Location registration and paging procedure for mobile communication

• US 5,305,466 A
• Filed: 02/20/1991
• Issued: 04/19/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Taketsugu, Masanori
• Primary Examiner(s): Eisenzopf, Reinhard J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAM, CHI H
• Application Number:
  US07/658,474
• Time in Patent Office: 1,154 Days
• Field of Search: 455/33.1, 455/33.2, 455/33.4, 455/38.1, 455/54.1, 455/54.2, 455/56.1, 455/89, 379/59, 379/60, 379/63
• US Class Current: 455/435.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like

Abstract

A mobile communication system in which overlapping location areas are defined by radio base stations on an autonomous distribution basis. In a first embodiment, a mobile station registers the location thereof when moved in a radio zone which is not included in a location area notified by a radio base station and held therein. In a second embodiment, the mobile station registers the location when entered a radio zone in which location area being notified by the radio base station does not include the radio zone where the mobile station registered the location last. In a first and a second embodiment, the mobile station memorizes radio zones which it has passed after location registration as route information and may report the route information to a radio base station in the event of next location registration. The radio base station sequentially includes in the location area the radio zones which frequently appear in the route information. In a third embodiment, in response to a terminating call meant for the mobile station, a mobile switching center sends a calling signal meant for the mobile station to all of the radio base stations. In response, each radio base station effects calling if the own location area where it is situated is coincident with a location area included in the calling signal. In a fourth to a sixth embodiment, each radio base station measures the traffic of registration signals or that of calling signals so as to increase or decrease the number of radio zones included in the own location area in matching relation to the measured traffic.

Claims

1. A mobile station for a mobile communication system, comprising:

communication means for communicating over a radio channel with a radio base station situated in a radio zone where said mobile station exists;

location information storing means, coupled to said communication means, for storing location information received from a radio base station situated in a radio zone where said mobile station has registered a location;

route storing means, coupled to said communication means, for storing route information representative of a radio zone where said mobile station has registered a location and representative of at least a part of the radio zones which said mobile station has passed after the location registration;

deciding means for determining whether location information representative of a radio zone where said mobile station exists is included in said location information stored in said location information storing means;

means for adding, when said deciding means determines that said location information representative of the radio zone where said mobile station exists is included in said location information stored in said information storing means, said location information representative of the radio zone where said mobile station exists to said route information of said route storing means; and

means for adding, when said deciding means determines that said location information representative of the radio zone where said mobile station exists is not included in said location information stored in said information storing means, said location information representative of the radio zone where said mobile station exists to said route information of said route storing means and for reporting said location information representative of the radio zone where said mobile station exists to a radio base station situated in said radio zone.

2. A mobile station for a mobile communication system, comprising:

communication means for communicating over a radio channel with a radio base station situated in a radio zone where said mobile station exists;

registered radio zone storing means, coupled to said communication means, for registering identification information representative of a radio zone where said mobile station has registered a location as a registered radio zone;

route storing means for storing route information representative of a radio zone where said mobile station has registered a location and route information representative of at least part of radio zones which said mobile station has passed after the location registration;

deciding means for determining whether said identification information representative of said registered radio zone is included in location information received from a radio base station within the radio zone to which said mobile station has moved;

means for adding, when said deciding means determines that said identification information representative of said registered radio zone is included in said location information, said identification information representative of said radio zone to which said mobile station has moved to said route information stored in said route storing means; and

means, coupled to said communication means, for informing, when said deciding means determines that said identification information representative of said registered radio zone is not included in said location information, said radio base station of said radio zone to which said mobile station has moved of said route information and for registering a location in said radio base station.

3. A location registration procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of location areas each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones; and

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones;

said radio base stations each memorizing location registration information representative of a plurality of identifiers of radio zones which are situated in the neighborhood of a reference radio zone which is a representative radio zone of each of said location areas and notifying, after receiving a registration signal from a mobile station existing in said reference radio zone of said base station, said mobile station of said location registration information;

said mobile stations each storing said location registration information received from said radio base station and, after moving to a radio zone whose identifier is not included in said stored location registration information, registering a new location thereof.

4. A location registration procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of location areas each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones; and

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones;

said radio base stations each memorizing location registration information representative of a plurality of identifiers of radio zones which are situated in the neighborhood of a reference radio zone which is a representative radio zone of each of said location areas and broadcasting said location registration information continuously in said radio zone where said radio base station is situated;

said mobile stations each registering the identifier of said radio zone where said mobile station has registered a location last and, after moving to a radio zone whose said broadcast location registration information does not include said registered identifier, registering a new location thereof.

5. A paging procedure for mobile communication comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of location areas each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a mobile switching center for governing at least two of said radio base stations collectively;

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones;

said radio base stations each memorizing location registration information representative of a plurality of identifiers of the radio zones which are situated in the neighborhood of a reference radio zone which is a representative radio zone of each of said location areas;

said mobile switching center storing identifiers of radio zones where said mobile station had registered a location as a registered radio zone identifier associated with said mobile station in a location table, and determining, in response to a terminating call directed to one of said mobile stations, said registered radio zone identifier on the basis of said location table, and broadcasting a calling signal including said registered radio zone identifier and said mobile station identifier to said radio base stations which said mobile switching center governs; and

causing each of said radio base stations that receive said calling signal to effect paging in a radio zone where said radio base station is situated, if said memorized location registration information includes said registered radio zone identifier from said mobile switching center.

6. A location registration information setting procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of location areas each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones among which a representative one of said radio zones is assigned as a reference radio zone; and

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones and for storing route information including at least part of the identifiers of radio zones which said mobile station has passed and for notifying a radio base station situated in a radio zone where said mobile station exists of said route information;

said radio base stations each comprising;

means for accumulating the appearance frequency of an individual radio zone identifier included in said route information which is reported by mobile stations; and

means for setting a set of radio zone identifiers which is selected from said accumulated radio zone identifiers and a reference radio zone identifier as reference location registration information.

7. A location registration information setting procedure as claimed in claim 6, wherein said radio base stations each sets a set of radio zone identifiers whose cumulative appearance frequencies exceed a predetermined value and a reference radio zone where said radio base station is situated as new reference location registration information.

8. A location registration information setting procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of location areas each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones among which a representative one of said radio zones is assigned as a reference radio zone; and

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exist in one of said radio zones;

said radio base stations each comprising;

means for setting a set of identifiers of more than one radio zone including the reference radio zone where said radio base station is situated as location registration information; and

means for increasing and decreasing the number of radio zone identifiers included in said location registration information in response to the traffic of paging signals transmitted to said mobile stations in said reference radio zone.

9. A location registration information setting procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of reference radio zones each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones among which a representative one of said radio zones is assigned as a reference radio zone; and

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones;

said radio base stations each comprising;

means for setting a set of identifiers of at least one radio zone including said reference radio zone where said radio base station is situated as location registration information; and

means for increasing and decreasing the number of radio zone identifiers included in said location registration information in response to the traffic of registration signals received from said mobile stations existing in said reference radio zone.

10. A location registration information setting procedure for a mobile communication system comprising:

a plurality of radio zones defined by dividing a service area;

a plurality of radio base stations each being situated in a respective one of said radio zones;

a plurality of mobile stations each movable in said service area, and communicable with any one of said radio base stations over a radio channel for registering a location of said mobile station corresponding to where said mobile station exists in one of said radio zones;

a plurality of reference radio zones each comprising a set of at least two of said radio zones among which a representative one of said radio zones is assigned as a reference radio zone;

said radio base stations each comprising;

means for setting a set of identifiers of more than one radio zone including said reference radio zone where said radio base station is situated as location registration information; and

means for decreasing, when the traffic of paging signals transmitted to said mobile stations in said reference radio zone exceeds a first predetermined amount, the number of radio zone identifiers included in said location registration information;

means for increasing, when the traffic of registration signals received from said mobile stations existing in said reference radio zone exceeds a second predetermined amount, the number of radio zone identifiers included in said location registration information.