SIP2 mobile gateway

• US 20060198334A1
• Filed: 03/04/2005
• Published: 09/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Argela Technologies (Levent Yapilandirma Yönetimi Telekomünikasyon AS)
• Original Assignee: Argela Technologies (Levent Yapilandirma Yönetimi Telekomünikasyon AS)
• Inventors: Ozumuztoprak, Can, Simsek, Altug, Sever, Aziz, Lokman, Erhan, Civanlar, Seyhan, Ozpak, Can, Gurdag, Adnan Burak, Sakar, Esra Ozlem, Gur, Gurkan, Gorkemli, Burak, Onur, Ertan, Senol, Hanife, Sazak, Tulay
• Granted Patent: US 7,254,137 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/104 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0045 involving hybrid, i.e. a mixture of public and private, or multi-vendor systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/00 Wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

A system and method for using an IP client attached to the Public Internet, acting as a virtual mobile terminal such as a cell phone, to have full access to mobile telephony services offered by a mobile operator using a SIP2 Mobile gateway. The services include a mobile telephone number, capabilities of sending and receiving short messages and mobile intelligent services such as prepaid billing, number translation, and ring back tones.

Claims

1. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network wherein said user of said IP client subscribes to mobile services provided by a mobile service provider, said gateway'"'"'s processing software comprising:

an IP Phone server software component receiving registration and signaling messages from said IP client originating said phone call;

a Mobility Control software component updating a home location register (HLR) 8 to indicate the location of said IP client; and

a Service Control and Call Control software component handling said phone call originated by said IP client by directly communicating with a service control point (SCP) of said mobile network, thereby making said IP client behave like a virtual mobile client of said mobile service provider.

2. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP client is any of the following:

client embedded into a PBX, a client integrated into a web browser, a client embedded in a mobile phone, a client embedded into a personal computing device (PC) or a client embedded into a wireless handheld device.

3. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP client is a session initiation protocol (SIP) client or H.323 client.

4. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said mobility control software component maintains subscriber service information of said IP client retrieved during location update from said HLR.

5. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 4, wherein said subscriber service information retrieved during location update from HLR is further merged with subscriber service information stored in said IP Phone Server.

6. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said communication with Service Control and Call Control software component is via any of the following protocols:

INAP protocol, SIP protocol or CAMEL protocol and uses PARLAY APIs.

7. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP client uses the same telephone number as a user'"'"'s cellular phone.

8. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 7, wherein said IP client authenticates said user during registration by at least checking said telephone number and a password and starts billing when a phone call begins.

9. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP client uses a different telephone number assigned by said mobile service provider to said IP clients wherein said different telephone number is associated with a user'"'"'s cell phone number.

10. As gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP phone server is a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) proxy server or SIP redirect server or an H.323 gatekeeper.

11. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said IP phone server has access to subscriber service data.

12. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said gateway performs optional functions, said optional functions comprising:

receiving SIP signaling messages, converting said messages to SS7 ISUP signaling protocol and sending said messages to the mobile network and vice-versa;

receiving VoIP bearers and converting said bearers to circuit switched voice and sending said switched voice to the mobile network;

receiving said circuit switched voice and converting said circuit switched voice into VoIP bearers;

invoking MGCP or MEGACO protocol messages towards a media gateway to control assignment of VoIP bearers to ports; and

performing call control functions.

13. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said system communicates with a billing system.

14. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein location data of said IP client is obtained from register, location and services database for subscriber location and not HLR.

15. A gateway processing a phone call between a user of an IP client and another user attached to a mobile network, according to claim 1, wherein said gateway is used for sending short messages and multimedia messages by using a IM to SMS relaying component that maps said short or said multimedia message into a MAP message and sends it to a message service center, attached to a VLR/MSC of said mobile network.

16. A method to process a phone call between a user of an IP client and a called party attached to a mobile network, wherein said user of said IP client subscribes to mobile services from a mobile service provider, said method comprising:

intercepting an invite message from said IP client by a phone server, said phone server further performing the steps;

parsing said invite message;

sending said invite message to a registry, location and services database to check if said called party is registered;

sending said indite message to said called party if said called party is registered; and

sending said invite message, to a signaling conversion component if said called party is not registered, said signaling conversion component mapping said invite message to a ISUP message, said signaling conversion component further communicating said ISUP message with a service control and call control component, said service control part starting a new call state, sending said ISUP message to VLR/MSC and sending an INAP message to a SCP, and said call control part communicating with a media gateway control component attached to said VLR/MSC, said media gateway control component further sending an MGCP message to a media gateway component to connect IP traffic into a trunk group of said media gateway component.

17. A method to process a phone call between a user of an IP client and a called party attached to a mobile network, according to claim 16, wherein said method comprises an additional step of sending short messages and multimedia messages by using a IM to SMS relaying component that maps said short or said multimedia message into a MAP message and sends it to a message service center, attached to said VLR/MSC of said mobile network.

18. A method to process a phone call between a user of an IP client and a called party attached to a mobile network, according to claim 16, wherein said IP client is registered using the following steps:

sending an IP register message by said IP client to said phone server;

parsing said IP message by said phone server;

sending a radius request by said phone server to a registry database;

authenticating said IP client with said phone server if said IP client'"'"'s mobile phone number is found in said registry database;

sending an IP address of said IP client by an IP registry server to a location database if said IP client is authenticated;

adding said IP address and said mobile phone number of said IP client to said location database;

initiating a location update request by said phone server and sending said location update request to a mobility contrail component;

generating a MAP location update message by said mobility control component using said mobile phone number of said IP client and sending said MAP message to a VLR/MSC;

sending said MAP message by said VLR/MSC to a HLR;

storing location of said IP client by said HLR and responding to said location update message with services to which said mobile phone number of said IP client subscribes;

relaying of said services response by said VLR/MSC to said mobility control component;

forwarding said services response to said phone server if said mobility control component receives said services response;

sending a confirmation on said location update by said phone server to said registry database; and

storing said services response into a services database.

19. A system facilitating direct communication between IP clients and components of a mobile network to provide seamless services to said IP clients, said system comprising:

at least one of said IP clients initiating a call to at least one mobile client via a gateway; and

said gateway receiving said call and handling said call by directly communicating with a service control point (SCP) of said mobile network, thereby making said IP client behave like a virtual mobile client of a mobile service provider to which said IP client subscribes.

20. A system facilitating direct communication between IP clients and components of a mobile network to provide seamless services to said HP clients, as per claim 19, wherein said IP client is any of the following:

client embedded into a PBX, a client integrated into a web browser, a client embedded in a mobile phone, a client embedded into a personal computing device (PC) or a client embedded into a wireless handheld device.

21. A system facilitating direct communication between IP clients and components of a mobile network to provide seamless services to said IP clients, as per claim 19, wherein said IP client is a session initiation protocol (SIP) client or H.323 client.

22. A system facilitating direct communication between IP clients and components of a mobile network to provide seamless services to said IP clients, as per claim 19, wherein said gateway is used for sending short messages and multimedia messages by using a IM to SMS relaying component that maps said short or said multimedia message into a MAP message and sends it to a message service center, attached to a VLR/MSC of said mobile network.