MOBILITY MANAGEMENT IN COMMUNICATION NETWORKS

• US 20100056175A1
• Filed: 05/15/2007
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sovereign Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Weniger, Kilian, Bachmann, Jens
• Granted Patent: US 8,369,876 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/04 using triggered events
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for tracking locations of mobile terminals in a communication network. Further, the invention relates to a communication network and apparatuses therein capable of performing individual steps of the method according to different embodiments of the invention. To decrease the signaling load imposed by mobility related signaling the invention suggests to group mobile terminals in so called mobility groups and to reduce the signaling overhead by performing a location update on a per-mobility group basis. In one exemplary embodiment of the invention this is realized by only one of the mobile terminals in a mobility group sending a group location update on behalf of the group to trigger the location update for the mobility group. Alternatively, in another embodiment of the invention, a network operator trusted or controlled entity sends a group location update on behalf of the group to trigger the location update for the mobility group.

Claims

1-33. -33. (canceled)

34. A method for tracking locations of mobile terminals in a communication network, the method comprising:

assigning at a mobility management entity mobile terminals to a mobility group, and informing the mobile terminals on their mobility group membership, and

receiving at a serving mobility management entity of the communication network a group location update for the mobility group from a mobile terminal of the mobility group or a network operator trusted or controlled entity, and updating the locations of the mobile terminals of the mobility group based on the group location update.

35. The method according to claim 34, further comprising scanning by a network operator trusted or controlled entity terminal identifiers of mobile terminals in the proximity of the entity and providing the scanned identifiers to the mobility management entity.

36. The method according to claim 35, further comprising assigning the mobile terminals identified by their respective terminal identifier to a mobility group associated to the network operator trusted or controlled entity.

37. The method according to claim 36, further comprising informing the identified mobile terminals on the mobility group to which they have been assigned.

38. The method according to claim 35, wherein the group location update is transmitted by the network operator trusted or controlled entity to the serving mobility management node.

39. The method according to claim 34, further comprising determining a movement pattern of a respective mobile terminal and assigning the mobile terminal to a mobility group based on the movement pattern.

40. The method according to claim 39, wherein the movement pattern is determined by the mobility management entity tracking location updates of the respective mobile terminal.

41. The method according to claim 38, wherein the location update comprises an indication of at least one of:

at least one radio cell ID of at least one radio cell from which the mobile terminal receives or has received a beacon signal when/before sending the location update, a radio cell sojourn time in the respective radio cell and an average radio cell sojourn time in the visited radio cells since sending the last location update.

42. The method according to claim 39, wherein the location update comprises an indication of at least one of:

at least one radio cell ID of at least one radio cell from which the mobile terminal receives or has received a beacon signal when/before sending the location update, a radio cell sojourn time in the respective radio cell and an average radio cell sojourn time in the visited radio cells since sending the last location update.

43. The method according to claim 39, wherein mobile terminals having a similar movement patters are assigned to the same mobility group.

44. The method according to claim 34, further comprising:

broadcasting or multicasting a group identifier of the mobility group,

receiving at the mobility management entity a registration message from a mobile terminal comprising the group identifier and a mobile terminal identifier,

wherein the mobility management entity assigns the mobile terminal to the mobility group identified by the group identifier.

45. The method according to claim 34, further comprising receiving from a mobile terminal a registration message comprising a group identifier, and wherein the mobility management entity assigns the mobile terminal to a mobility group identified by the group identifier.

46. The method according to claim 34, further comprising receiving at the mobility management entity a group deregistration from a mobile terminal, and deregistering the mobile terminal from the mobility group in response thereto.

47. The method according to claim 34, wherein only a selected mobile terminal out of the mobile terminals belonging to a mobility group provides a group location update for all mobility group members to a serving mobility management entity.

48. The method according to claim 34, wherein the mobile terminals belonging to a mobility group randomly provide a group location update for all mobility group members to a serving mobility management entity.

49. The method according to claim 34, further comprising sending by the serving mobility management entity a confirmation for the group location update to the mobility group members.

50. The method according to claim 34, further comprising reconfiguring the user plane route for the mobile terminals assigned to the mobility group.

51. The method according to claim 50, wherein the user plane route is reconfigured upon change of the serving user plane entity responsible for routing the user plane data to the mobile terminals of the mobility group.

52. The method according to claim 34, further comprising transferring mobility-related contexts from a previous mobility management entity to the serving mobility management entity upon reception of a group location update.

53. The method according to claim 34, further comprising transferring routing-related contexts from a previous user plane entity to the serving user plane entity upon reception of a group location update.

54. The method according to claim 52, wherein the transfer of the mobile terminal contexts is initiated by the serving mobility management entity by sending a message comprising at least the group identifier comprised in the group location update to the previous mobility management entity.

55. The method according to claim 53, wherein the transfer of the mobile terminal contexts is initiated by the serving mobility management entity by sending a message comprising at least the group identifier comprised in the group location update to the previous mobility management entity.

56. The method according to claim 52, further comprising identifying the previous mobility management entity by comprising an identifier of the previous mobility management entity to the group location update or by resolving a previous location indicated in the group location update.

57. The method according to claim 53, further comprising identifying the previous mobility management entity by comprising an identifier of the previous mobility management entity to the group location update or by resolving a previous location indicated in the group location update.

58. A method for tracking locations of mobile terminals in a communication network, the method comprising grouping the mobile terminals into at least one mobility group and performing a location update on a per-mobility group basis.

59. The method according to claim 58, wherein only one of the mobile terminals in a mobility group sends a group location update on behalf of the group to trigger the location update for the mobility group.

60. The method according to claim 58, wherein a network operator trusted or controlled entity sends a group location update on behalf of the group to trigger the location update for the mobility group.

61. An apparatus for tracking locations of mobile terminals in a communication network, the apparatus comprising:

a processing unit that assigns terminals to a mobility group,

a transmitter that informs the mobile terminals on their mobility group membership, and

a receiver that receives a group location update for the mobility group from a mobile terminal of the mobility group or a network operator trusted or controlled entity,

wherein the processing unit is operable to update the locations of the mobile terminals of the mobility group based on the group location update.

62. A communication system for tracking locations of mobile terminals in a communication network, the communication system being operable to group the mobile terminals into at least one mobility group and to perform a location update on a per-mobility group basis.

63. A mobile terminal for use in a communication network being divided in location areas to allow tracking the geographical position of mobile terminals, the mobile terminal comprising:

a receiver that receives an indication of a mobility group to which the mobile terminal is assigned or for selecting a mobility group,

a processing unit that determines a change of the location area within the communication system, and

a transmitter that transmits a group location update including an identifier of the mobility group to thereby trigger a location update for the mobility group members.

64. A computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor of a mobility control apparatus, cause the apparatus to track locations of mobile terminals in a communication network, by:

assigning at a mobility management entity mobile terminals to a mobility group,

informing the mobile terminals on their mobility group membership,

receiving at a serving mobility management entity of the communication network a group location update for the mobility group from a mobile terminal of the mobility group or a network operator trusted or controlled entity in the proximity of the mobile terminals of the mobility group, and

updating the locations of the mobile terminals of the mobility group based on the group location update.

65. A computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a mobile terminal for use in a communication network being divided in location areas to allow tracking the geographical position of mobile terminals, cause the mobile terminal to trigger a location update, by:

receiving an indication of a mobility group to which the mobile terminal is assigned or selecting a mobility group,

determining a change of the location area within the communication system, and

transmitting a group location update including an identifier of the mobility group to thereby trigger a location update for the mobility group members.