Temporary credential assignment when connecting to roaming wireless networks

• US 9,591,560 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2013
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Kotecha, Lalit R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Demeter, Hilina K
• Application Number:
  US14/101,804
• Publication Number:
  US 20150163731A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,183 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/088 using filters or firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service

Abstract

A network device may receive, from a first telecommunications network, one or more temporary credentials that allow access to the first telecommunications network; receive, from a user device, a request to access the first telecommunications network; provide, to a server device associated with a second telecommunications network associated with the user device, a service validation request; receive, from the server device, a service validation response indicating that the user device is permitted to access the first telecommunications network; provide, based on receiving the service validation response, a particular temporary credential, of the one or more temporary credentials, to the user device; and transmit data to or from the user device via the first telecommunications network when the particular temporary credential is used to access the telecommunications network.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a network device and from a first telecommunications network, one or more temporary credentials that allow access to the first telecommunications network,

receiving, by the network device and from a user device, a request to access the first telecommunications network;

providing, by the network device and to a server device associated with a second telecommunications network associated with the user device, a service validation request,

the service validation request including a request to confirm that the user device is permitted to access the first telecommunications network,

the service validation request being provided based on receiving the request, from the user device, to access the first telecommunications network,

the second telecommunications network being different from the first telecommunications network;

receiving, by the network device and from the server device, a service validation response indicating that the user device is permitted to access the first telecommunications network;

selecting, by the network device, a particular temporary credential from a list of available temporary credentials of the one or more temporary credentials,

wherein the list of available temporary credentials includes temporary credentials not currently assigned to other user devices;

assigning the particular temporary credential to the user device;

providing, by the network device and based on receiving the service validation response, the selected particular temporary credential, of the one or more temporary credentials, to the user device,

wherein the particular temporary credential includes a telephone number; and

transmitting, by the network device, traffic to or from the user device via the first telecommunications network when the particular temporary credential is used by the user device to access the first telecommunications network;

attempting to reach the user device via the first telecommunications network by sending a test message;

determining that a response to the test message was not received within a threshold amount of time;

determining, based on determining that the response to the test message was not received, that the user device is not reachable via the first telecommunications network; and

removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device based on determining that the user device is not reachable via first telecommunications network.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining usage information that identifies a measure of usage of the first telecommunications network by the user device when the user device receives or transmits data via the first telecommunications network using the temporary credential; and

storing or outputting the usage information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein outputting the usage information includes providing the usage information to an account server associated with the second telecommunications network to cause the account server to assess a charge to an account associated with the user device, based on the usage information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the traffic relates to at least one of:

a voice call, or

a data transmission.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an instruction from the user device to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device when the user device disconnects from the first telecommunications network; and

wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device is further based on the instruction to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential returns the particular temporary credential to the list of temporary credentials that are not currently assigned to user devices.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential returns the particular temporary credential to the list of temporary credentials that are not currently assigned to user devices.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the particular temporary credential further includes an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).

9. A system comprising:

a non-transitory memory device storing;

a set of processor-executable instructions, and

one or more temporary credentials that allow access to a first telecommunications network; and

a processor configured to execute the processor-executable instructions, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions causes the processor to;

provide, to a server device associated with a second telecommunications network associated with a user device, a service validation request,

the service validation request including a request to confirm that the user device is permitted to access the first telecommunications network,

the service validation request being provided based on a request, from the user device, to access the first telecommunications network,

the second telecommunications network being different from the first telecommunications network;

select a particular temporary credential out of a plurality of temporary credentials that are not currently assigned to other user devices;

assign the particular temporary credential to the user device after receiving the request for the temporary credential,

provide the selected particular temporary credential to the user device,

wherein the particular temporary credential includes a telephone number,

the particular temporary credential being provided based on a service validation response, from the server device, indicating that the user device is permitted to access the first telecommunications network,

wherein providing the particular temporary credential includes providing the temporary credential based on assigning the temporary credential; and

transmit traffic to or from the user device via the first telecommunications network when the particular temporary credential is used by the user device to access the first telecommunications network;

attempt to reach the user device via the first telecommunications network by sending a test message;

determine that a response to the test message was not received within a threshold amount of time;

determine, based on determining that the response to the test message was not received, that the user device is not reachable via the first telecommunications network; and

remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device based on determining that the user device is not reachable via the first telecommunications network.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the processor to:

determine usage information that identifies a measure of usage of the first telecommunications network by the user device when the user device receives or transmits data via the first telecommunications network using the temporary credential; and

store or output the usage information.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions, to output the usage information, further causes the processor to provide the usage information to an account server associated with the second telecommunications network to cause the account server to assess a charge to an account associated with the user device, based on the usage information.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the processor to:

assign the particular temporary credential to the user device after receiving the request for the particular temporary credential,

wherein when providing the particular temporary credential the network device is further to provide the temporary credential based on assigning the particular temporary credential;

receive an instruction from the user device to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device when the user device disconnects from the first telecommunications network,; and

wherein removing remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device is performed further based on the instruction to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions, to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the user device, causes the particular temporary credential to be returned to a group of temporary credentials that are not currently assigned to user devices.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the particular temporary credential further includes an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).

15. A network device, comprising:

a non-transitory memory device storing;

a set of processor-executable instructions, and

one or more temporary credentials that allow access to a telecommunications network; and

a processor configured to execute the processor-executable instructions, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions causes the processor to;

select a particular temporary credential from a list of one or more available temporary credentials of the one or more temporary credentials,

the list of one or more available temporary credentials including temporary credentials not currently assigned to a user device,

the particular credential including a telephone number;

assign the particular temporary credential to a particular user device after selecting the particular temporary credential;

provide the particular temporary credential to the particular user device, the providing causing the particular user device to connect to the telecommunications network;

determine that a connection between the particular user device and the telecommunications network has timed out or that the particular user device is not reachable via the telecommunications network,

wherein the determination that the particular user device is not reachable via the telecommunications network includes sending a test message to the particular user device and not receiving a response to the test message within a threshold period of time; and

remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the particular user device based on determining that the connection between the user device and the telecommunications network has timed out or that the particular user device is not reachable via the telecommunications network.

16. The network device of claim 15, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the processor to:

receive an instruction from the particular user device to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the particular user device when the particular user device disconnects from the telecommunications network,

wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential is further based on receiving the instruction from the particular user device to remove the assignment of the particular temporary credential.

17. The network device of claim 15, wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential from the particular user device allows the temporary credential to be assigned to another user device to allow the other user device to access the telecommunications network.

18. The network device of claim 17, wherein executing the processor-executable instructions further causes the processor to:

determine that the particular user device has reconnected to the telecommunications network within a particular threshold amount of time; and

reassign the particular temporary credential to another user device based on determining that the particular user device has reconnected to the telecommunications network.

19. The network device of claim 15, wherein the particular temporary credential further includes an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).

20. The network device of claim 15, wherein removing the assignment of the particular temporary credential returns the particular temporary credential to the list of temporary credentials that are not currently assigned to user devices.