Mobile communication system for supporting multiple simultaneous communications on single mobile terminal

• US 6,314,300 B1
• Filed: 06/20/1997
• Issued: 11/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: NTT Mobile Communications Network Inc. (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Mobile Communications Network Inc. (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Miki, Mutsumaru, Kaiyama, Akira, Yamagata, Katsuhiko, Nakashima, Akiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Kincaid, Lester G.
• Application Number:
  US08/879,185
• Time in Patent Office: 1,600 Days
• Field of Search: 455/422, 455/517, 455/524, 455/528, 455/38.3, 455/343, 455/436, 455/450, 455/466, 455/414, 455/435, 455/415, 455/552, 455/553
• US Class Current: 455/517
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

A mobile communication system which is capable of supporting multiple simultaneous communications on a single mobile terminal device, and collectively controlling all or a part of call states on a mobile terminal device. The system includes at least one mobile terminal device having: more than one mobile terminal side call control units for controlling calls at a mobile terminal side; and a mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit for managing a communication state of the mobile terminal device while identifying each mobile terminal side call control unit which is currently in communication. The system also includes a network device having: a plurality of network side call control units for controlling calls at a network side; and a network side mobile terminal management unit, provided in correspondence to the mobile terminal device, for managing the communication state of the mobile terminal device and correspondences between said plurality of network side call control units and the mobile terminal device while identifying each network side call control unit which is currently in communication.

Claims

1. A mobile communication system, comprising:

at least one mobile terminal device configured to carry out multiple simultaneous communication using a plurality of independent calls and having;

more than one mobile terminal side call control units for controlling the plurality of independent calls independently at a mobile terminal side, said more than one mobile terminal side call control units having mutually different call identification information assigned thereto; and

a mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit for managing a communication state of the mobile terminal device with respect to each one of the plurality of independent calls independently while identifying each mobile terminal side call control unit which is currently in communication; and

a network device having;

a plurality of network side call control units for controlling the plurality of independent calls independently at a network side, said plurality of network side call control units having identical call identification information as corresponding ones of said more than one mobile terminal side call control units assigned thereto; and

a network side mobile terminal management unit, provided in correspondence to the mobile terminal device, for managing the communication state of the mobile terminal device with respect to each one of the plurality of independent calls independently and correspondences between said plurality of network side call control units and the mobile terminal device while identifying each network side call control unit which is currently in communication.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit transmits an activation signal for changing the communication state managed by the network side mobile terminal management unit into an active state and changes the communication state managed by the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit into an active state, when a call origination request is received from a mobile terminal side call control unit while the communication state managed by the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit is in an idle state.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit transmits a call set up permission signal to one mobile terminal side call control unit, when a call origination request is received from said one mobile terminal side call control unit while the communication state managed by the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit is in an active state.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit transmits a paging signal for changing the communication state managed by the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit into an active state and changes the communication state managed by the network side mobile terminal management unit into an active state, when a call termination request is received from a network side call control unit while the communication state managed by the network side mobile terminal management unit is in an idle state.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit transmits a call set up permission signal to one network side call control unit, when a call termination request is received from said one network side call control unit while the communication state managed by the network side mobile terminal management unit is in an active state.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit includes:

a call identification information memory unit for storing a call identification information assigned to each mobile terminal side call control unit which is currently in communication;

a mobile terminal communication state memory unit for storing a communication state information indicating the communication state of the mobile terminal device;

a distribution unit for distributing signals from the network device to said more than one mobile terminal side call control units; and

a control unit for controlling the distribution unit according to the communication state information stored in the mobile terminal communication state memory unit, the call identification information stored in the call identification information memory unit, and a call identification information attached to each signal from the network device which identifies a network side call control device that originated each signal.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the control unit stores the call identification information of one mobile terminal side call control unit into the call identification information memory unit at a time of transmitting or receiving a call set up signal for said one mobile terminal side call control unit, and deletes the call identification information of said one mobile terminal side call control unit from the call identification information memory unit at a time of transmitting or receiving a call disconnection signal for said one mobile terminal side call control unit.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the control unit stores the call identification information of one mobile terminal side call control unit into the call identification information memory unit upon receiving a call set up notice signal from said one mobile terminal side call control unit, and deletes the call identification information of said one mobile terminal side call control unit from the call identification information memory unit upon receiving a call disconnection notice signal from said one mobile terminal side call control unit.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the control unit stores an information indicating an idle communication state into the mobile terminal communication state memory unit at a time of deleting a last call identification information stored in the call identification information memory unit.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit collectively controls all or a part of call states on the mobile terminal device by simultaneously activating related call control units which are corresponding to said all or a part of call states to be collectively controlled.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the mobile terminal device further includes:

a radio channel state management unit for managing states of radio channels between the mobile terminal device and the network device and notifying those radio channels which require state changes; and

a correspondence table indicating those call control units which are corresponding to each radio channel; and

wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit determines the related call control units according to the correspondence table and the radio channels notified by the radio channel state management unit.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal device further includes:

a radio channel state management unit for managing states of radio channels between the mobile terminal device and the network device and notifying those radio channels which require state changes; and

wherein the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit transmits a single radio channel control signal to the network side mobile terminal management unit for all the radio channels notified by the radio channel state management unit.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit includes:

a call identification information memory unit for storing a call identification information assigned to each network side call control unit which is currently in communication;

a mobile terminal communication state memory unit for storing a communication state information indicating the communication state of the mobile terminal device;

a distribution unit for distributing signals from the mobile terminal device to said plurality of network side call control units; and

a control unit for controlling the distribution unit according to the communication state information stored in the mobile terminal communication state memory unit, the call identification information stored in the call identification information memory unit, and a call identification information attached to each signal from the mobile terminal device which identifies a mobile terminal side call control device that originated each signal.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the control unit stores the call identification information of one network side call control unit into the call identification information memory unit at a time of transmitting or receiving a call set up signal for said one network side call control unit, and deletes the call identification information of said one network side call control unit from the call identification information memory unit at a time of transmitting or receiving a call disconnection signal for said one network side call control unit.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the control unit stores the call identification information of one network side call control unit into the call identification information memory unit upon receiving a call set up notice signal from said one network side call control unit, and deletes the call identification information of said one network side call control unit from the call identification information memory unit upon receiving a call disconnection notice signal from said one network side call control unit.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the control unit stores an information indicating an idle communication state into the mobile terminal communication state memory unit at a time of deleting a last call identification information stored in the call identification information memory unit.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit collectively controls all or a part of call states on the mobile terminal device by simultaneously activating related call control units which are corresponding to said all or a part of call states to be collectively controlled.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the network device further includes:

a radio channel state management unit for managing states of radio channels between the mobile terminal device and the network device and notifying those radio channels which require state changes; and

a correspondence table indicating those call control units which are corresponding to each radio channel;

wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit determines the related call control units according to the correspondence table and the radio channels notified by the radio channel state management unit.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the network device further includes:

a radio channel state management unit for managing states of radio channels between the mobile terminal device and the network device and notifying those radio channels which require state changes; and

wherein the network side mobile terminal management unit transmits a single radio channel control signal to the mobile terminal side mobile terminal management unit for all the radio channels notified by the radio channel state management unit.