Short message service for a mobile radio network

• US 6,055,442 A
• Filed: 03/05/1998
• Issued: 04/25/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: ORGA Kartensysteme GmbH (Safran SA)
• Original Assignee: ORGA Kartensysteme GmbH (Safran SA)
• Inventors: Dietrich, Hanno
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Nguyen
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fuller, Greta J.
• Application Number:
  US08/983,315
• Time in Patent Office: 782 Days
• Field of Search: 455/418, 455/419, 455/558, 455/559, 455/420, 455/466, 455/575
• US Class Current: 455/558
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

A mobile radio network comprising a plurality of mobile radio stations and at least one mobile radio exchange for controlling communication within a mobile radio network, the subscribers being identified with respect to the mobile radio network by means of a chip card (Subscriber Identity Module--SIM) which is inserted into the mobile radio station. The mobile radio network incorporates a short message service which transmits to the subscriber chip cards (SIM cards) data in a predetermined short message format containing a standardized header. The short messages can be of two types: (a) a conventional short message whose data only contain information for the subscriber which is temporarily stored in the subscriber chip card (SIM card) and can be displayed on a mobile radio station display; and (b) a reconfiguration short message which can reconfigure the subscriber chip card (SIM card) in given data fields. In order to recognize and differentiate between a reconfiguration short message and a conventional short message, the subscriber chip card contains a recognition and differentiation filter suited to the program, for evaluating the header of the short message.

Claims

1. A mobile radio network including a plurality of mobile radio stations and having at least one mobile radio center for controlling communication within the mobile radio network, said mobile radio network comprising:

a subscriber smart card for identifying each user, said subscriber smart card being insertable into said mobile radio stations;

means for generating a short message having a predetermined short message format including a standardized data header and sending the short message to said subscriber smart card, wherein the short message is one of a normal short message only for a subscriber which is temporarily stored in said smart card and displayed on a mobile radio station display, and a reconfiguration short message for reconfiguring specific data fields in said subscriber smart card; and

a programmable filter disposed in said smart card for identifying a reconfiguration short message and distinguishing a reconfiguration short message from a normal short message based on the data header associated with the short message.

2. The mobile radio network in accordance with claim 1, wherein said subscriber smart card associated with at least one of all of the subscribers and only specific subscribers stores at least one origin address allocated in the mobile radio network, and wherein reconfiguration short messages are produced only when said programmable filter in said subscriber smart card identifies a match between the data header with the stored origin address.

3. The mobile radio network in accordance with claim 1, wherein said subscriber smart card uses the reconfiguration short message to generate a short message and display the short message on the mobile radio station display.

4. The mobile radio network in accordance with claim 1, wherein said subscriber smart card comprises a subscriber identity module.

5. A method for distinguishing between a normal short message and a reconfiguration short message in a mobile radio network including a plurality of mobile radio stations and having at least one mobile radio center for controlling communication within the mobile radio network, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) inserting a subscriber smart card into said mobile radio station for identifying each user;

(b) generating a short message having a predetermined short message format including a standardized data header and sending the generated short message to said smart card, wherein the short message is one of a normal short message only for a subscriber which is temporarily stored in said smart card and displayed on a mobile radio station display, and a reconfiguration short message for reconfiguring specific data fields in said subscriber smart card; and

(c) identifying a reconfiguration short message and distinguishing the reconfiguration short message from a normal short message based on the data header associated with the short message using a programmable filter disposed in said smart card.

6. The method in accordance with claim 5, wherein step (c) comprises the steps of:

(d) storing at least one origin address allocated in the mobile radio network to the subscriber smart card associated with at least one of all of the subscribers and only specific subscribers; and

(e) comparing the data header of the short message with the stored origin address, wherein if the data header matches the stored origin address further comprising the step of producing the reconfiguration short messages, and if the data header does not match the stored origin address further comprising the step of inhibiting reconfiguration of the subscriber smart card.

7. The method in accordance with claim 5, further comprising the steps of:

(f) generating a short message using the reconfiguration short message in the subscriber smart card; and

(g) displaying the generated short message on the mobile radio station display.