System and method for coordinating notification requests for terminal availability

• US 6,223,046 B1
• Filed: 12/15/1998
• Issued: 04/24/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Björk, Petri, Hamill-Keays, Jeremy
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo, Nguyen T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): APPIAH, CHARLES NANA
• Application Number:
  US09/212,184
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 455/461, 455/433, 455/432-435, 455/445, 455/458, 455/450, 455/510, 455/512, 455/527, 370/216, 370/343
• US Class Current: 455/512
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/48 Arrangements for recalling a calling subscriber when the wanted subscriber ceases to be busy
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/537 Arrangements for indicating the presence of a recorded message , whereby the presence information might include a preview or summary of the message
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking
• 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 8/08 Mobility data transfer

Abstract

A telecommunications system and method is disclosed for coordinating requests by applications for notification of when a mobile terminal becomes available in order to allow each requesting application to contact the mobile terminal in a logical order without burdening the system with numerous simultaneous contact attempts by the various requesting applications. When attempts to contact a mobile terminal directly by different applications are unsuccessful, a control node, such as a Home Location Register (HLR) or a Service Control Point (SCP) within an Intelligent Network (IN), can receive notification requests from these nodes or applications and prioritize them according to the time received and/or the priority of each requesting application. Thus, priorities between different applications can be set and intervals between notifications can be controlled to values appropriate for the requesting applications in order to provide an efficient and effective system and method for coordinating notification requests. Therefore, applications which have requested notification are less likely to meet congestion following notification.

Claims

1. A telecommunications system for coordinating requests for notification of when a terminal becomes available after failed attempts to contact said terminal have occurred, said telecommunications system comprising:

a control node for storing said requests for notification and determining when said terminal becomes available; and

a first requesting node for sending a first one of said requests for notification to said control node after a first attempt to contact said terminal fails, said first requesting node having a first priority associated therewith, said first priority having a timer associated therewith, said control node processing said first request for notification and informing said first requesting node when said terminal becomes available based upon said first priority, said control node substantially simultaneously setting said timer when said first requesting node is informed, said control node informing any additional requesting nodes that said terminal has become available only after said timer expires.

2. The telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein said first requesting node sends said first priority along with said first request to said control node.

3. The telecommunications system of claim 2, further comprising a second requesting node for sending a second one of said requests for notification along with a second priority associated with said second requesting node to said control node, said second priority being lower than said first priority, said second priority having a second timer associated therewith.

4. The telecommunications system of claim 3, wherein said requests for notification are stored within a queue within said control node, said control node scanning said queue for said requests having said first priority associated therewith, said control node processing said first request and setting said timer associated with said first priority when said control node identifies said first request, said control node scanning said queue for requests having said second priority associated therewith when said timer associated with said first priority expires and said queue does not contain any additional requests having said first priority associated therewith, said control node processing said second request and setting said second timer associated with said second priority when said control node identifies said second request.

5. The telecommunications system of claim 4, further comprising a third requesting node for sending a third one of said requests for notification along with said first priority associated with said third requesting node to said control node, said control node processing said third request and setting said timer associated with said first priority when said control node identifies said third request, said control node processing said second request and setting said second timer associated with said second priority after said control node processes said first and third requests and said timer associated with said first priority for the last processed of said first and third requests expires.

6. The telecommunications system of claim 5, wherein said first request is received by said control node before said third request, said control node processing said first request before said third request.

7. The telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein said terminal is a mobile terminal.

8. The telecommunications system of claim 7, wherein said control node is a home location register associated with said mobile terminal.

9. The telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein said home location register determines that said mobile terminal is available when said mobile terminal performs a location update to said home location register.

10. The telecommunications system of claim 9, wherein said home location register determines that said mobile terminal is available when said home location register detects that the power on said mobile terminal is turned on.

11. The telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein said control node is a Service Control Point within an Intelligent Network.

12. The telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein said first requesting node is a voice mail system, an end office, an e-mail delivery system, a Service Control Point, or a Short Message Service Center.

13. The telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein said first priority associated with said first requesting node is determined by said control node.

14. A method for coordinating requests for notification of when a terminal becomes available after failed attempts to contact said terminal have occurred, said method comprising the steps of:

sending, by a first requesting node, a first one of said requests for notification to a control node after a first attempt to connect to said terminal fails, said first requesting node having a first priority associated therewith, said first priority having a timer associated therewith, said first request for notification being stored within said control node;

determining, by said control node, when said terminal becomes available;

in response to a determination that said terminal is available, processing, by said control node, said first request for notification based upon said first priority;

informing, by said control node, said first requesting node that said terminal is available; and

substantially simultaneous to said step of informing, setting said timer associated with said first priority of said first requesting node by said control node, said control node informing any additional requesting nodes that said terminal has become available only after said timer expires.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said first requesting node sends said first priority along with said first request to said control node.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising, before said step of determining, the step of:

sending, by a second requesting node, a second one of said requests for notification along with a second priority associated with said second requesting node to said control node, said second priority being lower than said first priority, said second priority having a second timer associated therewith.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said requests for notification are stored within a queue within said control node, and further comprising, before said step of processing, the step of:

scanning, by said control node, said queue for said requests having said first priority associated therewith, said steps of processing said first request and setting said timer associated with said first priority being performed when said control node identifies said first request; and

further comprising, after said step of setting, the steps of;

scanning, by said control node, said queue for requests having said second priority associated therewith when said timer associated with said first priority expires and said queue does not contain any additional requests having said first priority associated therewith;

processing, by said control node, said second request when said control node identifies said second request;

informing, by said control node, said second requesting node that said terminal has become available; and

substantially simultaneous to said step of informing, setting, by said control node, said second timer associated with said second priority, said control node informing any additional requesting nodes that said terminal has become available only after said timer associated with said second priority expires.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising, before said step of determining, the step of:

sending, by a third requesting node, a third one of said requests for notification along with said first priority associated with said third requesting node to said control node; and

further comprising, before said step of scanning said queue for requests having said second priority associated therewith, the steps of;

processing, by said control node, said third request when said control node identifies said third request;

informing, by said control node, said third requesting node that said terminal has become available; and

substantially simultaneous to said step of informing, setting, by said control node, said timer associated with said first priority, said step of informing said second requesting node that said terminal has become available being performed after said timer associated with said first priority for the last processed of said first and third requests expires.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said first request is received by said control node before said third request, said step of processing said first request being performed before said step of processing said third request.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein said terminal is a mobile terminal.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein said control node is a home location register associated with said mobile terminal.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said step of determining that said mobile terminal is available is performed by said mobile terminal performing a location update to said home location register.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein said step of determining that said mobile terminal is available is performed by said home location register detecting that the power on said mobile terminal is turned on.

24. The method of claim 14, wherein said control node is a Service Control Point within an Intelligent Network.

25. The method of claim 14, wherein said first requesting node is a voice mail system, an end office, an e-mail delivery system, a Service Control Point, or a Short Message Service Center.

26. The method of claim 14, further comprising, after said step of sending, the step of:

determining, by said control node, said first priority associated with said first requesting node.