Supporting a multimedia application based on network zone recognition

• US 8,774,169 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2011
• Issued: 07/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Anchan, KiranKumar, Song, Bongyong, Brewer, Beth A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nawaz, Asad
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, PARTHKUMAR
• Application Number:
  US13/089,589
• Publication Number:
  US 20120093145A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,176 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370/352, 455/411, 455/428, 455/410, 710/14
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/24 Negotiating SLA [Service Level Agreement]; Negotiating QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/08 Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery signalling during connection H04W76/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/183 Processing at user equipment or user record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/10 adapted for application session management, e.g. SIP [Session Initiation Protocol] connection management H04W76/00; arrangements for session management H04L67/14

Abstract

In an embodiment, a user equipment (UE) determines that a current serving network is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage server-arbitrated communication sessions at the UE. The UE loads zone-specific network procedures for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type, and then executes the zone-specific network procedures at the UE. In another embodiment, an application server determines that the current serving network of the UE is associated with the network support zone of the given type. The application server selects zone-specific network parameters and/or features based on the determination, and then interacts with the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type with the selected zone-specific network parameters and/or features.

Claims

1. A method of operating a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, comprising:

determining that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage server-arbitrated communication sessions at the UE, wherein the different types of network support zones include two or more types that permit the multimedia client application to actively engage in the server-arbitrated communication sessions at different levels of support;

loading, based on the determination, a set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type; and

executing the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or using the set of zone-specific network features at the UE while connected to the current serving network,

wherein the determining step identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network procedures and/or features and the UE is provisioned with the zone-specific network procedures and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the loading step loads the provisioned zone-specific network procedures and/or features for the given type as the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network support zones of the first type and/or the second type are configured to provide a threshold Quality of Service (QoS), timing information used by the multimedia client application for timestamp-based authentication credential generation and/or a set of always-on packet data protocol (PDP) contexts.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the network support zone of the given type corresponds to the network support zone of the first type.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein executing the set of zone-specific network procedures at the UE includes (i) requesting a given set of resources that is fully or partially unavailable in the network support zones of the second or third types from the current serving network of the UE and/or an application server configured to arbitrate the server-arbitrated communication sessions for the UE, (ii) notifying the application server that the UE is operating within the network support zone of the first type, (iii) sending keep-alive packets at a frequency associated with the network support zone of the first type, and/or (iv) operating in dual packet data protocol (PDP) with Quality of Service (QoS).

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the network support zone of the given type corresponds to the network support zone of the third type.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein executing the set of zone-specific network procedures at the UE includes (i) refraining from requesting a given set of resources that is fully or partially available in the network support zones of the second or third types from the current serving network of the UE and/or an application server configured to arbitrate the server-arbitrated communication sessions for the UE, (ii) notifying a user of the UE that the UE is operating within the network support zone of the third type, and/or (iii) notifying the application server that the UE is operating within the network support zone of the third type.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein executing the set of zone-specific network procedures at the UE includes attempting to support the multimedia client application in the network support zone of the third type using best-effort protocols without Quality of Service (QoS).

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the network support zone of the given type corresponds to the network support zone of the second type.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein executing the set of zone-specific network procedures at the UE includes (i) requesting a subset of a given set of resources that is available in the network support zone of the first type from the current serving network of the UE and/or an application server configured to arbitrate the server-arbitrated communication sessions for the UE, (ii) notifying the application server that the UE is operating within the network support zone of the second type, (iii) sending keep-alive packets at a frequency associated with the network support zone of the second type, and/or (iv) operating in single packet data protocol (PDP) with Quality of Service (QoS).

10. The method of claim 8, wherein executing the set of zone-specific network procedures at the UE includes attempting to support the multimedia client application in the network support zone of the second type using best-effort protocols without Quality of Service (QoS).

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the UE has transitioned to a serving network associated with a network support zone of another one of the first, second and third types that is different than the given type;

loading another set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the another type; and

executing the another set of zone-specific network procedures and/or using the another set of zone-specific network features at the UE.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the UE is provisioned with a network identifier database that includes a list of network identifiers that identify networks within the wireless communications system, with each listed network identifier mapped to a particular type of network support zone.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining step includes:

determining a given network identifier of the current serving network,

determining a listed network identifier within the network identifier database that matches the given network identifier, and

establishing the network support zone of the given type as the particular type of network support zone to which the matching network identifier is mapped.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining step includes:

determining a given network identifier of the current serving network,

determining that the given network identifier does not match any listed network identifiers within the network identifier database, and

establishing the network support zone of the given type as a default type of network support zone based on the no-match determination.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining step includes:

determining a given network identifier of the current serving network,

determining that the given network identifier does not match any listed network identifiers within the network identifier database,

attempting to register, from the current serving network, with an application server configured to arbitrate the server-arbitrated communication sessions for the UE,

selecting between the first, second and third types based on whether the attempt to register with the application server is successful, and

establishing the network support zone of the given type as the selected type of network support zone.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

determining that the attempt to register with the application server fails; and

executing a registration failure fallback mechanism protocol based on the registration-failure determination.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the registration failure fallback mechanism protocol includes:

repeatedly attempting to register with the application server from the current serving network at a given interval until a successful registration is achieved.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the determining step includes:

determining a given network identifier of the current serving network,

determining that the given network identifier does not match any listed network identifiers within the network identifier database that are associated with the home network and/or the affiliate network of the UE, and

attempting to register, from the current serving network, with an application server configured to arbitrate the server-arbitrated communication sessions for the UE.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the determining that the current serving network of the UE is associated with the network support zone of the given type step further includes:

if the attempt to register with the application server is determined to be successful, establishing the network support zone of the given type as the first type; and

if the attempt to register with the application server is determined not to fail, executing a registration failure fallback mechanism protocol based on the registration-failure determination.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the registration failure fallback mechanism protocol includes:

repeatedly attempting to register with the application server from the current serving network at a given interval until a successful registration is achieved.

21. The method of claim 12, wherein the listed network identifiers correspond to public land mobile network (PLMN) identifiers.

22. A method of operating an application server that is configured to arbitrate communication sessions for a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, comprising:

determining that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage the UE'"'"'s communication sessions with the application server;

selecting a set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features based on the determination; and

interacting with the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type with the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features,

wherein the determining step identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network parameters and/or features and the application server is provisioned with the zone-specific network parameters and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the selecting step selects the provisioned zone-specific network parameters and/or features associated with the given type as the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the determining step includes:

receiving a report from the UE that includes a network identifier of the current serving network of the UE;

comparing the reported network identifier to a network identifier table that stores a plurality of network identifiers, at least one of the plurality of network identifiers stored in association with the network support zone of the given type; and

determining the current serving network to be associated with the network support zone of the given type based on the comparison.

24. The method of claim 23,

wherein the comparison identifies a network identifier from among the plurality of network identifiers that matches the reported network identifier, and

wherein the network support zone of the given type is determined to correspond to the given type of network support zone that is stored in association with the matching network identifier.

25. The method of claim 23,

wherein the comparison does not identify a network identifier from among the plurality of network identifiers that matches the reported network identifier, and

wherein the network support zone of the given type is determined to correspond to a default type of network support zone.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or the features corresponds to parameters and/or features that are expected to be supported within the network support zone of the given type.

27. The method of claim 22, wherein the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features includes one or more of (i) a push-to-talk (PTT) feature, (ii) a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) feature, (iii), a set of always-on packet data protocol (PDP) contexts, (iv) a threshold level of Quality of Service (QoS) and/or (v) timing information used by the multimedia client application for timestamp-based authentication credential generation.

28. The method of claim 22,

wherein the network support zone of the given type corresponds to the first type or the second type, and

wherein the interacting step includes notifying the UE that the multimedia client application is supported in the current serving network including an indication of the level of support for the multimedia client application and then supporting the multimedia client application in accordance with the indicated level of support.

29. The method of claim 22,

wherein the network support zone of the given type corresponds to the third type,

wherein the interacting step includes notifying the UE that the multimedia client application is unsupported in the current serving network, and

wherein the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features corresponds to a denial of service.

30. A user equipment (UE) within a wireless communication system, comprising:

means for determining that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage server-arbitrated communication sessions at the UE, wherein the different types of network support zones include two or more types that permit the multimedia client application to actively engage in the server-arbitrated communication sessions at different levels of support;

means for loading, based on the determination, a set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type; and

means for executing the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or using the set of zone-specific network features at the UE while connected to the current serving network,

wherein the means for determining identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network procedures and/or features and the UE is provisioned with the zone-specific network procedures and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the means for loading loads the provisioned zone-specific network procedures and/or features for the given type as the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features.

31. An application server that is configured to arbitrate communication sessions for a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, comprising:

means for determining that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage the UE'"'"'s communication sessions with the application server;

means for selecting a set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features based on the determination; and

means for interacting with the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type with the selected set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features,

wherein the means for determining identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network parameters and/or features and the application server is provisioned with the zone-specific network parameters and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the means for selecting selects the provisioned zone-specific network parameters and/or features associated with the given type as the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features.

32. A user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, comprising:

logic configured to determine that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage server-arbitrated communication sessions at the UE, wherein the different types of network support zones include two or more types that permit the multimedia client application to actively engage in the server-arbitrated communication sessions at different levels of support;

logic configured to load, based on the determination, a set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type; and

logic configured to execute the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or using the set of zone-specific network features at the UE while connected to the current serving network,

wherein the logic configured to determine identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network procedures and/or features and the UE is provisioned with the zone-specific network procedures and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the logic configured to load loads the provisioned zone-specific network procedures and/or features for the given type as the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features.

33. An application server that is configured to arbitrate communication sessions for a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, comprising:

logic configured to determine that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage the UE'"'"'s communication sessions with the application server;

logic configured to select a set of zone specific network parameters and/or features based on the determination; and

logic configured to interact with the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type with the selected set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features,

wherein the logic configured to determine identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network parameters and/or features and the application server is provisioned with the zone-specific network procedures and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the logic configured to select selects the provisioned zone-specific network parameters and/or features associated with the given type as the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features.

34. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, cause the UE to perform operations, the instructions comprising:

program code to determine that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage server-arbitrated communication sessions at the UE, wherein the different types of network support zones include two or more types that permit the multimedia client application to actively engage in the server-arbitrated communication sessions at different levels of support;

program code to load, based on the determination, a set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features for supporting the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type; and

program code to execute the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or using the set of zone-specific network features at the UE while connected to the current serving network,

wherein the program code to determine identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network procedures and/or features and the UE is provisioned with the zone-specific network procedures and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the program code to load loads the provisioned zone-specific network procedures and/or features for the given type as the set of zone-specific network procedures and/or features.

35. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing instructions stored thereon, when executed by an application server that is configured to arbitrate communication sessions for a user equipment (UE) within a wireless communications system, cause that application server to perform operations, the instructions comprising:

program code to determine that a current serving network of the UE is associated with a network support zone of a given type, wherein network support zones of different types are characterized by different levels of support for a multimedia client application configured to manage the UE'"'"'s communication sessions with the application server;

program code to select a set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features based on the determination; and

program code to interact with the multimedia client application within the network support zone of the given type with the selected set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features,

wherein the program code to determine identifies the given type of the current serving network as corresponding to a first type being a home and/or affiliate network of the UE configured to provide a full level or high level of support for the multimedia client application, a second type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide an intermediate level of support for the multimedia client application or a third type being a roaming network of the UE configured to provide zero-support or low support for the multimedia client application,

wherein the first, second and third types are associated with different zone-specific network parameters and/or features and the application server is provisioned with the zone-specific network parameters and/or features at least for the given type, and

wherein the program code to select selects the provisioned zone-specific network parameters and/or features associated with the given type as the set of zone-specific network parameters and/or features.