Handover processing system in mobile communication system

• US 8,068,480 B2
• Filed: 02/21/2008
• Issued: 11/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Keiji, Kishino, Fuminori
• Primary Examiner(s): Corsaro; Nick
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, MAHENDRA R
• Application Number:
  US12/071,489
• Publication Number:
  US 20090086675A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,377 Days
• Field of Search: 455/453, 455/405, 455/525, 455/226, 455/436, 455/439, 455/445, 455/168, 455/522, 370/328, 370/331, 370/401, 370/338, 370/329, 370/352
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0019 adapted for mobile IP [MIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/14 Reselecting a network or an air interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

A handover processing system in mobile communication system, implemented in gateway connected to subscriber network including base station in the mobile communication system, public network and IP network and accompanied by movement of radio terminal in the mobile communication system, wherein the gateway comprises line exchanger performing line exchange processing, VoIP connection unit controlling communication function to transmit/receive IP-packetized data to make communication and call control function for the VoIP communication function, handover detector determining whether or not call originating request from the base station is handover call, communication call detector determining whether or not communication source call of handover is present, call information storage unit storing call information, handover source call retriever retrieving handover source call in IP network, and handover processor taking over communication call from communication partner to continue the communication, and performing handover processing of VoIP communication call.

Claims

1. A first gateway connected to a PSTN, an IP network, and a mobile communications network including a base station configured to receive a communication source call from a mobile terminal in the mobile communications network, the first gateway comprising a control unit configured to perform handover through either the PSTN or the IP network, the first gateway being configured:

d1) to receive from the base station a communication request relating to the communication source call and to determine whether the communication request is a handover call; and

a) on determining, at d1, that the communication request is not a handover call, to perform a line exchange connection through the PSTN or a VoIP connection through the IP network depending upon the type of the communication source call; and

d2) on determining, at d1, that the communication source call is a handover call, to determine whether the first gateway is managing the communication source call; and

b) on determining, at d2, that the first gateway is managing the communication source call, to perform the handover through the PSTN or the IP network depending upon the type of the communication source call, the handover being performed by the first gateway; and

d3) on determination, at d2, that the first gateway is not managing the communication source call, to interrogate a second gateway to determine whether the communication source call is being managed by the second gateway connected to the first gateway via the IP network; and

c1) on determining, at d3, that the communication source call is not being managed by the second gateway, to perform the handover through the PSTN; and

c2) on determining, at d3, that the second gateway is managing the communication source call, to perform the handover through the IP network by acquiring information relating to the source call from the second gateway, and taking over management of the communication source call from the second gateway.

2. A first gateway according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises:

a handover processing unit configured to perform the handover;

a line exchange connection unit configured to perform the line exchange;

a VoIP connection unit configured to perform the VoIP connection;

a call information storage unit configured to store call information of the communication source call, the information including caller information, recipient information, a call reference and a call type;

a handover detection unit configured to perform the handover call determination at d1;

a communication call detection unit configured to perform the management determination at d2; and

a handover source call retrieval unit configured to take over management of the communication source call at c2.

3. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover source call retrieval unit includes an adjacent gateway information storage unit configured to store managing information to determine that the second gateway is designated as a handover partner and configured to determine that the second gateway is the retrieval partner based on the managing information.

4. A first gateway according to claim 2, in which networks adjacent to the first gateway are designated as potential networks for handover from the first gateway, and wherein the handover source call retrieval unit is configured to retrieve the communication source call by a broadcast message by designating all gateways in the IP network as retrieval objects.

5. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover source call retrieval unit is configured to retrieve the communication source call by designating gateways on a multicast network as retrieval objects and inquiring to the gateways with a multicast message.

6. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover source call retrieval unit is configured to retrieve the communication source call by designating all gateways in the IP network as retrieval objects of a broadcast message, and the gateways are the retrieval objects of the broadcast message.

7. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover source call retrieval unit is configured to retrieve the communication source call by acquiring position information of the mobile terminal from a server storing position information of the terminal and to interrogate gateways in the IP network that are designated as retrieval objects and that cover a call area of the terminal.

8. A first gateway according to claim 2, configured to assign IP addresses to gateways in the IP network that are adjacent to each other in accordance with a prescribed assigning rule, wherein

the handover source call retrieval unit is configured to retrieve the communication source call by interrogating adjacent gateways that are designated as retrieval objects in accordance with the assigning rule.

9. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover processing unit is configured to reconstruct connections to communication partners between gateways by acquiring partner information of the communication source call from the second gateway and by directly communicating in relation to call control with the second gateway by a protocol on the IP network.

10. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein a handover processing unit of the second gateway managing the communication source call is configured to transfer a call in accordance with a call control procedure to the first gateway, wherein the second gateway managing the communication source call is preconfigured to perform transfer processing of the communication source call.

11. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover processing unit is configured to provide a new link for call control by a protocol on the IP network to and from the second gateway managing the communication source call, and is configured to perform a handover connection by directly communicating voice communications between a third gateway operating as a handover destination and a communication partner gateway of the second gateway is designated as an anchor to transmit/receive call control information.

12. A first gateway according to claim 2, wherein the handover processing unit is configured to instruct the second gateway to perform switching of the communication source call when it is determined by the communication call detection unit at d2 that the first gateway is managing the communication source call.