Method and related device for controlling service charging

• US 9,077,735 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2012
• Issued: 07/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Lu, Jingshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Whipple, Brian P
• Application Number:
  US13/712,269
• Publication Number:
  US 20130103754A1
• Time in Patent Office: 937 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/14 Charging , metering or billing arrangements for data wireline or wireless communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1425 involving dedicated fields in the data packet for billing purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1485 Tariff-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/80 Rating or billing plans; Tariff determination aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8022 Determining tariff or charge band
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/81 Dynamic pricing, e.g. change of tariff during call
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

Disclosed are a method and a related device for controlling service charging. The method for controlling service charging includes: receiving, by a Diameter credit control DCC server, a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client; if at least two tariff time changes TTCs are included within a preset temporary validity time VT from current system time, acquiring, by the DCC server and from the at least two TTCs, a first TTC which is the earliest and a second TTC which is the second earliest; modifying, by the DCC server, the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain a modified VT, so that only the first TTC is included in the modified VT from the current system time; and sending, by the DCC server, a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, where the CCA message includes the first TTC and the modified VT.

Claims

1. A method for controlling service charging, comprising:

receiving, by a Diameter credit control DCC server, a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client;

if at least two tariff time changes TTCs are comprised in a preset temporary validity time VT from current system time, acquiring, by the DCC server and from the at least two TTCs, a first TTC which is the earliest and a second TTC which is the second earliest;

modifying, by the DCC server, the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain a modified VT, so that only the first TTC is comprised in the modified VT from the current system time; and

sending, by the DCC server, a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the first TTC and the modified VT.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the modifying, by the DCC server, the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain the modified VT comprises:

selecting, by the DCC server, any time between the first TTC and the second TTC according to a random algorithm;

calculating, by the DCC server, a time span from the current system time to the selected time; and

modifying, by the DCC server, the temporary VT to be the calculated time span to obtain the modified VT.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein after the sending, by the DCC server, the credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, the method comprises:

receiving, by the DCC server, a CCR message comprising first used service unit information and second used service unit information that are sent by the DCC client, wherein the first used service unit information is used service unit information before the first TTC of a user, and the second used service unit information is used service unit information after the first TTC of the user; and

performing, by the DCC server, charging according to first used service unit information, the second used service unit information, and preset tariffs.

4. A method for controlling service charging, comprising:

receiving, by a Diameter credit control DCC server, a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client;

acquiring, by the DCC server, all tariff time changes TTCs comprised within a preset temporary validity time VT from current system time;

reporting, by the DCC server, the temporary VT and a TTC list comprising all the TTCs, to a data processing device;

receiving, by the DCC server, a first TTC and a modified VT that are fed back by the data processing device, wherein the modified VT is the VT obtained by the data processing device after modifying the temporary VT according to the first TTC and a second TTC;

the first TTC and the second TTC are two TTCs which are within the preset temporary VT from the current system time; and

sending, by the DCC server, a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the first TTC and the modified VT.

5. A method for controlling service charging, comprising:

receiving, by a data processing device, a tariff time change TTC list and a preset temporary validity time VT that are sent by a DCC server;

if the TTC list comprises at least two TTCs, acquiring, by the data processing device and from the TTC list, a first TTC which is the earliest and a second TTC which is the second earliest;

modifying, by the data processing device, the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain a modified VT, so that only the first TTC is comprised in the modified VT from current system time; and

feeding back, by the data processing device, the first TTC and the modified VT to the DCC server.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the modifying, by the data processing device, the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain the modified VT comprises:

selecting, by the data processing device, any time between the first TTC and the second TTC according to a random algorithm;

calculating, by the data processing device, a time span from the current system time to the selected time; and

modifying, by the data processing device, the temporary VT to be the calculated time span to obtain the modified VT.

7. A method for controlling service charging, comprising:

receiving, by a Diameter credit control DCC server, a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client; and

if at least two tariff time changes TTCs are comprised within a preset validity time VT from current system time, sending, by the DCC server, a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the at least two TTCs and the VT.

8. A method for controlling service charging, comprising:

sending, by a Diameter credit control DCC client, a credit control request CCR message to a DCC server;

receiving, by the DCC client, a credit control answer CCA message sent by the DCC server, wherein the CCA message comprises at least two TTCs and a preset VT;

for each TTC within the VT from current system time, collecting, by the DCC client, statistics on used service unit information before the TTC and used service unit information after the TTC of a user respectively; and

when the VT times out, sending, by the DCC client, a CCR message to the DCC server, wherein the CCR message comprises the used service unit information that is statistically obtained.

9. A DCC server, comprising:

a reception unit, configure to receive a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client;

an acquisition unit, configured to;

when at least two tariff time changes TTCs are comprised within a preset temporary validity time VT from current system time, acquire, from the at least two TTCs, a first TTC which is the earliest and a second TTC which is the second earliest;

a modification unit, configured to modify the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain a modified VT, so that only the first TTC is comprised in the modified VT from the current system time; and

a sending unit, configured to send a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the first TTC and the modified VT.

10. The DCC server according to claim 9, wherein the modification unit comprises:

a selecting module, configured to select any time between the first TTC and the second TTC according to a random algorithm;

a calculation module, configured to calculate a time span from the current system time to the selected time; and

a modification module, configured to modify the temporary VT to be the calculated time span to obtain the modified VT.

11. The DCC server according to claim 9, wherein the DCC server further comprises:

a charging unit, configured to receive the CCR message comprising first used service unit information and second used service unit information that are sent by the DCC client, wherein the first used service unit information is used service unit information before the first TTC of a user, the second used service unit information is used service unit information after the first TTC of the user; and

perform charging according to the first used service unit information, the second used service unit information, and preset tariffs.

12. A DCC server, comprising:

a message receiving unit, configure to receive a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client;

an information acquiring unit, configured to acquire all tariff time changes TTCs comprised within a preset temporary validity time VT from current system time;

an information reporting unit, configured to report, to a data processing device, the temporary VT and a TTC list comprising all the TTCs;

an information receiving unit, configured to receive a first TTC and a modified VT that are fed back by the data processing device, wherein the modified VT is the VT obtained by the data processing device after modifying the temporary VT according to the first TTC and a second TTC;

the first TTC and the second TTC are two TTCs which are within the preset temporary VT from the current system time; and

a message sending unit, configured to send a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the first TTC and the modified VT.

13. A data processing device, comprising:

an information receiving unit, configured to receive a tariff time change TTC list and a preset temporary validity time VT that are sent by a DCC server;

a time change acquiring unit, configured to;

when the TTC list comprises at least two TTCs, acquire, from the TTC list, a first TTC which is the earliest and a second TTC which is the second earliest;

an information modifying unit, configured to modify the temporary VT according to the first TTC and the second TTC to obtain a modified VT, so that only the first TTC is comprised in the modified VT from current system time; and

an information sending unit, configured to feed back the first TTC and the modified VT to the DCC server.

14. A DCC server, comprising:

a request receiving unit, configure to receive a credit control request CCR message sent by a DCC client; and

an answer sending unit, configured to;

when at least two tariff time changes TTCs are comprised within a preset validity time VT from current system time, send a credit control answer CCA message to the DCC client, wherein the CCA message comprises the at least two TTCs and the VT.

15. A DCC client, comprising:

a request sending unit, configure to send a credit control request CCR message to a DCC server;

an answer receiving unit, configured to receive a credit control answer CCA message sent by the DCC server, wherein the CCA message comprises at least two TTCs and a preset VT;

a statistics unit, configured to;

for each TTC within the VT from current system time, collect statistics on used service unit information before the TTC and used service unit information after the TTC of a user respectively; and

a charging request unit, configured to;

when the VT times out, send a CCR message to the DCC server, wherein the CCR message comprises the used service unit information that is statistically obtained.