Billing system

• US 6,539,082 B1
• Filed: 10/23/2000
• Issued: 03/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Original Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Inventors: Lowe, Colin, Dadge, Nigel Geoffrey, Busuioc, Nicolae Marius
• Primary Examiner(s): BARNIE, REXFORD N
• Application Number:
  US09/673,856
• Time in Patent Office: 883 Days
• Field of Search: 379/114.14, 379/145, 379/189, 379/114.01, 379/126, 379/127.02, 379/121.04, 379/119, 379/120, 379/114.29, 379/114.28, 379/32.01, 379/32.02, 379/221.08, 379/221.09, 379/221.12
• US Class Current: 379/114.28
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/47 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/90 using Intelligent Networks [IN] or Advanced Intelligent Networks [AIN]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0148 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/016 Billing using Intelligent Networks [IN] or Advanced Intelligent Networks [AIN]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/018 On-line real-time billing, able to see billing information while in communication, e.g. via the internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking

Abstract

A billing system for a telecommunications network uses a monitoring software agent to monitor messages, indicative of individual calls on the network, passing between a service switching point and a service control point. Call record information is extracted and is stored in a local call record database. Information from each call record database is then passed on to a central database, using updating mobile agents, the central database being accessible to such agents and report building agents which can extract billing information as requested by an operator. By monitoring the messages as they pass, the system can provide real time billing information without needing to poll the switch at the service switching point.

Claims

1. A billing system for a telecommunications network including a plurality of service switching points in communication with a service control point arranged to control network services, the system comprising:

a respective call monitor at each of said service switching points arranged to monitor messages between the service control point and the respective monitored service switching point;

a respective local database associated with each said call monitor for storing data derived from the monitored messages;

a central database for storing call records relating to a plurality of said service switching points; and

a mobile updating agent which can move between the central database and each of the local databases to transfer data from the local databases to the central database.

2. A billing system as claimed in claim 1 in which the messages comply with the C7 protocol, part of the International Standard SS7 signalling protocol.

3. A billing system as claimed in claim 1 including a remote operator interface for providing access to information in the central database.

4. A billing system as claimed in claim 3 in which the operator interface includes an interface agent for interpreting instructions from an operator and for constructing therefrom a query for the central database.

5. A billing system as claimed in claim 4 including a searching agent for searching for customer billing information in response to a query from an operator, and for producing a search output representative thereof.

6. A billing system as claimed in claim 5 in which the searching agent is mobile and can move between the operator interface and the central database.

7. A billing system as claimed in claim 5 including a report-building agent for building a report from the search output.

8. A billing system as claimed in claim 7 in which the report-building agent is mobile and can move between the operator interface and the central database.

9. A billing system as claimed in claim 1 including a fraud-detection system arranged to interrogate the central database, to determine a list of numbers to which possibly fraudulent calls have been made and to instruct the switching service points to block calls to the numbers in the list.

10. A method of providing real-time billing information in a telecommunications network, the network comprising a plurality of service switching points in communication with a service control point arranged to control network services, the method comprising:

(a) monitoring messages passing between the service control point and each of the service switching points,

(b) storing data derived from monitored messages in a respective local database for each of said service switching points; and

(c) updating a central call records database with information indicative of monitored messages by transferring data from each of said local databases using a mobile updating agent.

11. A method as in claim 10 further comprising:

(d) extracting data pertaining to a specific customer from said central call records database using a mobile searching agent, said mobile searching agent moving between the central call records database and an operator position.

12. A method as in claim 11 wherein said mobile searching agent is responsive to control information supplied from said operator position.

13. A method as in claim 11 further comprising:

(e) building a report from data extracted by said mobile searching agent using a mobile report building agent, said mobile report building agent moving between said central call records database and said operator position.

14. A method as in claim 13 wherein said mobile searching agent is responsive to control information supplied from said operator position.

15. A billing system for a telecommunications network, the network comprising a plurality of service switching points in communication with a service control point arranged to control network services, the system comprising:

(i) a respective call monitor at each of said service switching points arranged to monitor messages indicative of individual calls on the network, each of said messages passing between the service control point and one of the service switching points, each said respective call monitor storing information indicative of the monitored messages in a respective local call record database;

(ii) a central database;

(iii) a remote operator interface;

(iv) a mobile updating agent arranged to update the central database from the information stored in each of said local call record databases;

(v) a mobile searching agent responsive to a query from said operator interface for customer billing information to produce a search output in respect of said customer billing information; and

(vi) a mobile report building agent for building reports from said search output;

wherein said mobile searching agent and said mobile report building agent can each move between said operator interface and said central database, and said mobile updating agent can move between said central database and each of said local call record databases.