System and Method for SMS/IP Interoperability

• US 20090049202A1
• Filed: 11/09/2007
• Published: 02/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Flash Networks, Ltd. (Constellation Software Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Mobixell Networks Incorporated (Constellation Software Incorporated)
• Inventors: Zink, Roland, Pattison, Ian McLean
• Granted Patent: US 8,327,024 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/249
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/55 for hybrid networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/57 for integrated multimedia messaging subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2046 Hybrid network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/208 IMS, i.e. Integrated Multimedia messaging Subsystem
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/44 Charging/billing arrangements for connection made over different networks, e.g. wireless and PSTN, ISDN, etc.
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1205 where the types of switching equipement comprises PSTN/ISDN equipment and switching equipment of networks other than PSTN/ISDN, e.g. Internet Protocol networks
• 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 4/16 Communication-related supplementary services, e.g. call-transfer or call-hold

Abstract

Systems and methods for interoperability are disclosed which allow for a user of one network to communicate seamlessly with a user of another network. Users are provided seamless access to data services in different networks without having to subscribe to those networks. In one embodiment an application bridge comprising an application server may be used to service communications while a billing bridge may be provided to control and charge network subscribers. In one embodiment a user in a SMS domain may communicate with a user in an IP domain. In one embodiment, a platform may register with a federated interface of an IM domain to enable non-IM users to communicate with IM users.

Claims

1. A system for interoperability between a first network communicating according to a first protocol and a second network communicating according to a second protocol, the system comprising:

a Home Location Register (HLR) Proxy for intercepting SRI_For_SM requests sent from a SMSC in a first network intended for a HLR in a second network and returning to the SMSC a response having address information;

a Message Switching Center (MSC) Proxy associated with the address information returned to the SMSC and configured for receiving a message from the SMSC;

an adapter configured to normalize a first communication received from the first network into a network-independent format;

a bridge comprising;

an application layer comprising logic for determining a second communication valid for the second network; and

a component layer having services with associated functionality and accessible to the application layer,

wherein the application bridge is configured to inspect the normalized first communication and to generate a second communication for the second network using one or more components based on the normalized first communication; and

one or more messaging emulators for sending the second communication to the second network

2. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more of the one or more messaging emulators comprises an IP messaging emulator configured to generate the second communication for an IP network, wherein the IP messaging emulator is configured to send the second communication to a user in the second network based on address information returned by the HLR proxy.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the IP messaging emulator is configured to receive an IP message from the address in the IP network, wherein the-adapter is configured to normalize the IP message into a network-independent format and the application bridge is configured to inspect the normalized IP message and generate a third communication for the first network using one or more components based on the normalized IP message and send the third communication to the first network.

4. The system of claim 3, comprising:

an SMSC emulator configured to send a request to a HLR in the first network, receive a response from the HLR in the first network, and forward the third communication to a current Message Switching Center (MSC) in the first network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the bridge comprises an application bridge.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the bridge comprises a network bridge.

7. A method for providing interoperability between networks, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a request for address information, by a Home Location Register (HLR) Proxy, from a first network which communicates according to a first protocol;

responding to the request with address information for a Message Switching Center (MSC) Proxy;

receiving a first communication from the first network, by the MSC Proxy;

normalizing the first communication;

routing the normalized first communication to an application server comprising

an application layer having application logic for generating an appropriate second communication, and

a component layer having services with selected functionality and accessible to the application layer,

wherein the application server is configured to generate the second communication for a second network which communicates according to a second protocol based on the normalized first communication;

receiving the second communication from the application server

sending the second communication to an emulator; and

;

routing the second communication to the second network which communicates according to a second protocol.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of receiving a message from a first network comprises the step of

receiving an SMS message, and wherein sending the second communication to an emulator comprises the steps of

mapping the identities of the user in the first network and the user in the second network from MSISDNs to Internet Protocol (IP) identities;

and

sending an IP message to the IP messaging emulator.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising the steps of:

registering with an IP domain on behalf of one or more users of the IP domain, wherein messages sent by the one or more users of the IP domain are received by an IP messaging emulator.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising the steps of:

receiving presence update information about one or more users from an IP domain, and

registering with the IP domain on behalf of one or more users based on the presence update information received from the IP domain.

11. A method for providing interoperability between a SMS network and an IP network, comprising the steps of:

registering with an IP domain for a first user not registered with the IP domain;

receiving an IP message from the IP domain from a second user registered with the IP domain;

normalizing the IP message;

routing the normalized IP communication to an application server comprising;

an application layer having application logic for generating an appropriate second communication, and

a component layer having services with selected functionality and accessible to the application layer,

generating a second communication for a second network which communicates according to a second protocol based on the normalized first communication;

sending the second communication to an emulator; and

routing the second communication to the second network which communicates according to a second protocol.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the step of registering with an IP domain comprises the steps of:

sending a request for network presence information from an IP messaging emulator;

receiving the presence information by the IP messaging emulator; and

sending a request to register, by the IP messaging emulator, to the IP domain.

13. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon a set of instructions operable for causing the computer to execute the following:

intercept a request for address information from a first user in a first network;

respond to the request with address information for a proxy;

receive a first communication from the first user in the first network which communicates according to a first communication protocol;

normalize the first communication;

select a channel of communication;

generate a second communication for a second user in a second network that communicates according to a second communication protocol based on the normalized first communication;

select an identity of the first and second users based on the second network; and

send the second communication to the second network.

14. The instructions of claim 13, further comprising:

register with an IP domain for one or more users of a network.

15. The instructions of claim 13, further comprising:

generate an IM identity for a non-user of an IM domain.