ES2556273B1 - GSM communications device and method. - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and a GSM communications device between a GSM sending device and a recipient that comprises selecting a recipient of the call by the sender and selecting a sender telephone number (CLI) that may be different from that of the sending device and send to a network switch (100) an encrypted data packet with at least one security token, the sender's identification, including the selected telephone number and information about the destination of the call; in such a way that the identity of the sender is verified on an application server (200) connected to the network switch (100) and the call to the recipient (PSTN) is redirected according to the call data stored in the network switch ( 100), through an access number.

Description

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GSM COMMUNICATIONS APPLIANCE AND METHOD DESCRIPTION

The present invention describes a new apparatus and method of communications that allows telephone voice calls to be made from a mobile telephone through a VoIP routing, of lower cost, but making the call through the GSM network, of higher quality. The present invention allows to develop a normal mobile call (GSM) while maintaining the same standards of connection quality, even on the move, sending the call data in advance to reduce delays and simulate a normal call. On the other hand, it is an object of the invention to pre-select a call identification number (CLI) other than the telephone number making the call.

State of the art

The VoIP protocol is considered as an efficient means for voice traffic (telephone calls) through fixed communications networks, due to its lower cost. At present, in fact, the vast majority of calls pass through a VoIP device at some point in the traffic. In a normal office or even at home, VoIP calls can work properly since the network bandwidth is usually sufficient, both loading and unloading, to allow calls. The general operation of a VoIP device is described, for example, in:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Voice over Internet Protocol

However, when it comes to mobile communications, the availability of access to a broadband network is very variable, lacks consistency, and is controlled by a third party. For these and other reasons, VoIP calls through the mobile cannot be considered reliable, since according to unpublished own studies, the quality of the calls varies between 46% and 72%, that is, 54% and 28 % of errors in call establishment.

It is also worth noting that, although mobile phone companies currently tolerate services such as' Skype'®, 'Line'® or' Viber'®, the use of their network is conditioned by these mobile phone companies and, therefore, , can degrade or cut the service at will.

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When calls are free, the quality and connection problems become less important, but for paid services, customers logically expect a quality close to 100%, i.e. That all connections are correct.

To avoid connection problems, the present invention makes a call from the mobile phone to the network switch that integrates the apparatus of the invention (a network switch is a device that manages and manages voice and data connections in a network telephone) in such a way that it is the network switch itself that routes the call to its final destination. Because the origin call continues in the GSM mobile network, there is no loss of connectivity, i.e. that the quality of the first connection is close to 100%. In addition, this allows greater security in the call and an increase in connection speed.

Finally, the present invention solves the technical problem of providing a different caller ID to the number that makes the call. Indeed, at present, when a telephone call is made, the sending telephone appears on the receiving device. However, in certain situations (for example in the workplace) this is not desirable. Therefore, it would be advisable that the number making the call can be changed or replaced by an alternative number (returning to the work example, replacing the original mobile number with the number of the company's switchboard) which would facilitate the use of the mobile phones in any condition, this problem has not yet been resolved in any way.

Description of the invention

The present invention is based on allowing the network switch integrated in the device to recognize a user's call and to know in advance the route of the call. For this, the present invention proposes to use a data connection to inform the network switch of the origin of the voice call and the destination of said call immediately before said call is made. In this way, when the voice call reaches the network switch, it gives way to the call to the final recipient without interruption.

Therefore, for the user, the use of the apparatus of the invention is totally transparent,

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since it simply has to make the call to any recipient and it is the network switch itself that is in charge of routing.

Thanks to the fact that the entire weight of the communication falls on the network switch, it is possible to add additional capabilities to the GSM mobile communication, such as variable caller identification, which allows a user to identify themselves at the receiver with a number different from that with The one who is really calling. This is an important tool in different businesses, since when calling from a company mobile, the recipients could see, for example, the main number of the company's switchboard, maintaining the privacy of the mobile number.

It is important to note that the invention does not manipulate the CLI (telephone number of the mobile device itself), as defined in the current state of the art. The manipulation of the CLI is the process where a telephone number of a transmitter changes to a different number predefined by the user when it passes through a switch of a communications network. However, the problems presented by the manipulation of the CLI reside in that said manipulation is limited to a unique telephone number, the manipulation is always activated or deactivated and that, in addition, it is controlled by the switch of the network and not by the own one transmitter.

However, against the manipulation described in the previous paragraph, the present invention allows selecting the CLI to be used in each of the calls and does not depend on the network switch, but exclusively on the selection made by the user, granting the user the complete control of your CLI and flexibility in its use superior to any other solution, since a plurality of pre-authenticated user-selectable CLIs will have been defined on the application server.

In addition, the use of the network switch allows to enable "white lists" that allow calls with the original mobile number (original CLI) and "blue lists" that allow selecting different CLIs for different recipients, ideal for those who run several businesses, that is to say , that whenever a recipient is selected a specific CLI will be used. Similarly, “gray lists” have been developed that allow the user to save their contacts in a list so that, whenever that recipient is called, a certain network operator will be used.

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Therefore, the main advantages of the invention can be summarized in that the first connections have a percentage of connection close to 100% with optimal call quality, since it uses the GSM network, which can never be blocked by the company of mobile phone, allowing mobility with total quality in voice calls and using only a data packet of a size smaller than 2 Kb, which is sent before the call is made, transparently to the user, so that It depends on the connection to a broadband network like traditional VoIP calls.

More specifically, the process of calling the invention can be summarized in:

a) First, the mobile phone that makes the call sends a security token and a data packet of a size smaller than 2 Kb through an internet connection at the time the user selects the recipient but before that the telephone connection be established. That is, once the user presses the call button to a certain user, the first action taken is the sending of the security token and the data package This speeds up the entire process to make a call, since all the information is on the network switch, queued and ready to dial the recipient, and no other interaction between devices is necessary, which improves communication security, call speed and end user experience. The use of this data signal allows to include means of controlling the authenticity of the person before even the call is established, which is much safer than simply relying on the telephone number, which may be masked.

b) Allow the caller to choose a CLI (a phone number different from the underlying mobile number) before making the call. The apparatus of the invention allows the caller to choose between a pre-defined CLI series (telephone numbers) and previously authenticated at the same time of making the call. Similar services described in the state of the art allow a single CLI, whose details are stored in the network switch database, while the source CLI is manipulated during the call, on the network switch itself, which delays the process. The present invention allows, simply, that at the same time of making the call a CLI is selected from among several possible, being sent at the same time of the call and without requiring any manipulation in the switch.

c) The present invention uses standard dialing to route the call. Without

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However, an element of evaluation and assignment of the access number has been introduced, so before the call is established, the network switch establishes the appropriate access number for the issuer based on parameters such as the operator, the location, the number of users who are simultaneously using the device and routing. This occurs before the call is made, so the user has no sense of loss of speed in the call and the user experience will not be affected.

Specifically, the communication apparatus of the invention allows communication between a GSM sending device and a recipient comprising a network switch and where said apparatus comprises, at least, a processor or processors, one or more communication ports connected to at least a communications network and a memory or memories one or more programs, in which the program (s) are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by means of the processor (s); characterized in that the programs include instructions for:

a) Receive encrypted call data and a security token;

b) Authenticate the caller using the security token and the received call data;

c) Route a call from a sender to a recipient selected by the sender through an access number selected according to the GSM network operator, the location of the sender, the destination of the call and the number of concurrent calls.

In another aspect of the invention a software program product is claimed with instructions configured for execution by one or more processors which, when executed by the apparatus of the invention cause said apparatus to carry out the procedure as described.

Throughout the description and the claims the word "comprises" and its variants are not intended to exclude other technical characteristics, additives, components or steps. For those skilled in the art, other objects, advantages and characteristics of the invention will be derived partly from the description and partly from the practice of the invention. The following examples and drawings are provided by way of illustration, and are not intended to restrict the present invention. In addition, the present invention covers all possible

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combinations of particular and preferred embodiments indicated herein.

Brief description of the figures

Next, a series of drawings that help to better understand the invention and that expressly relate to an embodiment of said invention which is presented as a non-limiting example of this is described very briefly.

FIG 1 - Shows a scheme of the apparatus and system object of the present invention.

FIG 2 - Shows an outline of the process carried out prior to the call by the

method object of the invention.

FIG 3 - Shows a scheme of the calling process carried out by the method object of the invention.

FIG 4 - Shows the block diagram of the process of verification of the identity of the issuer.

Preferred Embodiment of the Invention

A particular embodiment of the invention is shown in the attached figures. The present invention describes a method and an apparatus that includes a network switch configured to process a call from a mobile user device.

As can be seen in Figure 1, the network switch (100) is connected to a plurality of application servers (200) configured to store customer data, such as SIM card data, CLI data (numbers of alternative phones) and other relevant information for the application. On the other hand, the network switch (100) has a plurality of accesses (101) via telephone (GSM, PRI, BRI or equivalent) and a plurality of outputs (102) such as VoIP (102a), PSTN (switched telephone network) (102b), or other IP network switches (102c). Finally, the network switch (100) is connected to a billing server (103) and to a communications network (104).

On the scheme of Figures 2 to 4, the method for establishing a call between a sender (a mobile sender device) and a receiver (a receiver communications device) is performed in two fundamental steps:

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i) First, the sender selects a recipient of his call before making

the call, i.e. before pressing the call button. This selection of the recipient implies that the sending mobile device sends to the network switch (100) an encrypted data packet with at least security token and the originating telephone number.

ii) The second part is that the call already initiated goes through the GSM network

directly to the network switch (100). The issuer may choose an identification number other than their own telephone number from a list of authorized numbers (CLI) if desired. Once the call has been received by the network switch (100) and matches the data sent to the switch before the call, then said call is redirected to the recipient (PSTN) via VoIP, according to the call data stored in the network switch (100).

The indicated methodology happens in real time and since the network switch (100) receives the information before the real call, the end-user call experience is no different than making a standard GSM call through the underlying mobile phone operator, with the exception that the call is made at a much lower cost.

Figure 2 shows a scheme with the process of preparing the call. All steps occur before the call occurs and does not require user intervention and is completed instantly, transparently to the user. Thus, first, the user chooses a recipient of the call, for example, by choosing a number from his call list or a contact from his phone book. Subsequently, the mobile user device sends a data call request package comprising a security token, the originating telephone number and includes the selected telephone number and information about the destination of the call.

The sending of the security token and data from the sender to the network switch (100) is done through a secure https connection at the same time that the recipient selects in an application of a mobile user device, not when the call button This provision allows:

- The call is queued, ready to be executed when the call button is actually pressed, allowing a faster connection than known VoIP systems.

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- The prior sending of the data allows the issuer to be identified first.

- The data traffic is less than 2 Kb in a process that does not require a response from the network switch (100).

Subsequently, as shown in Figure 3, the server performs a security check using the security token and the source number provided by the client in the data packet that the call request implies. A security token is a unique value that only the issuer knows and is stored in the application server (200). It is associated with an original number of a profile stored in the application server (200) through a verification process shown in Figure 4.

Relying solely on the identification of the call is not safe due to the ease of impersonation, both in the call preparation process and in the call itself. This would allow an unverified customer to make phone calls. Other documents are based on the unique identification of the issuer, which is not secure, or requires the user to enter a PIN / password (US 7,346,156), which is inconvenient.

The process ends if there is no profile on the server that includes the security token and the source number. After this, an error message is sent to the sender's mobile device through the communication network 104.

Subsequently, and if the identification is correct, the network switch (100) adds the call request data packet to the active call request list. This is a provisional list of call requests that is emptied regularly, either at the end of the call or through an expiration request.

The nature of the data sent to the network switch (100) is very important. In general, the data package includes at least the security token and the caller's data consisting of the sender's default number, including the selected telephone number and information about the destination of the call. This package Data is sent encrypted, via SSL, to provide additional security to the communication. In general, the sender initially calls the network switch (100), after which the identity of the sender is verified and the call is queued to be subsequently forwarded to the recipient.

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Figure 3 shows the process carried out for the remission of the call to the selected recipient via VoIP. All steps are carried out immediately after the process shown in Figure 2.

First, the network switch (100) selects an access number and sends it to the client through the communications network (104). That is, the server selects an access number by choosing one that is geographically and financially appropriate (for example, a Spanish local telephone number for a customer in Spain), which has the capacity to receive an incoming call. This ends the call preparation process.

Therefore, in this process the most important thing is that the sending device knows in advance how to route the call, so that the method of the invention predetermines the route that the outgoing call must take before it occurs. Thus, the call queued at the network switch (100) as previously described, is given an appropriate access number based on the operator, location, destination and load on the network (number of concurrent calls ).

For this, the network switch (100) sends a data packet to the sender, indicating the best possible route for the call, prior to the execution of the call, that is, that the user presses the call button. Thanks to this solution an efficient solution is obtained to make the call, considerably faster than any of the known VoIP systems, also avoiding any failure or redundancy in the call.

Immediately before the call is established, the sender decides whether to modify the call request data packet. For example, you can change your caller ID (CLI) by selecting an alternative one proposed by the application itself through the application server (200).

If the client decides to modify the call request data packet, the change is sent to the network switch (100) through the communication network (104). Subsequently, the sender calls the access number indicated by the network switch (100), i.e. to the optimal access number. The access number is the telephone number that the customer can call to reach their requested destination. The call is routed through the telephone network (PSTN) to the recipient.

Figure 4 shows the block diagram of the verification process. In block 300 a verification request is sent with the server. The information contained in this application may include the originating caller ID and a unique security identifier (the 5 security token) derived from the SIM card information of a smartphone.

In block 310, the server can check if there is a profile in its database with the same caller ID of the call. If the client does not exist, it can send an error through communication network 104 and block 320 terminates the process.

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In block 330, a verification code of the originator identification originating from the verification request is sent via SMS.

In block 340, the client sends the verification code sent by SMS back to the server through the communication network 104.

In block 350, the server checks whether the verification code received through the Internet matches that sent. If you do, this verifies that the request was made by the owner of the number. If it does not match the client, an error is sent through Internet 20 and block 360 terminates the process.

Finally, in block 370 the client profile is updated with the security token sent by the client in block 300. This security token is used to help ensure that the call request data packets received by the server have 25 arrived from the client that has the originating caller ID provided.

Claims (5)

5 10 fifteen twenty 25 30 35 1. A GSM communications method between a GSM sending device and a recipient characterized in that it comprises: to. the selection of a recipient of the call by the sender; b. select a sender phone number; C. send to a network switch (100) an encrypted data packet with at least one security token and the identification of the sender, including the selected telephone number and information about the destination of the call; d. verify the identity of the sender in an application server (200) connected to the network switch (100); Y and. Once the call has been received by the network switch (100) and matches the data sent to the network switch (100) before the call, then: i. provide the sender with an appropriate access number based on the operator, location, destination and load on the network by sending a data packet from the network switch (100) to the sender; Y ii. route the sender's call to the recipient through the telephone network (PSTN) using the access number provided. 2. The method of claim 1 comprising a step of choosing an identification number other than your own telephone number from a list of authorized numbers (CLI). 3. A VoIP and GSM communication device between a GSM sending device and a recipient configured to execute the method of claims 1-2 comprising a network switch (100) comprises at least one processor or processors, one or more communications ports connected with at least one communications network and one or more programs or memories, in which the program (s) are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by means of the processor (s); characterized in that the programs include instructions for: to. Receive encrypted call data and a security token; b. Authenticate the caller using the security token and the received call data including the caller ID number (CLI) selected by the sender; C. provide the issuer with an appropriate access number based on the operator, location, destination and load on the network by sending a data packet from the network switch (100) to the sender; Y d. route the sender's call to the recipient through the telephone network (PSTN) using the access number provided. 5 . 4. Computer program product with instructions configured for execution by one or more processors which, when executed by an apparatus according to claim 3 cause said apparatus to carry out the procedure according to any one of claims 1 to 2.