Method and System for Providing Information of Related Communication Sessions in Hybrid Telecommunication Networks

• US 20080062966A1
• Filed: 07/28/2005
• Published: 03/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Taori, Rakesh, Hu, Yun, Noldus, Rogier August, den Hartog, Jos
• Granted Patent: US 9,825,780 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways

Abstract

Combinational networks may provide simultaneous connectivity over networks of different network types between user equipment. A communication session, comprising a circuit switched call and one or more packet switched sessions, may be deployed simultaneously over different network types, in relation to the same user equipment. The circuit switched call and the packet switched session can be correlated, in which case the communication session is regarded as a combinational session. By introducing a number of logical databases that contain actual data on network addresses and communication sessions, a correlation check is deployed applied by a correlation node. The check consists of a number of queries towards said databases or to other network entities, yielding whether the communication session is to be regarded as combinational. The result of the check may e.g. be deployed in an on-line combinational charging system.

Claims

1. A method for providing a verification, whether a call at a Circuit Switched network and a related Packet Switched session at a Packet Switched network are combinational, within a telecommunications system comprising said at least two networks of at least two different network types, where the networks are connecting at least a first user equipment and a network entity, where the first user equipment and the network entity have connections to at least two of the networks the connections each associated with a network address, the method comprising the steps of:

establishing a presence of the call at the Circuit Switched network and the session at the Packet Switched network, between the first user equipment and the network entity, the call and the session being present simultaneously

performing a real-time combinational check verifying where it is verified that the call and the session originate at the first user equipment and terminate at the network entity;

providing at least one subsystem with the verification of the performed combinational check.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the establishing step further comprises:

retrieving the first user equipment'"'"'s network address of a Circuit Switched network type;

retrieving a network address of the Circuit Switched network type of the network entity that has the call with the first user equipment via the Circuit Switched network;

verifying the presence of the call;

retrieving the first user equipment'"'"'s network address of a Packet Switched network type;

retrieving a network address of the Packet Switched network type of the network entity that has the session with the first user equipment via the network of the Packet Switched network type;

verifying the presence of the session.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the retrieving steps and the verifying steps are performed for each of the networks that are connected to the first user equipment and the network entity.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the retrieving steps are performed by querying network elements having database capabilities or a mediator unit representing said network entities.

5. The method according to claim 2 wherein at least one retrieving step is performed by querying the first user equipment or the network entity, for a network address of the Circuit Switched network type via the packet switched network.

6. The method according to claim 2 wherein the verification step is performed by querying the first user equipment, the network entity, the network elements or the mediator unit for a parameter, representing involvement in a communication session, of the first user equipment or the network entity.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein the performing step of the real-time combinational check comprises the further steps of:

Verifying that the Packet Switched network address and the Circuit Switched network address of the first User Equipment terminate in the same User Equipment or are deployed by a same subscriber in a split-terminal environment;

Verifying that the Packet Switched network address and the Circuit Switched network address of the network entity terminate in the same User Equipment or are deployed by a same subscriber in a split-terminal environment; and

Verifying that a media connection, as used by the Packet Switched session, terminates at Internet Protocol addresses currently associated with the respective Packet Switched network addresses.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein at the performing step the call and the session are regarded combinational when a communication session correlation detection node or a communication session correlation detection service provides a parameter, representing correlation between the call and the session.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein at the performing step the call and the session are regarded combinational when an application at the first user equipment provides a parameter, representing correlation between the call and the session.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the providing step is performed by request of the subsystem, on events generated by the first user equipment or the network entity, or on regular intervals.

11. The method according to claim 1 wherein the providing step further comprises a step of provisioning the network addresses of the first user equipment or network entity, that are involved in the real-time combinational check.

12. The method according to claim 1 wherein the network entity is a second user equipment or a network service node such as a content server.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first or the second user equipment comprises a terminal, with at least one connection to each connected network where each of said connections has a network address, such as a Dual Transfer Mode (DTM) terminal, a Global System for Mobile communications—

General Packet Radio System (GSM-GPRS) terminal or a Universal Mobile Telecommunication System Multi Radio Access Bearer (UMTS Multi-RAB) terminal.

14. The method according to claim 1, the first or the second user equipment comprising two or more terminals where each of the terminals has at least one connection to each connected network and each of said connections has a network address.

15. The method according to claim 14 wherein the terminals are capable of deploying a communication session such as speech, audio, video, or data, by means of a device such as a telephone, headset, Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) terminal, Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) or Digital AMPS (D-AMPS) terminal, Digital Enhanced Cordless Telephony (DECT) terminal, Bluetooth terminal, Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS) terminal, video terminal. Personal Computer (PC) or workstation.

16. The method according to claim 13 where the terminal has a wire-line connection to the network or a wireless connection to the network.

17. The method according to claim 1 wherein the network address is a telephone subscriber number such as Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) number, a Public Switched Telecommunications Network (PSTN) number, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) private number, or a number according to a E.164 International Telecommunication Union (ITU) recommendation.

18. The method according to claim 1 wherein the network address is a PS network identifier or number such as SIP Uniform Resource Indicator (URI), an Internet Protocol (IP) address, or a Local Area Network (LAN) Media Access Control (MAC) layer address such as an Ethernet MAC address.

19. The method according to claim 4 wherein the network element provides the database capability or the mediator unit provides a relation between a SIP-URI and an IP address.

20. The method according to claim 4 wherein the network element provides the database capability or the mediator unit provides a relation between a MSISDN. PSTN or VPN number, and an IP address.

21. The method according to claim 4 wherein the network element provides the database capability or the mediator unit provides information, such as a CAMELBusy parameter, whether the call between the first user equipment and the network entity is ongoing.

22. The method according to claim 4 any wherein the network element provides the or the mediator unit provides information whether the Packet Switched session between the first user equipment and the network entity, such as an IP multimedia subsystem session, is ongoing.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein the determined combinational check and the network addresses are provided to a charging subsystem, so as to apply a discount in charging two or more of the related simultaneous call and session.

24. The method according to claim 1 wherein the determined combinational check and the network addresses are provided to an authentication subsystem, so as to have the authentication subsystem provide a single sign-on procedure for additional communication sessions.

25. A network node in a telecommunication system, the node arranged for providing a verification, whether a call at a Circuit Switched network and a related Packet Switched session at a Packet Switched network are combinational, wherein the telecommunication system comprises at least said two networks, each network being of a different type where the networks are connected to at least a first user equipment and a network entity, where the first user equipment and the network entity have network connections, each associated with a network address, to the networks, wherein the node comprises an Input Output (I/O) unit communicatively connected to the networks, by means of network connections each connection having a network address, a processing unit with application program- and parameter-memory for querying network elements having database capabilities or a mediator unit representing said network elements, where the I/O unit in cooperation with the processing unit is arranged for establishing the presence of the call and the session being present simultaneously at each of the networks, between the first user equipment and the network entity, the call and the session being present the different network types,

the network node being adapted for performing a real-time combinational check where it is verified that the call and the session originate at the first user equipment and terminate at the network entity, and

where a verification of the performed combinational check is provided to at least one subsystem.

26. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the I/O unit is adapted for retrieving network addresses of the first user equipment or the network entity via the networks.

27. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the processing unit with application program and parameter memory, is further adapted for querying the first user equipment, a communication session correlation detection node, a communication session correlation detection service via said correlation detection node or the network entity, for verifying the presence of the simultaneous call and session.

28. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the node further comprises a timer unit for determining events when the subsystem is to be provided with the verification.

29. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the node further comprises an event unit, arranged for activating the processing unit so as to provide the subsystem with the verification, when an event is received from the first user equipment or the network entity.

30. The network node according to claim 29, wherein the event unit is further arranged for activating the processing unit so as to provide the subsystem with the requested verification, when a request for the verification is received from the subsystem.

31. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the network address is a telephone subscriber number such as Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) number, a Public Switched Telecommunications Network (PSTN) number, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) private number, or a number according to a E.164 International Telecommunication Union (ITU) recommendation.

32. The network node according to claim 25, wherein the network address is a PS network identifier or number such as SIP Uniform Resource Indicator (URI), Local Area Network (LAN) Media Access Control (MAC) layer such as an Ethernet MAC, or Internet Protocol (IP) address.