Mobile radio communications device for closed subscriber group management

• US 9,942,730 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2017
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Jactat, Caroline
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho, Chuong T
• Application Number:
  US15/622,709
• Publication Number:
  US 20170280305A1
• Time in Patent Office: 300 Days
• Field of Search: 370434, 370436, 370411, 370310, 370312, 370332, 370328, 370338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/02 Access restriction performed under specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/183 Processing at user equipment or user record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/045 using private Base Stations, e.g. femto Base Stations, home Node B

Abstract

The present invention provides for a mobile radio communications device, and related method of operation, arranged for closed subscriber group selection and for the storage of closed subscriber group information in the device, the stored information including information configured as a whitelist of closed subscriber group identities delivered between non-access-stratum layer and access-stratum layer within the device, and the device being further arranged to remove a previous user-selected closed subscriber group identity from the whitelist responsive to the device connecting to a cell is different from that identified by the previous user-selected closed subscriber group identity, and which different cell can comprise for example a non-CSG cell.

Claims

1. A method performed by a mobile radio communications device, the method comprising:

displaying, to a user, at least one available Closed Subscriber Group (CSG);

providing a CSG whitelist from a non-access stratum layer (NAS) to an access stratum layer (AS) within the mobile radio communications device;

providing, from the NAS to the AS, an updated CSG whitelist when contents of the CSG whitelist have changed; and

adding a CSG identity to an Allowed CSG list when an attempt to register to a cell of a CSG selected by a manual CSG selection is accepted.

2. A method according to the claim 1, wherein the CSG whitelist is a combination of the Allowed CSG list and an Operator CSG list.

3. A method according to the claim 1, wherein the CSG identity is added to the Allowed CSG list unless the CSG identity is already present in the Allowed CSG list.

4. A method according to the claim 1, wherein the at least one available CSG is displayed for a manual CSG selection.

5. A mobile communications device comprising:

at least one memory; and

a processor configured to;

display, to a user, at least one available Closed Subscriber Group (CSG);

provide a CSG whitelist from a non-access stratum layer (NAS) to an access stratum layer (AS) within the mobile radio communications device;

provide, from the NAS to the AS, an updated CSG whitelist when contents of the CSG whitelist have changed; and

add a CSG identity to an Allowed CSG list when an attempt to register to a cell of a CSG selected by a manual CSG selection is accepted.

6. A mobile communications device according to the claim 5, wherein the CSG whitelist is a combination of the Allowed CSG list and an Operator CSG list.

7. A mobile communications device according to the claim 5, wherein the CSG identity is added to the Allowed CSG list unless the CSG identity is already present in the Allowed CSG list.

8. A mobile communications device according to the claim 5, wherein the at least one available CSG is displayed for a manual CSG selection.