Mobility management entity having mobile switching center functionality

• US 9,445,246 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2012
• Issued: 09/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Stojanovski, Saso
• Primary Examiner(s): Magloire, Vladimir
• Assistant Examiner(s): BRASWELL, DONALD H.B.
• Application Number:
  US14/347,210
• Publication Number:
  US 20140235285A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,446 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0892 by using authentication-authorization-accounting [AAA] servers or protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

A Mobility Management Entity (MME) comprises at least one entity or layer having Mobile Switching Center (MSC) functionality to support a Short Messaging Service (SMS) between a network and a mobile station by employing Machine-to-Machine (M2M) or Machine Type Communication (MTC) protocols. A first state machine entity or layer that supports relay functions to perform forwarding of SMS messages to the mobile station. A second state machine entity or layer that supports connection functions with at least an HSS/HLR (Home Subscriber Server/Home Location Register), and with an SMS-SC (Short Messaging Service -Service Center) or GMSC/IWMSC (Gateway MSC/Interworking MSC).

Claims

1. A method of handling signals for Short Messaging Service (SMS) between a wireless network and a mobile station (MS), the wireless network including a Mobility Management Entity (MME) and a Home Subscriber Server/Home Location Register (HSS/HLR), the MME having Mobile Switching Center (MSC) functionality supporting the SMS, the method comprising:

receiving, by the HSS/HLR from the MME, a location update request, the location update request being based on information received by the MME from the MS as part of a combined Tracking Area (TA) and Location Area (LA) update procedure for Packet Switched (PS) and Circuit Switched (CS) domains, the location update request being received over an Sha interface configured between the M ME and the HSS/HLR for the combined Tracking Area (TA) and Location Area (LA) update procedure, the location update request including;

an SMS-only indicator indicating that the location update request is an SMS-only update request, and

a flag field indicating that the MME is capable of SMS transfer without establishing association with an MSC, and

updating, by the HSS/HLR, MME information based on the location update request such that an SMS Service Center (SMS-SC) or SMS Gateway MSC/Interworking MSC (SMS-GMSC/IWMSC) in communication with the HSS/HLR conducts SMS signaling with the UE via the MME based on the updated M ME information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the TA update procedure is related to PS domain procedures and the LA update procedure is related to CS domain procedures.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the MS is a single mode E-UTRAN device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the MS is a Long Term Evolution (LTE)-only device.

5. The method of claim 1,

wherein the SMS signaling is received by the MME from the SMS-SC or the GMSC/IWMSC via an Inter-Working Function (IWF) that provides interworking between a Mobile Application Part (MAP) protocol and a Diameter protocol, and

wherein the M ME has MSC functionality that supports at least one among a group comprising handling of SMS forwarding over a radio interface and handling of SMS forwarding over the Diameter protocol.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the receiving step is related to performing machine-type communication (MTC) device triggering.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the information from the MS comprises:

one of an attach request or an MS location update request including an SMS-only indicator indicating that any MS location update requests is an SMS-only update request.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the location update request further includes preference information indicating whether or not the MME prefers using the SMS transfer without establishing association with the MSC.

7. A Home Subscriber Server/Home Location Register (HSS/HLR) for Short Messaging Service (SMS) between a wireless network and a mobile station (MS), the wireless network including a Mobility Management Entity (MME) having Mobile Switching Center (MSC) functionality supporting the SMS, the HSS/HLR comprising:

a transceiver configured to;

receive, from the MME, a location update request, the location update request being based on information received by the M ME from the MS as part of a combined Tracking Area (TA) and Location Area (LA) update procedure for Packet Switched (PS) and Circuit Switched (CS) domains, the location update request being received over an Sha interface between the M ME and the HSS/HLR for the combined Tracking Area (TA) and Location Area (LA) update procedure, the location update request including;

an SMS-only indicator indicating that the location update request is an SMS-only update request, and

a flag field indicating that the MME is capable of SMS transfer without establishing association with an MSC; and

update MME information based on the location update request such that an SMS Service Center (SMS-SC) or SMS Gateway MSC/Interworking MSC (SMS-GMSC/IWMSC) in communication with the HSS/HLR conducts SMS signaling with the UE via the M ME based on the updated M ME information.

8. The HSS/HLR of claim 7, wherein the TA update procedure is related to PS domain procedures and the LA update procedure is related to CS domain procedures.

10. The HSS/HLR of claim 7, wherein the information from the MS comprises:

one of an attach request or an MS location update request including an SMS-only indicator indicating that any MS location update requests is an SMS-only update request.

12. The HSS/HLR of claim 7, wherein the location update request further includes preference information indicating whether or not the MME prefers using the SMS transfer without establishing association with the MSC.