FI111588B - A method and arrangement for enabling a subscriber to use different telecommunications networks - Google Patents

Description

111588

A method and arrangement for enabling a subscriber to use different telecommunication networks

The invention is a method according to the preamble of claim 1, wherein the subscriber uses different telecommunication networks. The invention further relates to an arrangement for implementing the method.

In commonly known fixed communications networks, a PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) / ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) subscriber is identified solely by a unique, deterministic call number 10 reserved for a fixed terminal. Thus, a subscriber can only be personally reached with his deterministic calling number during times when he is at the location of his fixed terminal. The modern mobile communication networks PLM N (Public Land Mobile Network), such as German C-network and Global System for Mobile 15 Communication (GSM), differ in that their subscribers can be reached within the entire service area of their mobile terminals irrespective of their current location. using the roaming function. Both systems have terminals that are not assigned a fixed dialing number and use media to identify subscribers.

20 The so-called Intelligent Networks (IN), which are already being implemented at end-to-end switching points by extending traditional fixed networks with PSTN / ISDN, provide two new types of global services, namely Universal Personal Telecommunication (UPT). using fixed terminals to complement fixed access point enhancements; and UMT global mobile communication, which is to be implemented through a communication infrastructure connected to global fixed communications networks. This infrastructure is a Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), also known as FPLMTS (Future Public Mobile Land Telecommunication System).

Both services use only terminals that have a dedicated subscriber number. However, each UPT and UMTS / FPLMTS terminal is provided with a reading device for a media, such as a chip card, which each subscriber obtains from their own information service company. This medium si-35 contains the subscriber's personal information, such as subscriber identity, authentication and service authorizations, called subscriber profiles.

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According to the IN architecture, all intelligent network switching points are provided with additional databases containing both the Service Control Function (SCF) and the Service Data Function (SDF). In addition, SDF terminals are divided into two regions. In the first area, designated as home SDF, subscriber profiles of all subscribers who have landed in the switching area are registered, while in the second area, called visitor SDF, subscriber profiles of all guest subscribers are registered. Thus, subscribers, regardless of their location, have the opportunity to collect their unique data in an available terminal, after min-10, both for the UPT subscriber and the UMTS / FPLMTS subscriber, the current location can always be stored in these IN databases or updated by exchanging information between respective IN switching points. . With this information, the intelligent networks are able to implement the routing to each location. Thus, each UPT and UMTS / FPLMTS subscriber is always available at its current location (Global Roaming). Conversely, smart networks also allow you to connect worldwide from any UPT or UMTS / FPLMTS terminal for your own account and without using cash.

Participation in the services provided by fixed intelligent networks worldwide, 20 for these subscribers, therefore, depends only on the availability of similar terminals at the current location. In this case, the terminals may have the capability to store more than one medium for inbound connections.

The UMTS / FPLMTS is designed to serve as a communications infrastructure with global reach, thanks to the long-lasting miniaturization of electronic devices, mainly in handhelds. Thus, subscribers to this service can carry their terminals with them at all times and are served by radio communication worldwide with the nearest fixed base station. The UMTS / FPLMTS infra-30 structure, which is connected to the intelligent network switching points, always uses fixed networks bound to an IN structure such as ISDN / PSTN or ATM (Asynch-ronous Transfer Mode) capable broadband to establish global connections! S DN. The UMTS / FPLMTS infrastructure does not have its own switching points for the mutual control of traffic between the fixed network and the communication infrastructure 35, but the message switching functions for the UMTS / FPLMTS system as well as the UPT switching functions are embedded in the IN components. Thus, fixed and mobile terminals or subscribers are similarly connected via IN-111588 3 components, and UMTS / FPLMTS base stations can be directly connected to each IN switching device.

For the coverage of very sparsely populated land as well as marine areas 5, the land-based mobile communications infrastructure will be complemented by an integrated satellite system as part of the UMTS / FPLMTS infrastructure.

While the common feature of smart network services is call number neutrality for their terminals, which allows UPT subscribers as well as UMTS subscribers to require service availability worldwide and wherever they are, there is a difference between services that allow a UPT subscriber to use a variety of fixed and mobile services. while in the UMTS / FPLMTS system, the subscriber carries the terminal with him and is therefore reachable anywhere or can make the call himself. Only 15, in the event that the subscriber does not wish to be reached, he / she may remove or close his / her personal data medium.

Another essential difference between the services is that the mobile station always has only a very small portion of the whole frequency band available, which means that in order to ensure sufficient undisturbed use, it is necessary to stay within the re-use distances of space. In order to achieve high traffic density in the narrow frequency band, a single UMTS / FPLMTS subscriber will typically have only a few kHz bandwidths available. Thus, only relatively small amounts of data can be transmitted by radio per unit time. On the other hand, the fixed intelligent networks available to UPT subscribers can transfer considerably larger amounts of data per subscriber, since in principle, the entire frequency band is available within each line. If there are ATMs for broadband ISDN on fixed intelligent networks, there is virtually no limit to the amount of data transmitted by a single UPT subscriber.

As a result, it is inevitable that service delivery, as well as personal availability, should be different for both types of service. Of course, the signaling dialogues at which the respective terminals are accessed must also be different in the protocol layers of both types of services in order to avoid direct signaling compatibility between them. In addition, it is expected that there will be minor 35 infrastructure-specific incompatibilities within the smart grids of different regions and different service offerings.

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Particularly due to unlimited availability, UPT subscribers will be required to participate in the UMTS / FPLMTS service.

Representative publications in the art include, for example, Hirschman's document Service Mobility / Transparency for Personal Communications (September 5, 1992, pages 12.05.01 to 12.05.05 XP000672055) and US A 5142654.

Hirschman's document, Service Mobility / Transparency for Personal Communications (International Conference on Unversal Personal Communications, 19.09.1992, pages 12.05.01-12.05.05 XP000672055), explains 10 ways a user can switch from a communication network (based on Advanced Intelligent Network AIN). one to include a service profile. This allows you to use these services on a foreign network. For GSM networks, 3 scenarios are described, the user data being sent to a certain extent to the visited network. However, Hirschman's publication 15 does not yet make clear what information is to be transferred at any given time.

US A 5142654 discloses a method in which a subscriber who is in a foreign network can control call processing (Mobile Terminating). Specifically, it is a call forwarding or rejection setting with information. The method described in this document only works on the 20 "Central Host Computer" computers connected between both networks. The Temporary Roaming Number is reserved for the subscriber, this is for the purpose of calling the subscriber himself, i.e. the caller is transparently directed to this number, if the subscriber has previously configured it. However, the subscriber information is not transmitted from the home network to the visited network, nor is the Temporary Roaming Number associated with the subscriber information.

The object of the invention is to provide a method and an arrangement by means of which a subscriber of one service of an intelligent network can also use another service.

According to the invention, this object is solved by the features given in the characterizing part of claim 1 for a method of the above type. An arrangement according to the invention is disclosed in claim 11. Alternative embodiments of the invention will be apparent from the dependent claims.

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An advantage of the method and arrangement according to the invention is that reception of subscribers of one service, e.g., UPT service, to another network, e.g., a network reserved for a UMTS / FPLMTS service, is of course possible.

The method and arrangement of the invention will now be examined in more detail on the basis of an exemplary embodiment of one arrangement for implementing the method.

The figure illustrates one embodiment of an arrangement implementing the method.

For example, the arrangement illustrated in the figure assumes that arrangement 10 consists of two intelligent networks N1 and N2, with network N1 being reserved for the UPT service and network N2 for the UMTS / FPLMTS service. Further, it is assumed that the subscriber G, who is the UPT subscriber of the network N1, wants to use the UMTS / FPLMTS service of the foreign network N2, whereby this network is, for example, a network of another network operator or another country. The subscriber is hereinafter referred to as the guest subscriber G.

When the first contact is established between the guest subscriber G and the foreign network N2, this establishes a signaling connection (1) to the guest subscriber's home network N1. To this end, it is essential that similar links exist between the network operators concerned.

In this case, the switching procedure to another service is as follows: After the guest subscriber G and also the visited network N2 are identified in the home network N1, after the corresponding query (2a), the profile of the guest subscriber G or its essential part N1 is copied from the database SDF1 (2b) via the service control functions SCF1 and SCF2 of the networks N1 and N2 to the corresponding SDF2 of the visited network N2.

As an alternative to this transfer, a direct data query by the respective control function SCF2 of the network N2 to the corresponding database SDF1 of the network N1 as shown in dashed lines.

In the N2 database SDF2, only a new subscriber record for the guest subscriber G (4a, 4b) is formed and installed, for which the N2 subscriber number and the subscriber identifier of the network 30 are reserved. Afterwards, the guest subscriber G is treated like the subscriber of network N2 for the duration of the visit. If, as in the example described, the selected service of the roaming network N2 is a mobile service UMTS / FPLMTS, the UPT guest subscriber G can move unrestricted within the operating area just as the mobile subscriber and its automatic roaming are similar to any mobile subscriber N2. Then, the SDF2 database of the radio relay area to which the guest subscriber G has entered will hold back the function of the home SDF until it exits the area. If the guest state and G then leave the visited radio relay area due to roaming, copies of the guest subscriber record are made in the guest domain record of the currently visited radio relay area database SDF2, which ensure the unlimited availability of the guest subscriber G 5 in the UMTS / FPLMTS service.

If the guest subscriber G leaves the guest network N2 by registering off, all database entries in the network N2 are deleted, and the temporarily assigned subscriber number is released again in the network N2.

In intelligent networks, the following conditions must be met: 10 1. Between the service control function units SCF1 and SCF2 in networks N1 and N2, it is possible to carry out cross-network communication and subscriber data transfer in order to identify subscribers.

2. Within the networks N1 and N2, between these service control function units SCF1, SCF2 and the service data function units SDF1, SDF2, in which the subscriber information is stored, this subscriber information is exchanged and confirmed. In both SDF2 and SCF2, some memory capacity and some maintained subscriber numbers are always reserved for temporary subscribers, namely, guest-wide G.

3. Unit SDF1, in combination with unit SCF2, must set up incoming guest subscribers G as service subscribers based on the signaling command.

4. Authentication methods can be used between the participating devices of the intelligent networks, which can test both the identity of the guest subscriber G and the identity of the visited network N2 with respect to the home network N1 and vice versa.

5. Network N2 identifies, based on the identity of the guest subscriber G, that it is a subscriber of network N1 and is able to establish a signaling connection to network N1.

Thus, in intelligent networks, the UPT subscriber G can register with the OWN FPLMTS subscriber stations without having N2 separate access to that network. To do this, all the local control procedures specific to the media, such as automatic roaming and attach / detach, must be implemented for the subscriber station or its temporary users.

To enable UPT subscriber G on the UMTS / FPLMTS network N2 to control a 35 country call, the exact location of guest subscriber G must be determined by a database query and a call (lookup) according to the UMTS / FPLMTS procedures. If the 111588 7 UPT subscriber G wants to make a call through the UMTS / FPLMTS network, his access to that network must be controlled from his subscriber profile.

In order to implement the registration of UPT subscribers G as mobile users in the same way as the registration of fixed UPT subscriber stations, and to minimize the associated signaling between these IN network devices, the UPT subscribers G are thus temporarily installed as UMTS / FPLMTS subscribers. In the subscriber profile of the UPT subscriber G, only the UMTS / FPLMTS number (5) allocated to it in the home SDF that is temporarily assigned to the UPT subscriber G need to be recorded in this home SDF only after the actual connection has been established. costs, but no other information specific to mobile devices.

Claims (19)

111588 8 A method for enabling a subscriber (G) to use different communication networks (N1, N2), wherein the subscriber (G) is connected to the first network (N1) but uses the services of the second network (N2), the method comprising the steps of: (a) ), when the subscriber (G) first contacts the second network (N2), the second network is connected to the first network (N1), and (b) the subscriber data connected to the subscriber (G) is transferred from the first network 10 (N1) to the second network (N2), that (c) the subscriber data is stored in the other network (N2); and (d) the subscriber is provided with additional information based on the subscriber information in the other network (N2), 15 (e) by which the subscriber is treated in the (N2) own subscriber. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that after the subscriber (G) first contacts the second network (N2), the second network (N2) is authenticated with respect to the first network (N1). 3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that after the first connection to the second network (N2), the subscriber (G) is authenticated against the first network (N1). Method according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the subscriber number (G2) connected to the subscriber (G) in the second network (N2) is stored in the first network (N1). Method according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that tariff information concerning the subscriber (G) is transmitted from the second network (N2) to the first network (N1). A method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that when the subscriber (G) disconnects from the second network (N2), all subscriber data relating to the subscriber (G) is deleted from the other network (N2). Method according to one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that networks known as intelligent networks (IN) are used as networks (N1, N2). A method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the first network (N1) is a network designed for global personal communications, abbreviated UPT, and that the second network (N2) serves for global mobile communications, abbreviated UMTS. designed network. The method of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the first-5 networks (N1) and the second network (N2) each include units for a service control function (SCF1, SCF2) and a service data function (SDF1, SDF2), characterized in that subscriber data transfer from the service control function unit (SCF1) of the first network (N1) to the service control function unit (SCF2) of the second network (N2). A method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the subscriber data is transmitted from the data function unit (SDF1) of the services of the first network (N1) to the service control function unit (SCF2) of the second network (N2). 11. An arrangement whereby the subscriber (G) can use different communication networks (N1, N2), wherein the subscriber (G) is connected to the first network (N1) and uses the services of the second network (N2), comprising the devices (SCF1). , SDF1, SCF2), which allow the subscriber (G) to connect to the first network (N1) for the first time, and 20 devices (SCF1, SDF1, SCF2) to share (G) over this connection. ) is transmitted from the first network (N1) to the second network (N2), characterized in that the arrangement further comprises devices (SDF2) for storing the transmitted subscriber data in the second network and connecting the subscriber (G) in the second network (N2) to the subscriber data. based on additional information, in particular the subscriber number of the other network, by which he is treated in the other network (N2) in the same way as the subscriber of the other network (N2). An arrangement according to claim 11, characterized in that it comprises devices (SCF1, SCF2) by means of which the second network (N2) can be authenticated by the subscriber (G) for the first time with respect to the first network (N1). An arrangement according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the second network (N2) includes devices (SCF2) by means of which the identity of the subscriber (G) with respect to the first network (N1) can be verified. (G) after first contacting another network (N2). Arrangement according to one of Claims 11 to 13, characterized in that the first network (N1) comprises a device (SCF1) in which the subscriber numbers assigned to the subscriber (G) in the second network (N2) can be stored. Arrangement according to one of Claims 11 to 14, characterized in that the networks (N1, N2) function as networks known as intelligent networks (IN). Arrangement according to one of Claims 11 to 15, characterized in that it comprises connections through which the tariff information concerning the subscriber (G) can be transmitted from the second network (N2) to the first network (N1). An arrangement according to any one of claims 11 to 16, characterized in that the first network (N1) is a global personal communication network, abbreviated UPT, and that the second network (N2) is a global mobile communication system, abbreviated UMTS. An arrangement according to any one of claims 11 to 17, wherein the first network (N1) and the second network (N2) each comprise units for a service control function (SCF1, SCF2) and a service data function (SDF1, SDF2), characterized in that subscriber data transfer A connection is provided for the service control function unit 20 of the first network (N1) to the service control function unit SCF2 of the second network (N2). Arrangement according to one of Claims 11 to 17, characterized in that a connection from the data function unit (SDF1) of the services of the first network (N1) to the services control function unit (SCF2) of the second network (N2) is established. 25 111588 11