KR20060057938A - Method of providing push to talk service using location based service - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention implements a PTT service providing function using a location-based service. To this end, in the user terminal, the subscriber's location information of the group is provided through the core network according to the search condition for each location among the subscribers of the group according to the embodiment of the present invention. By transmitting the PTT control signal to the subscriber station, it is possible to transmit and receive voice calls. As described above, according to the present invention, the subscriber of the PTT service can know the location information of each subscriber when simultaneously sending a voice message to several subscribers of the group to which the subscriber belongs, so that the voice message is selectively transmitted to subscribers around the user or a specific region. Can be transmitted.

Location based service, PTT, group call

Description

Method of providing PT service using location-based service {METHOD OF PROVIDING PUSH TO TALK SERVICE USING LOCATION BASED SERVICE}             

1 is a block diagram of a mobile communication system for implementing a PTT service providing method using a location-based service according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is an internal block diagram of a mobile communication terminal providing a PTT service using a location-based service according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a signal flow diagram for providing a PTT service according to a subscriber search condition according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is an exemplary view showing a screen of a subscriber station located within a predetermined distance from a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

5 is an exemplary view showing a screen of a location of a subscriber station located in a specific area designated by a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a method of providing a PTT service using a location-based service, and in particular, location-based service for receiving a location information of a subscriber belonging to a group through a location-based service and transmitting a voice message only to subscribers located at a predetermined location. It relates to a PTT service providing method using.

In general, the mobile communication system is to perform a one-to-one voice call between the mobile communication terminal or between the landline phone and the terminal through the communication path, in order to provide the closed function breakdown and additional functions on the voice call according to the one-to-one voice call. Recently, a PTT (Push To Talk) service, which is a mobile group call service that allows a plurality of mobile communication terminals to simultaneously conduct a voice call together in a group, has been developed and applied. The PTT service is a kind of radio-like function that allows a user to press a button to select a subscriber who wants to make a call, but a one-to-one call as well as a multi-call service.

Therefore, the PTT service on the mobile communication system not only enables hundreds of subscribers to conduct group calls at the same time, but also covers the nationwide network for smooth multi-party calls even when subscriber terminals are distributed in different regions. This group call function allows the user to use it for useful purposes such as conferences.

On the other hand, mobile communication terminals such as mobile phones and PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) have been widely used in recent years, and techniques for tracking the location of a user carrying the mobile communication terminal using them have also become common.                         

However, the conventional PTT service is a service that simply delivers voice messages for each group and is provided regardless of the current location of the subscriber, and thus, for example, subscribers located near the user and subscribers located in a specific area or the like at the current location. It was very difficult to select a subscriber within a given area and deliver a voice message. Accordingly, there is a need for an additional PTT service that can increase user convenience by delivering a voice message to a desired subscriber according to the distance between the user and the subscriber or the current location of the subscriber.

As described above, in the case of the PTT service in the mobile communication system, the voice call can be made by the simultaneous connection between the parties. There is a problem in that only the subscribers belonging to the group can send voice messages only to the corresponding subscribers. In other words, it is possible to simultaneously send a voice message to a subscriber group by displaying the subscribers by group, but there is a problem that it is difficult to selectively transmit a voice message according to the subscriber location because there is no specific information on the subscribers.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems, the voice message is sent only to the subscribers desired by the user by searching for the location of the subscribers and transmitting the subscriber information located within the designated location search range to the user terminal requesting the location search. An object of the present invention is to provide a PTT service providing method using a location-based service that can transmit.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the same elements in the figures are represented by the same reference numerals in any where possible. In addition, detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations that may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention will be omitted.

Hereinafter, a configuration diagram of a mobile communication system for implementing a PTT service providing method using a location based service according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the system according to the present invention includes a plurality of mobile communication terminals 100, 140, and 150, a location based service (LBS) server 120, and a PTT (Push To Talk). Server 130, and a mobile communication network 110 that is a passage connecting each terminal and each server. In the following description, a network for providing a mobile communication service to a mobile communication terminal is defined as a core network 160.

First, a plurality of mobile communication terminals (100, 140, 150) is a mutual communication link is formed through the mobile communication network 110 can be a group call capable of simultaneous multi-party voice call. In the following description, any one of the plurality of mobile communication terminals is designated as the user terminal 100, and the rest are regarded as the group call target terminals 140 and 150.                     

Therefore, if the user terminal 100 searches for a subscriber through the core network 160 according to a predetermined location search condition according to an embodiment of the present invention, the user terminal 100 transmits a PTT control signal to the found subscriber terminal. This enables the transmission and reception of voice calls.

The location based service server 120 is a computer system for providing a location based service (LBS), which is a wireless communication service applying a location search technology of a mobile communication terminal. The location information of the subscriber stations is calculated and provided to the PTT server 130. At this time, the location-based service server 120 provides the PTT server 130 with location information of each subscriber, which is a group call target, periodically or at the request of a user. On the contrary, in another embodiment of the present invention, the PTT server 130 determines whether there is a subscriber station that matches the search condition from the PTT server 130 based on the calculated location information of the subscriber station, and lists the information of the corresponding subscriber station. You can also provide it directly).

On the other hand, the PTT server 130 operates in conjunction with the location-based service server 120, it may be configured to include an information storage device for writing or reading the subscriber information for each group according to an embodiment of the present invention. . In other words, the PTT server 130 may be provided with an information storage device as a subscriber information database for managing subscribers by group. The PTT server 130 stores subscriber information, such as authentication information, group information, and mobile phone terminal number, in the information storage device for each group. In the embodiment of the present invention, the authentication information refers to a subscriber station identification number and a group. The information means the name of the group to which the subscriber belongs, the subscriber belonging to it, and the like.

The information storage device may be implemented in the PTT server 130, or may be implemented in a predetermined server in the mobile communication network (110). In addition, the subscriber information of the information storage device is preferably configured to be changed through a mobile communication terminal or a predetermined terminal linked to the information storage device.

In the embodiment of the present invention, when the PTT server 130 receives the subscriber search condition corresponding to the subscriber's location-specific search request from the user terminal 100, the PTT server 130 works in conjunction with the location-based service server 120. The subscriber location information of the group to which the current user terminal 100 belongs is received from 120. Then, the PTT server 130 determines whether there is a subscriber that meets the subscriber search condition among the provided subscriber location information. That is, the PTT server 130 checks only subscribers that match the subscriber search condition, and then lists the confirmed subscriber information and transmits the information to the user terminal 100 that has requested the search.

At this time, the subscriber search condition includes a method of inputting a distance for searching for a subscriber within a predetermined distance among the subscribers of a group, such as a user, or inputting an area name for searching for a group subscriber in a specific area designated by the user. As such, the PTT server 130 selectively connects the user terminal 100 and each of the subscriber terminals 140 and 150 of the same group according to subscriber selection from the user terminal 100 to control transmission and reception of voice messages. Do this. That is, the PTT server 130 transmits the voice message from the user terminal 100 to the corresponding subscriber terminal according to the selection as described above.                     

Then, the role of each component in the mobile communication terminal providing the PTT service using the location-based service according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described. To this end, referring to FIG. 2, which is an internal block diagram of a mobile communication terminal providing a PTT service using a location based service according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

First, the controller 200 performs an overall control operation of the mobile communication terminal, such as performing a wireless call and data processing of the mobile communication terminal. As described below, the control unit 200 uses the PTT server 130 as a subscriber search condition that enables a user to search for a desired subscriber according to a location-specific search condition among subscribers of a group, such as a user, according to an embodiment of the present invention. send. Accordingly, the controller 200 receives the subscriber information detected by the subscriber search condition from the PTT server 130 and serves to display the location of the corresponding subscriber on the screen on which the map is displayed.

Then, the control unit 200 displays the location of each of the subscribers filtered according to the subscriber search condition on the screen, and then transmits a voice message to all or some of the subscribers displayed on the screen. Get selected. By doing so, when a user simultaneously sends a voice message to several subscribers of a group using the PTT service, the user can recognize the location information of each subscriber through the location-based service so that the subscribers located in the vicinity of the user or in the desired area can be identified. You can selectively conduct group calls.

The display unit 210 receives and displays display data on key input data input from the key input unit 220 under the control of the controller 200, or displays an operation state and a plurality of information of the mobile communication terminal as icons and text. Display. In addition, the display unit 210 allows the user to visually know the state in setting or driving a required function under the control of the controller 200. In particular, on the display unit 210, a screen for outputting a map displaying the current location of the subscriber is displayed according to the retrieved subscriber location information provided from the PTT server 130 according to an embodiment of the present invention. On the display unit 210, a screen for displaying a subscriber search condition input window for inputting a subscriber search condition between users so as to selectively transmit a voice message to a desired subscriber among the same group of subscribers is displayed.

In addition, the key input unit 220 includes various keys including numeric keys to provide the control unit 200 with key input data input by the user. That is, the key input unit 220 outputs its own key input data according to the input of each key provided, and the key input data output from the key input unit 220 is applied to the control unit 200 so that such key input data is stored. It is detected that the key input data according to the key input, the control unit 200 performs the operation according to the result. In addition, according to the present invention, the key input unit 220 may include a PTT key as a hot key for using the PTT service, and may be implemented through any one of the existing keys. In addition, according to the present invention, the user serves as a medium for providing the control unit 200 with an instruction of the user through key input such as selecting a subscriber displayed on the screen.

In addition, the memory unit 230 connected to the control unit 200 may include a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), and a voice for storing a plurality of programs and information necessary for controlling the operation of the mobile communication terminal. Memory, etc. The wireless unit 240 transmits / receives a communication signal with the core network 160 including the PTT server 130 through the antenna ANT under the control of the controller 200.

In the following description, a detailed configuration of a PTT service providing method using a location-based service according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 3.

Prior to explaining the present invention with reference to Figure 3, the PTT service providing step using the location-based service of the present invention is divided into a subscriber information database construction step, location search request step, location search step, location information transmission step Can be.

First, in the subscriber information database construction step, the subscriber information including the authentication information, the group information, the mobile communication terminal number, and the like is stored in the storage device interoperating with the PTT server 130 for each group. A user who subscribes to the PTT service manages at least one or more subscribers by group for group call, and group assignment of each subscriber may be made through the core network 160 at the request of the user. In addition, even in a designated group according to an embodiment of the present invention, each subscriber may be divided into groups divided by search conditions by filtering by a search condition according to a current location of a subscriber from a user.

Then, the location search request step, as shown in Figure 3 (S300) when the PTT service connection is made between the user terminal 100 and the core network 160, the user terminal 100 is a subscriber in step (S310) This is accomplished by sending a search condition to the core network 160. Here, the subscriber search condition refers to a condition that a user directly inputs to make a group call only with a subscriber who is close to himself or a subscriber who is located in a specific region.

Then, the location search step is performed on the core network 160. The location search is performed by the core network 160 receiving the search condition from the user terminal 100 and confirming the subscriber location according to the search condition in step S320. Is done. Accordingly, the core network 160 selects a corresponding subscriber according to the location search in step S330 and generates a confirmed subscriber information list.

In detail, when the PTT server 130 of the core network 160 receives a search condition from the user terminal 100, the PTT server 130 is based on location according to the subscriber information of the group to which the user terminal 100 belongs. In conjunction with the service server 120 receives the location information of the subscriber. Then, the PTT server 130 determines whether the location information of the corresponding subscribers match the search conditions, and selects the subscribers matching the search conditions from among the subscribers of the group to which the user terminal 100 belongs. Accordingly, the PTT server 130 generates a subscriber information list including the location information of the selected subscriber.

Subsequently, the location information transmission step refers to a step in which the core network 160 transmits the subscriber information list selected according to the subscriber search condition to the user terminal 100 that has requested the search. In other words, when the subscriber information list is generated in step S330, the core network 160 transmits the generated subscriber information list to the user terminal 100 that has requested the subscriber location search in step S340.

Accordingly, the user terminal 100 that has received the subscriber information list checks each subscriber location information included in the received subscriber information list in step S350 and displays a screen on which the location of the corresponding subscriber is displayed. In detail, the user terminal 100 generates the map data by displaying the location of the searched subscriber on the map including the location search range through the searched subscriber information list, and outputs it to the screen.

At this time, the subscriber information list is arranged in the order close to the location of the user who requested the subscriber location search. In addition, it is preferable to add a serial number so that a user who has received the location information can transmit a voice message from the list, that is, select all or a part of a group call.

Hereinafter, in order to describe in detail the above description, a screen on which a map displaying a subscriber's location according to an embodiment of the present invention is displayed will be described as an example. To this end, FIG. 4 is an exemplary view showing a location of a subscriber station located within a predetermined distance from the user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the subscriber station located in a specific region designated by the user terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 5, which is an exemplary view showing a location.

If the user wants to have a group call with subscribers located within a predetermined distance from the subscribers in the group to which the user belongs or the designated group, the user may input a predetermined distance as a subscriber search condition. For example, when the user inputs '3' Km as the search radius in the subscriber search condition input window displayed in the form of a pop-up window on the screen as shown in FIG. 4 (a), the user uses the core network 160. It is possible to perform a group call with a subscriber located within 3 km from the child terminal. In this case, the searched subscriber target is one of a group to which the user belongs or a group designated by the user at the time of the search request.

If a search radius is received as a search condition and a list of subscriber information corresponding thereto is received, the user terminal may display a subscriber located within the search radius on a map including the search radius as shown in FIG. 4 (b). Can be. As shown in Fig. 4 (b), only subscribers located within a search radius from the user of the designated group are displayed on the map. Therefore, the user may select all of the subscribers on the map and make a group call with the whole, or may select a call destination among the subscribers on the map through the serial number and make a group call with the selected subscriber.

On the other hand, when the user wants to make a group call with subscribers located in a specific region among the subscribers belonging to the group or the predetermined group to which the user belongs, the user may input a search region name as a subscriber search condition. For example, when the user inputs 'College Road' as the search area name in the subscriber search area name input window displayed in the form of a popup window on the screen as shown in FIG. Group calls can be made with subscribers located in a particular area, 'Daehakro'.

Therefore, when receiving the subscriber information list corresponding to the search area name described above, the user terminal outputs a screen displaying only the subscribers located near the 'college road', which is a specific area, as shown in FIG. . By doing this, the user can conduct a group call with subscribers in a specific region that he / she wants.                     

Meanwhile, in the detailed description of the present invention, specific embodiments have been described, but various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be determined not only by the claims below but also by the equivalents of the claims.

According to the present invention described above, when a user belonging to a group requests a location search of subscribers in a group through a PTT server interworking with a location-based service server, the subscriber location of the corresponding group is searched and listed to the user terminal requesting the search. By transmitting the voice message by recognizing the subscriber's location displayed on the screen and selecting a target for group call, it is not necessary to send the voice message to the entire group unnecessarily and to receive the voice message unnecessarily. There is an advantage that can eliminate the hassle of other subscribers.

In addition, the user can easily recognize the location of the subscribers through the screen that the subscribers are located within a predetermined distance or in a specific region, thereby increasing the utilization of the PTT service.

Claims (4)

In the PTT service providing method comprising a push to talk (PTT) server, using a location-based service between the mobile communication terminals in the group, Transmitting, by the user terminal, a location search condition for requesting location information of the subscriber station in the group to the PTT server; When the PTT server receives the location search condition, searching whether there is a subscriber station corresponding thereto; If there is a corresponding subscriber station as a result of the search, receiving the subscriber information list including the location information of the subscriber station from the server; And performing a group call with target subscribers of the subscriber information list. The method of claim 1, Analyzing the received subscriber information list and generating map data indicating the location of the corresponding subscriber; And displaying the generated map data to select a group call target from the subscriber information list. The method of claim 1, wherein the searching for the presence of the subscriber station is performed. When the PTT server receives the location search condition, searching for location information of subscriber stations in the group; And searching whether there is a subscriber station located within the location search condition. The method of claim 3, wherein the PTT server And receiving location information of the subscriber station in the group from a location based service server interworking with the PTT server.

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