METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR LOCALISING USERS FOR SERVICES BASED ON SIP OR H.323 PROTOCOLS WITH DYNAMIC IP ADDRESS ALLOCATION

• US 20090034536A1
• Filed: 08/18/2005
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Orange S.A.
• Original Assignee: Orange S.A.
• Inventors: Delmond, Frederic, Morand, Lionel
• Granted Patent: US 8,374,187 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/400
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5014 using dynamic host configuration protocol [DHCP] or bootstrap protocol [BOOTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42348 Location-based services which utilize the location information of a target
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42357 where the information is provided to a monitoring entity such as a potential calling party or a call processing server
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

The aim of the invention is to localise a terminal (10) when accessing an IP service (15), by means of an access network (1, 2). To this end, a method for allocating an IP address to the terminal (10) is carried out, a database (8) memorises the IP address allocated to the terminal (10) in association with a terminal or user identifier and an identifier of an access point wherein the terminal accesses the access network (1, 2), the access point being associated with localisation information, and the database transmits the localisation information associated with the identifier of the terminal or the user to the service.

Claims

1. Method for enabling a user terminal to be located by an IP service to which the terminal can acquire access via an access network comprising:

the execution of a procedure for allocating an IP address to the terminal, during which an IP address is assigned to the terminal,

characterized in that a database

stores the IP address assigned to the terminal, in association with a terminal or user identifier and an identifier for a point of access of the terminal to the access network, the point of access being associated with location information, and

transmits to the service the location information associated with the terminal or user identifier.

2. Method of claim 1, wherein, when the terminal sends an IP address request message to the address server, it inserts the terminal or user identifier into said IP address request message.

3. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein, when the terminal sends an IP address request message to an address server, via an access server,

the access server inserts the point of access identifier into said IP address request message.

4. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein

when the terminal accesses the service under a user identifier for the service, the database stores the user identifier for the service in association with the information already associated with the terminal or user identifier, and

the service obtains the location information for the terminal from the user identifier for the service.

5. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service is automatically notified of the location information for the terminal in the event of a change in the database.

6. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the terminal or user identifier is a random number generated by the terminal.

7. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the database obtains the location information for the terminal from an information system of a. network access and IP transport network operator, with the aid of the point of access identifier.

8. Database, accessible to at least one IP service for locating a user terminal connected to an IP transport network via an access network, designed to:

store, for a given user terminal, an IP address assigned to the terminal in association with a terminal or user identifier and an identifier for a point of access of the terminal to the access network, the point of access being associated with location information for the terminal, and

transmit to the service location information associated with the terminal or user identifier.

9. Database of claim 8, designed to send a user location request to an information system of an access and IP transport network operator, said request containing an identifier for the point of access through which the terminal is connected to the access network.

10. IP address server for an IP transport network to which at least one access network is connected, comprising means for assigning an IP address to the terminal in order for it access the IP transport network, and means for receiving an IP address request sent by the terminal during it access to an IP service, characterized in that it comprises:

means for extracting from the IP address request an identifier for the terminal and an identifier for the point of access of the terminal to the access network, and

means for updating a database with said information extracted from the IP address request, in association with an IP address assigned to the terminal.

11. Access server intended to be connected to an access network and to an IP transport network in order to enable a terminal to access an IP service via the access network and the transport network, the access server comprising means for receiving and forwarding to an IP address server an IP address request sent by a user terminal, characterized in that it comprises means for inserting into the IP address request received an identifier for the point of access of the terminal to the access network, prior to forwarding the request to the IP address server.

12. Terminal for accessing at least one IP service via an access network and an IP transport network, including means for sending an IP address request to an IP address server, characterized in that it includes means for inserting into said request a terminal or user identifier.

13. Terminal of claim 12, wherein it is provided with means for generating a random number used as the terminal identifier.