Interface system of subscriber information management, billing, prepaid system for mobile network system, and prepaid method using the interface system

• US 8,737,960 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2005
• Issued: 05/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SK Planet Co., Ltd. (SK Telecom Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: SK Planet Co., Ltd. (SK Telecom Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kim, Yon-Hee, Oh, Tae-Ho, Cha, Young-In, Nam, Gi-Seon, Kwon, O-Hyon
• Primary Examiner(s): Edouard, Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): PEREZ, JULIO R
• Application Number:
  US11/573,966
• Publication Number:
  US 20080228610A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,203 Days
• Field of Search: 455/410, 455/411, 705/39, 705/40, 705/51, 705/67
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• 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 15/51 for resellers, retailers or 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 2215/54 Resellers-retail or service providers billing, e.g. agreements with telephone service operator, activation, charging/recharging of accounts
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

Disclosed are an interface architecture of subscriber information management, billing, prepaid system for mobile network system, and a prepaid method using the interface architecture. The present invention is embodied by a Workflow engine classified as a business logic and a processing logic to access the interface rapidly for clients. The workflow engine is applicable to the subscriber information management and the billing through a voice subscriber, a data subscriber and contents provider. Interfacing is possible to apply changeable embodiment of system and adapt environment changes through a workflow engine. Therefore, the present invention provides a wireless portal platform to increase efficiency in subscribing procedures and using service. In addition, the present invention provides solution of obstacles on respective module between the prepaid billing client and the prepaid billing gateway, or between the prepaid billing gateway and the prepaid billing server.

Claims

1. An interface system of a subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system for interfacing of a subscriber information management system for a mobile communication system, the interface system comprising a computer system,

the computer system comprising a memory and a processor coupled to the memory,

the processor configured to access and execute a program in the memory,

the executed program causing the processor to comprise a portal subscriber management unit, a subscriber management unit, a Contents Provider (CP) access management unit, and an interface management unit, wherein:

the portal subscriber management unit is configured to manage a portal subscriber;

the subscriber management unit is configured to manage an additional service subscriber; and

the CP access management unit is configured to control the access of one or more contents provided by a contents provider on the basis of a request from the additional service subscriber; and

the interface management unit configured is to accept, approve, and register a subscriber information including a portal subscriber information and an additional service subscriber information on the basis of a predetermined rule,

wherein the predetermined rule is associated with a workflow engine,

wherein the workflow engine is classified as a business logic and a processing logic,

wherein the business logic is a separate entity from the processing logic,

wherein the subscriber information is registered, received, modified, produced, inquired, changed, enrolled, released, deleted, or validated through the business logic and the processing logic, and

wherein the interface management unit is configured to perform a validation on the basis of a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), take a registration operation of the subscriber accepted through an additional service including an acceptance and registration of the contents provider, and keep predetermined rule information providing a voice subscriber and a data subscriber with subscribing procedures and subscribing information.

2. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 1, wherein the subscriber information comprises at least one of web ID, pass word, or registration number of residence.

3. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 1, wherein Common Information Module (CIM) services are built in the interface management unit to support workflows providing the subscriber with LDAP related works, Contents Provider (CP) related works, and Rule application.

4. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 1, wherein the interface management unit comprises:

an interface group of a plurality of interfaces configured to receive the information of the portal subscriber and the additional service subscriber through wire communication and wireless communication networks;

a LDAP database configured to store the subscriber information of voice clients;

a subscriber database configured to store the information of the portal subscriber and the additional service subscriber, and the predetermined rule built in for performing the subscription procedures and the subscription validation of the subscriber associated with the workflow engine;

the workflow engine configured to inquire the current state of the subscriber on the basis of the LDAP database and the subscriber database, and for registering and managing the primary information of the subscriber and the information of additional service subscribed on the basis of the predetermined rule;

a Recovery Management configured to store the requests from a plurality of interfaces on an error of the workflow engine and to restart the works according to the requests in releasing the error of the workflow engine; and

a Contents Provider (CP) Query Engine configured to perform the query of a validation request received from the interface group.

5. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4, wherein the interface group is associated with the Contents Provider (CP) interface configured to interface with the contents provider, the voice subscriber system interface configured to input the information of the voice subscriber, the WAP interface configured to receive the subscriber information through a wireless access using a wireless terminal, the WEB interface configured to receive the data subscriber information using a wire terminal, and a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) configured to receive the data subscriber information with accessing to a simple network.

6. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4,

wherein the workflow engine further comprises an Application Management configured to support co-ownership of additional service information;

and

wherein the Application Management includes at least one of an Email Provider, Personal Information Management System Provider (PIMS/UMS Provider), or other service providers.

7. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4, wherein the workflow engine comprises a Deployment Tool configured to adjust the management of information imputed and the corresponding rules depending on External Systems and environment changes.

8. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 7, wherein the Deployment Tool plays a role of producing of a Meta Data and a library about input and output data requested by the clients, and is a management input tool configured to provide validation and inquiry services on the basis of the corresponding rule.

9. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 8, wherein the validation and inquiry services are capable of producing, changing and inquiring of client information, and are the management tools configured to establish functions of addition, change and deletion of the terminal, and to subscribe, release and inquire the additional services.

10. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined rule performs a inquiry and a validation of the input and output data with a Global Rule about the information requested by the clients.

11. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 10, wherein the validation and inquiry services are capable of producing, changing and inquiring client information, and are the management tools configured to establish functions of addition, change and deletion of the terminal, and to subscribe, release and inquire the additional services.

12. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4, wherein the workflow engine comprises:

a Server Startup Module configured to fetch the data necessary for initial starting and the rule information from the subscriber database, and transmit them into an internal memory;

a Business Module configured to process a Request of data registered on the basis of the rule information with applying the rule information to the workflow engine;

a Communication Handler configured to perform communication interfacing by allocating communication channel with PV, WEB, Contents Provider (CP) and WAP accessing to the interface group;

a validation LDAP module configured to inquire and approve the subscriber information on the basis of LDAP database in inputting and modifying of the subscriber information received from the communication handler;

a workflow management module configured to process a request of subscriber information, subscriber request information, contents provider and additional service received from the communication handler on the basis of the rule information, and produce the corresponding results; and

a notification module configured to transmit the result information provided from the workflow management module to the clients.

13. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 4,

wherein the workflow engine further comprises a billing system which produces a total use data format of a predetermined additional service including use information of subscriber and billing information according to use of contents, and performs an operation and a management of billing and prepaid on the basis of the total use data format;

and

wherein the billing system is associated with a billing server deducting a deposit from the client for accounting the billing and the prepaid.

14. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 13, wherein the billing system comprises a billing unit configured to provide a wireless portal platform to unify and simplify the billing procedure;

and

a prepaid unit of the wireless portal platform, configured to perform the prepaid in the wireless portal platform regardless of prepaid server size which is not standardized.

15. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 14, wherein the billing unit comprises:

the first data production server configured to produce a use data format containing predetermined use information by using a user log from a WAP gate or contents provider;

a billing unit configured to produce the total use data format in the use data, containing of billing information according to WAP use and predetermined information, and transfer it into billing data registering format; and

a billing server configured to account billing, by using the billing data register format inputted from the billing unit.

16. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 15, wherein the predetermined use information is user information (user ID), Uniform Resource Locator (URL) information used by user during special times (visiting time) and terminal information of user.

17. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 15, wherein the predetermined information is any one of information of statistical value of using rate by user, the information updated to terminal recently, or preference information by user.

18. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 17, wherein the predetermined information is the information of prepaying subscriber notifying whether a subscriber prepays or not to prevent the prepaying subscriber from double billing.

19. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 15, wherein the billing unit comprises the second data production server configured to produce the use data format by inputting the user log from the content provider on the case only that the user log is not produced in WAP gateway or the content provider is reliable.

20. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 14, wherein the billing unit comprises:

a first data production server configured to produce a use data format containing the predetermined use information by using user log from WAP gateway or contents provider;

a billing unit configured to output billing information according to WAP use; and

a billing server configured to produce the total use data format containing of the billing information and the predetermined information and transferring it into billing data register format, and account the billing by using of the billing data register format inputted from the billing unit.

21. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined use information is user information (user ID), Uniform Resource Locator (URL) information used by user during special times (visiting time) and terminal information of user.

22. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined information is any one of information of statistical value of using rate by user, the information updated to terminal recently, or preference information by user.

23. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined information is the information of prepaying subscriber notifying whether a subscriber prepays or not to prevent the prepaying subscriber from double billing.

24. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 14, wherein the prepaid billing unit comprises:

a) a prepaid billing client configured to perform the billing after receiving the information of user deposit, and output the billing data therefrom;

b) a prepaid billing gateway configured to input the billing data outputted on the size promised with the prepaid billing client, and output the billing data after confirming client information; and

c) a prepaid billing server configured to account billing with inputting the billing data or to deduct the deposit of client according to the accounting of the billing.

25. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 24, wherein

the prepaid billing gateway comprises:

b-1) a client handler configured to play a role as a middle medium between the prepaid billing client and the prepaid billing server, input the billing data outputted on the size promised with the prepaid billing client, and output the billing data after comparing with the client information; and

b-2) a prepaid billing service Plug-In (PPS Plug-In) configured to input the billing data of the client handler, and output the billing data to the server with operation depending on the server size to prepare services regardless of kinds of the prepaid billing server.

26. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 24, wherein

the billing procedures is done by inquiring information of residual money of user, performing billing to terminal user, canceling the billing done and performing the billing reserved.

27. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 24, wherein the billing procedures is not done by all of steps, but done selectively by all or a part of steps depending on state of the billing of user.

28. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 24, wherein the prepaid billing gateway further comprises an obstacle solving unit configured to solve obstacles of respective module between the prepaid billing client and the prepaid billing gateway, or between the prepaid billing gateway and the prepaid billing server.

29. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 28, wherein

in the obstacle solving unit, the billing data is transferred from the prepaid client to the prepaid gateway directly on the case that the use Option is not used.

30. The interface system of the subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system according to claim 24, wherein the prepaid billing gateway further comprises a connection manager configured to control the respective unit function of the prepaid billing gateway.

31. A prepaid billing method using an interface system of a subscriber information management, billing, and prepaid system for a mobile communication system, wherein

the interface system comprises a computer system,

the computer system comprising a memory and a processor coupled to the memory,

the processor configured to access and execute a program in the memory,

the executed program causing the processor to comprise a portal subscriber management unit, a subscriber management unit, a Contents Provider (CP) access management unit, and an interface management unit, wherein:

the portal subscriber management unit is configured to manage a portal subscriber;

the subscriber management unit is configured to manage an additional service subscriber; and

the CP access management unit is configured to control the access of one or more contents provided by a contents provider on the basis of a request from the additional service subscriber; and

the interface management unit is configured to accept, approve, and register a subscriber information including a portal subscriber information and an additional service subscriber information on the basis of a predetermined rule,

wherein the predetermined rule is associated with a workflow engine,

wherein the workflow engine is classified as a business logic and a processing logic,

wherein the business logic is a separate entity from the processing logic,

wherein the subscriber information is registered, received, modified, produced, inquired, changed, enrolled, released, deleted, or validated through the business logic and the processing logic, and

wherein the interface management unit is configured to perform a validation on the basis of a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), take a registration operation of the subscriber accepted through an additional service including an acceptance and registration of the contents provider, and keep predetermined rule information providing a voice subscriber and a data subscriber with subscribing procedures and subscribing information; and

the prepaid billing method of a wireless portal platform comprises the steps of;

A) writing a prepaid billing data on a database without transmitting to a prepaid billing gateway when an obstacle solving unit of the interface system is configured to handle an obstacle of transmitting the prepaid billing data;

B) transmitting the prepaid billing data extracted from the database to a prepaid billing server; and

C) re-transmitting the prepaid billing data when an obstacle has occurred in the transmission of the prepaid billing data.

32. The prepaid billing method of the wireless portal platform according to claim 31, wherein the method comprises a step of transmitting the prepaid billing data directly to the prepaid billing gateway when the obstacle solving unit of the interface system is configured to ignore an error of transmitting the prepaid billing data.

33. The prepaid billing method of the wireless portal platform according to claim 31,

wherein in the step B), after transmitting the prepaid billing data, a state of the prepaid billing data is changed to Success instead of deleting it on the database.

34. The prepaid billing method of the wireless portal platform according to claim 31,

wherein in the step B), the state of the prepaid billing data is changed to Error where an obstacle is on transmitting the data to the prepaid billing server, and trying to re-transmit the data.

35. The prepaid billing method of the wireless portal platform according to claim 31,

wherein a trial number of re-transmitting in the step C) is predetermined, and the state of the prepaid billing data is changed to Give-up and not transmitted where a re-transmitting number exceeds to the predetermined trial number.

36. The prepaid billing method of the wireless portal platform according to claim 35,

wherein after a Network Management Operator finds the reason to Give up, the prepaid billing data is transmitted by a lump.