Method for limiting use of terminal equipments

• US 6,400,939 B1
• Filed: 12/21/1999
• Issued: 06/04/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nokia Networks (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Networks (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Virtanen, Olli-Pekka, Ekola, Keijo
• Primary Examiner(s): CUMMING, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US09/469,839
• Time in Patent Office: 896 Days
• Field of Search: 455/433, 455/456, 455/410, 379/112, 370/328, 340/439
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/02 Access restriction performed under specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/22 Processing or transfer of terminal data, e.g. status or physical capabilities

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for limiting terminal equipment use of home subscribers of a network in a telecommunications system in which each subscriber has a subscriber identity and with each terminal equipment is associated an equipment identity. In the method, by which the operator can, if desired, supervise the terminal equipments used in the network by the home subscribers, a home equipment register is maintained about the terminal equipments allowed to the home subscribers of the network; a subscriber identity of the user is received from the terminal equipment; an equipment identity is received from the terminal equipment; on the basis of the subscriber identity it is checked whether the subscriber is a home subscriber of the network, and if so, the home equipment list of the network is checked to see whether the terminal equipment is an allowed one, and if the terminal equipment is not an allowed equipment, the use of the equipment is limited. The invention also relates to an equipment register in which the method of the invention can be applied. The invention further relates to a mobile system in which the method and equipment register of the invention can be used.

Claims

1. A method for limiting terminal equipment use of home subscribers of a network in a telecommunications system in which each subscriber has a subscriber identity and with each terminal equipment is associated an equipment identity, the method comprising the steps of:

maintaining a home equipment list of terminal equipments allowed to the home subscriber of the network, the home equipment list comprising for at least one home subscriber Identity at least one allowed equipment identity and enumerating a group of equipment identities allowed to the home subscribers of the network;

maintaining information, specific for the home subscribers, indicating whether the subscriber identity concerned is a limited identity to be used only in connection with equipment identities allowed to the subscriber identity concerned;

receiving from the terminal equipment a subscriber identity of the user,

receiving from the terminal equipment an equipment identity;

checking on the basis of the subscriber identity whether the subscriber is a home subscriber of the network;

if the subscriber is a home subscriber, the method further comprises the steps of;

checking the information to see whether the subscriber identity concerned is a limited identity;

if the subscriber identity is a limited identity, checking the home equipment list on the basis of the subscriber identity to see whether the terminal equipment concerned is allowed to the subscriber identity concerned;

if the subscriber is a home subscriber without a limited identity, checking the group to see whether the terminal equipment is an allowed one; and

if the terminal equipment is not an allowed equipment, limiting the use of the equipment.