Uninterruptable group communication sessions within a wireless communications system

• US 9,730,031 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2014
• Issued: 08/08/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Bhaskaran, Hamsini, Brewer, Beth Ann, Aggarwal, Ashutosh
• Primary Examiner(s): Fan, Hua
• Application Number:
  US14/302,732
• Publication Number:
  US 20140293839A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,153 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/566 relating to a participants right to speak arrangements for multi-party communication with floor control, e.g. for conferences, H04L65/4038, H04L65/4046, H04L65/4053
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/45 for Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-to-Talk over cellular [PoC] services

Abstract

A call request message is sent from an access terminal to an application server in order to request initiation of a group communication session to a communication group and to request that an allocation of the floor to the given access terminal for the duration of the given group communication session remain uninterrupted by call targets of the session. The application server announces the session, and sends a floor-grant to the access terminal after the session is accepted by at least one target. The access terminal forwards media to the application server which is then forwarded to the at least one target. The floor is not transferred away from the access terminal during the session. For example, floor requests are suppressed at the at least one target, or floor requests are sent by the at least one target but are then ignored or denied by the application server.

Claims

1. A method of conducting a group communication session arbitrated by an application server within a wireless communications system, comprising:

configuring a call request message, at a given access terminal, to request initiation of a given group communication session to a communication group and to request that an allocation of a floor to the given access terminal for a duration of the given group communication session remain uninterrupted by other members of the communication group, wherein the configured call request message is also configured to request that the application server does not revoke the floor from the given access terminal during the given group communication session based on one or more floor-revocation rules that are enforced by the application server for group communication sessions;

receiving a floor-grant message indicating that the given access terminal has obtained the floor and can begin forwarding media for transmission to at least one other member of the communication group; and

forwarding media from the given access terminal to the at least one other member of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session without the floor being transferred from the given access terminal to the at least one other member of the communication group.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein configuring the call request message comprises configuring a header-portion of the call request message with a special value that is expected to indicate, to the application server, that the given access terminal desires the given group communication session to be uninterrupted by other members of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein configuring the call request message comprises configuring a Diffsery Code Point (DSCP) value of the header-portion of the call request message with the special value.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein configuring the call request message comprises configuring the call request message, at the given access terminal, to request initiation of the group communication session for the communication group and to request initiation of an uninterruptable session privilege for the given access terminal, wherein:

the given access terminal is associated with a first group member among a plurality of group members of the communication group, each group member in the plurality of group members of the communication group having a preemption rank configured by the application server, wherein the preemption rank of each of the plurality of group members of the communication group is used to determine whether a non-floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group can obtain the floor for an active group communication session from a current floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group, and

the uninterruptable session privilege enables the given access terminal to originate the group communication session that allocates the floor to the given access terminal for an entire duration of the group communication session and for which the floor will not be transferred to another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group during the group communication session, irrespective of the preemption rank of the another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group or one or more rules defined by an operator.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor of a given access terminal configured to participate in a group communication session arbitrated by an application server within a wireless communications system, cause the given access terminal to perform operations comprising:

configuring a call request message to request initiation of a given group communication session to a communication group and to request that an allocation of a floor to the given access terminal for a duration of the given group communication session remain uninterrupted by other members of the communication group, wherein the configured call request message is also configured to request that the application server does not revoke the floor from the given access terminal during the given group communication session based on one or more floor-revocation rules that are enforced by the application server for group communication sessions;

receiving a floor-grant message indicating that the given access terminal has obtained the floor and can begin forwarding media for transmission to at least one other member of the communication group; and

forwarding media to the at least one other member of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session without the floor being transferred from the given access terminal to the at least one other member of the communication group.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the stored instructions are configured to cause the given access terminal to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring a header-portion of the call request message with a special value that is expected to indicate, to the application server, that the given access terminal desires the given group communication session to be uninterrupted by other members of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 6, wherein the stored instructions are configured to cause the given access terminal to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring a Diffsery Code Point (DSCP) value of the header-portion of the call request message with the special value.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein the stored instructions are configured to cause the given access terminal to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring the call request message, at the given access terminal, to request initiation of the group communication session for the communication group and to request initiation of an uninterruptable session privilege for the given access terminal, wherein:

the given access terminal is associated with a first group member among a plurality of group members of the communication group, each group member in the plurality of group members of the communication group having a preemption rank configured by the application server, wherein the preemption rank of each of the plurality of group members of the communication group is used to determine whether a non-floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group can obtain the floor for an active group communication session from a current floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group, and

the uninterruptable session privilege enables the given access terminal to originate the group communication session that allocates the floor to the given access terminal for an entire duration of the group communication session and for which the floor will not be transferred to another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group during the group communication session, irrespective of the preemption rank of the another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group or one or more rules defined by an operator.

9. An access terminal configured to participate in a group communication session arbitrated by an application server within a wireless communications system, the access terminal comprising:

a transceiver; and

an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) coupled to the transceiver and configured with instructions for performing operations comprising;

configuring a call request message, at the access terminal, to request initiation of a given group communication session to a communication group and to request that an allocation of a floor to the access terminal for a duration of the given group communication session remain uninterrupted by other members of the communication group, wherein the configured call request message is also configured to request that the application server does not revoke the floor from the access terminal during the given group communication session based on one or more floor-revocation rules that are enforced by the application server for group communication sessions;

receiving, through the transceiver, a floor-grant message indicating that the access terminal has obtained the floor and can begin forwarding media for transmission to at least one other member of the communication group; and

forwarding, through the transceiver, media from the access terminal to the at least one other member of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session without the floor being transferred from the access terminal to the at least one other member of the communication group.

10. The access terminal of claim 9, wherein the ASIC is configured with instructions to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring a header-portion of the call request message with a special value that is expected to indicate, to the application server, that the access terminal desires the given group communication session to be uninterrupted by other members of the communication group for the duration of the given group communication session.

11. The access terminal of claim 10, wherein the ASIC is configured with instructions to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring a Diffsery Code Point (DSCP) value of the header-portion of the call request message with the special value.

12. The access terminal of claim 9, wherein the ASIC is configured with instructions to perform operations such that configuring the call request message comprises configuring the call request message, at the access terminal, to request initiation of the group communication session for the communication group and to request initiation of an uninterruptable session privilege for the access terminal, wherein:

the access terminal is associated with a first group member among a plurality of group members of the communication group, each group member in the plurality of group members of the communication group having a preemption rank configured by the application server, wherein the preemption rank of each of the plurality of group members of the communication group is used to determine whether a non-floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group can obtain the floor for an active group communication session from a current floor-holder group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group, and

the uninterruptable session privilege enables the access terminal to originate the group communication session that allocates the floor to the access terminal for an entire duration of the group communication session and for which the floor will not be transferred to another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group during the group communication session, irrespective of the preemption rank of the another group member among the plurality of group members of the communication group or one or more rules defined by an operator.