COMMUNICATION NETWORK UNIT AND METHOD FOR EXCHANGING CAPABILITY INFORMATION

• US 20080219223A1
• Filed: 03/08/2007
• Published: 09/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Inventors: Schwagmann, Norbert, Bienas, Maik, van Niekerk, Sabine, Luft, Achim
• Granted Patent: US 8,010,093 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4053 without floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0072 Speech codec negotiation H04L65/1069 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data

Abstract

A communication network unit having a memory for storing, for each communication terminal of a plurality of first communication terminals which are each associated with a same user identification, information about communication capabilities of the respective communication terminals a determining unit for determining which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification based on the information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminals, and a signaling unit for signaling to a second communication terminal which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification.

Claims

1. A communication network unit comprising:

a memory configured to store, for each communication terminal of a plurality of first communication terminals which are each associated with a same user identification, information about communication capabilities of the respective communication terminals;

a determining unit configured to determine which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification based on the information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminals; and

a signaling unit configured to signal to a second communication terminal which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification.

2. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of first communication terminals signal their communication capabilities to the communication network unit.

3. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein a communication connection is established between a first communication terminal of the plurality of first communication terminals and the second communication terminal, and the determining unit is further configured to determine which communication capabilities of the first communication terminal can be used for communicating with the second communication terminal and to determine which of the communication capabilities of the other communication terminals of the plurality of first communication terminals can be used for communicating with the second communication terminal.

4. The communication network unit according to claim 3, wherein the signaling unit is further configured to signal to the second communication terminal the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal that can be used for communicating with the second communication terminal as being available and to signal the communication capabilities of the other communication terminals of the plurality of first communication terminals that can be used for communicating with the second communication terminal as being conditionally available.

5. The communication network unit according to claim 3, further comprising another signaling unit configured to notify communication terminals of the plurality of first communication terminals about the communication connection between the first communication terminal of the plurality of first communication terminals and the second communication terminal.

6. The communication network unit according to claim 5, wherein the other signaling unit is further configured to notify those communication terminals of the plurality of first communication terminals, which have communication capabilities that can be used for communication with the second communication terminal, about the communication connection between the first communication terminal of the plurality of first communication terminals and the second communication terminal.

7. The communication network unit according to claim 5, wherein at least one of the communication terminals of the communication terminals that are being notified about the communication connection comprises a reporting unit configured to inform the user about the communication connection.

8. The communication network unit according to claim 7, wherein the reporting unit is further configured to inform the user about communication capabilities of the at least one other communication terminal that can be used for communicating with the second communication terminal.

9. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein the signaling unit is further configured to signal the communication capabilities using a call control protocol.

10. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the communication terminals signaling information about its communication capabilities uses a call control protocol.

11. The communication network unit according to claim 10, wherein at least one of the communication terminals uses another protocol for sending and receiving control information, and the communication network further comprises a converting unit configured to convert messages according to the other protocol to the call control protocol and configured to convert messages according to the call control protocol to the other protocol.

12. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein the signaling unit is further configured to signal the communication capabilities using the SIP protocol.

13. The communication network unit according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the communication terminals signals information about its communication capabilities using the SIP protocol.

14. The communication network unit according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the communication terminals uses another protocol for sending and receiving control information, and the communication network further comprises a converting unit configured to convert messages according to the other protocol to the SIP protocol and to convert messages according to the SIP protocol to the other protocol.

18. The communication network unit according to claim 13, wherein the message is generated according to a call control protocol.

19. The communication network unit according to claim 18, wherein the message is generated according to the SIP protocol.

15. A method for exchanging communication capabilities, comprising:

storing, for each communication terminal of a plurality of first communication terminals which are each associated with a same user identification, information about communication capabilities of the respective communication terminals;

determining which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification based on the information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminals; and

signaling to a second communication terminal which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification.

16. A communication network unit comprising:

a memory configured to store first information about the communication capabilities of a first communication terminal and to store information about the communication capabilities of a second communication terminal;

a processing unit configured to generate second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal using the first information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal and to take into account the information about the communication capabilities of the second communication terminal;

a message generating unit configured to generate a message comprising the second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal; and

a transmitting unit configured to transmit the message to the second communication terminal.

17. The communication network unit according to claim 16, wherein the second information specifies communication capabilities of the first communication terminal that can be used by the second communication terminal for communicating with the first communication terminal.

20. A method for exchanging capability information, comprising:

storing first information about the communication capabilities of a first communication terminal and storing information about the communication capabilities of a second communication terminal;

generating second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal using the first information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal and taking into account the information about the communication capabilities of the second communication terminal;

generating a message comprising the second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal; and

transmitting the message to the second communication terminal.

21. A computer program having a program code for performing a method for exchanging communication capabilities, comprising the steps of:

(a) storing, for each communication terminal of a plurality of first communication terminals which are each associated with a same user identification, information about communication capabilities of the respective communication terminals;

(b) determining which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification based on the information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminals; and

(c) signaling to a second communication terminal which communication capabilities can be used for communicating with the user identified by the user identification, when the computer program runs on a computer.

22. A computer program having a program code for exchanging capability information, comprising the steps of:

(a) storing first information about the communication capabilities of a first communication terminal and storing information about the communication capabilities of a second communication terminal;

(b) generating second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal using the first information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal and taking into account the information about the communication capabilities of the second communication terminal;

(c) generating a message comprising the second information about the communication capabilities of the first communication terminal; and

(d) transmitting the message to the second communication terminal, when the computer program runs on a computer.