Multimedia messaging service routing system and method

• US 6,947,738 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2001
• Issued: 09/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Torok, Eniko, Skog, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Trost, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): RAMPURIA, SHARAD K
• Application Number:
  US10/024,304
• Publication Number:
  US 20020126708A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,369 Days
• Field of Search: 455/466, 4554121-4122, 455/414.1, 455/426.1, 455/414.3, 455/413, 709/206, 709/203, 709/249, 370400-401, 370328-329, 370352-356, 370/338, 379 8811- 8814
• US Class Current: 455/426.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/08 Upper layer protocols network arrangements or communication protocols for networked applications H04L67/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/184 Messaging devices, e.g. message centre

Abstract

A multimedia messaging system for sending and receiving multimedia MMS messages. The MMS messages are sent to a MMS server and addressed to the recipient'"'"'s MSISDN number. MMS server sends a notification to a PAP server that sends the notification as a WAP Push to the recipient mobile device telling the mobile device to retrieve the message. If the recipient mobile device is engaged in an on going or dedicated session with the Internet, the notification is sent to the recipient mobile device during the session. The recipient mobile device then initiates a HTTP GET request to retrieve the multimedia message via the voice or data channel of a PLMN. If the recipient mobile device is not engaged in an on going or dedicated session with the Internet, the notification is sent to the recipient mobile device as a WAP Push using SMS as bearer via the signaling channel of the PLMN. The recipient mobile device then initiates a HTTP GET request to retrieve the multimedia message via the voice or data channel of the PLMN.

Claims

1. A method of sending a multimedia message from a sender having an associated sender'"'"'s server to a mobile device having an associated server serving the mobile device, wherein said sender'"'"'s server is connected to the server serving the mobile device, said method comprising the steps of:

sending a multimedia message from the sender to the sender'"'"'s server, said multimedia message including an identification number for the mobile device;

sending a notification from the sender'"'"'s server to the mobile device utilizing the mobile device identification number, wherein the notification includes a network address of the sender'"'"'s server and indicates that the multimedia message is available for retrieval from the sender'"'"'s server;

in response to receipt of the notification, sending from the mobile device to the server serving the mobile device, a request to retrieve the multimedia message from the sender'"'"'s server, wherein the request includes the network address of the sender'"'"'s server;

retrieving the multimedia message from the sender'"'"'s server, through the network, by the server serving the mobile device;

retrieving by the mobile device, the multimedia message from the server serving the mobile device; and

storing the multimedia message in the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is a mobile telephone.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the multimedia message to the sender'"'"'s server from a second mobile device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the mobile device and the second mobile device are mobile telephones.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the mobile telephones are in a same or different public land mobile network (PLMN), and are addressed with Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) identification numbers.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending the notification using Short Messaging Service (SMS) as bearer and addressed to the mobile device'"'"'s Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) identification number.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the sender'"'"'s server and the server serving the mobile device are Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) servers.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

sending the notification from the sender'"'"'s MMS server to a Push Access Protocol (PAP) server associated with the mobile device; and

sending the notification from the PAP server to the mobile device, wherein the notification includes a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) Push.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising sending, in response to the WAP Push, a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) GET request from the mobile device to the server serving the mobile device in order to automatically retrieve the multimedia message.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising sending the multimedia message from a second mobile device to the senders MMS server.

11. A system for sending a multimedia message from a sender having an associated senders server to a destination mobile device having an associated server serving the mobile device, wherein said senders server is connected to the server serving the mobile device, the system comprising:

in the sender'"'"'s server, logic configured to;

initially receive the multimedia message from the sender, said multimedia message including an identification number for the destination mobile device; and

send a notification of the multimedia message to the mobile device utilizing the mobile device identification number, wherein the notification includes network address of the sender'"'"'s server and indicates that a multimedia message is available for retrieval from the sender'"'"'s server;

in the mobile device, logic configured to send a request to the server serving the mobile device in response to receipt of the notification, wherein the request includes the network address of the sender'"'"'s server;

in the server serving the mobile device, logic configured to retrieve the multimedia message from the sender'"'"'s server through the network; and

in the mobile device, logic configured to;

retrieve the multimedia message from the server serving the mobile device; and

store the multimedia message in the mobile device.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the mobile device is a mobile telephone.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising a second mobile device having logic configured to send the multimedia message from the second mobile device to the sender'"'"'s server.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the mobile device and the second mobile device are mobile telephones.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the mobile telephones are in a same or different public land mobile network (PLMN) addressed with Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) identification numbers.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the notification is sent from the sender'"'"'s server to the mobile device using Short Messaging Service (SMS) as bearer and addressed to the mobile device'"'"'s Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network (MSISDN) identification number.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the sender'"'"'s server and the server serving the mobile device are Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) servers.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

A Push Access Protocol (PAP) server associated with the mobile device, said PAP server having logic configured to;

receive the notification from the sender'"'"'s MMS server; and

send the notification from the PAP server to the mobile device, wherein the notification is a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) Push.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising logic in the mobile device configured to automatically retrieve the multimedia message by sending a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) GET request to the MMS Server of the mobile device in response to the WAP Push.

20. The system of claim 18, further comprising logic in a second mobile device configured to send the multimedia message from the second mobile device to the sender'"'"'s MMS server.