Wireless communication method and system for establishing a multimedia message service over a WLAN

• US 20070280190A1
• Filed: 08/08/2007
• Published: 12/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Interdigital Technology Corporation (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Interdigital Technology Corporation (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Shaheen, Kamel
• Granted Patent: US 8,068,862 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/02 Processing of mobility data, e.g. registration information at HLR [Home Location Register] or VLR [Visitor Location Register]; Transfer of mobility data, e.g. between HLR, VLR or external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/042 Public Land Mobile systems, e.g. cellular systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/184 Messaging devices, e.g. message centre

Abstract

A wireless communication system for supporting multimedia services (MMS) provided to a user of a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) which communicates with the wireless communication system. The wireless communication system includes a third generation partnership program (3GPP) universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), a wireless local area network (WLAN) and an MMS server. The MMS server stores at least one MMS message for the WTRU in a memory until the WTRU retrieves the message. The 3GPP UMTS includes an internet protocol short message gateway (IP-SM-GW) having a short message service (SMS) proxy. The WTRU is registered with the SMS proxy to establish SMS connectivity, and is also registered with the MMS server to establish MMS connectivity. The WTRU is notified when the MMS server receives an MMS message for the WTRU. The WTRU then retrieves the MMS message from the memory of the MMS server.

Claims

1. In a wireless communication system including a packet data gateway (PDG), an authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA) server, a home location register (HLR)/home subscriber server (HSS) that is in communication with the PDG and the AAA server, a short message service (SMS) switching center, an Internet Protocol short message gateway (IP-SM-GW) having an SMS proxy platform that is in communication with the PDG, a multimedia service (MMS) server having a memory, and a wireless local area network (WLAN) that is in communication with the PDG, a method of supporting an MMS provided to a user of a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) that communicates with the wireless communication system, the method comprising:

(a) the MMS server sending an SMS message to the SMS switching center when the MMS server receives a new MMS message;

(b) the SMS switching center retrieving information including at least one of an IP address and the address of the IP-SM-GW from at least one of the HLR/HSS and the AAA server; and

(c) the SMS switching center routing the SMS message to the WTRU via the IP-SM-GW, the PDG and the WLAN using the retrieved information.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

(d) the WTRU retrieving the MMS message from the memory of the MMS server.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

(d) establishing an SMS connection through the WTRU, the WLAN and the PDG;

(e) registering the WTRU with the SMS proxy platform to establish SMS connectivity; and

(f) registering the WTRU with the MMS server to establish MMS connectivity.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising providing a user telephone number associated with the WTRU to the MMS server to register the WTRU with the MMS server.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the SMS message notifies the user of the WTRU that there is an MMS message waiting to be retrieved from the memory of the MMS server.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising establishing an MMS tunnel connection between the WTRU and the WLAN.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the SMS switching center is an SMS gateway mobile switching center (SMS-GMSC)/SMS-interworking mobile switching center (MSC) (SMS-IWMSC).

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the wireless communication system further comprises an SMS service center (SMS-SC) which is in communication with the SMS-GMSC/SMS-IWMSC, the method further comprising:

(i) the SMS-GMSC/SMS-IWMSC forwarding short messages received from the WTRU to the SMS-SC.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the WTRU receives SMS services via the WLAN.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the WTRU receives MMS services via the WLAN.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the IP address is a PDG/SMS server address.

12. A wireless communication system for supporting a multimedia service (MMS) provided to a user of a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) that communicates with the wireless communication system, the system comprising:

(a) a packet data gateway (PDG);

(b) an authentication, authorization and accounting (AAA) server;

(c) a home location register (HLR)/home subscriber server (HSS) that is in communication with the PDG and the AAA server;

(d) a short message service (SMS) switching center;

(e) an Internet Protocol short message gateway (IP-SM-GW) having an SMS proxy platform that is in communication with the PDG;

(f) a wireless local area network (WLAN) that is in communication with the PDG; and

(g) an MMS server having a memory, wherein the MMS server sends an SMS message to the SMS switching center when the MMS server receives a new MMS message, the SMS switching center retrieves information including at least one of an IP address and the address of the IP-SM-GW from at least one of the HLR/HSS and the AAA server, and the SMS switching center routes the SMS message to the WTRU via the IP-SM-GW, the PDG and the WLAN using the retrieved information.

13. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein an SMS connection is established through the WTRU, the WLAN and the PDG, the WTRU registers with the SMS proxy platform to establish SMS connectivity and the WTRU registers with the MMS server to establish MMS connectivity.

14. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the WTRU retrieves the MMS message from the memory of the MMS server.

15. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein a user telephone number associated with the WTRU is provided to the MMS server to register the WTRU with the MMS server.

16. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the SMS message notifies the user of the WTRU that there is an MMS message waiting to be retrieved from the memory of the MMS server.

17. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein an MMS tunnel connection is established between the WTRU and the WLAN.

18. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the SMS switching center is an SMS gateway mobile switching center (SMS-GMSC)/SMS-interworking mobile switching center (MSC) (SMS-IWMSC).

19. The wireless communication system of claim 18 further comprising:

(h) an SMS service center (SMS-SC) which is in communication with the SMS-GMSC/SMS-IWMSC, wherein the SMS-GMSC/SMS-IWMSC forwards short messages received from the WTRU to the SMS-SC.

20. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the WTRU receives SMS services via the WLAN.

21. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the WTRU receives MMS services via the WLAN.

22. The wireless communication system of claim 12 wherein the IP address is a PDG/SMS server address.

23. In a wireless communication system including a packet data gateway (PDG), a home location register (HLR), an SMS service center (SMS-SC), a short message service (SMS) switching center, an Internet Protocol short message gateway (IP-SM-GW) having an SMS proxy platform that is in communication with the PDG, a multimedia service (MMS) server having a memory, and a wireless local area network (WLAN) that is in communication with the PDG, a method of supporting an MMS provided to a user of a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) that communicates with the wireless communication system, the method comprising:

(a) the MMS server sending an SMS message including a telephone number associated with the WTRU to the SMS switching center via the SMS-SC when the MMS server receives a new MMS message;

(b) the SMS switching center retrieving routing information from the HLR; and

(c) routing the SMS message to the WTRU via the IP-SM-GW, the PDG and the WLAN using the retrieved routing information.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the routing information includes at least one of a PDG/SMS server address and the address of the IP-SM-GW.

25. In a wireless communication system including a packet data gateway (PDG), a home location register (HLR), an SMS service center (SMS-SC), a short message service (SMS) switching center, an Internet Protocol short message gateway (IP-SM-GW) having an SMS proxy platform that is in communication with the PDG, a multimedia service (MMS) server having a memory, and a wireless local area network (WLAN) that is in communication with the PDG, a method of supporting an MMS provided to a user of a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) that communicates with the wireless communication system, the method comprising:

(a) the MMS server sending an SMS message including the IP address associated with the WTRU to the SMS switching center via the SMS-SC when the MMS server receives a new MMS message;

(b) the SMS switching center retrieving routing information from the HLR; and

(c) routing the SMS message to the WTRU via the IP-SM-GW, the PDG and the WLAN using the retrieved routing information.

26. The system of claim 25 wherein the routing information includes at least one of a PDG/SMS server address and the address of the IP-SM-GW.