Supporting supplementary services in an intelligent network

• US 6,625,268 B1
• Filed: 06/19/2000
• Issued: 09/23/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Callahan Cellular LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Wallenius, Jukka
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, DUC MINH
• Application Number:
  US09/596,450
• Time in Patent Office: 1,191 Days
• Field of Search: 379/111, 379/112.01, 379/112.05, 379/114.01, 379/114.2, 379/114-6-1, 379/114.12, 379/115.01, 379/120, 379/121.02, 379/127.01, 379/114.28, 379/114.29, 379/292-230, 455/406-411
• 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 17/00 Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems using a coded card to authorise calls from a telephone set H04M1/675
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2026 Wireless network, e.g. GSM, PCS, TACS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/32 Involving wireless systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

Known intelligent network architectures do not comprise a mechanism by means of which it would be possible to notify a service control point (SCP) of a recurrent use of supplementary services or of the activation of the supplementary services at a service switching point (SSP). In accordance with the invention, the service control point (SCP) informs a mobile services switching center (MSC) in a message RequestNotificationCharging of the events the mobile services switching center (MSC) is to report to the service control point (SCP). The mobile services switching center (MSC) reports the existence of said events to the service control point (SCP) in a message EventNotificationCharging.

Claims

1. A method of reporting events affecting a call tariff in a telephone network utilizing an intelligent network, between a service switching point and a service control point, in which method:

the service control point forms a call price or at least takes part in call price formation on the basis of an existing tariff;

comprising;

basing the call tariff formation on at least one attribute representing call state and/or at least one call-related resource, service and/or supplementary service;

forming by the service control point the call tariff at the beginning of tariff monitoring on the basis of an initial value of said at least one attribute of which it has been notified by the service switching point;

notifying the service switching point by the service control point of events the service switching point is to report;

during a call, reporting by the service switching point to the service control point, at least call-related events in which said at least one attribute may change; and

in response to the report from the service switching point, re-forming by the service control point the existing call tariff.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the service switching point reports at least some of the events without a request from the service control point.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

a connection without control relationship is established between the service switching point and the service control point;

the events on said connection without control relationship as reported by the switching point.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service switching point reports to the control point resources assigned to the call and/or resources changes.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, the resources comprise transmission connection quality and/or data rate.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service switching point notifies the service control point of the initial state of the resources in an intelligent network activation message.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service switching point reports the events in report messages each of which comprises a corresponding event and/or a point of time at which a resource change takes place.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said change in the call tariff is based on at least one of the following:

supplementary service activation, call release, call re-establishment, data rate change, entry into and return from a shadow region by a mobile station, and tariff change based on time.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said service control point sends said request in a message RequestNotificationCharging.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service switching point reports said events in a message EventNotificationCharging.

11. A method of providing a prepaid call for a mobile station in a mobile communication system comprising a network element, which includes an intelligent network service switching point, comprising in connection with the calls for which a subscriber of the mobile station in question is charged:

storing a data element indicating a remaining prepaid call time on the basis of an identifier of the mobile station or its subscriber;

the identifier of said mobile station or its user is determined at the beginning of the call and an initial value of said data element is set on the basis of the identifier; and

the value of the data element is reduced during the call by at least one of the two predetermined rates of change;

notifying the switching point by the control point in an instruction message of the events which affect call price formation and are to be reported by the switching point to the control point in a report message;

transmitting by the switching point in a report message, data on each said event and on the point of time of the event in question and, if necessary, the switching point transmits more report messages without a separate instruction message; and

in response to each report message, adjusting, by the control point said predetermined rate of change of the data element.

21. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the network element is a mobile services switching centre of the mobile communication system.

12. A method of reporting events between a service switching point and a service control point in a telephone network utilizing an intelligent network service, in which method a call is modeled by means of a state model and the service control point notifies the service switching point in an instruction message of the events the service switching is to report to the control point in a report message, wherein:

in connection with triggering an intelligent network service, notifying the control point by the switching point of attributes which affect call charging, which attributes comprise;

resources assigned to the call;

call-related supplementary services;

states of the state model parts corresponding to the call; and

the service control point requests the switching point to report value changes taking place in the attributes it has enumerated.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein when the attributes value changes, the switching point transmits, if necessary, more report messages without a separate request from the control point.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein when the attribute value changes, the switching point attaches a time stamp to the report messages it has sent, the time stamp being based on the clock of the switching point.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein a connection without control relationship is established between the switching point and the control point.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the control point gives the switching point at least one of the following commands on said connection without control relationship:

call release;

request to transmit a charging record or part thereof;

request to transmit a charging message or an AOC parameter;

or

request to update charging counters between operators.

17. An intelligent network service control point arranged to form a call price or at least to take part in call price formation on the basis of an existing tariff;

wherein the service control point is arranged to;

form the call tariff based on at least one attribute representing at least one call-related resource, service and/or supplementary service;

means for notifying the service switching point by the service control point of events the service switching point is to report;

form an initial value of the tariff at the beginning of tariff monitoring on the basis of an initial value of said at least one attribute reported by the service switching point;

receive, during the call, information on call-related events in which said at least one attribute may change;

re-form an existing call tariff in response to the reception of each item of information.

18. A service switching point is arranged to report to an intelligent network control point events which affect call price formation and at least to take part in call tariff formation which is based on at least one attribute characterizing at least one call-related resource, service and/or supplementary service, comprising:

a network element arranged to transmit information to the service control point on call-related events in which said at least one attribute may change in such a way that the transmission of each said item of information does not require a separate request from the service control point; and

means for notifying a service switching point by the service control point of the events the service switching point is to report.

19. The service switching point as claimed in claim 18 further comprising a message RequestNotificationCharging for notifying an intelligent network service switching point of events which affect tariff formation and are to be recurrently reported by the service switching point to a service control point during the call.

20. The service switching point as claimed in claim 18 further comprising a message EventNotificationCharging for notifying an intelligent network service control point of recurrent events which affect tariff formation and are encountered by a service switching point.

22. The service switching point as claimed in claim 18, wherein the network element is a mobile services switching centre of the mobile communication system.