Method and apparatus for collecting user activity in a telecommunications system

• US 20100093284A1
• Filed: 08/01/2006
• Published: 04/15/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Córdoba Plaza, Enrique, Terrero Diaz-Chiron, Maria Esther, Nuria Esteban Vares, Nuria, Mas Rosique, Maria Luisa, Forsman, Timo, Rolin, Erik
• Granted Patent: US 8,768,259 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/67.11
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports

Abstract

Method and apparatuses for collecting user activity information in a telecommunications system. A first telecommunications node (120) handling signaling of the terminal of a user sends a message (516) notifying a registration event (515) of the user to a second node (130) handling registration information of said user. The message comprises an information element (ACT) indicating whether the user has been involved in a service provided during a registration period comprised between a previous registration event (501) of said user and said notified registration event. At reception of the message, the second node updates registration information (430) and activity information (440) of the user. By including service usage information in registration notification messages, the operator of the telecommunications system can obtain information about the rate of service usage in the system without requiring implementation of neither new nodes nor new messages to be exchanged by new or existing nodes.

Claims

1. A method for collecting user activity information in a telecommunications system comprising a first telecommunications node handling signaling messages of the terminal of a user and a second telecommunications node handling registration information of said user, comprising the steps of:

a) sending from the first node to the second node a message notifying a registration event of the user, and

b) updating by the second node registration information of said user according to the content of said message;

wherein step a) further comprises;

a1) sending in said message an information element indicating whether said user has been involved in a service provided during a registration period comprised between a previous registration event of said user and the registration event notified in the step “

a”

, and step b) further comprises the step of;

b1) updating by the second node activity information of said user according to said information element.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said information element comprises an identifier of a service provided to said user in said registration period.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the step b1) comprises the step of:

b11) storing in relationship with the updated activity information a time stamp indicative of said registration period.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the registration event starting said registration period is selected from:

a. an initial registration message,

b. a re-registration message,

and the registration event ending said registration period is selected from;

c. a re-registration message,

d. a de-registration message.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

c) storing in the first node an activity template comprising data usable for identifying a signaling message related to a service, and

d) checking in the first node a signaling message related to said terminal against said activity template for determining whether said user is involved in a service, wherein the step a1) comprises the step of;

a11) sending the information element indicating that said user has been involved in a service if said check has been passed.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the activity template comprises at least one information element selected from:

a. an identifier identifying a signaling message,

b. an identifier identifying a sequence of signaling messages, and

c. an identifier identifying a service.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising the step of:

e) receiving said activity template in the first node from the second node.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said activity template is received as a part of the profile data of a user.

9. The method of claim 5 wherein the step c) comprises the step of:

c1) storing in the first node said activity template in relationship with an identifier of a user,

wherein the step d) further comprises the step of;

d1) checking against the activity template that relates to said user.

10. A telecommunications node for handling registration information of a user in a telecommunications system, the telecommunications node comprising

a processor and

a storage device, in communication with said processor, and storing instructions adapted to be executed by said processor for:

receiving a message notifying a registration event of a user from a second node handling signaling messages of a terminal of said user in the telecommunications system,

updating registration information of said user according to the content of said message;

receiving said message comprising an information element indicating whether said user has been involved in a service provided during a registration period comprised between a previous registration event of said user and said notified registration event, and

updating activity information of said user according to said information element.

11. The telecommunications node of claim 10, wherein said information element comprises an identifier of a service provided to said user in said registration period.

12. The telecommunications node of claim 10 wherein the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor to store in relationship with the updated activity information a time stamp indicative of said registration period.

13. The telecommunications node of claim 10 wherein the registration event starting said registration period is selected from:

a. an initial registration message,

b. a re-registration message,

wherein the registration event ending said registration period is selected from;

c. a re-registration message,

d. a de-registration message.

14. The telecommunications node of claim 10 wherein the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor to send to said second node an activity template comprising data usable for identifying a signaling message related to a service.

15. The telecommunications node of claim 14 wherein the activity template comprises at least one information element selected from:

a. an identifier identifying a signaling message,

b. an identifier identifying a sequence of signaling messages,

c. an identifier identifying a service.

16. The telecommunications node of claim 14 wherein the activity template is sent in relationship with an identifier of a user.

17. A telecommunications node for handling signaling messages of a terminal of a user in a telecommunications system, the telecommunications node comprising

a processor and

a storage device in communication with said processor and storing instructions adapted to be executed by said processor for:

sending a message notifying a registration event of said user to a second node handling registration information of said user in the telecommunications system;

wherein in that the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor for;

sending said message comprising an information element indicating whether said user has been involved in a service provided during a registration period comprised between a previous registration event of said user and said notified registration event.

18. The telecommunications node of claim 17, wherein said information element comprises an identifier of a service provided to said user in said registration period.

19. The telecommunications node of claim 17 wherein the registration event starting said registration period is selected from:

a. an initial registration message,

b. a re-registration message,

wherein the registration event ending said registration period is selected from;

c. a re-registration message,

d. a de-registration message.

20. The telecommunications node of claim 17 wherein the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor for:

checking a signaling message related to said terminal against an activity template comprising data usable for identifying a signaling message related to a service, and

sending the information element indicating that said user has been involved in a service if said check has been passed.

21. The telecommunications node of claim 20 wherein the activity template comprises at least one information element selected from:

a. an identifier identifying a signaling message,

b. an identifier identifying a sequence of signaling messages, and

c. an identifier identifying a service.

22. The telecommunications node of claim 20 wherein the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor to receive said activity template from said second node.

23. The telecommunications node of claim 22 wherein said activity template is received as a part of the profile data of a user.

24. The telecommunications node of claim 20 wherein the storage device further stores instructions adapted to be executed by said processor for:

storing said activity template in relationship with an identifier of a user, and

checking against the activity template that relates to said user.

25. (canceled)