Method and apparatus for mobile subscriber alert notification

• US 8,437,783 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2007
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Unwired Planet LLC (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Gustafsson, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, MAHENDRA R
• Application Number:
  US12/520,730
• Publication Number:
  US 20100093380A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,965 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/456.2, 455/456.3, 455/456.5, 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 455/414.2, 455/466, 455/445, 342/357.31, 342/354, 340/539.1, 340/426.16, 340/994, 340/998, 340/8.1, 370/328, 370/522, 379/70, 379/214.01
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer

Abstract

A Location Server receives requests for subscribers that are within an Alert Area to enable notifications/alerts to be sent to the subscribers from an Alert Application. The Location Server extracts the location information by performing a search in a Database for subscribers that are located in the Alert Area. The quality of the locations in the database is dependent of the frequency with which a Core Network sends passive location data to the Location Server at network events when the Mobile Station is in contact with the network. The Location Server reconfigures the Core Network and Radio Access Network to send the information when it is needed. An advantage of the invention is that it is possible to provide services that require knowing which subscribers are currently located in a specific area in a flexible way without over loading the mobile network.

Claims

1. A method for mobile subscriber alert notification comprising in a location server performing the steps of:

receiving from an alert application a request for identity of subscribers within an alert area;

receiving from at least one network node subscriber location data;

checking the subscriber location data and informing the alert application about subscribers located within the alert area;

determining which cells belong to the alert area;

after the steps of receiving the request for subscribers within the alert area and determining which cells belong to the alert area, the further step of sending a request to at least one network node for cells belonging to the alert area; and

wherein the request comprises a request to modify a radio access network periodic location update configuration setting for when a mobile station contacts a mobile net via cells managed by the radio access network for periodic registration of location information.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein said request is sent only for network nodes that serves said cells.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the request for modifying the configuration in the network nodes comprises a start request for transmission of location data.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of receiving mobile station location data from at least one network node further comprises storing the mobile station location data in a location database.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the modified configuration comprises a Periodic Location Update parameter.

6. The method according to claim 5 wherein said Periodic Location Update parameter is changed from a lower frequency to a higher frequency.

7. The method according to claim 5 comprising the step of resetting the configuration.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein the step of resetting comprises sending a stop request to the network nodes for stop of location data transmission when mobile stations have been sufficiently located.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the step of informing the alert application further comprises informing when more accurate information about mobile stations located within the alert area can be provided.

10. The method according to claim 1 wherein the location data is passive location data.

11. The method according to claim 1 wherein the passive location data is a location data generated in a network element due to any of the events:

sending an SMS, making a call, location area update or periodic location update.

12. An apparatus for mobile subscriber alert notification having a processor and a memory having instructions accessible from the memory and processable by said processor, comprising:

an application handler for receiving from an alert application a request for identity of subscribers within an alert area;

an event handler for receiving from at least one network node subscriber location data;

a message mediator for checking the subscriber location data and informing the alert application about subscribers located within the alert area;

the message mediator further configured for determining which cells belong to the alert area;

a network configurator for sending a request to at least one network node for cells belonging to the alert area;

wherein the request from the network configurator comprises a request to modify a radio access network periodic location update setting for when a mobile station contacts a mobile net via cells managed by the radio access network for periodic registration of location information.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the request from the network configurator is sent only for network nodes that serves said cells.

14. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the network configurator instructs the core network to start transmission of location data.

15. The apparatus according to claim 12 comprising a location database for storing at least one of the mobile station location data and a specification of the served geographical area.

16. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the network configurator modifies a Periodic Location Update parameter of the configuration.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16 wherein said network configurator modifies the Periodic Location Update parameter from a lower frequency to a higher frequency.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16 wherein the network configurators reset the configuration.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18 wherein the network configurators reset by sending a stop request to the network nodes for stop of location data transmission when mobile stations have been sufficiently located.

20. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the application handler informs the alert application when more accurate information about mobile stations located within the alert area can be provided.

21. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the location data is passive location data.

22. The apparatus according to claim 12 wherein the passive location data is a location data generated in a network element due to any of the events:

sending an SMS, making a call, location area update or periodic location update.