Activating a mobile terminal from mobile network side

• US 9,148,778 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2013
• Issued: 09/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Qian, Jun, Sun, Wei, Xu, Haitao, Zhang, Xiaoyan, Zhu, Bing
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Warner
• Application Number:
  US13/929,402
• Publication Number:
  US 20140003372A1
• Time in Patent Office: 824 Days
• Field of Search: 370/252, 370/329, 370/310.2, 370/328, 370/338, 370/331, 370/395.4, 455/436
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/043 using or handling presence information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1073 Registration or de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0212 managed by the network, e.g. network or access point is master and terminal is slave
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/19 Connection re-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/22 Processing or transfer of terminal data, e.g. status or physical capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/265 for initial activation of new user
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Disclosed is a method of activating a mobile terminal from mobile network side and a mobile application gateway system. The method comprises: receiving, by a mobile application gateway, a request for activating the mobile terminal, the request including an unique identification number of the mobile terminal; querying, by the mobile application gateway, a HLR for address of a SGSN where the mobile terminal is located; returning, by the HLR, the queried address of SGSN to the mobile application gateway; sending, by the mobile application gateway, the request for activating the mobile terminal to the SGSN; issuing, by the SGSN, a request to the mobile terminal, requiring the mobile terminal to issue a mobile terminal initiated PDP context activation request. The method enables an instant messaging user at a mobile terminal to automatically open an IP connection if there is any message to be received after the IP connection is closed.

Claims

1. A method of supporting instant messaging for a mobile terminal, comprising:

receiving, by a mobile application gateway for a packet domain core network which services a plurality of mobile terminals, a request for activating a first mobile terminal of the plurality of mobile terminals to receive a first communication from an instant message server, wherein the first mobile terminal has no IP connection and no static IP address associated with the first mobile terminal, wherein the request is received from the instant message server via an external packet switched network and includes an unique identification number of the first mobile terminal, and wherein the first mobile terminal is running an instant message client requiring continuous availability to receive communications from said instant message server via said external packet switched network;

querying, by the mobile application gateway, a Home Location Register (HLR) for address of a Servicing GPRS Supporting Node (SGSN) where the first mobile terminal is located by utilizing the unique identification number of the first mobile terminal;

returning, by the HLR, the queried address of SGSN to the mobile application gateway;

sending, by the mobile application gateway, the request for activating the first mobile terminal to the SGSN;

issuing, by the SGSN, a request to the first mobile terminal, requiring the first mobile terminal to issue a request for activating a Packet Data Protocol (PDP) context to the SGSN;

activating the PDP context for the first mobile terminal in response to receiving, by the SGSN, the request for activating the PDP context issued by the first mobile terminal; and

forwarding said first communication from the instant message server to the first mobile terminal using the activated PDP context.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the unique identification number of the first mobile terminal is one of Mobile Subscriber ISDN number (MSISDN number) and International Mobile Subscriber Identification number (IMSI number) of the first mobile terminal.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of activating the PDP context for the first mobile terminal in response to receiving, by the SGSN, the request for activating the PDP context issued by the first mobile terminal comprises:

receiving, by the SGSN, the request for activating the PDP context issued by the first mobile terminal;

parsing out, by the SGSN, an address of a Gateway GPRS Supporting Node (GGSN) of the first mobile terminal based on information provided by the first mobile terminal in the request for activating the PDP context, and issuing a request for creating mobile terminal PDP context to the GGSN;

allocating, by the GGSN, a dynamic IP address for the first mobile terminal and returning a response for creating the PDP context to the SGSN; and

receiving, by the SGSN, the response of the GGSN for creating the PDP context and sending to the first mobile terminal an acceptance message of activating the PDP context.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the acceptance message of activating the PDP context includes a dynamic IP address allocated for the first mobile terminal.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of sending, by the mobile application gateway, the request for activating the first mobile terminal to the SGSN is realized through one of the following manners:

sending, by the mobile application gateway, a signaling message to the SGSN;

calling, by the mobile application gateway, a Web Service provided on the SGSN;

or

calling, by the mobile application gateway, an API provided on the SGSN.

6. A mobile application gateway system for a packet domain core network, comprising:

at least one processor;

a memory communicatively coupled to the at least one processor and storing instructions executable on the at least one processor;

a request receiving module configured to receive a request for activating a first mobile terminal of a plurality of mobile terminals serviced by the mobile application gateway to receive a first communication from an instant message server, the mobile terminal having no IP connection and no static IP address associated with the mobile terminal, wherein the request is received from the instant message server via an external packet switched network and includes a unique identification number of the first mobile terminal, and wherein the first mobile terminal is running an application program client requiring continuous availability to receive communications from the instant message server via the external packed switched network;

a query sending module configured to query a Home Location Register (HLR) for address of a Servicing GPRS Supporting Node (SGSN) where the first mobile terminal is located by utilizing the unique identification number of the first mobile terminal;

a query receiving module configured to receive address of the Servicing GPRS Supporting Node (SGSN) queried by the HLR; and

an activation request sending module configured to send the request for activating the first mobile terminal to the SGSN, wherein responsive to the activation request the SGSN issues a request to the first mobile terminal requiring the first mobile terminal to issue a request for activating a Packet Data Protocol (PDP) context to the SGSN, and the SGSN activates the PDP context for the first mobile terminal responsive to receiving the request for activating a PDP context from the first mobile terminal;

wherein the mobile application gateway forwards said first communication from the instant message server to the first mobile terminal using the activated PDP context.

7. The mobile application gateway system according to claim 6, wherein the unique identification number of the first mobile terminal is one of Mobile Subscriber ISDN number (MSISDN number) and International Mobile Subscriber Identification number (IMSI number) of that mobile terminal.

8. The mobile application gateway system according to claim 6, wherein the activation request sending module is realized through one of the following manners:

sending a signaling message to the SGSN;

calling a Web Service provided on the SGSN;

or

calling an API provided on the SGSN.