Method and arrangement for transmitting information between subsystems in hybrid cellular telecommunication systems

• US 7,583,680 B1
• Filed: 11/24/2000
• Issued: 09/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Suontausta, Panu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham; Chi H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wong; Warner
• Application Number:
  US10/130,894
• Time in Patent Office: 3,203 Days
• Field of Search: 370/402, 370/310.2, 370/328, 370/338, 370/401, 370/395.5, 370/349, 370/358, 370/391, 370/466
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/042 Public Land Mobile systems, e.g. cellular systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

The invention relates to a method (400, 500) for establishing control information about a mobile station, in where first characteristics of the mobile station communicating with the cellular subsystem of a hybrid cellular telecommunication system are established (301) in said cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the cellular subsystem, the cellular subsystem is connected to a non-cellular subsystem, and second characteristics of terminals connected to the non-cellular subsystem are established in said non-cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the non-ellular subsystem. The method according to the invention is characterized in that said first characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between a certain translation entity and the cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the cellular subsystem, transmitted first characteristics are translated (402) to certain second characteristics of the mobile station and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted (311, 312) between the translation entity and the non-cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the non-cellular subsystem. The invention also relates to network elements (600, 610) and to a translation arrangement (601).

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

establishing, by a network element of a cellular telecommunication system, communications with a cellular subsystem where first characteristics of a mobile station communicating with the cellular subsystem of a hybrid cellular telecommunication system are established using methods that are defined for the cellular subsystem, said first characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to each cellular subsystem and said first characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said first characteristics comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station;

transmitting said first characteristics of the mobile station between a translation entity and the cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the cellular subsystem, wherein the transmitted first characteristics are translated into second characteristics of the mobile station in the translation entity, and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted from the translation entity to a gatekeeper entity of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said second characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database entity that forms a part of the translation entity and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database entity and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network;

exchanging information about the first characteristics with a network element of a non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid telecommunication system in order to establish in the non-cellular subsystem control information to control connections having one endpoint, at the mobile station, traversing at least the cellular subsystem of the hybrid telecommunication system and being routed in the hybrid cellular telecommunication system by the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said first characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the translation entity is located in the cellular subsystem.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the translation entity is located in the non-cellular subsystem.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the translation entity is located in a gateway element connecting the cellular subsystem and the non-cellular subsystem.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said first characteristics of the mobile station are translated into said second characteristics of the mobile station by, at least, giving the mobile station a certain identifier and by defining the address related to said identifier as an address of a gateway connecting the cellular subsystem to the non-cellular subsystem.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said second characteristics of the mobile station are requested by a gatekeeper entity of the non-cellular subsystem using methods that are defined for the non-cellular subsystem, requested second characteristics of the mobile station are translated into said first characteristics of the mobile station in a translation entity, said first characteristics of the mobile station are requested from the cellular subsystem by the translation entity and an establishment of said first characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the request of said first characteristics.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein many cellular subsystems are connected to the non-cellular subsystem, each said cellular subsystem is requested to transmit said first characteristics of the mobile station to the translation entity and said first characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted to the translation entity by the cellular subsystem communicating with the mobile station.

8. An apparatus, comprising:

a transceiver configured to communicate with a cellular subsystem of a hybrid cellular telecommunication system using protocols that are defined for the cellular subsystem and to communicate with a non-cellular subsystem using protocols that are defined for the non-cellular subsystem;

an establisher configured to establish first characteristics of a mobile station, said first characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said first characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said first characteristics comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station; and

a translator configured to translate first characteristics of a mobile station into second characteristics of a terminal entity and to translate certain second characteristics of the terminal entity into first characteristics of the mobile station, and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted from the translator to a gatekeeper of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said second characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database entity that forms a part of the translator and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database entity and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network;

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said first characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request, and wherein

the establisher is configured to establish control information about the mobile station in the non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system to control connections having one endpoint at said mobile station, said connections traversing at least a cellular subsystem of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the translator comprises an establisher to establish an identifier and an address for the mobile station in a format used in the non-cellular subsystem.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the transceiver configured to communicate with the non-cellular subsystem comprises an inserter configured to insert said second characteristics of a mobile station into a database entity.

11. An apparatus, comprising:

a transceiver configured to communicate with a cellular subsystem;

an establisher configured to establish characteristics of a mobile station, said characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said characteristics comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station; and

an exchanger configured to exchange information about said characteristics with a network element of a non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid telecommunication system, in order to establish in said non-cellular subsystem control information to control connections having one endpoint, at said mobile station, traversing at least a cellular subsystem of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem, said characteristics being translated into a different set of characteristics via a translator and transmitted from the translator to a gatekeeper of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said different characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database entity that forms a part of the translator and said different characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database entity and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request, and wherein

the apparatus is of the cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the translator is configured to translate said characteristics of the mobile station into second characteristics of a terminal entity and to translate the second characteristics of the terminal entity into characteristics of the mobile station.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is a apparatus of a global system for mobile communications network.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the apparatus is a apparatus of a universal mobile telecommunications system network.

15. An apparatus, comprising:

a transceiver configured to communicate with a non-cellular subsystem comprising a first exchanger configured to exchange information about characteristics of a terminal; and

a second exchanger configured to exchange information about said characteristics with a network element of a cellular subsystem of a hybrid telecommunication system, in order to establish in said non-cellular subsystem control information to control connections having one endpoint, at said terminal, traversing at least part of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem, said characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said characteristics comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station, said characteristics being translated into a different set of characteristics via a translator and transmitted from the translator to a gatekeeper of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said different characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database entity that forms a part of the translator and said different characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database entity and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request, and wherein

the apparatus is of the non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the second exchanger includes inserter configured to insert said characteristics into a database entity.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the translator is configured to translate characteristics of a terminal entity into the different characteristics of the mobile station and to translate the different characteristics of the mobile station into characteristics of the terminal entity.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the apparatus is an apparatus of a H.323 network.

19. An apparatus, comprising:

communicating means for communicating with a cellular subsystem of a hybrid cellular telecommunication system using protocols that are defined for the cellular subsystem and for communicating with a non-cellular subsystem using protocols that are defined for the non-cellular subsystem;

establishing means for establishing first characteristics of a mobile station, said first characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said first characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said first characteristics comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station; and

translating means for translating first characteristics of a mobile station into second characteristics of a terminal entity and for translating certain second characteristics of the terminal entity into first characteristics of the mobile station, and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted from the translating means to a gatekeeper entity of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said second characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database means that forms a part of the translating means and said second characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database means and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said first characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request,

wherein the establishing means is for establishing control information about the mobile station in the non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system for controlling connections having one endpoint at said mobile station, said connections traversing at least a cellular subsystem of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem.

20. A apparatus, comprising:

communicating means for communicating with a cellular subsystem;

establishing means for establishing characteristics of a mobile station, said characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station; and

exchanging means for exchanging information about said characteristics with a network element of a non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid telecommunication system, in order to establish in said non-cellular subsystem control information for controlling connections having one endpoint, at said mobile station, traversing at least a cellular subsystem of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem, and said characteristic information comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station, said characteristics being translated into a different set of characteristics via a translator and transmitted from the translator to a gatekeeper of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein the different characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database means that forms a part of the translator and said different characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database means and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request, and wherein

the apparatus is of the cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system.

21. An apparatus, comprising:

communicating means for communicating with a non-cellular subsystem comprising means for exchanging information about characteristics of a terminal; and

exchanging means for exchanging information about said characteristics with a network element of a cellular subsystem of a hybrid telecommunication system, in order to establish in said non-cellular subsystem control information for controlling connections having one endpoint, at said terminal, traversing at least part of said hybrid cellular telecommunication system and being routed in said hybrid cellular telecommunication system by said non-cellular subsystem, said characteristics of the mobile station being requested by sending a paging request to the cellular subsystem and said characteristics of the mobile station being established after receiving a paging response from the mobile station, and said characteristics of the mobile station comprising mobility management information, which comprises at least one of name and address information of the mobile station, said characteristics being translated into a different set of characteristics via a translator and transmitted from said translator to a gatekeeper of the non-cellular subsystem,

wherein said different characteristics of the mobile station are inserted into a database means that forms a part of the translator and said different characteristics of the mobile station are transmitted between the database means and elements of the non-cellular subsystem using the methods that are defined for the non-cellular network,

wherein a location updating request is sent by the mobile station upon said mobile station entering the cellular subsystem, an establishment of said characteristics of the mobile station is initiated by the location updating request, and wherein

the apparatus is of the non-cellular subsystem of the hybrid cellular telecommunication system.