SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SELECTING SERVING GATEWAYS TO SERVICE USER EQUIPMENT

• US 20110098050A1
• Filed: 10/22/2009
• Published: 04/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Munagala, Lingesh, Kamalaraj, Vinod, Chamarty, Ravi, Eipe, Jacob, Navali, Jay, Dakshayani, Pradeep
• Granted Patent: US 8,358,593 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/450
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/06 Optimizing the usage of the radio link, e.g. header compression, information sizing , discarding information system modifying transmission characteristic according to link quality by modifying frame length H04L1/0007; dynamic adaptation of the packet size for flow control or congestion control H04L47/365
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/02 by periodical registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

Some embodiments provide methods for selecting a serving gateway, including: receiving a message from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas handled by the base transceiver station; performing a domain name system query for at least one tracking area to retrieve and store in a local memory information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area; receiving an attach request from the base transceiver station identifying the user equipment and a tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network; searching the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area stored in the local memory to identify a serving gateway to service the user equipment based on the tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network; and sending a message identifying the identified serving gateway to the base transceiver station.

Claims

1. A method for selecting a serving gateway to service user equipment in communication with a network, comprising:

receiving a message from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas handled by the base transceiver station;

performing a domain name system query for at least one tracking area in the list of tracking areas to retrieve and store in a local memory information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area;

receiving an attach request from the base transceiver station identifying the user equipment and a tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network;

searching the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area stored in the local memory to identify a serving gateway to service the user equipment based on the tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network; and

sending a message identifying the identified serving gateway to the base transceiver station.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the message from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas includes an S1 setup message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the attach request includes an S1 initial user equipment message.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area in the local memory as at least part of a table of sets of tracking area identities and at least one associated serving gateways.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a base transceiver station includes an evolved nodeB.

6. A mobility management entity in a communication network comprising:

a local memory;

a first interface which is configured to receive messages from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas handled by the base transceiver station, and receive an attach request from the base transceiver station identifying user equipment and a tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network;

a second interface which configured to perform a domain name system query for at least one tracking area in the list of tracking areas to retrieve information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area;

the mobility management entity configured to store the retrieve information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area in the local memory; and

search the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area stored in the local memory to identify a serving gateway to service the user equipment based on the tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network; and

the first interface further configured to send a message identifying the identified serving gateway to the base transceiver station.

7. The mobility management entity of claim 6, wherein the message from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas includes an S1 setup message.

8. The mobility management entity of claim 6, wherein the attach request includes an S1 initial user equipment message.

9. The mobility management entity of claim 6, the mobility management entity further configured for storing the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area in the local memory as at least part of a table of sets of tracking area identities and at least one associated serving gateways.

10. A method for selecting a serving gateway to service user equipment in communication with a network in which an access gateway receives messages from base transceiver stations including a list of tracking areas handled by the base transceiver station, and wherein the access gateway performs a domain name system query for at least one tracking area in the list of tracking areas to retrieve and store in a local memory information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area, the method comprising:

receiving an attach request from the base transceiver station identifying the user equipment and a tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network;

searching the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area stored in the local memory to identify a serving gateway to service the user equipment based on the tracking area from which the user equipment is connected to the network; and

sending a message identifying the identified serving gateway to the base transceiver station.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the message from a base transceiver station including a list of tracking areas includes an S1 setup message.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the attach request includes an S1 initial user equipment message.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein a base transceiver station includes an evolved nodeB.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising storing the information identifying a serving gateway serving the at least one tracking area in the local memory as at least part of a table of sets of tracking area identities and at least one associated serving gateways.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, for at least some tracking area identities, there is one and only one associated serving gateway.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein, for at least some tracking area identities, there are a plurality of associated serving gateway.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein at least some serving gateways are associated with more than one tracking area identifier.