Accurate billing for services used across multiple serving nodes

• US 8,463,232 B2
• Filed: 12/31/2007
• Issued: 06/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Tuli, Amol, Gopikanth, Venkat, Raval, Tushar
• Primary Examiner(s): Magloire, Vladimir
• Application Number:
  US11/967,378
• Publication Number:
  US 20090170469A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,989 Days
• Field of Search: 455405-409, 4554321-433, 455436-444
• US Class Current: 455/405
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/31 Distributed metering or calculation of charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2026 Wireless network, e.g. GSM, PCS, TACS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/204 UMTS; GPRS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/206 CDMA, i.e. Code Division Multiple Access
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/96 Distributed calculation of charges, e.g. in different nodes like for mobiles between HLR and VLR, or between the terminal and the billing function
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

A method, wireless service node, and wireless communication system, are provided to manage wireless service usage and service node migration in the wireless communication system. A registration request from a wireless device (108) is received. A charging session associated with the wireless device (108) is established with a billing server (124). Wireless service usage is associated with the wireless device (108). The wireless device (108) is determined to be migrating to a new wireless service node (114). Information associated with the current charging session is transferred to the new wireless service node (114). Following the transfer, the service usage information pertaining to the same session is maintained and transferred by the new wireless service node to the billing server at appropriate time intervals and as per dynamic rules set in the billing server.

Claims

1. A method, with a first wireless access node, for managing wireless service usage and access node migration, the method comprising:

receiving a registration request from a wireless device;

establishing a charging session with a billing server, wherein the charging session is associated with the wireless device;

monitoring wireless service usage associated with the wireless device;

determining that the wireless device is migrating to a new wireless access node;

transferring billing information associated with the charging session and timer data indicating an amount of time that has elapsed since a most recent accounting record was sent to the billing server to the new wireless access node; and

transferring, to the new wireless access node, wireless service usage information and a hop count, wherein the hop count indicates a number of nodes that the wireless device has traversed since a most recent accounting record was sent to the billing server.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring, by the new wireless access node, wireless service usage by the wireless device under the charging session that has been established.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the establishing a charging session further comprises:

receiving accounting report interval information and a configurable accounting parameter from the billing server, wherein the accounting report interval information indicates how often an accounting report is to be sent to the billing server, and wherein the accounting parameter indicates how to manage wireless service usage and wireless access node migration.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting, in response to the determining that wireless device is migrating to new access node, an accounting record to the billing server, wherein the accounting record comprises wireless service usage information associated with the wireless device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring information further comprises:

transmitting to the billing server, by the new wireless service node, the billing information concerning wireless service usage by the wireless device at the first wireless access node.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein transmitting the wireless service usage information to the billing server further comprises:

initiating, by the new wireless access node, an accounting timer;

determining, by the new wireless access node, that the accounting timer has expired; and

transmitting to the billing server, by the new wireless access node in response to determining that the accounting timer has expired, an accounting record comprising at least one of the wireless service usage information and wireless service usage information monitored during the accounting timer.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein transferring further comprises:

determining, by the new wireless access node, that the hop count has exceeded a given threshold; and

transmitting to the billing server, by the new wireless access node, an accounting record comprising the wireless service usage information received from the wireless access node and wireless service usage information recorded by the new wireless access node.

7. A method, with a wireless service node, for managing wireless service usage and service node migration, the method comprising:

receiving a registration request from a wireless device;

establishing a charging session with a billing server, wherein the charging session is associated with the wireless device;

monitoring wireless service usage associated with the wireless device;

determining that the wireless device is migrating to a new wireless service node;

transferring wireless service usage information to the new wireless service node and timer data indicating an amount of time that has elapsed since a most recent accounting record was sent to the billing server;

initiating, by the new wireless service node, an accounting timer based on a reporting interval received from the billing server and the elapsed time indicated by the timer data;

determining, by the new wireless service node, that the accounting timer has expired; and

transmitting to the billing server, by the new wireless service node in response to determining that the accounting time has expired, an accounting record, wherein the accounting record comprising the wireless service usage information received from the wireless service node and wireless service usage information recorded by the new wireless service node during the time interval from the initiating of the accounting timer until it has expired.

9. An apparatus for managing wireless service usage and service node migration, the apparatus comprising:

a wireless access node having;

a memory;

a processor communicatively coupled to the memory;

a transceiver communicatively coupled to the memory and the processor; and

a device manager communicatively coupled to the memory, processor, and transceiver, wherein the device manager is adapted to;

receive a registration request from a wireless device;

establish, with a billing server, a charging session associated with the wireless device;

monitor wireless service usage associated with the wireless device;

determine that the wireless device is migrating to another wireless access node;

transfer billing information associated with the charging session that has been established and timer data indicating an amount of time that has elapsed since a most recent accounting record was sent to the billing server to the another wireless access node; and

transfer unreported wireless service usage information to the another wireless access node and timer data indicating an amount of time that has elapsed since a most recent accounting record was sent to the billing server; and

the another wireless access node configured to

initiate an accounting timer equal to a reporting interval received from the billing server less the time indicated by the timer data;

determine that the accounting timer has expired; and

transmit to the billing server, in response to determining that the accounting time has expired, an accounting record comprising at least one of the wireless service usage information and wireless service usage information monitored during the accounting timer by the new wireless access node.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises the another wireless access node and wherein the another wireless access node is configured to continue to monitor wireless service usage by the wireless device under the charging session that has been established.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the device manager is further adapted to:

receive wireless service usage management configuration parameters from the billing server, wherein the wireless service usage management configuration parameters specify at least one of wireless service usage reporting intervals and wireless service usage transfer modes, wherein the wireless service usage transfer modes specify that the wireless access node is to transfer wireless service usage information to one of the another wireless access node and the billing server when the wireless access node determines that the wireless device is migrating to the another wireless access node.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises the another wireless access node, wherein the transfer of information further comprises transferring wireless service usage information to the another wireless access node, and wherein the another wireless access node is configured to:

initiate an accounting timer;

determine that the accounting timer has expired; and

transmit to the billing server, in response to determining that the accounting timer has expired, an accounting record comprising at least one of the wireless service usage information and wireless service usage information monitored by the another wireless access node during the accounting timer.