Intermediary network system and method for facilitating message exchange between wireless networks

• US 7,672,267 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2004
• Issued: 03/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sybase 365 Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: Sybase 365 Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Chu, William, Lovell, Robert C. Jr., Tsai, Kirk
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel; Jayanti K
• Assistant Examiner(s): ZHU, BO HUI ALVIN
• Application Number:
  US10/831,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20040196858A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,136 Days
• Field of Search: 370/328, 370/329, 370/338, 370/395.2, 370/395.21, 370/395.3, 370/395.31, 370/389, 370/392, 370/401, 455/445
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/49 Connection to several service providers
• 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: H04M 2215/46 Connection to several service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13097 Numbering, addressing
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13098 Mobile subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13102 Common translator
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13196 Connection circuit/link/trunk/junction, bridge, router, gateway
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13383 Hierarchy of switches, main and subexchange, e.g. satellite exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/005 Personal communication services, e.g. provisions for portability of subscriber numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/00 Communication routing or communication path finding
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 : Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

Network system and method for facilitating message exchange between mobile subscribers belonging to the same or different public land mobile networks, possibly incorporating different standards. Message exchange between two subscribers of the same or different networks may involve one or more lookups on subscription data, zero or more message transformations, one or more routing decisions including application of costing functions, and, storage and propagation of the message in one or more Core or Intermediary networks. The messages may be of type, among others, SMS (Short Message Service), MMS (Multimedia Message Service), or EMAIL. An aspect of the present invention provides a message routing subsystem that facilitates destination determination and delivery channel selection.

Claims

1. An intermediary network system for interconnecting multiple networks, comprising:

an input unit selectably connectable to an entity from which a Short Message Service (SMS) message is received, the message having a destination address;

an output unit selectably connectable to a destination entity that services the destination address;

a transformation unit, the transformation unit being operable to operate on the SMS message to modify at least a portion of the SMS message received from the input unit and sent to the output unit; and

a routing unit, the routing unit being operable to;

determine the destination entity that services the destination address, and

apply dynamically-configurable rules to determine an SMS message delivery channel through which to deliver the SMS message to the destination entity,

wherein the routing unit provides a single consolidated interface that message handling elements of the intermediary network can invoke to determine the destination entity and the SMS message delivery channel, wherein the interface maintains a set of uninterrupted connections to an in-memory database, and wherein the in-memory database provides access to domestic data and international data,

wherein the routing unit is further operable to maintain configurable quality of service SMS message delivery targets by load balancing among more than one link offering the same quality of service to the same destination, and

wherein the routing unit comprises a database of message delivery channels available for a wireless carrier, and wherein the dynamically-configurable rules comprise logic to apply when selecting the message delivery channel for the wireless carrier at any given time,

wherein the available message delivery channels and the dynamically-configurable rules are stored as a coordinated set of definitional entries, and

wherein the definitional entries are manageable through a Web-based interface.

2. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the quality of service message delivery targets are dynamically-configurable.

3. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the domestic data comprises data from a Number Portability Administration Council (NPAC) database and at least one of local exchange routing guide (LERG) data, carrier data, and 800 numbers.

4. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the international data comprises static and real-time routing data received from sources within International Telecommunication Union (ITU) geographic regions two through nine.

5. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the interface maintains a set of uninterrupted connections to a suite of in-memory database facilities.

6. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the interface provides access to a real-time query facility.

7. The intermediary network of claim 6, wherein the real-time query facility has access to number pooling and number portability data stores.

8. The intermediary network of claim 7, wherein the data stores support real-time number-by-number lookup and resolution operations.

9. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the routing unit is further operable to support mapping between mobile directory number (MDN) values and mobile identification number (MIN) values.

10. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the definitional entries comprise available carriers, available message delivery channels, assignment of message delivery channels to carriers, and scheduling information indicating when message delivery channels for a carrier are available for use.

11. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the routing unit is further operable to ensure that the message delivery channel meets a quality of service target.

12. The intermediary network of claim 11, wherein the routing unit is operable to evaluate one of availability, overall utilization, capacity available, and latency to ensure that the message delivery channel meets the quality of service target.

13. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein, in determining the destination entity, the routing unit is operable to:

extract the destination telephone number from the message; and

identify the destination

entity based domestic and international routing data.

14. The intermediary network of claim 13, wherein the routing unit is further operable to determine the message delivery channel based on a destination wireless carrier, available delivery channels, assignments of the delivery channels to the destination wireless carrier, and scheduling information indicating when the delivery channels for the destination wireless carrier are available.

15. The intermediary network of claim 1, wherein the quality of service SMS message delivery targets are maintained by selectively accessing one of a plurality of short message peer-to-peer (SMPP) links between the intermediary network and the destination entity.

16. A method for resolving routing for a Short Message Service (SMS) message, wherein a destination of the SMS message is based on a mobile telephone number, the method comprising:

populating a composite routing database with domestic routing data and international routing data;

maintaining a real-time query facility that has access to number pooling and number portability data stores;

providing access to the composite routing database and the real-time query facility for the purpose of determining a destination entity that services the SMS message destination,

determining SMS message delivery channels available for the destination entity; and

applying selection rules to select, from the available SMS message delivery channels, an SMS message delivery channel through which to deliver the SMS message to the destination entity, the selection rules including configurable quality of service SMS message delivery targets implemented by load balancing among the SMS message delivery channels offering the same quality of service to the same destination,

wherein the available message delivery channels and the selection rules are stored as a coordinated set of definitional entries, and

wherein the definitional entries are manageable through a Web-based interface.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein providing access to the composite routing database comprises providing access through a set of uninterrupted connections to a suite of in-memory database facilities.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein providing access to the real-time query facility comprises supporting real-time number-by-number lookup and resolution operations.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the domestic routing data comprises data from a Number Portability Administration Council (NPAC) database and at least one of local exchange routing guide (LERG) data, carrier data, and 800 numbers.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the international routing data comprises static and real-time routing data received from sources within International Telecommunication Union (ITU) geographic regions two through nine.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the definitional entries comprise available carriers, available message delivery channels, assignment of message delivery channels to carriers, and scheduling information indicating when message delivery channels for a carrier are available for use.

22. A system for resolving routing for a Short Message Service (SMS) message, wherein a destination of the SMS message is based on a mobile telephone number, the method comprising:

means for populating a composite routing database with domestic routing data and international routing data;

means for maintaining a real-time query facility that has access to number pooling and number portability data stores;

means for providing access to the composite routing database and the real-time query facility for the purpose of determining the destination entity that services the SMS message destination,

means for determining SMS message delivery channels available for the destination entity; and

means for applying selection rules to select, from the available SMS message delivery channels, an SMS message delivery channel through which to deliver the SMS message to the destination entity, the selection rules including configurable quality of service SMS message delivery targets implemented by load balancing among the SMS message delivery channels offering the same quality of service to the same destination,

wherein the available message delivery channels and the selection rules are stored as a coordinated set of definitional entries, and

wherein the definitional entries are manageable through a Web-based interface.