Location registration apparatus, location registration method, and mobile communication network

• US 7,164,911 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2001
• Issued: 01/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Watanabe, Yugo
• Primary Examiner(s): Appiah; Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ly; Nghi H.
• Application Number:
  US10/045,675
• Publication Number:
  US 20020138195A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,894 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.2, 455/414.2, 455/440, 455/456.1, 455/457, 455/435.1, 455/436, 455/433, 342/357.09, 342/457, 340/988, 340/539.13, 340/825.36, 701/19, 701/117, 701/212
• US Class Current: 455/435.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/04 using triggered events
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/005 Moving wireless networks

Abstract

The presence area information of the moving portable communication terminals accompanied by a moving object is changed according to the scheduled path of the moving object and the scheduled time in the movement of the moving object by using a presence area unit which stores the presence area information indicating the presence area of each portable communication terminal and a moving schedule storage unit which stores the scheduled path information indicating the scheduled path of the moving object (a train, etc.) accompanied by at least one portable communication terminal and the scheduled time information indicating the scheduled time of the movement of the moving object.

Claims

1. A location registration apparatus comprising:

a presence area storage unit for storing a presence area information indicating a presence area of a portable communication terminal;

a traveling schedule storage unit for storing a scheduled path information indicating a scheduled path of a moving object and a scheduled time information indicating a scheduled time of the movement of the moving object; and

a control unit for, when the portable communication terminal is moving with the moving object, changing the presence area information of the portable communication terminal stored in the presence area storage unit based on the current time, the scheduled path information, and the scheduled time information stored in the traveling schedule storage unit,

wherein the control unit receives, from a moving object communication apparatus installed in the moving object, an identification information of a portable communication terminal moving with the moving object, and specifies the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object based on the identification information,

wherein the scheduled path information indicates one or more pass areas through which the moving object passes, and the scheduled time information indicates the time for which the moving object is located in each of the pass areas,

wherein, while the portable communication terminal is moving with the moving object, the control unit specifies the pass area within which the portable communication terminal is to be located based on the current time, the scheduled path information, and the scheduled time information, and changes the presence area information of the portable communication terminal to the one corresponding to the specified pass area,

wherein the pass area is a base station area each formed by a base station,

wherein the traveling schedule storage unit stores an auxiliary path information indicating a more extensive area than the pass area indicated by the scheduled path information; and

wherein, when the moving object is not moving on schedule, the control unit changes the presence area information on the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object to a presence area information according to the location of the moving object based on the auxiliary path information and the scheduled time information.

2. A location registration apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit recognizes that the moving object does not move on schedule by receiving, from a base station forming a base station area through which the moving object passes, a notice of abnormal running that indicates that the moving object does not pass the base station area on the schedule indicated on the scheduled time information.

3. A location registration apparatus comprising:

a traveling schedule storage unit for storing a scheduled path information indicating a scheduled path of a moving object and a scheduled time information indicating a scheduled time of the movement of the moving object; and

a control unit for, when the portable communication terminal is moving with the moving object, specifying a location of the moving object based on the current time, the scheduled path information and the scheduled time information in the traveling schedule storage unit, and specifying a presence area of the portable communication terminal based on the location of the moving object,

wherein the control unit receives, from a moving object communication apparatus installed in the moving object, an identification information of a portable communication terminal moving with the moving object, and specifies the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object based on the identification information,

wherein the scheduled path information indicates one or more pass areas through which the moving object passes, and the scheduled time information indicates the time for which the moving object is located in each of the pass areas, and

wherein, when the portable communication terminal is moving with the moving object, the control unit specifies the pass area within which the portable communication terminal is to be located based on the current time, the scheduled path information, and the scheduled time information, and specifies the presence area information of the portable communication terminal to the one corresponding to the specified pass area,

wherein the pass area is a base station area each formed by a base station,

wherein the traveling schedule storage unit stores an auxiliary path information indicating a more extensive area than the pass area indicated by the scheduled path information; and

wherein, when the moving object is not moving on schedule, the control unit specifies the presence area information on the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object according to the location of the moving object based on the auxiliary path information and the scheduled time information.

4. A location registration apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the control unit recognizes that the moving object does not move on schedule by receiving, from a base station forming a base station area through which the moving object passes, a notice of abnormal running that indicates that the moving object does not pass through the base station area on the schedule indicated on the scheduled time information.

5. A mobile communication network comprising:

a plurality of base stations each of which forms a base station area;

a presence area storage unit for storing a presence area information indicating a presence area of a portable communication terminal;

a traveling schedule storage unit for storing a scheduled path information indicating one or more base station areas through which a moving object accompanied by one or more said portable communication terminals passes, and a scheduled time information indicating a scheduled time of the movement of the moving object; and

a control station which, when the portable communication terminal is moving with the moving object, specifies a present area information indicating a base station area within which the moving object is predicted to be located based on the current time, the scheduled path information, and the scheduled time information stored in the traveling schedule storage unit, changes the presence area information of the portable communication terminal stored in the presence area storage unit based on the specified presence area information, retrieves the presence area information of the portable communication terminal from the presence area storage unit when an incoming call request to the portable communication terminal is received, and transmits the incoming call request to the base station in the presence area indicated by the retrieved presence area information,

wherein the traveling schedule storage unit stores an auxiliary path information indicating a more extensive area than the base station area; and

wherein, when the moving object is not moving on schedule, the control station specifies the area within which the moving object is located based on the current time, the auxiliary path information, and the scheduled time information, and, based on this information indicating the area, changes the presence area information of the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object.

7. A mobile communication network according to claim 5 or 6:

wherein the base station comprises

a storage unit for storing a scheduled presence time information indicating the time for which the moving object is to be within a base station area of the base station; and

a base station control unit for judging if the moving object is moving on schedule based on the scheduled presence time information, and sending, when judged that the moving object is not moving on schedule, a notice of abnormal running indicating that to the control station,

and wherein the control station recognizes, by receiving the notice of abnormal running from the base station, that the moving object does not move on schedule.

8. A mobile communication network according to claim 7,

wherein the base station control unit compares the time at which a notice of the location is received from a moving object communication unit installed on the moving object with the time indicated by the presence scheduled time information, and determines, based on the result of comparison, whether or not the moving object moves on schedule.

6. A mobile communication network comprising:

a plurality of base stations each of which forms a base station area;

a presence area storage unit which stores a presence area information indicating presence areas of a plurality of portable communication terminals, and stores an identification information of a moving object for the portable communication terminal moving with the moving object;

a traveling schedule storage unit for storing a scheduled path information indicating one or more base station areas through which the moving object passes, and a scheduled time information indicating the scheduled time of the movement of the moving object; and

a control station that, when receiving an incoming call request to a portable communication terminal moving with the moving object, specifies the presence area of the portable communication terminal based on the current time, the scheduled path information, and the scheduled time information of the moving object with the identification information, and transmits the incoming call request to the base station in the specified presence area.

wherein the traveling schedule storage unit stores an auxiliary path information indicating a more extensive area than the base station area, and

wherein the control station specifies the presence area of a portable communication terminal moving with the moving object based on the current time, the auxiliary path information and the scheduled time information for the identification information when the moving object is not moving on schedule.