Telecommunications system

• US 7,551,933 B2
• Filed: 08/09/2002
• Issued: 06/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: British Technology Group Inter-Corporate Licensing Limited (Invesco Limited), RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Celltrace LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Inventors: Timson, Anthony Richard, Dervan, Aden William, Michaels, Wayne David
• Primary Examiner(s): VO, NGUYEN THANH
• Application Number:
  US10/215,989
• Publication Number:
  US 20020193129A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,510 Days
• Field of Search: 455418-420, 455/466, 455/558, 455/422.1, 455/425, 455/550.1, 455/551, 455556-557, 455/70, 455/88, 455/564, 455/186.1, 340/311.2, 340/7.2
• US Class Current: 455/466
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/357 Cards having a plurality of specified features
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/363 with the personal data of a user
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/275 implemented by means of portable electronic directories
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2757 by data transmission, e.g. downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/14 including a card reading device
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4931 Directory assistance systems
• 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 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

In a telecommunications system such as a global mobile telephone network in which each subscriber unit includes a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM card), each SIM card has fixed memory locations, to which data can be addressed over the air. Some of the locations can not be overwritten from the subscriber unit but can be accessed therefrom on the entry of short simple codes, each associated with one of the locations. Further fixed memory locations can be read over the air only when the subscriber enters a personal identification number. Locking control files are used to control read/write access to the locations respectively.

Claims

1. A method of communicating between a remote station and a GSM-compatible cellular telephone capable of two-way voice communication, comprising:

selectively transmitting from the remote station to the cellular telephone an SMS text message containing text;

selectively transmitting from the remote station to the cellular telephone an SMS write command message containing a write command and associated write data, the cellular telephone including a removably coupled SIM card;

the cellular telephone detecting an incoming communication as an incoming SMS write command message or an incoming SMS text message; and

in the event the incoming communication is an SMS text message, displaying at least a portion of the text contained in the incoming SMS text message on a display associated with the cellular telephone; and

in the event the incoming communication is an SMS write command message, the SIM card decoding the write command contained in the SMS write command message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the SMS write command message comprises a command embedded in the incoming communication.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the cellular telephone distinguishes an SMS message from other message types, and passes the SMS message to the SIM card, which decodes the embedded command if the SMS message comprises the SMS write command.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the incoming communication includes a telephone number requested by a user of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone from a directory assistance service.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the write command is automatically executed by a processor in the SIM card to cause the associated write data to be written into a memory of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone, without requiring user intervention.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising selectively transmitting an SMS read command message which includes a read command.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising selectively transmitting an SMS run command message which includes a run command.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising selectively transmitting an SMS attribute command message which includes an attribute command which has the effect of locking an indicated portion of the memory is to prevent the indicated portion of a memory of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone from being overwritten by a user of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone.

9. A GSM-compatible telecommunications network for communicating with a plurality of cellular telephones, comprising:

at least one cellular telephone containing a removably coupled SIM card; and

at least one host station which selectively transmits an SMS text message containing text, or an SMS write command message containing a write command and associated write data, to the at least one cellular telephone;

wherein the at least one cellular telephone detects an incoming communication as an incoming SMS write command message or as an incoming SMS text message;

and wherein, in the event the incoming communication is an incoming SMS text message, a display associated with the at least one cellular telephone displays at least a portion of the text contained in the incoming SMS text message;

and wherein, in the event the incoming communication is an incoming SMS write command message, the SIM card decodes the write command contained in the incoming SMS write command message.

10. The network of claim 9, wherein the GSM-compatible cellular telephone includes a memory having first and second sets of memory locations, and wherein in the event the incoming communication is an SMS text message, storing at least a portion of the text contained in the SMS text message in the first set of memory locations, and in the event the incoming communication is an SMS command message, storing at least a portion of the associated write data in the second set of memory locations.

11. The network of claim 9, wherein the GSM-compatible cellular telephone includes a memory having first and second sets of memory locations, and wherein the first set of memory locations are prevented from being overwritten from the cellular telephone, and the second set of memory locations are not prevented from being overwritten from the cellular telephone.

12. The network of claim 9, wherein:

the detecting is performed by a first processor contained in a main body of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone;

in the event the incoming communication is an SMS write command message, the first processor passing the SMS write command message and the associated write data to the SIM card; and

a second processor contained in the SIM card executing the write command.

13. The network of claim 9, wherein the associated write data is prevented from being overwritten by a user of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone.

14. The network of claim 9, wherein the associated write data includes information relevant to a specific geographical area of a user of the GSM-compatible cellular telephone.

15. The network of claim 9, wherein the associated write data includes application program data files.

16. The network of claim 9, wherein the at least one host station selectively transmits to the cellular telephone the SMS write command message containing a write command and associated write data without requiring user interaction.

17. A telecommunications network for communicating with a plurality of cellular telephones, comprising:

a cellular telephone capable of two-way voice communication; and

at least one remote station which selectively transmits to the cellular telephone a message of a first message type or a second message type, wherein the first message type is formatted to contain text to be displayed on a display of the cellular telephone and the second message type is formatted to contain a command and data associated with the command, wherein the command indicates to the cellular telephone to execute at least one instruction for performing an operation other than to support the displaying of text;

wherein the cellular telephone distinguishes the message as being of either the first message type or the second message type,

and, if the message is of the first message type, displaying at least a portion of the text on the display of the cellular telephone,

and automatically, if the message is of the second message type, executing the at least one instruction;

wherein the message is wirelessly carried from the remote station to the cellular telephone using a common short message service protocol over a common short message service channel, regardless of whether the message is of the first or the second message type;

wherein the remote station is configured to transmit messages of the first and the second message types, and the cellular telephone is configured to receive and process messages of the first and the second message types; and

wherein remotely located information is downloaded to the cellular telephone.

18. The network of claim 17, wherein the command is a run command that causes a prestored set of instructions, including the at least one instruction, to be executed.

19. The network of claim 17, wherein the operation is performed without requiring any intervention by a user of the cellular telephone.

20. The network of claim 17, wherein the short message service protocol is an SMS protocol compliant with a GSM cellular telephony standard, and the short message service channel is compliant with a GSM cellular telephony standard.