METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SUPPORTING LOCATION-AWARE SERVICES

• US 20130121212A1
• Filed: 11/15/2011
• Published: 05/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Guha, Arunabha, Sharples, Russell P., Lu, Min
• Application Number:
  US13/296,915
• Publication Number:
  US 20130121212A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/259
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A method, non-transitory computer readable medium and apparatus for processing a call setup message in a communications network. For example, the method receives the call setup message that includes called endpoint information, wherein the called endpoint information was previously inserted into the call setup message by a location server, processes the call setup message based upon the called endpoint information, and terminates the call setup message in accordance with the called endpoint information.

Claims

1. A method for processing a call setup message in a communications network, comprising:

receiving the call setup message that includes called endpoint information, wherein the called endpoint information was previously inserted into the call setup message by a location server;

processing the call setup message based upon the called endpoint information; and

terminating the call setup message in accordance with the called endpoint information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the call setup message comprises a session initiation protocol invite message.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the called endpoint information is added to a body of the session initiation protocol invite message at the location server before performing a feature processing of the call setup message.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the called endpoint information is obtained by the location server from a subscriber register.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the called endpoint information comprises location information associated with the called endpoint.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the called endpoint information comprises a technical capability associated with the called endpoint.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the called endpoint information comprises access network information associated with the called endpoint.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the called endpoint information comprises routing information.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing comprises determining a predefined feature associated with the call setup message that is dependent upon the called endpoint information.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined feature comprises a time based billing feature.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined feature comprises a time based call forwarding feature.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined feature comprises a predetermined codec type.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the predefined feature comprises a location based call handling feature.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions including instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for processing a call setup message in a communications network, comprising:

receiving the call setup message that includes called endpoint information, wherein the called endpoint information was previously inserted into the call setup message by a location server;

processing the call setup message based upon the called endpoint information; and

terminating the call setup message in accordance with the called endpoint information.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the call setup message comprises a session initiation protocol invite message, wherein the called endpoint information is added to a body of the session initiation protocol invite message at the location server before performing a feature processing of the call setup message.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the called endpoint information is obtained by the location server from a subscriber register.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the called endpoint information comprises location information associated with the called endpoint.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the called endpoint information comprises a technical capability associated with the called endpoint.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the called endpoint information comprises access network information associated with the called endpoint.

20. An apparatus for processing a call setup message in a communications network, comprising:

a processor configured to;

receive the call setup message that includes called endpoint information, wherein the called endpoint information was previously inserted into the call setup message by a location server;

process the call setup message based upon the called endpoint information; and

terminate the call setup message in accordance with the called endpoint information.