System and method for routing SUPL proxy-mode traffice when multiple nodes are deployed in a network

• US 8,977,760 B2
• Filed: 11/23/2009
• Issued: 03/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: CommScope Inc. (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pawson, Darren, Singh, Chas
• Primary Examiner(s): Joo, Joshua
• Assistant Examiner(s): Naji, Younes
• Application Number:
  US13/123,306
• Publication Number:
  US 20110231561A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,933 Days
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/166 at the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1012 based on compliance of requirements or conditions with available server resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1014 based on the content of a request
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• 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 40/22 using selective relaying for reaching a BTS [Base Transceiver Station] or an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

A system and method for connecting a mobile device to a node in a wireless network. A query may be received for a mobile device from a location based application. In response to the query a first message may be transmitted to the mobile device from a first node, the first message being populated with at least one predetermined parameter. At a second node, it may then be determined whether to forward a second message from the mobile device to the first node via the second node as a function of the availability of the first node or the at least one predetermined parameter.

Claims

1. A method for connecting a mobile device to a node in a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a query for a mobile device from a location based application;

(b) transmitting a first message to the mobile device from an initiating secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

SLP”

) of a plurality of SLPs in response to the query, the first message being populated with at least one predetermined parameter that identifies the initiating SLP, wherein the first message with the at least one parameter that identifies the initiating SLP is received at the mobile device;

(c) establishing a transport layer security (“

TLS”

) connection to a given node; and

(d) forwarding a second message from the mobile device to the initiating SLP via the given node by associating the parameter with the initiating SLP,

wherein the step of forwarding further comprises;

(i) terminating the established TLS connection from the mobile device;

(ii) examining, in response to the terminating, the content of the second message as a function of the message header; and

(iii) selecting, in response to the examining, between (1) establishing a connection between the mobile device and any one of the plurality of SLPs in the network as a function of the availability of each of the plurality of SLPs in the network and (2) establishing a connection between the mobile device and the initiating SLP, wherein the selecting is based on an absence or presence of the at least one parameter in the message header.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the given node is a global server load balancing (“

GSLB”

) node.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one parameter is a fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the initiating SLP.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first message is transmitted via wireless application protocol (“

WAP”

) Push, Short message service (“

SMS”

), or user datagram protocol (“

UDP”

).

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the first message is a SUPL INIT message.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the second message is a SUPL POS INIT message.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the initiating SLP is a home secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

H-SLP”

).

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the query is a mobile location protocol (“

MLP”

) query.

9. A method for connecting a mobile device to a node in a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a query for a mobile device from a location based application;

(b) transmitting a first message to the mobile device from an initiating secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

SLP”

) of a plurality of SLPs in response to the query, the first message being populated with at least one predetermined parameter that identifies the initiating SLP, wherein the first message with the at least one parameter that identifies the initiating SLP is received at the mobile device;

(c) establishing a transport layer security (“

TLS”

) connection to a given node; and

(d) forwarding a second message from the mobile device to the initiating SLP via the given node by associating the parameter with the initiating SLP,

wherein the step of forwarding further comprises;

(i) terminating the established TLS connection from the mobile device;

(ii) examining, in response to the terminating, the content of the second message as a function of the message header; and

(iii) determining, in response to the examining, an Internet protocol address associated with the at least one parameter, and establishing a connection between the mobile device and the initiating SLP in response to determining that the second message includes the at least one parameter.

10. A method for connecting a mobile device to a node in a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a query for a mobile device from a location based application;

(b) transmitting a first message to the mobile device from a specific secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

SLP”

) of a plurality of SLPs in response to the query, the first message being populated with at least one predetermined parameter that identifies the specific SLP, wherein the first message with the at least one parameter that identifies the specific SLP is received at the mobile device;

(c) establishing a transport layer security (“

TLS”

) connection to a given node; and

(d) determining at the given node whether to forward a second message from the mobile device to the specific SLP via the given node as a function of the availability of the specific SLP or the at least one predetermined parameter,

wherein the step of determining further comprises;

(i) terminating the established TLS connection from the mobile device;

(ii) examining, in response to the terminating, the content of the second message as a function of the message header; and

(iii) selecting, in response to the examining, between (1) establishing a connection between the mobile device and any one of the plurality of SLPs in the network as a function of the availability of each of the plurality of SLPs in the network and (2) establishing a connection between the mobile device and the specific SLP, wherein the selecting is based on an absence or presence of the at least one parameter in the message header.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the given node is a global server load balancing (“

GSLB”

) node.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the at least one parameter is an SLPId having a unique identifier for the specific SLP.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the first message is transmitted via wireless application protocol (“

WAP”

) Push, Short message service (“

SMS”

), or user datagram protocol (“

UDP”

).

14. The method of claim 10 wherein the first message is a SUPL INIT message.

15. The method of claim 10 wherein the second message is a SUPL POS INIT message.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein the specific SLP is a home secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

H-SLP”

).

17. A method for connecting a mobile device to a node in a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a query for a mobile device from a location based application;

(b) transmitting a first message to the mobile device from a specific secure user plane location (“

SUPL”

) location platform (“

SLP”

) of a plurality of SLPs in response to the query, the first message being populated with at least one predetermined parameter that identifies the first SLP, wherein the first message with the at least one parameter that identifies the specific SLP is received at the mobile device;

(c) establishing a transport layer security (“

TLS”

) connection to a given node; and

(d) determining at the given node whether to forward a second message from the mobile device to the specific SLP via the given node as a function of the availability of the specific SLP or the at least one predetermined parameter,

wherein the step of determining further comprises;

(i) terminating the established TLS connection from the mobile device;

(ii) examining, in response to the terminating, the content of the second message as a function of the message header; and

(iii) determining, in response to the examining, an Internet protocol address associated with the at least one parameter, and establishing a connection between the mobile device and the initiating SLP in response to determining that the second message includes the at least one parameter.