Method of supporting multiple service levels in a wireless data network

• US 20050009522A1
• Filed: 07/10/2003
• Published: 01/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Bi, Qi, Yang, Yang, Jiang, Frances, Picot, Carol M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,400,877 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/435.300
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/24 Negotiating SLA [Service Level Agreement]; Negotiating QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

A wireless data network distinguishes among different users connected to the network and associates each user with a service class that offers a selected level of service. The base station in the network queries the user for its unique user identification code and accesses a database linking user identification codes with their corresponding services classes. The network then controls the service level given to that user based on the service class associated with the user identification code. The user identification code can be sent to the network via existing fields in current standards.

Claims

1. A service support method in a wireless data network, comprising:

associating a user identification code with a service class; and

servicing a user according to the service class associated with the user identification code.

2. The service support method of claim 1, wherein the associating step comprises accessing a database containing a plurality of user identification codes and at least one service, wherein each user identification code has one service class associated with it.

3. The service support method of claim 2, wherein the database comprises a plurality of service classes, each service class defining a discrete service level.

4. The service support method of claim 1, wherein the user identification code is permanently associated with the user.

5. The service support method of claim 4, wherein the user identification code is one selected from the group consisting of an electronic serial number (ESN) and an international mobile subscriber ID (IMSI).

6. The service support method of claim 1, further comprising allocating a temporary user identification code to the user when a session with the wireless data network is opened, wherein the temporary user identification code is de-allocated when the session is closed.

7. The service support method of claim 6, wherein the temporary user identification code is a unicast access terminal identifier (UATI).

8. The service support method of claim 1, wherein the service class is a QoS class.

9. A service support method in a wireless data network, comprising:

obtaining a user identification code from a user connecting to the network;

accessing a database containing a plurality of user identification codes and a plurality of QoS classes, each service class defining a discrete QoS level, wherein each user identification code has a corresponding one of said plurality of QoS classes;

obtaining the QoS class associated with the user identification code of the user; and

servicing a user according to the obtained QoS class.

10. The service support method of claim 9, wherein the user identification code is permanently associated with the user.

11. The service support method of claim 10, wherein the user identification code is one selected from the group consisting of an electronic serial number (ESN) and an international mobile subscriber ID (IMSI).

12. The service support method of claim 9, further comprising allocating a temporary user identification code to the user when a session with the wireless data network is opened, wherein the temporary user identification code is de-allocated when the session is closed.

13. The service support method of claim 12, wherein the temporary user identification code is a unicast access terminal identifier (UATI).