Controlling a press-to-talk session using wireless signaling

• US 20050122923A1
• Filed: 12/03/2004
• Published: 06/09/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Li, Jun, Wang, Chung-Ching, Wu, Geng, Jang, Ke-Chi
• Granted Patent: US 7,809,389 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/310
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/10 Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-On-Call services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 Resource management for broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/20 Manipulation of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/45 for Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-to-Talk over cellular [PoC] services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 Inter-networking arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/14 between access point controllers and backbone network device

Abstract

To communicate in a press-to-talk (PTT) session, a message for requesting a right to talk in the PTT session is sent over a wireless link between a mobile station and a base station system. The message for requesting the right to talk in the PTT session is sent in wireless signaling over the wireless link. An acknowledgment of the wireless signaling carrying the message is received, with the acknowledgment sent by the base station system in response to the control signaling. An indication is provided at the mobile station of the right to talk in response to the acknowledgment.

Claims

1. A method of communicating in a press-to-talk session, comprising:

sending a message for requesting a right to talk in the press-to-talk (PTT) session over a wireless link between a mobile station and a base station system,

wherein sending the message for requesting the right to talk in the PTT session comprises sending the message in wireless signaling over the wireless link,

receiving an acknowledgment of the wireless signaling carrying the message;

the acknowledgment having been sent by the base station system in response to the wireless signaling; and

providing an indication at the mobile station of the right to talk in response to the acknowledgment.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message for requesting the right to talk comprises sending a floor control request, the floor control request contained in a block of bits (BLOB) carried by the wireless signaling.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the acknowledgment of the wireless signaling carrying the floor control request occurs prior to the base station system receiving a grant from a PTT server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the acknowledgment comprises receiving a layer 2 acknowledgment in the wireless link,

wherein providing the indication at the mobile station of the right to talk is in response to the layer 2 acknowledgment.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein providing the indication of the right to talk comprises providing an indication of a virtual right to talk.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein receiving the layer 2 acknowledgment comprises receiving a link access control (LAC) acknowledgment,

wherein providing the indication at the mobile station of the right to talk is in response to the LAC acknowledgment.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message for requesting the right to talk in the wireless signaling comprises sending the message requesting the right to talk in a Service Option Control Message, the Service Option Control Message carrying a block of bits containing the message.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message in the wireless signaling comprises sending the message in a data burst over the wireless link, the data burst carrying a block of bits containing the message.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message in the wireless signaling comprises sending the message in layer 2 wireless signaling.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message in the wireless signaling comprises sending the message in layer 3 wireless signaling.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the message in the wireless signaling comprises sending the message in a Signaling Block of Bits Message (SIGBM) over the wireless link.

12. A mobile station comprising:

a talk button;

a processor; and

a press-to-talk (PTT) module executable on the processor to send a floor control request in wireless signaling to a base station system in response to activation of the talk button,

the PTT module to receive an acknowledgment of the wireless signaling from the base station system, and

the PTT module to provide a notification at the mobile station of a right to talk based on the acknowledgment.

13. The mobile station of claim 12, wherein the PTT module is adapted to receive the acknowledgment from the base station system prior to the base station system receiving a message carrying a grant of the floor control request.

14. The mobile station of claim 12, further comprising a protocol interface having an L2 layer, the received acknowledgment being an L2 acknowledgment.

15. The mobile station of claim 14, wherein the L2 layer comprises a link access control (LAC) layer to receive the L2 acknowledgment.

16. An article comprising at least one storage medium containing instructions that when executed cause a mobile station to:

send control signaling of a data service application in the mobile station over a wireless link, the control signaling carried in a wireless control message, wherein the control signaling of the data service application is contained in a block of bits carried in the wireless control message;

receive an acknowledgment, wherein the acknowledgment is of the wireless control message but not of the control signaling of the data service application carried by the wireless control message; and

in response to the acknowledgment, provide an indication to the data service application that the control signaling has been acknowledged.

17. The article of claim 16, wherein sending the control signaling of the data service application comprises sending a floor control request of a press-to-talk (PTT) application.

18. The article of claim 17, wherein receiving the acknowledgment comprises receiving a layer 2 acknowledgment, and wherein providing the indication to the PTT application comprises providing an indication to the PTT application of a virtual right to talk.