Read Acknowledgement Interoperability for Text Messaging and IP Messaging

• US 20150105110A1
• Filed: 10/08/2014
• Published: 04/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Meyer, Dennis, Geil, Phillip W., Tuttle, Lewis
• Granted Patent: US 9,408,047 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements

Abstract

Use of information-elements (IE) to enable global system for mobile communications (GSM) devices to support read acknowledgements for text messaging, e.g., short message service (SMS). A GSM device inserts a read acknowledgement request Information-Element (IE) into the body of an SMS message to request that a read acknowledgement be returned to the sending device upon opening. When a GSM recipient device opens an SMS message with a read acknowledgement request IE, the GSM recipient device creates a read acknowledgement SMS message by populating a read acknowledgement message indicator IE, inserting the read acknowledgement message IE into an SMS message, and forwarding the read acknowledgement SMS message to an originating GSM device. Read acknowledgement IEs have a message value that allows a mobile device to associate a read acknowledgement with a particular SMS message. A short message service center (SMSC) supports interoperability between GSM, CDMA, IP, MME, and SMPP read acknowledgements.

Claims

1. A method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message, comprising:

inserting, by a mobile phone, a read acknowledgement request in an information-element message associated with an initial text message;

transmitting said initial text message with said read acknowledgement request addressed to a recipient mobile phone;

receiving, by said mobile phone, a response text message from said recipient mobile phone, said response text message including a read acknowledgement indicator inserted in a response information-element message associated with said response text message; and

associating, by said mobile phone, said read acknowledgement indicator with said initial text message.

2. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said read acknowledgement request is inserted in an Information-Element (IE) in a short message service (SMS) message.

3. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said read acknowledgement indicator is inserted in an Information-Element (IE) in a short message service (SMS) message.

4. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said read acknowledgement request information-element message and said response information-element message include a reference to associate said read acknowledgement indicator with said initial text message.

5. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said response information-element message includes enhanced messaging service (EMS) content.

6. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said response information-element message includes location content relating to said recipient mobile phone.

7. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said initial text message and said response text message comprises:

an SMS text message.

8. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said initial text message and said response text message comprises:

an internet protocol (IP) message.

9. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said mobile phone comprises:

a GSM device.

10. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said mobile phone comprises:

a CDMA device.

11. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said mobile phone comprises:

an ESME.

12. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said message service center comprises:

a short message service center (SMSC).

13. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said read acknowledgement request comprises:

a set bit in a registered delivery field of said read acknowledgement request information-element message.

14. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said read acknowledgement indicator is a set esm_class field associated with said response text message.

15. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said esm_class field is set to ‘

xx0101xx’

.

16. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein said read acknowledgement request comprises:

a set bit in a reply option field of said information-element message.

17. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 1, wherein:

said read acknowledgement indicator is a set message_type field associated with said response text message.

18. A method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message, comprising:

receiving, by a physical message service center, an initial text message transmitted from a physical mobile phone and addressed to a physical recipient mobile phone, said initial text message including a read acknowledgement request;

converting said initial text message with said read acknowledgement request into a message format compatible with said physical recipient mobile phone;

forwarding said converted initial text message with said read acknowledgement request to said physical recipient mobile phone;

receiving, by said physical message service center, a response text message transmitted from said physical recipient mobile phone and addressed to said physical mobile phone, said response text message including a read acknowledgement indicator;

converting said response text message including said read acknowledgement indicator into a message format compatible with said physical mobile phone; and

forwarding said response text message including said read acknowledgement indicator to said physical mobile phone.

19. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein said initial text message and said response text message each comprise:

an SMS text message.

20. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein said initial text message and said response text message each comprise:

an internet protocol (IP) message.

21. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein said message service center comprises:

a short message service center (SMSC).

22. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein:

said read acknowledgement request is inserted in an Information-Element (IE) in a short message service (SMS) message.

23. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein:

said read acknowledgement request information-element message and said response information-element message each include a reference to associate said read acknowledgement indicator with said initial text message.

24. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein:

said response information-element message includes enhanced messaging service (EMS) content.

25. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, wherein:

said response information-element message includes location content relating to said recipient mobile phone.

26. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, further comprising:

converting said read acknowledgement request from a GSM format to a CDMA format; and

converting said read acknowledgement indicator from a CDMA format to a GSM format.

27. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, further comprising:

converting said read acknowledgement request from a CDMA format to a GSM format; and

converting said read acknowledgement indicator from a GSM format to a CDMA format.

28. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, further comprising:

converting said read acknowledgement request from a short message peer-to-peer (SMPP) format to a GSM format; and

converting said read acknowledgement indicator from a GSM format to an SMPP format.

29. The method of providing text message read acknowledgement to a mobile device sending a text message according to claim 18, further comprising:

converting said read acknowledgement request from a GSM format to a short message peer to peer (SMPP) format; and

converting said read acknowledgement indicator from an SMPP format to a GSM format.