System and method for providing host geographic location information in a packet data network

• US 6,975,619 B1
• Filed: 03/20/2000
• Issued: 12/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Dunn, James Patrick, Byers, Charles Calvin
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Application Number:
  US09/528,572
• Time in Patent Office: 2,094 Days
• Field of Search: 370352-356, 370/328, 370/465, 370/320, 370/312, 370/351, 370/254, 370/400, 370/401, 370/310, 370/338, 370/349, 370/389, 370/392, 455/445, 455/422, 455/456
• US Class Current: 370/351
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1466 Active attacks involving interception, injection, modification, spoofing of data unit addresses, e.g. hijacking, packet injection or TCP sequence number attacks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/04 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/14 with services dependent on location where the service is an information service H04M2242/15; services independent of location H04M3/42229
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42357 where the information is provided to a monitoring entity such as a potential calling party or a call processing server
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/51 Centralised call answering arrangements requiring operator intervention , e.g. call or contact centers for telemarketing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

A geographic location identification system and method for a packet data network is disclosed wherein geographic location information is provisioned or derived at nodes that comprise the network. Upon a request from a requesting node, the geographic location information of one or more target nodes is provided to the requesting node. The target nodes may be user access nodes and/or network routing nodes.

Claims

1. A packet data network geographic location identification method, comprising the steps of:

generating a request for geographic location information at a requesting node that is adapted to consume said geographic location information;

sending said request to a target node that provisions or derives node geographic location information about itself;

providing said node geographic location information to said requesting node;

said request being sent to said target node through one or more intermediate routing nodes that provision or derive node geographic location information about themselves; and

said intermediate routing nodes providing their geographic location information to said requesting mode.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said requesting node implements a packet telephony server that uses said geographic location information to identify the geographic location of a calling party served by said target node.

3. A method in accordance with claim 2 wherein said packet telephony server is an emergency response telephony server.

4. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said requesting node implements an authentication server that uses said geographic location information to verify identification information of an entity served by said target node.

5. A method in accordance with claim 4 wherein said authentication server is part of an online merchandising system.

6. A method in accordance with claim 4 wherein said authentication server is part of an online electronic voting system.

7. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said requesting node implements a network management server that uses said geographic location information to generate a network topology map showing the geographic location said target node.

8. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said target node is a user access node.

9. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said target node is a network routing node.

10. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said geographic location information includes latitude, longitude and altitude.

11. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said geographic location information includes Country, State, City, Street, and Floor or Suite information.

12. A method in accordance with claim 1 wherein said generating and sending steps include generating and sending traceback packets to said target node by way of said intermediate routing nodes that provision or derive geographic location information about themselves.

13. A method in accordance with claim 12 wherein said providing step includes sending response packets containing said geographic location information about said target node and said intermediate routing nodes in response to said traceback packets.

14. A packet data network geographic location identification system, comprising:

means in a requesting node for generating a request for geographic location information;

means in said requesting node for sending said request to a target node that provisions or derives node geographic location information about itself;

means in said target node for providing said node geographic location information to said requesting node;

means in said requesting node for consuming said node geographic information;

said sending means being adapted to send said request to said target node through one or more intermediate routing nodes that provision or derive node geographic location information about themselves; and

said system including means in said intermediate routing nodes for providing their geographic location information to said requesting node.

15. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said requesting node implements a packet telephony server that uses said geographic location information to identify the geographic location of a calling party served by said target node.

16. A system in accordance with claim 15 wherein said packet telephony server is an emergency response telephony server.

17. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said requesting node implements an authentication server that uses said geographic location information to verify identification information of an entity served by said target node.

18. A system in accordance with claim 17 wherein said authentication server is part of an online merchandising system.

19. A system in accordance with claim 18 wherein said authentication server is part of an online electronic voting system.

20. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said requesting node implements a network management server that uses said geographic location information to generate a network topology map showing the geographic location said target node.

21. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said target node is a user access node.

22. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said target node is a network routing node.

23. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said geographic location information includes latitude, longitude and altitude.

24. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said geographic location information includes Country, State;

City, Street, and Floor or Suite information.

25. A system in accordance with claim 14 wherein said generating means and said sending means respectively generate and send traceback packets to said target node by way of said intermediate routing nodes that provision or derive geographic location information about themselves.

26. A system in accordance with claim 25 wherein said providing means sends response packets containing said geographic location information about said target node and said intermediate routing nodes in response to said traceback packets.

27. In a packet telephony network, a method for providing caller geographic location identification service, comprising the steps of:

provisioning or deriving geographic location information at network nodes that comprise the packet telephony network such that each network node provisions or derives geographic location information about itself;

providing said geographic location information to a requesting node in said packet telephony network;

processing said geographic location information at said requesting node to determine the geographic location of a node to be located in said packet telephony network; and

said requesting node serving a called party in a packet telephony session and said node to be located serving a calling party in said packet telephony session.

28. A method in accordance with claim 27 wherein said requesting node implements an emergency response server.

29. In a packet data network, a method for authenticating identification information provided by remote entity, comprising the steps of:

provisioning or deriving geographic location information at network nodes that comprise the packet data network such that each network node provisions or derives geographic location information about itself;

providing said geographic location information to a requesting node in said packet data network;

processing said geographic location information at said requesting node to determine the geographic location of a node to be located in said packet data network; and

said requesting node serving on authenticating entity in a packet data session and said node to he located serving un information providing entity in said packet data session.

30. A method in accordance with claim 29 wherein said authentication server is part of an online merchandising system.

31. A method to accordance with claim 29 wherein said authentication server is part of an online electronic voting system.

33. A method in accordance with claim 29 wherein said processing step includes generating a network topology map.

32. In a packet data network, a method for managing said network, comprising the steps of:

provisioning or deriving geographic location information at network nodes that comprise the packet data network such that each network node provisions or derives geographic location information about itself;

providing said geographic location information to a requesting node in said packet data network;

processing said geographic location information at said requesting node to determine the geographic location of nodes to be located in said packet data network; and

said requesting node serving a network management entity.