Establishing emergency sessions in packet data networks for wireless devices having invalid subscriber identities

• US 20040192251A1
• Filed: 03/31/2003
• Published: 09/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility, Inc. (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Pecen, Mark E., Likki, Varalakshmi, Aerrabotu, Naveen, Zhao, Yilin
• Granted Patent: US 7,787,855 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/404.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections

Abstract

A method in a wireless communications network including receiving (310) a network connection request from a subscriber device having an invalid subscriber identity, connecting (340) the subscriber device, from which the network connection request was received, to the wireless communications network for limited purposes only upon determining (320) that the subscriber device has in invalid subscriber identity in the absence of a limited network connection indicator in the network connection request. In some embodiments, a limited attach message indicates that the attach request is for limited purposes.

Claims

1. A method in a wireless subscriber device having a subscriber identity, the method comprising:

transmitting a network connection request and the subscriber identity;

receiving a network connection rejection in response to transmitting the network connection request and the subscriber identity;

transmitting an emergency connection indicator after receiving the network connection rejection.

2. The method of claim 1, receiving an emergency connection acceptance after transmitting the emergency connection indicator.

3. The method of claim 1,

the network connection request is an attach request,

transmitting an international mobile subscriber identity with the attach request.

4. The method of claim 1, transmitting the emergency connection indicator includes transmitting a combination of bits indicating that the requested connection is for emergency sessions only.

5. The method of claim 4, sending the combination of bits includes sending one of the following three-bit combinations:

000;

100;

101;

110; and

111.

6. The method of claim 1, sending the network connection request upon powering-up the wireless subscriber device.

7. The method of claim 6, connecting to the network after sending the emergency connection indicator, remaining connected to the network until at least one of powering-down of the wireless subscriber device or upon expiration of a time period.

8. A method in a wireless subscriber device having a subscriber identity, the method comprising:

predicting initiation of an emergency session on the subscriber device;

transmitting a network connection request and the subscriber identity;

the network request including an emergency connection indicator indicating that the connection request is for an emergency session.

9. The method of claim 8, transmitting the network connection request with one of the following three-bit combinations:

000;

100;

101;

110; and

111, wherein the one of the following three-bit combinations indicate that the connection request is for an emergency session.

10. A wireless subscriber device having a subscriber identity, the wireless subscriber device comprising:

a processor coupled to a transmitter;

the processor for controlling the transmitter to transmit a network connection request and the subscriber identity upon powering-up the wireless subscriber device,

the processor for controlling the transmitter to transmit an emergency connection indicator in response to receiving a network connection rejection.

11. The wireless subscriber device of claim 10, the controller for controlling the transmitter to transmit the emergency connection indicator as a combination of bits indicative of connecting to the network for emergency sessions only.

12. The wireless subscriber device of claim 11, the controller for controlling the transmitter to transmit the emergency connection indicator as one of the following bit combinations:

000;

100;

101;

110; and

111.

13. A method in a wireless communications network, the method comprising:

receiving a network connection request and an invalid subscriber identity from a subscriber device in the network;

transmitting a network connection rejection to the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received in response to receiving the invalid subscriber identity;

receiving a limited connection indicator from the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received in response to transmitting the network connection rejection.

14. The method of claim 13, connecting the subscriber device, from which the invalid subscriber identity was received, to the network for only limited purposes in response to receiving the limited connection indicator from the subscriber device.

15. The method of claim 14,

the limited purpose is for emergency sessions,

maintaining the network connection to the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received after the subscriber device terminates an emergency session.

16. The method of claim 15, paging the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received after termination of the emergency session.

17. The method of claim 13, receiving the emergency connection indicator includes receiving a combination of bits indicating that the network connection is for emergency sessions only.

18. The method of claim 13, receiving the emergency connection indicator includes receiving one of the following bit combinations:

000;

100;

101;

110; and

111.

19. A method in a wireless communications network, the method comprising:

receiving a network connection request from a subscriber device having an invalid subscriber identity;

connecting the subscriber device, from which the network connection request was received, to the wireless communications network for limited purposes upon determining that the subscriber device has in invalid subscriber identity, in the absence of a limited network connection indicator in the network connection request.

20. The method of claim 19,

receiving the network connection request from the subscriber device devoid of an emergency network connection indicator,

connecting the subscriber device, from which the network connection request was received, to the wireless communications network for emergency sessions only upon determining that the subscriber device has in invalid subscriber identity in the absence of an emergency network connection indicator in the network connection request.

21. The method of claim 19,

maintaining the network connection to the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received after the subscriber device terminates an emergency session.

22. The method of claim 20, paging the subscriber device from which the invalid subscriber identity was received after termination of the emergency session.

23. A packet-data network attach request message for transmission from a wireless subscriber device to a wireless communications network, packet-data network attach request message comprising:

a subscriber device identification;

an emergency attach indicator indicating that the attach request is for emergency sessions only,

the emergency attach indicator is one of the following bit combinations;

000;

100;

101;

110; and

111.