Method and apparatus for determining rove-out

• US 8,036,664 B2
• Filed: 09/22/2007
• Issued: 10/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ribbon Communications Operating Company, Inc. (Ribbon Communications, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Kineto Wireless Incorporated (Ribbon Communications, Inc.)
• Inventors: Tao, Patrick, Gupta, Rajeev, Gallagher, Michael D., Markovic, Milan, Khetawat, Amit
• Primary Examiner(s): Edouard; Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): PEREZ, JULIO R
• Application Number:
  US11/859,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20080076411A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,480 Days
• Field of Search: 455/436, 455/454, 455/554.1, 455/421, 455/456.4, 370/352, 370/331, 370/216, 370/389, 709/223
• US Class Current: 455/436
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/32 Hierarchical cell structures
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/06 De-registration or detaching
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/045 using private Base Stations, e.g. femto Base Stations, home Node B
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/20 between access points

Abstract

Some embodiments are implemented in a communication system that includes a first wireless communication system that includes a Femtocell access point (FAP) and a network controller that can communicatively couple the FAP to a second wireless communication system. In some embodiments, the network controller can communicatively couple to the second wireless communication system through a UTRAN Iu interface. In some embodiments, the FAP can communicatively couple to a user equipment using a short-range licensed wireless frequency. Some embodiments provide method that determines whether a user equipment (UE) has roved-out of the first wireless communication system. The method receives a periodic message at the FAP from the UE. When the FAP fails to receive a pre-determined number of the periodic messages, the method sends a deregister message to the network controller over a unique connection dedicated to the UE and releases the dedicated connection.

Claims

1. A method of determining that a user equipment (UE) has roved out of a wireless first communication system comprising a user deployed access point that operates using licensed wireless frequencies covering a short-range distance and a network controller communicatively coupling the access point to a core network of a second communication system comprising a licensed radio access network, the method comprising:

sending, from the access point to the UE, a system information broadcast that indicates an interval for the UE to send a periodic message directed towards the core network while the UE is in an idle mode, wherein the UE is in the idle mode when the UE is not engaged in a voice or data communication, wherein the access point is for intercepting messages sent by the UE that are directed towards the core network;

at said access point, determining that the UE which had previously selected said access point for licensed coverage is no longer camped on said access point by determining that the access point has failed to intercept a pre-determined number of location update messages from the UE; and

sending a deregister message from said access point to the network controller over a connection between the access point and the network controller, said deregister message for causing the network controller to deregister said UE from the wireless first communication system by removing a context and other resources associated with the UE, wherein said deregister message is generated at said access point.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the context associated with the UE comprises information the wireless first communication system keeps for each UE which is registered with the wireless first communication system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said connection between the access point and the network controller is a reliable secure transport connection.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the network controller is communicatively coupled to the core network through a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS) terrestrial radio access network (UTRAN) Iu interface.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the periodic message is a keep alive message.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining that the UE is no longer camped on said access point further comprises receiving at the access point a particular message sent from the UE indicating that the UE is detaching from the wireless first communication system.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the particular message indicates that the UE is powering down.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the particular message is an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)-Detach message.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the access point is a Femtocell access point (FAP).

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the wireless first communication system is a Femtocell communication system.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the context is uniquely associated with each UE that operates within a service region of the wireless first communication system.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said access point produces a service region of the wireless first communication system with a short-range distance of tens of meters, wherein said service region is smaller than a macro cell service region of the licensed radio access network.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the periodic message is a location update message.

14. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a computer program for execution by a user deployed access point that operates using licensed wireless frequencies covering a short-range distance, the computer program for determining that a user equipment (UE) has roved out of a wireless first communication system comprising said access point and a network controller, the network controller for communicatively coupling said access point to a core network of a second communication system comprising a licensed radio access network, the computer program comprising:

a set of instructions for sending a system information broadcast to the UE that indicates an interval for the UE to send a periodic message directed towards the core network while the UE is in an idle mode, wherein the UE is in the idle mode when the UE is not engaged in a voice or data communication, wherein the access point is for intercepting messages sent by the UE that are directed towards the core network;

a set of instructions for determining that the UE which had previously selected said access point for licensed coverage is no longer camped on said access point, the set of instructions for determining comprising a set of instructions for receiving a particular message from the UE indicating that the UE is detaching from the wireless first communication system; and

a set of instructions for sending a deregister message from said access point to the network controller over a connection between the access point and the network controller, said deregister message for causing the network controller to deregister said UE from the wireless first communication system by removing a context and other resources associated with the UE, wherein said deregister message is generated at said access point.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14 further comprising a set of instructions for intercepting a location update message from the UE, said location update message for determining whether the UE is still camped on said access point.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the access point is a Femtocell access point (FAP).

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the wireless first communication system is a Femtocell communication system.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the particular message indicates that the UE is powering down.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the particular message is an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)-Detach message.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the periodic message is a location update message.

21. A user deployed access point that operates using licensed wireless frequencies covering a short-range distance, said access point operable in a communication system comprising (i) a first communication system comprising a core network and a licensed radio access network, and (ii) a wireless second communication system comprising the access point and a network controller, the network controller for communicatively coupling the access point to the core network, the access point comprising:

a first module to implement protocols for facilitating communications with a user equipment (UE) communicatively coupled to the access point over the licensed wireless frequencies by sending a system information broadcast to the UE that indicates an interval for the UE to send a periodic message directed towards the core network while the UE is in an idle mode, wherein the UE is in the idle mode when the UE is not engaged in a voice or data communication, wherein the access point is for intercepting messages sent by the UE that are directed towards the core network; and

a second module to implement protocols for facilitating communications with the network controller by (i) determining that the UE which had previously selected said access point for licensed coverage is no longer camped on said access point by determining that the access point has failed to intercept a pre-determined number of location update messages from the UE and (ii) sending a deregister message to the network controller over a connection between the access point and the network controller, said deregister message for causing the network controller to deregister said UE from the wireless second communication system by removing a context and other resources associated with the UE, wherein said deregister message is generated at said access point.

22. The access point of claim 21, wherein the periodic message is a keep alive message.

23. The access point of claim 21, wherein the periodic message is a location update message.