions H04M3/54; selecting arrangements in intelligent networks H04Q3/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42289 : with carrierprovider selection by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 : Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 : Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 : Selecting a network or a communication service

Abstract

A mobile communication terminal (101 to 10N) can obtain a plurality of communication services MS1 to MSn and sends an identification code unique to itself when making an outgoing call. Databases DB1 to DBn are provided for the plurality of mobile communication terminals MS1 to MSn, and when the mobile communication terminal (101 to 10N) makes an outgoing call, they acquire the unique identification code for specifying the mobile communication terminal (101 to 10N), and store billing information on the mobile communication terminal (101 to 10N) in association with the identification code. A billing server TDB classifies the billing information stored in all of the databases DB1 to DBn by each mobile communication terminal (101 to 10N) based on the identification code to generate billing information on each user.

Claims

1. A mobile communication terminal to which a plurality of mobile communication lines are assigned, comprising:

a storage part in which information on business areas of and communication fees for respective mobile communication lines is stored;

a location information acquiring part for acquiring its own current location information; and

a line selecting part for selecting the most inexpensive mobile communication line out of mobile communication lines whose business areas cover a current location shown by said location information acquiring part, based on the information on business areas of and communication fees for the respective mobile communication lines stored in said storage part.

2. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1,

wherein a receive-only mobile communication line is further assigned thereto, and

wherein said location information acquiring part acquires its own current location information, based on the receive-only mobile communication line.

3. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1,

wherein said location information acquiring part acquires its own current location information based on a GPS signal.

4. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1,

wherein a communication line of a pager is further assigned thereto, and

wherein said location information acquiring part acquires its own current location information based on the communication line of the pager.

5. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of baseband processing parts for performing separate communications in parallel.

6. A line selecting device, comprising:

a communication means capable of using plural types of communication lines;

a storage means in which information on communication fees for respective communication lines is stored; and

a selection means for selecting the most inexpensive communication line according to a communication mode to be used, based on the information on communication fees stored in said storage means.

7. The line selecting device according to claim 6,

wherein said selection means selects the most inexpensive communication line according to the communication mode to be used and the type of the other party'"'"'s communication device, based on the information on communication fees stored in said storage means.

8. The line selecting device according to claim 6, further comprising:

an individual fee data receiving means for receiving the information on communication fees for a user of this line selecting device sent from a billing server which manages information on users of line selecting devices,

wherein said storage means stores the information on communication fees received by said individual fee data receiving means.

9. The line selecting device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a line switching means for, when a communication line is already established, switching the communication line being used for communication to another communication line according to a communication information amount.

10. The line selecting device according to claim 9, further comprising:

a communication information amount estimating means for estimating, depending on operation by a user, the communication information amount occurred as the result of the operation.

11. A communication terminal, comprising:

a communication means capable of using plural types of communication lines;

a storage means in which information on communication fees for respective communication lines is stored;

a selection means for selecting the most inexpensive communication line according to a communication mode to be used, based on the information on communication fees stored in said storage means; and

a control means for, at the start of communication, controlling said selection means so that a communication line is selected and controlling said communication means so that the communication line is selectively established.

12. A billing server, comprising:

a first storage means for storing information indicating types of respective communication services used by each of users with respect to each user;

a second storage means for storing fee information on a plurality of communication services;

an individual fee data generating means for unifying fee information on one or plural communication services used by each of the users to generate individual fee data with respect to each user, based on the information indicating the types of the respective communication services used by each of the users and the fee information on the respective communication services; and

a sending means for sending the individual fee data for the user to a communication terminal of the user.

13. The billing server according to claim 12, further comprising:

a third storage means for storing information indicating types of fee systems contracted by the users regarding the respective communication services used by the users,

wherein said individual fee data generating means for referring to fee information from the respective communication services and regarding one or plural communication services used by each of the users, and for unifying fee information on the fee systems contracted by the user concerning the respective communication services to generate the individual fee data with respect to each user.

14. The billing server according to claim 12, further comprising:

a receiving means for receiving the fee information on the plurality of communication services.

15. A mobile communication system for providing a plurality of communication services, comprising:

a mobile communication terminal which is allowed to obtain the plurality of mobile communication services and sends an identification code unique to itself when making an outgoing call;

a plurality of control servers which are provided for the plurality of mobile communication services, when said mobile communication terminal makes the outgoing call, acquires the unique identification code for specifying said mobile communication terminal, and stores billing information on said mobile communication terminal in association with the identification code; and

a billing server which classifies the billing information stored in all of said control servers by each mobile communication terminal based on the identification code and generates billing information on each user.

16. The mobile communication system according to claim 15,

wherein said mobile communication terminal performs location registration by a receive-only mobile communication line and receives an incoming call by this receive-only mobile communication line by which the location information is performed.

17. The mobile communication system according to claim 15,

wherein said mobile communication terminal performs location registration based on a GPS signal.

18. The mobile communication system according to claim 15,

wherein said mobile communication terminal is adaptable to a communication line of a pager, and

wherein said billing server sends a signal for allowing location registration to be performed to said mobile communication terminal via the communication line of the pager.

19. A communication system, comprising:

a communication terminal including a communication means capable of using plural types of communication lines, a storage means in which information on communication fees for respective communication lines is stored, and a selection means for selecting the most inexpensive communication line according to a communication mode to be used, based on the information on communication fees stored in the storage means; and

a billing server including a first storage means for storing information indicating types of respective communication services used by each of users with respect to each user, a second storage means for storing fee information on a plurality of communication services, an individual fee data generating means for unifying fee information on one or plural communication services used by each of the users to generate individual fee data with respect to each user, based on the information indicating the types of the respective communication services used by each of the users and the fee information on the respective communication services, and a sending means for sending the individual fee data for the user as the information on communication fees to a communication terminal of the user.

20. A line selecting method, comprising the steps of:

extracting fee information on communication services used by each of users from fee information on a plurality of communication services and unifying it to generate individual fee data;

sending the generated individual fee data to a communication terminal of the user;

receiving the individual fee data by the communication terminal of the user; and

selecting the most inexpensive communication line according to a communication mode to be used, based on the received individual fee data by the communication terminal of the user.

21. A control program embodied on a record medium or a carrier wave, for making a mobile communication terminal function as:

a location information acquiring part for acquiring its own current location information; and

a line selecting part for selecting, based on information on business areas of and communication fees for respective mobile communication lines, a mobile communication line which is not used by the other mobile communication terminals and is the most inexpensive out of mobile communication lines whose business areas cover a current location shown by the location information acquiring part.

22. A control program embodied on record medium or a carrier wave, for making electronic equipment function as:

a communication means capable of using plural types of communication lines;

a storage means in which information on communication fees for respective communication lines is stored; and

a selection means for selecting the most inexpensive communication line according to a communication mode to be used, based on the information on communication fees stored in the storage means.