WO2007066870A2

WO2007066870A2 - System for providing unified profile service and method thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2007066870A2
Application number: PCT/KR2006/002919
Authority: WO
Inventors: Don-Sung Oh; Dae-Sik Kim; Myung-Sik Yoo; Pil-Jung Jung; Hyun-Joo Lee
Original assignee: Electronics And Telecommunications Research Institute
Priority date: 2005-12-06
Filing date: 2006-07-25
Publication date: 2007-06-14
Also published as: KR100724532B1; WO2007066870A3

Abstract

The present invention relates to a unified profile service providing system for providing various services to users in different service provider networks, and a method thereof. The unified profile service providing system (300) includes a profile database server (310), a profile manager (330), and a profile converter (340). The profile database server (310) manages profiles for service provider servers (200). The profile manager (330) receives profile request information from a service provider server (200), checks whether the information is included in the profile request information, and obtains the corresponding profile by searching for the profile through interaction with the profile database server (310) on the basis of the checking result. In the case that the user's service request information is not included in the profile request information, the profile manager (330) searches for a profile within a user permitted range. The profile converter (340) converts the profile obtained by the profile manager (330) into an appropriate form for the service provider server (200).

Description

SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING UNIFIED PROFILE SERVICE AND

METHOD THEREOF

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a unified profile service providing system and a method thereof, and it more particularly relates to a system for preventing double managing of profiles that can be caused by managing profiles for each service provider in different service provider networks, and providing optimal services that meet various users' needs and characteristics.

Background Art

[2] A common use of personalized mobile communication services and introduction of next-generation communication services that provide multimedia services such as voice services, high-speed data services, image services, etc., as well as global roaming services, have been recently increasing various users' needs.

[3] However, such personalized services can be defined by a different profile for each user. Therefore, the amount of service profiles will be massively increased and will be often referred to for providing the personalized services.

[4] However, profiles are conventionally managed by each service provider server.

[5] Therefore, a user has to register with each service provider in order to use services of each service provider server. In addition, the user has to select services that are unilaterally provided by a service provider server.

[6] Since each service provider server can provide services only to a registered user, many and unspecified persons are not able to use the services.

[7] Therefore, the conventional profile management technique is incapable of satisfying various users' needs and of managing various services and massive data in the next- generation communication network.

[8] Moreover, it is not easy to share service profiles by service provider servers that are different in type and form. For example, in order to provide a location information service in a portal site, connection should be established between the portal site and the corresponding mobile communication provider. However, the portal site may not able to access the mobile communication provider server to request location information.

[9] The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[10] Accordingly, the present invention has been made in an effort to provide a system for providing users with various services by managing profiles for individual service providers in a unified profile database in different service provider networks, and a method thereof.

Technical Solution

[11] An exemplary unified profile service providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a profile database server, a profile manager, and a profile converter. The profile database server stores and manages profiles for individual service provider servers. The profile manager receives profile request information from a service provider server, checks whether user's service request information is included in the profile request information, and obtains the corresponding profile by searching for the profile through interaction with the profile database server on the basis of the checking result. In the case that the user's service request information is not included in the profile request information, the profile manager searches for a profile within a user permitted range. The profile converter converts the profile obtained by the profile manager into an appropriate form for the service provider server.

[12] An exemplary unified profile service providing method according to another

embodiment of the present invention provides a unified profile service. The unified profile service providing method includes: (a) analyzing profile request information transmitted from a service provider server and checking whether user's service request information is included therein; (b) in the case that the user's service request information is included in the profile request information, searching for the corresponding profile based on the user's service request information and obtaining the profile; (c) in the case that the user's service request information is not included in the profile request information, searching for a profile with a user permitted range and obtaining the profile; and (d) converting the profile obtained in (b) or in (c) into an appropriate form for the service provider server and providing the converted profile to the service provider server.

Advantageous Effects

[13] With the above-described configuration, profiles for individual service providers are stored in a unified profile database so that service providers providing different services can share service profiles, thereby providing a user with optimal services that satisfy users' various needs and characteristics without regarding whether the user has registered with a specific provider server.

[14] In addition, unified management of a massive amount of profile data may prevent double management of profiles in the next-generation communication network where various personalized services are demanded.

[15] Further, various services can be recommended to a user by using profiles within a user permitted range.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[16] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a unified profile service according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[17] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a system for providing a unified profile service according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[18] FIG. 3 shows the relationship between a profile manager and a profile converter of

FIG. 2 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[19] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the case that a user's service request is included in a unified profile service providing process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[20] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the case that a user's service request is excluded from the unified profile service providing process according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[21] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a unified profile service providing process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[22] In the following detailed description, only certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, simply by way of illustration. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. The drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive, and like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification. Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless explicitly described to the contrary, the word "comprise" or variations such as

"comprises" or "comprising" will be understood to imply the inclusion of stated elements but not the exclusion of any other elements. In addition, throughout this specification and the claims which follow, a module means a unit that performs a specific function or operation, and can be realized by hardware or software, or a combination of both.

[23] A unified profile service providing system and a method thereof according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[24] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a unified profile service according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[25] As shown in FlG. 1, the concept of the unified profile service is to form profile databases of respective service provider servers 200 into one database for unified profile management in different service provider networks.

[26] The unified profile service includes a user 10, a service provider 20, and a profile service provider 30.

[27] The user 10 requests or receives a service from the service provider 20. At this time, the user 10 has registered with a specific service provider.

[28] The service provider 20 provides a service to the user 10, and receives a profile for providing the service by requesting it from the profile service provider 30. At this time, a service may be offered in response to a service request of the user 10. However, when there is no service request of the user 10, an appropriate service may be recommended and offered to the user 10. At this time, accessing a profile for the service is allowed only within a user permitted range.

[29] The profile service provider 30 stores all profiles of each service provider 20 in the profile database 32. Upon a profile request of the service provider 20, the profile service provider 30 searches for the corresponding profile and provides the searched profile to the service provider 20.

[30] A detailed configuration of the concept of the unified profile service may be

realized as follows.

[31] FlG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a unified profile service providing system

according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[32] As shown in FlG. 2, the unified profile service providing system 300 includes a profile database server 310, an interface unit 320, a profile manager 330, and a profile converter 340.

[33] The profile database server 310 stores and manages all profiles for each service provider server 200. At this time, when a profile search is requested, the profile database server 310 allows searching of the corresponding profile after performing an authorization process. In addition, a profile database stored in the profile database server 310 includes a user profile database (DB), a network profile DB, and a service profile DB. Herein, the user profile DB stores user information and user terminal information, the user information including information on a routing rule on the basis of a location, a condition, and a preference of a user of each service provider, and the user terminal information includes information on a user terminal and its capabilities. The network profile DB stores information that describes capabilities of each service provider server. The service profile DB stores information that describes services of each service provider server.

[34] The interface unit 320 communicates with the service provider server 200 and performs access and authorization processes for the service provider server 200.

[35] The profile manager 330 analyzes profile request information, searches for the corresponding profile, and obtains the profile. That is, the profile request information is transmitted from the service provider server 200 through the interface unit 320. At this time, the profile request information may contain a user ID, a service ID, and a service provider ID.

[36] Upon arrival of the profile request information, the profile manager 330 analyzes the profile request information and checks whether information on a user's service request is included therein. With reference to the checking result, the profile manager 330 interacts with the profile database server 310 to search and obtain the corresponding profile.

[37] In the case that the checking result shows that the user's service request is included in the profile request information, the profile manager 330 searches for a profile that corresponds to the requested service. In the case that the checking result does not show that the user's service request is included in the profile request information, it may be understood that the service provider server recommends a service to the user and searches for the corresponding profile within a user allowed range. Herein, the user allowed range complies with an allowable search range of the profile database 310.

[38] The profile converter 340 converts a profile. In more detail, the profile converter

340 receives the profile obtained by the profile manager 340 and converts it into an appropriate form for the service provider server 200. Then the profile converter 340 provides the converted profile to the service provider server 200 through the interface unit 320.

[39] FlG. 3 shows a relationship between the profile manager and the profile converter of FlG. 2 according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and particularly shows the relationship between each constituent element of the unified profile service providing system 300.

[40] As shown in FlG. 3, the profile manager 330 includes a profile request information analysis module 332 and a profile search module 334. The profile converter 340 includes a profile analysis module 342 and a profile conversion module 344.

[41] The profile request information analysis module 332 analyses profile request information. That is, the profile request information analysis module 332 receives the profile request information from the service provider server 200 through the interface unit 320, and determines which profile the service provider server 200 requests and determines whether user's service request information is included therein. Then the profile request information analysis module 332 transmits results of the determination to the profile search module 334.

[42] Based on the determination results transmitted from the profile request information analysis module 332, the profile search module 334 interacts with the profile database server 310 and searches for the corresponding profile. At this time, the searching of the profile search module 334 can be performed under control of the profile database server 310 after the profile search module 334 is authorized to access the profile database server 310.

[43] The following shows a process in which the profile search module 334 searches for the corresponding profile on the basis of the determination results. In the case that the determination results show that the user's service request information is included in the profile request information, the profile search module 334 searches for a profile for providing the requested service.

[44] In the case that the determination results do not show that the user's service request information is included in the profile request information, the profile search module 334 searches for a profile within a user allowed range. Then the profile obtained after the searching is transmitted to the profile analysis module 342 of the profile converter 340. At this time, the profile request information is transmitted along with the profile.

[45] The profile analysis module 342 analyzes the profile and the profile request information transmitted from the profile search module 334. That is, the profile analysis checks the form and type of the service provider server and determines an appropriate profile conversion form. Then, a result of the analysis is transmitted to the profile conversion module 344.

[46] The profile conversion module 344 converts the profile according to the analysis result transmitted from the profile analysis module 342 and outputs the converted profile to the interface unit 320. Then, the converted profile is provided to the corresponding service provider server 200 through the interface unit 320.

[47] A method of the above-described unified profile service providing system will now be described.

[48] FlG. 4 is a flowchart showing the case that there is a user' s service request in the method of the unified profile service providing system.

[49] As shown in FlG. 4, the user terminal 100 requests a service from a specific service provider server 200 in step SlOl.

[50] Then the specific service provider server 200 needs the corresponding profile in order to provide the requested service, and thus it requests access to the unified profile service providing system 300 in step S 103.

[51] The unified profile service providing system 300 then performs authorization to verify the service provider server 200 in step S 105. When the authorization has succeeded, the access is granted in step S 107.

[52] The service provider server 200 requests a profile from the unified profile service providing system 300 in step S109. [53] Then, the unified profile service providing system 300 searches for the requested profile and obtains it in step Sill. The obtained profile is provided to the service provider server 200 in step Sl 13.

[54] The service provider server 200 performs service adaptation by using the profile received in step Sl 13, in step Sl 15, and provides the adapted service to the user terminal 100 in step Sl 17.

[55] FlG. 5 is a flowchart showing the case that a user's service request is not included in the method of the unified profile service providing system.

[56] As shown in FlG. 5, the service provider server 200 requests a profile for providing a recommend service to the user terminal 100 in step S210.

[57] The service provider server 200 requests access to the unified profile service

providing system 300 in step S203.

[58] Then the unified profile service providing system 300 performs authorization in step S205 and grants the access when the authorization has succeeded in step S207.

[59] The service provider server 200 requests a profile for providing the recommend service from the unified profile service providing system 300 in step S209, and the un ified profile service providing system 300 searches for the profile requested in step S209 and obtains it. The obtained profile is provided to the service provider server 200 in step S213.

[60] Then the service provider server 200 performs service adaptation by using the

profile provided at step S213, in step S215, and provides the recommend service that was adapted in step S213 to the user terminal 100 in step S217.

[61] FlG. 6 is a flowchart of a unified profile service providing process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[62] As shown in FlG. 6, the profile request information is received through the interface unit 320 in step S301. At this time, the profile request information contains a user ID, a service ID, and a service provider ID. In addition, although it is not illustrated in FlG 6, access and authorization processes for the service provider server 200 of FlG. 4 and FlG. 5 may be performed through the interface unit 320, in step S301.

[63] The profile manager 330 analyzes the profile request information received in step

S301. The analysis of the profile request information includes checking of whether a user's service request is included in the profile request information.

[64] The profile manager 330 transmits a profile search request to the profile database server 310 in step S305. At this time, the profile request information received in step S301 is transmitted along with the profile search request.

[65] The profile database server 310 performs authorization in step S307, and allows the service provider server 200 to search for the requested profile in the case that the authorization has been successful in step S309. [66] Then the profile manager 330 accesses the profile database server 310 and searches for the requested profile in step S311. However, the searching is based on a result of the analysis of step S303. That is, the requested profile is searched for providing a service requested by the user in the case that the user's service request is included in the profile request information. In the case that the user's service request is not included in the profile request information, a profile is searched within a user permitted range. The profile to be searched for in this case is a profile for providing a service that the service provider server 200 recommends to the user.

[67] The profile manager 330 obtains the profile that has been searched in step S311, in step S313, and provides the profile obtained in step S311 and the profile request information received in step S301 to the profile converter 340 in step S315. At this time, the profile request information contains a service ID and a service provider ID.

[68] The profile converter 340 determines a profile form of the corresponding service provider based on the service ID and the service provider ID, and performs profile adaptation by converting the profile into one appropriate for the determined form in step S317.

[69] Then the profile converter 340 provides the profile adapted in step S317 to the

profile manager 330 in step S319, and the profile manager 330 provides the adapted profile to the interface unit 320 in step S321. The interface unit 320 transmits the adapted profile provided in step S321 to the service provider server 200.

[70] The above-described exemplary embodiment of the present invention may be

realized by an apparatus and a method, but it may also be realized by a program that realizes functions corresponding to configurations of the exemplary embodiment or a recording medium that records the program. Such a realization can be easily performed by a person skilled in the art.

[71] While this invention has been described in connection with what is presently

considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

[1] A unified profile service providing system comprising:

a profile database server for storing and managing profiles for individual service provider servers;

a profile manager for receiving profile request information from a service provider server, checking whether user's service request information is included in the profile request information, and searching and obtaining the corresponding profile through interaction with the profile database server on the basis of the checking result; and

a profile converter for converting the profile obtained by the profile manager into an appropriate form for the service provider server,

wherein the profile manager searches for a profile within a user permitted range when the user's service request information is not included in the profile request information.

[2] The unified profile service providing system of claim 1, wherein the profile

converter comprises:

a profile analysis module for receiving the profile and the profile request information from the profile manager and analyzing the profile request information; and

a profile conversion module for converting the profile on the basis of the analysis result of the profile analysis module and providing the converted profile to the service provider server.

[3] The unified profile service providing system of claim 1, wherein the profile

manager comprises:

a profile request information analysis module for analyzing the profile request information transmitted from the service provider server and checking whether user's service request information is included in the profile request information; and

a profile search module for searching and obtaining the corresponding profile on the basis of the checking result,

wherein the profile search module searches a profile within a user allowed range when the checking result shows that that user's service request information is not included in the profile request information.

[4] The unified profile service providing system of any one of claim 1 to claim 3, further comprising an interface unit for performing access and authorization processes for the service provider server,

wherein the profile database server allows searching of the corresponding profile after performing reauthorization upon a profile search request.

[5] The unified profile service providing system of any one of claim 1 to claim 3, wherein the profile request information contains a user ID, a service ID, and a service provider ID, and the profile converter determines an appropriate profile form by analyzing the service ID and the service provider ID included in the profile request information.

[6] The unified profile service providing system of claim 1, wherein the profile database server comprises:

a user profile database (DB) for storing user information and user terminal information, the user information including routing rule information in accordance with a location, a state, and a preference of a user, and the user terminal information include information on a user terminal and capabilities of the user terminal;

a network profile DB for storing information on network capabilities of each service provider server; and

a service profile DB for storing information on services of each service provider server.

[7] A unified profile service providing method comprising:

(a) analyzing profile request information transmitted from a service provider server and checking whether user's service request information is included therein;

(b) when the user's service request information is included in the profile request information, searching for the corresponding profile based on the user's service request information and obtaining the profile;

(c) when the user's service request information is not included in the profile request information, searching for a profile within a user permitted range and obtaining the profile; and

(d) converting the profile obtained in (b) or (c) into an appropriate form for the service provider server and providing the converted profile to the service provider server.

[8] The unified profile service providing method of claim 7, further comprising, before (a), receiving access request information from the service provider server and granting access after authorizing the service provider server.

[9] The unified profile service providing method of claim 8, including, in (b) or in

(c), searching and obtaining the corresponding profile after reauthorizing the service provider server.

[10] The unified profile service providing method of claim 7, wherein the profile request information comprises user profile request information, network profile request information, and service profile request information.

[11] The unified profile service providing method of claim 10, wherein: the user profile request information includes user request information and user terminal request information, the user request information including routing rule information in accordance with a location, a state, and a preference of a user, and the user terminal request information including information on a user terminal and capabilities of the user terminal;

the network profile request information includes a description information request on network capabilities of each service provider server; and the service profile request information includes service description information request of each service provider server.

[12] The unified profile service providing method of claim 7, wherein in (d), the profile is converted into an appropriate form for the service provider server by using the service ID and the service provider ID included in the profile request information.