METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IMPLEMENTING MULTIMEDIA BROADCAST/MULTICAST SERVICE

• US 20070293249A1
• Filed: 06/18/2007
• Published: 12/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Wang, Rui
• Granted Patent: US 8,521,196 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/00 Hand-off or reselection arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0007 for multicast or broadcast services, e.g. MBMS multicast or broadcast application services H04W4/06; resource management for broadcast services H04W72/30; connection management for selective distribution or broadcast H04W76/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 Resource management for broadcast services

Abstract

A method and a system for implementing MBMS. According to embodiments of the present invention, the MBMS are born on different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers; each multimedia broadcast multicast bearers corresponds to a multimedia broadcast multicast area; an association relationship between the different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers of MBMS of a same type is set at a network side; when the UE switches between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas, the network side provides the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently according to the association relationship between the multimedia broadcast multicast bearers corresponding to the MBMS request by the UE. The method and the system in accordance with the present invention can support MBMS better.

Claims

1. A method for implementing Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service MBMS, wherein MBMS are born on different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers, and each multimedia broadcast multicast bearer corresponds to a multimedia broadcast multicast area respectively, comprising:

establishing an association relationship between different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers associated with MBMS of a same type at a network side; and

in response to a User Equipment UE switching between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas, the network side providing the UE with a multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of a multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently, according to the association relationship between different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers corresponding to the MBMS requested by the UE.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of establishing the association relationship between different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers associated with MBMS of a same type comprises:

making the different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers correspond to a same service ID;

or

using different service IDs to identify the different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers, and setting the service IDs as equivalence.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the process of making the different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers correspond to the same service ID comprises:

setting in a Broadcast Multicast-Service Center BM-SC a multimedia broadcast multicast service management table, recording a corresponding relationship among a service ID, at least one local multimedia broadcast multicast area, and at least one multimedia multicast address, wherein one local multimedia broadcast multicast area and one multicast address correspond to one multimedia broadcast multicast bearer.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the process of using the different service IDs to identify the different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers and setting the service IDs as the equivalence comprises:

setting in a Broadcast Multicast-Service Center BM-SC a multimedia broadcast multicast service management table, recording the corresponding relationship among a service ID, a local multimedia broadcast multicast area and a multimedia multicast address, and recording an equivalence relationship between different service IDs.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multicast broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently if the UE switches between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas comprises:

the UE receiving a service announcement at a first local multimedia broadcast multicast area and acquiring a first multicast address corresponding to a first local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

before initiating an MBMS registration, the UE switching to a second local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

the UE using the first multicast address to initiate an MBMS registration at the second multimedia multicast address; and

the network side acquiring the location information of the UE, acquiring a second multicast address corresponding to the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area by inquiring an MBMS management table, and establishing an MBMS Context according to the second multimedia multicast address.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the process of the UE initiating an MBMS registration, and the network side acquiring the second multicast address comprises:

the UE sending an MBMS registration request to a Mobility Management Entity MME;

the MME triggering a Broadcast Multicast-Service Center BM-SC to authorize the UE;

after the UE is authorized, the BM-SC sending a service ID corresponding to the first multicast address to the MME; and

the MME establishing an MBMS UE Context with the UE, acquiring the location information of the UE, and acquiring the second multicast address of the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area by inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table according to the service ID and the location information of the UE.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of the UE switches between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the network side providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multicast broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently comprises:

the UE completing an MBMS registration at a first local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

before the MBMS stops, the UE switching to a second local multimedia broadcast multicast area, and submitting to the network side its location information; and

the network side acquiring a second multicast address corresponding to the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area by inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table, and establishing an MBMS Context at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area according to the second multimedia multicast address.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the process of the UE submitting its location information and the network side acquiring the second multicast address comprises:

the UE sending to the network side the switching request, submitting its location information, ID information and original MME information; and

the network side acquiring the MBMS UE Context of the UE from the original MME according to the original MME information and the ID information of the UE, acquiring a service ID from the MBMS UE Context, and acquiring the second multicast address corresponding to the second multimedia broadcast multicast area by inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table according to the service ID and the location information of the UE.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the process of establishing the MBMS Context comprises:

determining whether there are other subscribers applying the MBMS of the type at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

if there are other users applying the MBMS, updating the MBMS UE Context according to the second multimedia multicast address;

if the UE is the first subscriber applying the MBMS of the type at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area, updating the MBMS UE Context according to the second multimedia multicast address, and establishing an MBMS Bearer Context.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the process of establishing the MBMS Context comprises:

determining whether there are other subscribers applying the MBMS of the type at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

if there are other users applying the MBMS, updating the MBMS UE Context according to the second multimedia multicast address;

if the UE is the first subscriber applying the MBMS of the type at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area, updating the MBMS UE Context according to the second multimedia multicast address, and establishing an MBMS Bearer Context.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table records the local multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the multimedia multicast addresses using a same service ID;

the process of inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table and acquiring the second multicast address comprises;

the MME sending the location information of the UE and the service ID to the BM-SC; and

the BM-SC returning the multicast address corresponding to the location information.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table records the local multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the multimedia multicast addresses using a same service ID;

the process of inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table and acquiring the second multicast address comprises;

the MME sending the location information of the UE and the service ID to the BM-SC; and

the BM-SC returning the multicast address corresponding to the location information.

13. The method of claim 5, wherein the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table records the corresponding relationship among the service IDs, the local multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the multimedia multicast addresses, and records the equivalence relationship between different service IDs as well;

the process of inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table and acquiring the second multicast address comprises;

the MME sending the location information of the UE and the first service ID to the BM-SC to request a service ID of the equivalence multimedia broadcast multicast bearers;

the BM-SC inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table according to the location information of the UE, determining a second service ID equivalent to the first service ID, and sending a record item of the second service ID to the MME, wherein the record item comprises the local multimedia broadcast multicast area and the multicast address corresponding to the second service ID.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table records the corresponding relationship among the service IDs, the local multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the multimedia multicast addresses, and records the equivalence relationship between different service IDs as well;

the process of inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table and acquiring the second multicast address comprises;

the MME sending the location information of the UE and the first service ID to the BM-SC to request a service ID of the equivalence multimedia broadcast multicast bearers;

the BM-SC inquiring the multimedia broadcast multicast service management table according to the location information of the UE, determining a second service ID equivalent to the first service ID, and sending a record item of the second service ID to the MME, wherein the record item comprises the local multimedia broadcast multicast area and the multicast address corresponding to the second service ID.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

setting a service area list at an MME, wherein the service area list records a corresponding relationship among a multimedia multicast address, a local multimedia broadcast multicast areas and equivalent multimedia multicast addresses.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the process of the UE switching between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the network providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multicast broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently comprises:

when the UE switches between different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers, the MME inquiring the service area list according to the location information of the UE and a first multicast address to determine a second multicast address corresponding to the location information of the UE, and establishing or updating an MBMS UE Context according to the second multimedia multicast address.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

in response to there being no record items corresponding to the first multicast address in the service area list, the MME requesting an BM-SC for an equivalence multimedia multicast address corresponding to the first multimedia multicast address;

the BM-SC sending information of the equivalence multicast address and the local multimedia broadcast multicast area to the MME; and

the MME recording the first multimedia multicast address, the local multimedia broadcast multicast areas corresponding to the first multicast address and the equivalence multicast address in the service area list.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

the BM-SC sending the corresponding relationship among the multimedia multicast address, the local multimedia broadcast multicast area and the equivalence multicast address to the MME; and

the MME recording the corresponding relationship in the service area list.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

if the local multimedia broadcast multicast area where the MBMS is provided is updated, the BM-SC sending to the MME a service area updating message; and

the MME updating the service area list.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently comprises:

establishing or updating an MBMS Context; and

establishing a multimedia broadcast multicast bearer at the local multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is currently located according to the established or updated MBMS Context, and providing the UE with the MBMS.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

when the MBMS stops, the network side removing the corresponding multimedia broadcast multicast bearer.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the network side makes different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers correspond to a same service ID, and the process of removing the corresponding multimedia broadcast multicast bearer comprises:

removing the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer, and determining whether there are any other multimedia broadcast multicast bearers in the MBMS Bearer Context used by the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer;

if there are no other multimedia broadcast multicast bearers in the MBMS Bearer Context, deleting the MBMS Bearer Context.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of the UE switching between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the network providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently comprises:

the UE moving from a first Local broadcast area to a second Local broadcast area, determining that the second Local broadcast area uses a second broadcast bearer, determining whether the second broadcast bearer and the first broadcast bearer used in the first Local broadcast area are associated; and

if the second broadcast bearer and the first broadcast bearer used in the first Local broadcast area are associated, submitting to the eNodeB a response message; and

the eNodeB providing the UE with broadcast services through the second broadcast bearer in an enhanced broadcast manner.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein the process of the UE switching between different multimedia broadcast multicast areas and the network providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multicast broadcast multicast area where the UE is located currently comprises:

the UE moving from a first Local broadcast area to a second Local broadcast area, and requesting to acquire the broadcast service through a first broadcast bearer;

the network side inquiring a broadcast service management table according to an ID of the first broadcast bearer, determining whether a second broadcast bearer of a second Local broadcast area is associated with the first broadcast bearer;

if the second broadcast bearer of the second Local broadcast area is associated with the first broadcast bearer, providing the UE with the broadcast services through the second broadcast bearer in an enhanced broadcast manner.

25. A system for implementing Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service MBMS, comprising:

at least one User Equipment UE receiving MBMS, and switching between different MBMS service areas;

a first network unit for establishing an association relationship between different MBMS bearers of MBMS of a same type, wherein the MBMS of the type are born on different MBMS bearers, and each MBMS bearer corresponds to one MBMS service area; and

a second network unit for providing the UE with the multimedia broadcast multicast bearer of the multimedia broadcast multicast area where the UE is located, according to the association relationship between different multimedia broadcast multicast bearers corresponding to the MBMS requested by the UE.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein

the UE is configured to receive a service announcement from a first local multimedia broadcast multicast area, acquire a first multicast address corresponding to the first local multimedia broadcast multicast area, switch to a second Local multimedia broadcast multimedia area before initiating an MBMS registration, and initiate, with the first multicast address, an MBMS registration at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area;

and

the second network unit is configured to acquire location information of the UE, inquire an MBMS management table to acquire a second multicast address corresponding to the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area, and establish an MBMS Context according to the second multimedia multicast address.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein

the UE is configured to complete an MBMS registration at a first local multimedia broadcast multicast area, switch to a second local multimedia broadcast multicast area before the MBMS stops, and submit location information of the UE to a network side;

and

the second network unit is configured to inquire an MBMS management table according to location information of the UE to acquire a second multicast address corresponding to the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area, and establish an MBMS Context at the second local multimedia broadcast multicast area according to the second multimedia multicast address.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein the MBMS management table is stored in the first network unit.

29. The system of claim 27, wherein the MBMS management table is stored in the first network unit.

30. The system of claim 25, wherein the first network unit is a BM-SC, and the second network unit is an MME.

31. The system of claim 25, wherein the first network unit is an MME, and the second network unit is an eNodeB.