Intermediate networking devices

• US 9,351,193 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2013
• Issued: 05/24/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Headwater Research LLC (Greg Raleigh)
• Original Assignee: Headwater Partners I LLC (Greg Raleigh)
• Inventors: Raleigh, Gregory G., Nguyen, Vien-Phuong, Stark, Lisa, Tellado, Jose
• Primary Examiner(s): RUDY, ANDREW J
• Application Number:
  US14/098,523
• Publication Number:
  US 20140098671A1
• Time in Patent Office: 901 Days
• Field of Search: 370/228, 370/235, 370/241, 370/242, 370/252, 370/254, 370/331, 370/338, 455/405, 455/406, 455/411, 455/414.1, 455/432.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06375 Prediction of business process outcome or impact based on a proposed change
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0284 Time or distance, e.g. usage of parking meters or taximeters
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/14 Charging , metering or billing arrangements for data wireline or wireless communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1403 Architecture for metering, charging or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1482 involving use of telephony infrastructure for billing for the transport of data, e.g. call detail record [CDR] or intelligent network infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1485 Tariff-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5025 : by proactively reacting to service quality change, e.g. by reconfiguration after service quality degradation or upgrade
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 : Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 : Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2408 : for supporting different services, e.g. a differentiated services [DiffServ] type of service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/39 : Credit based
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 : Multichannel or multilink protocols
• 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 15/41 : Billing record details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure of call data record [CDR]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/43 : Billing software details
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/44 : Augmented, consolidated or itemized billing statement or bill presentation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/53 : using mediation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/58 : based on statistics of usage or network monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/61 : based on the service used
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/705 : Account settings, e.g. limits or numbers or payment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/75 : Account location specifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/752 : Terminal based account
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/80 : Rating or billing plans; Tariff determination aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8044 : Least cost routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/82 : Criteria or parameters used for performing billing operations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8257 : Unit based
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/85 : characterised by the type of condition triggering a notification
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0104 : Augmented, consolidated or itemised billing statement, e.g. additional billing information, bill presentation, layout, format, e-mail, fax, printout, itemised bill per service or per account, cumulative billing, consolidated billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0164 : Billing record, e.g. Call Data Record [CDR], Toll Ticket[TT], Automatic Message Accounting [AMA], Call Line Identifier [CLI], details, i.e. parameters, identifiers, structure
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0172 : Mediation, i.e. device or program to reformat CDRS from one or more switches in order to adapt to one or more billing programs formats
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0188 : Network monitoring; statistics on usage on called/calling number
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2033 : WLAN
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/72 : Account specifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7213 : Terminal based
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/74 : Rating aspects, e.g. rating parameters or tariff determination apects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/78 : Metric aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/786 : Unit based
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7886 : Apply cheapest or best package, e.g. selection among available tariffs or packages least cost routing H04M2215/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/088 : using filters or firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 : Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0289 : Congestion control load shedding arrangements in network planning H04W16/08; performing reselection for handling the traffic H04W36/22; wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 : Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 : Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/02 : Processing of mobility data, e.g. registration information at HLR [Home Location Register] or VLR [Visitor Location Register]; Transfer of mobility data, e.g. between HLR, VLR or external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 : Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 : adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

A wireless communication device comprising: one or more network modems enabling the wireless communication device to communicate over a first wireless network; one or more network modems enabling the wireless communication device to communicate with two or more end-point devices over a second wireless network; one or more processors configured to execute one or more instructions; and memory coupled to the one or more processors and configured to provide the one or more processors with the one or more instructions. The one or more instructions, when executed by the processors, cause processors to: establish a first connection between the wireless communication device and a first end-point device; establish a second connection between the wireless communication device and a second end-point device; apply a first control to traffic transmitted by or to the first end-point device; and apply a second control to traffic transmitted by or to the second end-point device.

Claims

1. A wireless communication device, comprising:

a wireless wide-area network (WWAN) modem enabling the wireless communication device to communicate with a network system over at least a first WWAN;

a wireless local area network (WLAN) modem enabling the wireless communication device to directly communicate with two or more wireless end-user devices;

one or more processors configured to execute one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

establish a first direct connection, via the WLAN modem, between the wireless communication device and a first wireless end-user device of the two or more wireless end-user devices;

establish a second direct connection, concurrent with the first connection and via the WLAN modem, between the wireless communication device and a second wireless end-user device of the two or more wireless end-user devices;

apply a first network usage control to first traffic, the first traffic forwarded by the wireless communication device between the first WWAN and the first wireless end-user device; and

apply a second network usage control to second traffic, the second traffic forwarded by the wireless communication device between the first WWAN and the second wireless end-user device; and

memory coupled to the one or more processors and configured to provide the one or more processors with the one or more instructions.

2. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to obtain an accounting of usage of the first WWAN.

3. The wireless communication device recited in claim 2, wherein the accounting of usage of the first WWAN comprises a measure of usage for data forwarded between the first WWAN and a plurality of connected wireless end-user devices, the plurality including the first wireless end-user device and the second wireless end-user device.

4. The wireless communication device recited in claim 2,

wherein the accounting of usage of the first WWAN comprises a measure of usage for data forwarded between the first WWAN and the first wireless end-user device, the second wireless end-user device, or both the first wireless end-user device and the second wireless end-user device.

5. The wireless communication device recited in claim 2, wherein obtaining an accounting of usage of the first wireless network comprises measuring usage of the first WWAN by the wireless communication device.

6. The wireless communication device recited in claim 2, wherein obtaining an accounting of usage of the first WWAN comprises receiving a measurement of usage of the first WWAN from a network element communicatively coupled to the wireless communication device over the first WWAN.

7. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to modify the first network usage control based on an accounting of usage of the first WWAN by the wireless communication device and associated with the first wireless end-user device.

8. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein the first network usage control or the second network usage control is based on a service plan limit.

9. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to determine that the first wireless end-user device is not authorized to access the wireless communication device to communicate over the first WWAN.

10. The wireless communication device recited in claim 9, wherein, in response to the determination that the first wireless end-user device is not authorized to access the wireless communication device to communicate over the first WWAN, the one or more instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to provide a notification to the first wireless end-user device.

11. The wireless communication device recited in claim 10, wherein the notification comprises information about a service plan.

12. The wireless communication device recited in claim 11, wherein the information indicates that the service plan has expired.

13. The wireless communication device recited in claim 11, wherein the information about the service plan comprises an offer for the service plan.

14. The wireless communication device recited in claim 13, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to obtain a response to the offer for the service plan from the first wireless end-user device.

15. The wireless communication device recited in claim 14, wherein the response to the offer for the service plan comprises an acceptance of the offer for the service plan.

16. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein the first network usage control allows the first traffic, and wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to:

determine that the first network usage control needs to be modified; and

change the first network usage control to block or restrict the first traffic.

17. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to limit how many of the two or more wireless end-user devices are authorized to connect concurrently to the first WWAN through the wireless communication device.

18. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein there is a limit on how many of the two or more wireless end-user devices are authorized to be connected concurrently to the wireless communication device.

19. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to identify a particular service usage by the first wireless end-user device to be sponsored by a third-party service partner.

20. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein the first WWAN comprises a cellular 2G network, a cellular 3G network, a cellular 4G network, or a WiMAX network.

21. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, wherein the WLAN modem comprises an 802.11 Wi-Fi network modem, a Bluetooth network modem, a wireless personal area network (WPAN) modem, or a near field communication (NFC) network modem.

22. The wireless communication device recited in claim 1, further comprising a user interface.

23. The wireless communication device recited in claim 22, wherein the user interface comprises a display on the wireless communication device.

24. The wireless communication device recited in claim 22, wherein, when executed by the one or more processors, the one or more instructions further cause the one or more processors to make available, through the user interface, one or more tools enabling a user to configure the first connection, the second connection, or both the first and second connections.