GB2399997A

GB2399997A - Distributed message transmission system and method

Info

Publication number: GB2399997A
Application number: GB0411551A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ian Wood
Original assignee: Empower Interactive Group Ltd
Current assignee: Empower Interactive Group Ltd
Priority date: 2001-06-25
Filing date: 2002-05-03
Publication date: 2004-09-29
Anticipated expiration: 2022-05-03
Also published as: GB0508688D0; GB2399994A; GB2411085B; GB2399996A; GB0508685D0; GB2411084A; GB0411547D0; GB0411550D0; GB2399997B; GB0411551D0; GB2411083A; GB2411083B; GB0508687D0; GB2399995A; GB2411085A; GB0411549D0; GB2399994B; GB2399995B; GB2399996B; GB2411084B

Abstract

Systems and methods are described for controlling the routing of messages between components in a telecommunications network. For example, a message delivery component arranged as a component of a distributed system for controlling the routing of messages between components in a telecommunications network is described. The message delivery component comprises means for connecting to the telecommunications network, means for connecting, over a network separate to the telecommunications network, to at least one other such message delivery component and means for connecting to a remote message handling component over the network separate to the telecommunications network. The component further comprises processing means configured, on connection to the remote message handling component, to permit control of the message delivery component and destination lookup for messages received by the message delivery component by the remote message handling component.

Description

Distributed Message Transmission System and Method The present invention

relates to the field of mobile telecommunications and relates particularly to the field of sending and routing Short Message Service (SMS) messages within a telecommunications network.

Referring to Fig. 1, a basic SMS messaging network may consist of a network of Mobile Switching Centres (MSCs), which control radio frequency (RF) connections to mobile entities on the network, at least one Short Message Service Centre (SMSC), which stores and forwards messages, at least one Signalling Transfer Point (STP), which provides a hub through which messages may pass between the components of the network, a Home Location Register (HLR) , which stores location information for the mobile entities on the network and, optionally, Gateway MSCs (G-MSCs) (or Internetworking Gateway MSCs (IG-MSCs)), through which a mobile operator's network may be connected to the networks of other operators. Signalling occurs between the network elements using the Common Channel Signalling System No. 7 (SS7) protocol defined bythe International Telecommunications Union (ITU). The SS7 protocol stack consists of six layers, as described in more detail below. The lower layers of the stack are usually used for routing messages across the telecommunications network whilst the higher layers contain the message data.

As shown in Fig. 1, further components of the SMS message network may include a Prepaid Billing Service Control Point (SOP), to control billing of messages sent to and from prepaid mobile telephones, applications, which may connect to an SMSC of the telecommunications network via a proprietary interface, and SGSN components (Serving GPRS Support Nodes), which function in a similar way to the MSCs but work within a 2.5G or 3G network.

One problem with conventional SMS messaging networks is that each message passes through the STP at least once as it is routed from one mobile entity to another on the network. This can cause congestion at the STP and requires SS7 bandwidth, which is expensive, to be provided. - 2

There are also problems in the prior art system in connecting applications to the telecommunications network and in using those applications to send and receive messages. In the prior art system, a limited number of applications may connect via a proprietary interface to an SMSC in the network. Once connected, these applications can only receive messages from other mobile entities for which the SMSC to which they are connected is the home SMSC. Problems of congestion at the STP may also be intensified when applications are connected to the mobile network, since applications tend to send and receive large transient volumes of messages.

Proposals to alleviate the problems of congestion on the SMS messaging network have comprised offload of traffic from the SS7 network and onto a parallel separate network, such as an IP network. One such system is outlined in WO-A-01/59969.

In this system, messages may be intercepted by terminals connected to MSCs and G-MSCs on the mobile network. These terminals provide protocol translation to transfer the message from one point in the telecommunications network, which uses the SS7 protocol, to a separate network, which may use a protocol such as IP. Once they have been transferred onto the separate network, the messages are delivered to another point in a telecommunications network, via a further protocol translation terminal, bypassing a portion of the network. This system may allow messages to bypass at least some of the busier points of the telecommunications network such as the STPs, and so may reduce congestion at those points.

Protocol translation terminals allow the transfer of messages or data from the SS7 network to another network, such as IP, and are well known in the art. A common technique used in IP offload will now be described with reference to Fig.13. As outlined above, the SS7 protocol stack typically consists of six layers: the Message Transfer Part (MTP) Layer 1, Layer 2 and Layer 3, the Signalling Connection Control Part (SCCP), the Transaction Capabilities Applications Part (TCAP), and the Mobile Application Part (MAP). In a prior art network, routing of messages takes place at the lower MTP and SCCP layers. The higher TCAP and MAP layers contain the message data itself (for example, the content of the message). Other protocols may be used in alternative networks, but it is a common feature of the protocol stack that the lower layers of the stack are used to route data across the network and the higher layers contain the message or packet data. A commonly used offload system extracts the routing data, such as the identifier of the destination of the message, from the lower SCCP and MTP layers and inserts this routing data into the equivalent layers of an IP stack. As shown in Fig. 1 3a, the message data in the MAP and TCAP layers is then transferred directly onto the IP protocol stack. The data contained within the MAP and TCAP layers is not processed or read, but is transferred to be carried on the IP stack. "MAP" is the term used in ETSI standards and is used herein for convenience to connote an application level layer; it is intended to encompass equivalents (for example IS-41-C and IS-41-D of the TIA and EIA standards).

The IP offload systems described above do not solve the problems of congestion on the telecommunications network as a whole. Processing of the message is still undertaken by components of the mobile network, such as the SMSC, and congestion may occur at these points. It is necessary for the SMSC to process the messages since, as explained in more detail below, the final destination address for a message originated by a mobile handset may be contained within the payload of the message, which is encapsulated by the protocol translation terminal. In addition, the implementation of the IP offload system may be relatively inflexible.

The present invention seeks to solve some of the problems outlined above and provides a system and method by which congestion on the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network may be reduced and by which the efficiency of the transmission of messages across the telecommunications network may be increased whilst requiring little modification of the existing network.

Aspects of the invention are set out in the independent claims and preferred features are set out in the dependent claims. Preferred features of each aspect may be applied to other aspects and may be combined unless otherwise stated.

Advantages will become apparent as the description proceeds. - 4

There is described herein a method of routing at least one message to a component connected to a telecommunications network comprising: receiving the message from the telecommunications network over a telecommunications communication protocol link; interacting with the message at the MAP layer to determine at least one piece of information including information indicative of the destination, from the message; selecting a route for a destination connected to the telecommunications network from at least a first route via the telecommunications network and a second route via a network separate to the telecommunications network based on the information determined; routing at least a portion of the message via the selected route.

Extracting information from the message at the MAP layer (which is normally only encapsulated in prior art offload systems) may allow the message to be routed efficiently and "intelligently" to its destination according to the information obtained.

For example, it may not be necessary for certain types of message to pass through the SMSC component of the telecommunications network, hence reducing the load on this part of the telecommunications network.

In this specification and claims, references to the MAP protocol or MAP layer are intended to encompass similar or equivalent application protocols for example, but not limited to, other high-level protocols of other standards, such as the IS-41 -C and IS-41-D protocols.

Preferably, the at least one piece of information extracted from the message may be used to determine the message type, wherein the message type may be one of: mobile originated, mobile terminated, application originated or application terminated. In a preferred embodiment, the at least one piece of information extracted from the message may be the destination address for the message. This may be a global identifier of the destination entity for the message, which may be for example, a mobile telephone handset or an application. The message type may - 5 then be determined by consulting a global lookup table, either locally or remotely over a network. The global lookup table may contain further information relating to each destination address, such as whether the destination entity is a mobile telephone handset or an application, routing data for the destination entity and availability information for the destination entity.

Determining the type of message may increase the efficiency of message processing, for example, messages destined for applications may be processed in a different way to those being sent to mobiles, and mobile or application originated messages may require additional processing compared to the mobile or application terminated messages.

Preferably, the method further comprises determining that the message is an application terminated message destined for an application connected to a remote node. Messages may be routed to applications not directly connected to the component that receives and parses the message. Applications may be connected to a remote node in the telecommunications network, such as to an SMSC of the home operator's network, or another operator's network, or applications may be connected to a remote node in the separate network, for example an IP network.

Preferably, the network separate to the telecommunications network is an IP network. This may provide an efficient and easily implemented method by which messages may be sent to their destinations whilst reducing congestion on the SS7 telecommunications network.

Preferably, the step of receiving the message from the telecommunications network further comprises terminating the message. If the message is terminated, then a new message may be generated, based on information extracted from the terminated message, and the message may be sent directly to its destination.

Hence it is not necessary to send the message to an SMSC of the telecommunications network for the message to be terminated. - 6

According to a highly preferred embodiment, if the message type determined is a mobile originated message, then the method further comprises: parsing the message at the MAP layer to extract at least one piece of information from the message; routing at least a portion of the message to its destination over a network separate to the telecommunications network based on the information extracted from the message.

Parsing a mobile originated message at the MAP (or other high level protocol) layer may allow the message to be processed by the network component at which it is received. The message may be delivered directly from there to its destination without passing through the SMSC of the telecommunications network for processing. This provides the advantage that the load on the SMSC may be reduced and the mobile originated message may be delivered more quickly and more efficiently to its destination. Parsing the message may allow the network component to determine the most efficient way to route each message to its destination.

Preferably, the at least one piece of information extracted from the message is an identifier of the final destination entity for the message.

Preferably, the method further comprises performing a destination lookup for the identifier of the final destination entity for the message.

Preferably, performing the destination lookup comprises requesting location information for the identifier of the final destination entity for the message from a remote component. This provides the advantage that it is not necessary for each component that receives messages to provide a destination lookup facility locally.

A remote central component may also provide further functionality centrally, such as message storage capabilities and IMSI and prepaid credit lookup facilities.

Preferably, the message is routed to its destination without passing through an SMSC of the telecommunications network. Preferably, the message is routed to its destination without passing through an STP of the telecommunications network.

This may allow the message to be routed to its destination without causing congestion at these particularly busy components of the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the message is passed to a message handling component, such as an SMSC or AMSC, to allow storage of the message. This may reduce the need for large message storage capabilities at each point in the network where messages are received.

Preferably, the network over which the message is routed is selected according to at least one predetermined condition.

The message is preferably routed to its destination over a network separate to the telecommunications network, but may be routed over the telecommunications network in some situations, for example if it would be more efficient to route a particular message over the telecommunications network.

Further preferably, the at least one predetermined condition comprises at least one of: information extracted from the message at the MAP layer; the message type; an identifier of the final destination entity for the message; destination lookup information obtained for the identifier of the final destination entity for the message; an identifier of the mobile entity which originated the message; an identifier of the home SMSC for the message.

Other conditions may also be used to determine which network the message is routed over. In addition, a combination of the conditions outlined above may be used to determined the network used. One example of the advantages in selecting - 8 the network over which the message is routed may be that messages destined for other operator's networks may be selectively routed over the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the step of routing the message over a network separate to the telecommunications network further comprises: selecting one connection from a plurality of connections to components in the telecommunications network, wherein the plurality of connections are separate from the telecommunications communication protocol links; delivering the message into the telecommunications network via the selected one of the plurality of connections.

Hence messages may advantageously be delivered into the telecommunications network at a selected point, which may allow each message to be delivered to its destination in the most efficient way.

Preferably, at least one of the plurality of connections is bidirectional and the method further comprises receiving a message via at least one of the plurality of connections.

Preferably, the message is received via a first connection out of the plurality of connections and wherein the message is delivered into the telecommunications network via a selected one of the plurality of connections.

Preferably, wherein the connection via which the message is delivered into the telecommunications network is selected according to the at least one piece of information extracted from the message at the MAP layer.

Preferably, at least one of the plurality of connections to components in the telecommunications network comprises a connection via a message delivery component, which processes received messages for transmission between components in the telecommunications network and transmits at least a portion of - 9 - each message over one of the plurality of connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol links.

Preferably a plurality of the connections to components in the telecommunications network are via message delivery components and the wherein the message delivery components are interconnected over connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol links. Hence messages may be passed between message delivery components without passing over the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the message may be received from a component in the telecommunications network over an SS7 connection. Hence the present system and method may be implemented within an existing telecommunications network with the minimum possible modifications to the existing network.

Preferably, at least one message delivery component receives messages from more than one component in the telecommunications network.

Preferably, wherein the connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol links are IP connections.

Preferably, at least some of the plurality of telecommunications components comprise switches in the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the method further comprises obtaining at least one piece of information from a location register before routing the message to its destination.

Preferably, the location register stores location information for globally unique identifiers corresponding to applications connected to the telecommunications network. This may allow messages to be delivered to applications in the mobile network from any operator's network. -

Preferably, the method further comprises requesting at least one piece of information from a message handling component before routing the message to its destination, the message handling component comprising means for obtaining information relating to mobile entities or applications connected to the mobile telecommunications network. A central message handling component may be used by each of the distributed message delivery components to perform functions such as destination and availability lookup foreach destination mobile orapplication, IMSI check and prepaid credit check capabilities and storage capabilities. Since these functions may be performed by the central message handling component over a network separate to the telecommunications network, it may not be necessary to provide each message delivery component with this functionality locally. Hence, a large number of distributed message delivery components may be implemented within a telecommunications network, but most of the functionality may be provided by the central component.

According to one preferable embodiment, at least part of the message is routed to its destination via a message handling component. The message handling component may use the information contained within the at least a part of the message to determine information which may then be used to route the message.

However, in the preferred embodiment, it is not necessary to route the whole of the message via the message handling component.

Further preferably, the message handling component obtains at least one piece of information relating to mobile entities or applications from the location register.

Furtherpreferably, the message handling component provides an interface between the telecommunications network and the applications for which location information is stored in the location register.

Preferably, the at least one piece of information comprises at least one of: location information for the destination entity corresponding to the identifier of the final destination of the message; availability information for the destination entity corresponding to the identifier of the final destination of the message; International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) information; and prepaid credit information.

Further information may also be obtained centrally by the message handling component for each message.

Preferably, the message may be received from a Gateway Mobile Switching Centre (G-MSC) in the telecommunications network. Hence messages may be offloaded by the message delivery components at the G-MSC, which may allow messages to travel a short a distance as possible across the home network operator's telecommunications network.

Preferably, the message may be received from a Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) in the telecommunications network. Hence messages may be received at the earliest possible point after they are generated by mobile entities connected to the MSCs.

There is also described herein a method of routing at least one message to a destination component connected to a network separate to the telecommunications network comprising: receiving the message from the telecommunications network over a telecommunications communication protocol link; interacting with the message at the MAP layer to determine at least one piece of information including information indicative of the destination from the message; routing at least a portion of the message to its destination over the network separate to the telecommunications network without routing the message via an SMSC of the telecommunications network.

There is also described herein apparatus for routing at least one message to a - 12 component connected to a telecommunications network comprising: means for receiving the message from the telecommunications network over a telecommunications communication protocol link; means for interacting with the message at the MAP layer to determine at least one piece of information including information indicative of the destination from the message; means for selecting a route for a destination connected to the telecommunications network from at least a first route via the telecommunications network and a second route via a network separate to the telecommunications network based on the information determined; means for routing at least a portion of the message via the selected route.

Preferable features of the apparatus correspond to equivalent features of the method outlined above.

There is also described herein apparatus for routing at least one message to a destination component connected to a network separate to the telecommunications network comprising: means for receiving the message from the telecommunications network over a telecommunications communication protocol link; means for interacting with the message at the MAP layer to determine at least one piece of information including information indicative of the destination from the message; means for routing at least a portion of the message to its destination over the network separate to the telecommunications network without routing the message via an SMSC of the telecommunications network.

There is also described herein apparatus for transferring information from a message in a telecommunications network to a message handling component comprising: means for receiving the message from the telecommunications network and terminating the message; - 13 means for processing the received message to extract at least a portion of the content of the message; means for sending the extracted portion of the content of the message to a message handling component over a network that utilises a protocol other than the telecommunications protocol.

Preferably, at least a portion of the content of the message is extracted at the MAP layer.

Also herein described is a method of determining the type of a message comprising: receiving the message from a telecommunications network; parsing the message at the MAP layer to determine an identifier of the destination entity of the message; based on the identifier of the destination entity of the message, determining the message type, wherein the message type may be one of: mobile originated, mobile terminated, application originated or application terminated.

Determining the message type may allow different types of message to be treated in different ways and hence messages may be handled so that they may be routed to their destinations in the most efficient manner.

There is also described herein apparatus for delivering data to one of a plurality of telecommunications components in a telecommunications network, the plurality of telecommunications components in the telecommunications network being interconnected over a telecommunications communication protocol link, the apparatus comprising: means for connecting to a first telecommunications component via a first connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link; means for connecting to a second telecommunications component via a second connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link; - 14 means for selecting one of the first and second components as an

introduction point for the data;

means for delivering the data into the telecommunications network via the selected one of the first and second connections.

This may allow data, such as SMS messages, to be delivered to a selected component in a telecommunications network over a network separate to the telecommunications communication protocol link. This may allow data to be intelligently' introduced to a selected point in the telecommunications network for onward delivery to their destinations. This may advantageously reduce the message volume, and so reduce congestion, on the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network.

The data preferably comprises SMS messages, but other types of message or data may be transferred between components in the telecommunications network. For example, multimedia messages, or voice messages may be transmitted. Control messages which act to set up voice calls between components, or the data which comprises the voice calls themselves, may also be transmitted using the apparatus and methods described herein. Other data may also be transmitted between components in the telecommunications network using the apparatus and methods described herein, for example an item of data such as an address book entry could be sent between mobile telephone handsets connected to the network. Messages sent over 2.5G or 3G networks could also be intercepted and transferred to their destinations according to the apparatus and methods described herein.

Incorporation of the present system into a network other than an SS7 mobile telecommunications network is described in more detail below.

Preferably, at least one of the connections to the first and second telecommunications components is bidirectional and the apparatus further comprises means for receiving data via the first or second connection. Hence data may be both received from the telecommunications network and delivered to the telecommunications network. -

Further preferably, the data may be received via the first or second connection and the data may be delivered into the telecommunications network via a selected one of the first or second connections. Hence data received via one connection may be intelligently' delivered back to the telecommunications network for onward delivery to their destinations.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises means for connecting to at least a third telecommunications components via a connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link. Using a plurality of separate connections may advantageously allow data to be delivered into the telecommunications network at a selected one of many points.

Preferably, the connection via which the data is delivered into the telecommunications network may be selected according to information extracted from the data. Hence the or each item of data may be introduced to the telecommunications network at the most suitable point for that item of data.

According to a particularly preferable embodiment, the means for connecting to at least one telecommunications component comprises a connection via a message delivery component, which processes data for transmission between a component in the telecommunications network and transmits at least a portion of the data over the connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link. Initial processing at the message delivery component may mean that it is

not necessary to transmit all of the data over the separate connection. Instead, the important information may be extracted and transported over the separate connection without, for example, the overheads associated with the SS7 protocol also being transported over the separate connection.

Preferably, the message delivery components are interconnected over connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link. This may advantageously allow data to be transmitted directly between message delivery components without passing through the telecommunications network or through a - 16 central control point on the network of separate connections.

A further preferable feature is that the data may be received from a component in the telecommunications network over an SS7 connection. This may provide the advantage that an embodiment of the present invention may be incorporated into a prior art telecommunications network without the need for significant modifications to the existing infrastructure.

According to a further preferable feature, at least one message delivery component receives data from more than one component in the telecommunications network.

This may reduce the number of message delivery components required to implement an embodiment of the system and may be advantageous, particularly when components of the telecommunications network are located close to each other.

Preferably, the connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link are Internet Protocol (IP) connections. Using IP connections may allow date to be efficiently end reliablytransmitted between components overthe separate connections.

Preferably, at least some of the plurality of telecommunications components comprise switches in the telecommunications network. This may allow data to be intercepted as they enter the telecommunications network so that they may be offloaded at the earliest opportunity and to be reintroduced to the telecommunications network at points close to their final destination entities.

According to a further preferable feature, the data is passed between the plurality of telecommunications components without passing through an Short Message Service Centre (SMSC) of the telecommunications network. A further preferable feature is that the data is passed between the plurality of telecommunications components without passing through an Signalling Transfer Point (STP) of the telecommunications network. Implementation of these features may reduce - 17 congestion on the telecommunications network at points that, in the prior art, may become particularly heavily congested when the network is busy.

Preferably, the message is passed to a message handling component, such as an SMSC or AMSC, to allow storage of the message.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a location register. This may allow location information corresponding to destination entities of the data to be obtained over the separate network, which may further reduce congestion on the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the location register provides location information for globally unique identifiers corresponding to applications connected to the telecommunications network. This may allow data to be routed to applications attached to the telecommunications network from mobile entities within or outside the home operator's network.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a message handling component which comprises means for obtaining information relating to mobile entities or applications connected to the telecommunications network. The message handling component may provide a central point in the network which may obtain information requested by the message delivery components.

More preferably, the message handling component may provide an interface between the telecommunications network and the applications for which location information is stored in the location register. Hence the message handling component may provide an efficient and practicable means by which applications can connect to the telecommunications network.

Preferably, at least one of the connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link is to a Gateway Mobile Switching Centre (G-MSC) in the telecommunications network. This may allow the immediate offload from the - 18 telecommunications network of traffic entering the network from other operator's networks (off-net traffic). In a typical prior art telecommunications network, this off-net traffic accounts for a large proportion of the data within the network, so congestion within the network may be significantly reduced by offloading this traffic at the G-MSCs, as it enters the network.

Preferably, at least one of the connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link is to a Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) in the telecommunications network. This may allow further offload of data from the telecommunications network. Both on-net traffic generated by mobile entities connected to the home operator's network and traffic destined for mobile entities connected to the home operator's network may be offloaded, further reducing congestion on the SS7 layer of the home operator's network.

Taken in conjunction, the previous two features may maximise the ability of the system to offload data from the telecommunications network and hence reduce congestion on this network.

There is also described herein apparatus for transferring information from an item of data in a telecommunications network to a message handling component comprising: means for receiving the data from the telecommunications network and terminating the data; means for processing the received data to extract at least a portion of the content of the data; means for sending the extracted portion of the content of the data to a message handling component over a network that utilises a protocol other than the telecommunications protocol.

Since the data may be terminated by this component of apparatus, the data itself does not need to be transferred through the separate network, to the message handling component. The system is more efficient then, since only the portion of the - 19 data necessary to obtain the required routing information may be sent across the separate network. This may allow the data itself to travel the minimum distance necessary both overthe telecommunications network and overthe separate network to its destination, since the data may be stored by the apparatus until information corresponding to its destination has been obtained. A central message handling component may be used to obtain the necessary information for each item of data on behalf of each piece of apparatus. This means that the apparatus that receives the data does not have to obtain the necessary information itself. Hence, the receiving apparatus does not have to comprise means to access the data itself from the relevant network components or, alternatively, does not need to store the information corresponding to destination addresses itself. This may allow the receiving apparatus to be simpler, smaller and cheaper than it otherwise would be, making the system more efficient and easier to implement in an existing telecommunications network. In addition, since the information is requested overthe separate network, for example, over a fast IP link, the information may be sent quickly between the message handling component and the receiving apparatus without causing congestion on the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network and without causing significant delay to the onward transmission of the data. Also, this implementation of the system may allow pre-existing technology to be utilised, for example, the Home Location Register (HLR) of the pre- existing telecommunications network may be used by the message handling component to provide location information.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a distributed software system, wherein the distributed software system is also run on the message handling component.

Hence both the apparatus for transferring information in an item of data to a message handling component and the message handling component itself may be controlled by the same distributed software, which may be run over a plurality of components. Using a distributed software system may be used to provide redundancy between the software and hardware components of the system.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving at least one piece - 20 of information from the message handling component, wherein the information is based on the extracted portion of the data content sent to the message handling component. The information received may allow further processing of the data and may allow the receiving apparatus to deal with the data in the most appropriate and efficient manner.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises means for sending an extracted portion of the content of the data to a component in the telecommunications network according to the at least one piece of information received from the message handling component. Hence the data may be retained by the apparatus and not transferred over the network until information corresponding to its destination has been obtained. This may allow the data to be routed to a destination selected according to the information obtained.

Preferably, the means for processing the received data comprises means for extracting an identifier of the final destination of the data from the payload of the data. This advantageously allows the destination address to be determined without the data being reformatted as a mobile terminated message, which may allow the data to be routed to the destination address without passing through the message handling component of the telecommunications network. The capability of the apparatus to extract the destination address in this way is a highly preferable feature of the system, since it may facilitate 'intelligent' routing of the data from the point at which it enters the telecommunications network.

According to a further preferable feature, the extracted portion of the content of the data comprises the identifier of the final destination of the data extracted from the payload of the data. This may allow the message handling component to obtain information for the entity corresponding to the identifier of the final destination contained within the data. This may advantageously facilitate the further processing of the data.

Preferably, the information received from the message handling component 21 comprises at least one of: location information for the destination entity corresponding to the identifier of the final destination of the data; availability information forthe destination entity corresponding to the identifier of the final destination of the data; International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI); and prepaid credit information.

Hence the apparatus may be provided with of the information necessary to route the data to its destination address.

Preferably, at least one item of data is received from a Gateway Mobile Switching Centre (G-MSC) of the telecommunications network. Preferably, at least one item of data is received from a Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) of the telecommunications network. As discussed above, both of these preferable features may maximise the ability of the system to offload data from the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the means for sending the extracted portion of the content of the data to a component in the telecommunications network comprises means for sending the at least a portion of the content of the data over a selected one of the telecommunications communication protocol link or over a network separate to the telecommunications network. Selection of the network used may allow the at least a portion of the content of the data to be routed to its destination in the most efficient manner.

Preferably, the network is selected according to at least one predetermined condition. More preferably, the at least one predetermined condition comprises at least one of: the identifier of the final destination of the data extracted from the data payload; the at least one piece of information requested from the message handling - 22 component; an identifier of the mobile entity which originated the data; an identifier of the home SMSC for the data.

The availability information or the location information obtained from the message handling component may advantageously be used to select the appropriate network over which to forward the data portion (for example, the message switching centre to which the destination mobile entity is attached may not have a corresponding message delivery component, so it may be advantageous to deliver this data over the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network.) Selection based on the originator's identity or the SMSC identifier may allow only data originated by mobile entities belonging to the home operator's network to be offloaded onto the separate network (data originated by roaming users may not be offloaded). Finally, offloading according to the destination address of the data may allow only data destined for certain entities to be off-loaded, for example, only data destined for mobile entities on other operator's networks.

There is also described herein apparatus for transferring information from data in a message handling component to a telecommunications network comprising: means for receiving at least a portion of the content of data over a network that utilises a protocol other than the telecommunications communication protocol; means for generating data based on the content of the data received; means for sending the generated data to a component within the telecommunications network.

The apparatus may allow the data to be transmitted to its destination entity within the telecommunications network. This may be a mobile telephone or an application connected to the telecommunications network, or the data may be transferred to a G-MSC and on to a telecommunications network of a second operator.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a distributed software system, wherein - 23 the distributed software system is also run on the message handling component.

Preferably, the at least a portion of the content of the data comprises an identifier of the final destination of the data. This may allow the apparatus to identify the destination entity for onward transmission of the data.

According to one preferred feature, the generated data is sent to a Gateway Mobile Switching Centre (G-MSC) within the telecommunications network. According to a further preferred feature, the generated data is sent to a Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) within the telecommunications network. Similarly to the offload of data from the telecommunications network discussed above, delivery of the data to these components may allow the data to be transferred to its destination in the most efficient manner, and transfer of the data over the telecommunications network may be minimised at the delivery end as well as the offload end.

There is also described herein a method of delivering data between a plurality of telecommunications components in a telecommunications network, the plurality of telecommunications components in the telecommunications network being interconnected over a telecommunications communication protocol link, the method comprising: connecting to a first telecommunications component via a first connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link; connecting to a second telecommunications component via a second connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link; selecting one of the first and second components as an introduction point for the data; delivering the data into the telecommunications network via the selected one of the first and second connections.

The advantages of this method, and its preferred features, correspond to the advantages for the similar apparatus and preferred features outlined above. - 24

Preferably, at least one of the connections to the first and second telecommunications components is bidirectional and the method further comprises receiving data via the first or second connection.

Preferably, the data may be received via the first or second connection and the data may be delivered into the telecommunications network via a selected one of the first or second connections.

Preferably, the method further comprises connecting to more than two telecommunications components via connections separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link.

Preferably, the method further comprises selecting the connection via which the data is delivered into the telecommunications network according to information extracted from the data.

According to a further preferable feature, connecting to each telecommunications component comprises connecting via a message delivery component, which processes data received from a component in the telecommunications network and transmits at least a portion of the data over the connection separate from the telecommunications communication protocol link.

Preferably, the message delivery component receives the data from the component in the telecommunications network over an SS7 connection.

According to a further preferable feature, the data is passed between the plurality of telecommunications components without passing through a Short Message Service Centre (SMSC) of the telecommunications network. A further preferable feature is that the data is passed between the plurality of telecommunications - 25 components without passing through a Signalling Transfer Point (STP) of the telecommunications network.

Preferably, at least one of the telecommunications components is a Gateway Mobile Switching Centre (G-MSC) of the telecommunications network. Preferably, at least one of the telecommunications components is a Mobile Switching Centre (MSC) of the telecommunications network.

There is also described herein a method of transferring at least one item of data between components in a telecommunications network, the method comprising: receiving the data from a first component in the telecommunications network; parsing the data payload to determine destination information for the data; routing the data to a second component in the telecommunications network based on the destination information determined.

The advantages of the method described and its preferable features are similar to those outlined above for the corresponding apparatus.

Preferably, the data is transferred between the components in the telecommunications network without passing through a Short Message Service Centre (SMSC) of the telecommunications network. Preferably, the data may also be transferred between the components in the telecommunications network without passing through a Signalling Transfer Point (STP) of the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the message is transferred between the components in the telecommunications network without being transferred into a memory for storage.

Preferably, the method further comprises obtaining at least one piece of information - 26 corresponding to the destination information determined for the data. More preferably, the at least one piece of information comprises at least one of: location information for the destination entity corresponding to the destination information determined for the data; availability information for the destination entity corresponding to the destination information determined for the data; International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI); and prepaid credit information.

More preferably, the at least one piece of information is obtained from a message handling component over a network separate from the telecommunications network.

A further preferable feature provides that the message is transferred between the components in the telecommunications network over a communication link other than a telecommunications communication protocol link.

Preferably, the data is transferred over a network selected from the telecommunications network and a network other than the telecommunications network and wherein the network is selected depending on at least one predetermined condition.

More preferably, the at least one predetermined condition comprises at least one of: the destination information extracted from the data payload; the at least one piece of information requested from the message handling component; an identifier of the mobile entity which originated the data; an identifier of the home SMSC for the data.

Preferably, the first and second components in the telecommunications network are message switching centres. - 27

Preferably, the data is routed across the separate network to the connection to the telecommunications network that is closest to the destination entity of the data. This may allow data to be routed efficiently to their destinations and to be routed the minimum possible distance over the telecommunications network.

Preferably, the data is routed to a selected second component in the telecommunications network, the second component being selected according to at least one predetermined condition.

More preferably, the at least one predetermined condition comprises at least one of: the availability of the second component of the telecommunications network; the geographical distance or the distance over the network of the second component of the telecommunications network from the destination entity; the availability of the message delivery component to which the second component is connected; the geographical distance or the distance over the network between the destination entity and the message delivery component to which the second component of the telecommunications network is connected.

The use of predetermined conditions such as those listed above may again aid in allowing efficient delivery of items of data to their destinations. Load balancing between components and the use of geographical or network distances to decide the components via which the data may be sent may allow efficient delivery of data.

This preferable feature may also allow the system to select advantageously the point at which the data is transferred from the separate network to the telecommunications network.

According to a further preferable feature the data is routed to a message handling component if the entity corresponding to the destination address is not available or is not able to receive the data when the at least one piece of information is obtained.

This provides the advantage that the message delivery components themselves do - 28 not require a large memory to store data which cannot be delivered immediately.

According to one feature, the data may be routed to the message handling component over the telecommunications network. Hence data may be returned to the telecommunications network if it is not possible to route them to their destinations immediately. This may allow the system to take advantage of the pre-existing functionality of the mobile telephone network to store the data and deliver it at a later time. Passing the data back to the telecommunications network may allow the functionality of the SMSC of the pre-existing system to be incorporated into the new system without modification.

According to a further preferable feature, the data may be routed to the second component in the telecommunications network according to specific instructions obtained from a routing table stored within the telecommunications network. This may allow specific routing rules to be entered into the routing table for the delivery of data to mobile entities or applications that receive a high volume of incoming traffic. This may increase the efficiency of data delivery to these entities.

There is also described herein a message delivery component arranged as a component of a distributed system for controlling the routing of data between components in a telecommunications network, the message delivery component comprising: means for connecting to the telecommunications network; means for connecting, over a network separate to the telecommunications network, to at least one other such message delivery component; means for connecting to a remote message handling component over the network separate to the telecommunications network; processing means configured, on connection to the remote message handling component, to permit control of the message delivery component and destination lookup for data received by the message delivery component by the remote message handling component. - 29

Since the message delivery component may be controlled by the remote message handling component, the message delivery component may be optimised. The message delivery component may be small and inexpensive, hence allowing it to be integrated into an existing telecommunications network at a plurality of points, but the message delivery component may also provide a large range of functionality, via an efficient connection to the remote message handling component. For example, destination lookup may be provided remotely at the message handling component, so the functionality (and hence the size and cost) of the message delivery component may be reduced, but data may be delivered efficiently to its destination, as if the message delivery component itself did have a destination lookup facility.

Providing an interconnected network of message delivery components may also provide software and hardware redundancy in the system. Software, for example software agents, may be distributed among the message delivery components and hardware redundancy may be introduced if one message delivery components may take over the functionality of another message delivery component which has failed or which is overloaded.

Preferably, the message delivery component further comprises means for requesting destination lookup from the remote message handling component for data received by the message delivery component. Hence data, such as destination data, may be actively requested by the message delivery component from the message handling component, when incoming data is received from the telecommunications network. This may allow data to be transmitted efficiently through the distributed system.

There is also described herein a distributed system comprising: a message handling component; a plurality of message delivery components; means for connecting the plurality of message delivery components to a telecommunications network; means for interconnecting the plurality of message delivery components and - 30 the message handling component over a network separate to the telecommunications network; and wherein: ! the message handling component is arranged to control each of the plurality of message delivery components; the message delivery components are each arranged to receive data from and deliver data to components within the telecommunications network; the message handling component is arranged to perform a destination lookup for data received by the message delivery components.

As discussed above, providing a system of distributed message delivery components, along with a central message handling component, may optimise the efficiency of the data delivery system. The distributed system may allow the sophistication of the individual message delivery components to be reduced, whilst increasing the sophistication of the system as a whole.

The message handling component may perform other service functions for the message delivery components, in addition to or instead of the destinationlookup function. Such service functions may include load balancing of data between the message delivery components, storage of data which cannot be directed immediately to its destination address, intelligent queueing of data waiting to be sent to its destination, prepaid credit lookup facilities, IMSI lookup facilities and delivery of messages to applications which may be connected to the telecommunications network via the message handling component.

Preferably, the components of the distributed system are interconnected using a ring architecture.

Preferably, the distributed system further comprises a plurality of software agents, wherein each software agent has a predefined function and wherein: at least one software agent is arranged to execute on a message delivery component to control at least one function of the message delivery - 31 component; at least one software agent is arranged to execute on the message handling component to provide a destination lookup facility for data received at a message delivery component.

Software agents may be distributed among components of the system to provide software redundancy to the system. Other software agents may also be implemented within the distributed system to provide further functionality, for example to provide the further functionality of the message handling component outlined above.

There is also described herein a distributed system for controlling the routing of data between components within a telecommunications network, comprising: a plurality of first portions arranged to control the receipt and delivery of the data to and from the telecommunications network and each providing an interface between the telecommunications network and a network separate to the telecommunications network; a second portion arranged to control lookup of destination information for data received from the telecommunications network and communicating with the first portion over the network separate to the mobile telecommunications network.

There is also described herein a software suite for controlling a distributed system outlined above, comprising: a first portion to control the receipt and delivery of the data to and from the telecommunications network and arranged to execute on a message delivery component; a second portion to control lookup of destination information for data received from the telecommunications network and arranged to execute on a message handling component.

There is also described herein a data packet comprising data extracted from a - 32 message, the message being suitable for transfer between components of a telecommunications network, addressed from a message terminating component and to a message handling component arranged to process telecommunications network protocol compliant messages.

Preferably, the data packet is formatted fortransfer over an IP network and the data extracted from the message includes the destination address, extracted from the payload of the message.

There is also described herein a method of routing at least one message to its destination comprising routing the message based on the Mobile Application Part (MAP) layer. Preferably, the message is routed over an IP network. This may allow messages to be routed directly according to the destination address within the message payload rather than routing the message via a message handling component of the telecommunications network.

There is also described herein a computer program or computer program product comprising instructions for implementing a method according to any of the preceding methods or any of their preferred features.

One embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a prior art telecommunications network within which SMS messages may be sent; Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a distributed network of message delivery components incorporated into a prior art SMS messaging network according to one embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of sending a message from an off-net mobile entity to an application according to one embodiment of the present - 33 invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of sending a message from an application to an off-net mobile entity according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of sending a message from an on-net mobile entity to an application according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating the process of sending a message from an application to an on-net mobile entity according to one embodiment of the present 1 0 invention.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a first process of sending a message between two on-net mobile entities according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a second process of sending a message between two on-net mobile entities according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a third process of sending a message between two on-net mobile entities according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a number of methods by which a mobile terminated message may be processed according to one embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating a number of methods by which a mobile originated message may be processed according to one embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 12 illustrates the structure of an SMS message which may be sent within the telecommunications network.

Fig. 13a is a schematic diagram of protocol conversion for a prior art IP offload system.

Fig. 1 3b is a schematic diagram of protocol conversion according to one embodiment of the present invention. - 34

In the figures listed above, corresponding components are labelled with the same numbers.

Fig.1 shows a prior art telecommunications network, the components of which are connected over SS7 connections 210. The arrows 410, 412, 414, 416, 418, 420 illustrate an example path of an SMS message sent from one mobile entity to another within the mobile network.

The main components of an SMS message which may be sent across the network of Fig.1 are shown schematically in Fig.12. SMS messages consist of three main components: a source number (SRC#) 800, a destination number (DEST#) 820, and a payload 810. For a mobile originated (MO) message, the source number is an identifier of the originating mobile. This may be the MSISDN number of the originating mobile, or the identifier may be derived from the MSISDN number. The destination number of a mobile originated message is an identifier of the home SMSC of the mobile entity. The payload of a mobile originated message contains the message data and an identification number of the final destination of the message, for example, the MSISDN number of the destination mobile.

With reference to Fig. 1, the message is sent 410 from the originating mobile 212 to an MSC 216 within the mobile network. The MSC 216 forwards 412, 414 this message to the home SMSC 230 of the originating mobile 212 via a network STP 226. The message is forwarded to the home SMSC 230 according to the SMSC identifier found in the DEST# part of the message, as described above. The SMSC identifier may be the same for all of the SMSCs 230, 232, 234 in a particular operator's network. The STP 226 of the network may be configured to chose which SMSC each message is sent to depending on factors such as the availability of each SMSC 230, 232, 234.

The SMSC terminates the mobile originated message and creates a new, mobile - 35 terminated (MT) message for delivery to the destination mobile entity 214 (the destination entity could also be an application). With reference to Fig. 12, a MT message also has a SRC# 800, a payload 810 and a DEST# 820. The SRC# 800 of an MT message is an identifier of the originating mobile, and the payload 510 contains the message data. The SMSC parses the incoming mobile originated message and extracts the identifier, for example the MSISDN number, of the destination mobile. This identifier then forms the DEST# 820 for the MT message.

Turning to Fig.1, the home SMSC 230 sends a "Send Routing Information" request to the HER 248 of the network, via an STP 226, to determine the location and availability of the mobile entity 214 that corresponds to the extracted destination identifier. If the destination mobile is available and able to receive messages, the SMSC 230 then routes the MT message 416,418, via an STP 226, to the MSC 224 that is closest to the destination mobile 214, and the message may then be delivered 420 to the destination mobile 214.

In addition to using the "Send Routing Information" request to obtain location and availability information forthe destination mobile entity of a message, the SMSC 230 may also perform a prepaid credit lookup at the Prepaid Billing SOP 250. This may be used by an operator to ensure that the message originator has enough prepaid credit for the message to be sent. This may also facilitate the billing of prepaid mobile telephones on the destination leg of the message delivery process (reverse billing). This may be particularly useful for the billing of services offered by application operators, such as sports update services, wherein the message recipient pays per message received. The SMSC 230 may also perform an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) check, or number portability check.

Performing these checks may allow the mobile network operator to ensure that the message originator is authorised to send messages within the home operator's network and may also be used to ensure that the MSISDN of the destination mobile station has not been transferred from one operator's network to another. In the prior art network, this information is requested by and delivered to the SMSC 230 over the SS7 network, further increasing congestion on the network. - 36

Much of the SMS traffic on the mobile network is cross-network traffic, that is traffic that is generated by mobile entities on one mobile operator's network and delivered to mobile entities on a second operator's network. These messages pass from the originator's home SMSC, through the G-MSCs 242, 246 to the destination mobile on the second operator's network. Incoming cross-network traffic may be known as off- net traffic and passes into the network through the G-MSCs 242,246. Traffic generated on the home operator's network may be known as on-net traffic.

One embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 2 to 11. In this embodiment, a number of components have been added to the prior art telecommunications network described above. These components and the modified telecommunications network will now be described with reference to Fig. 2.

In this embodiment, the modified telecommunications network contains a Virtual Mobile Redirector Switch (VMRS) 310, a Virtual Mobile Location Register (VMLR) 312 and a Mobile Terminated Message Switch (MTMS) 314. The VMLR 312 may be provided as part of the HER 248 of the home operator's network or as a separate entity. Applications 316,318 may connect to both the VMRS 310 and the MTMS 314 over, for example, an IP network 340. In this embodiment, a Service Hosting Platform (SHP) 236 provides an interface between the application 316,318 and the VMRS 310 and MTMS 314. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a combination of a number of the VMRS 310, MTMS 314, VMLR 312, SHP 236 and the Message Store 238 components may be described as an Application Message Service Centre (AMSC) 350.

Embodiments of the VMRS 310, VMLR 312 and MTMS 314 are described in more detail in patent application numbers GB 0115493.9, GB 0122943.4 and GB 0203796.8, in which the VMRS is also known as a Virtual Mobile Switching Centre (VMSC) and a combination of the VMRS and the VMLR may be known as the Virtual Mobile Redirector (VMR). In addition, the functionality of the MTMS is outlined in the description of the Application Message Service Centre (AMSC). - 37

In short, the VMLR 312 provides a location register, similar to that of the HER 248, but storing location and availability data for applications, which may be connected to the mobile operator's network via the VMRS 310 or the MTMS 314 as shown.

Each application may be assigned a unique global identifier, for example an MSISDN number, which allows the application to act as a "virtual mobile" to which messages may be sent from other mobile entities on or off the home operator's network. In a preferred embodiment, messages are delivered to the applications 316, 318 via the VMRS 310 without the message passing through an SMSC 230, 232, 234 of the home operator's network. The MTMS 314 is optimised to allow applications 316, 318 to send messages to the mobile network and, in a preferred embodiment, messages are sent from the applications 316, 318 to theirdestinations without passing through an SMSC 230, 232, 234 of the home operator's network.

Hence, some of the problems described above of connecting applications to the telecommunications network and of sending messages to and from those applications may be alleviated or solved. As shown in Fig.2, the VMRS 310, VMLR 312 and MTMS 314 may be interconnected over a network separate to the telecommunications network, for example an IP network 340. They may also be connected to the mobile operator's network over SS7 links 210. Also connected to the separate IP network 340, in this embodiment, are a plurality of Message Delivery Components (MDCs) or Message Delivery Points (MDPs) 324, 326, 328, 330,332, 334, 336, 338. In this embodiment, each MDC 324, 326, 328, 330, 332, 334, 336, 338 connects to one of the components of the telecommunications network using a mobile telecommunications protocol. For example, in this embodiment, an MDC connects to each DISC 216 and to each G-MSC 246 over an SS7 link 210.

The MDCs 336, 338 that are connected to the G-MSCs 242, 246 of the home network may intercept incoming off-net traffic, i.e. all traffic that is passing into the home operator's network from the networks of other operators. Since there is often a plurality of mobile operator networks in any one region, a large proportion of the messages passing through any operator's network is likely to consist of off-net traffic. Hence, congestion within the home operator's network can be significantly - 38 reduced by transferring the incoming off-net traffic onto the separate IP network 340 at the G-MSCs 242, 246, as described in more detail below.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, MDCs may be connected solely to the G-MSCs of the mobile network and not, in addition, to the MSCs as in the embodiment of Fig.2. In such an embodiment, the incoming off-net traffic could be delivered to the VMRS 310, MTMS 314 or SMSC 230 without using the SS7 network. Hence, even without the MDCs connected to the MSCs of the telecommunications network, congestion may be reduced on the SS7 network.

In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 2, however, MDCs 328, 330, 332, 334 are connected to the MSCs 216, 218, 220, 224 of the telecommunications network.

These MDCs may be used to intercept on-net traffic, originating from mobile entities connected to the home operator's network, or to deliver messages to these home mobile entities, hence allowing usage of the SS7 layer of the telecommunications network to be minimised.

Use of the embodiment described above and illustrated in Fig. 2 will now be described in more detail with reference to Figs.3 to 11, which illustrate a number of processes by which messages may be routed across the network.

Fig. 3 illustrates the routing of an off-net message from a G-MSC 246 through the network to its destination, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In this case the destination entity is an application 318 connected to the VMRS 310, via the SHP 236. The message is routed 450 from the originating mobile to the G MSC of the home operator's network 246 using standard telecommunications routing procedures. The message is then intercepted 452 by the MDC 336 that is connected to the G-MSC 246. In this embodiment, the MDC 336 is connected to the G-MSC 246 using an SS7 link, but, in alternative embodiments, the MDC 336 may be connected to the G-MSC 246 using another protocol, such as IP or a 2.5G or 3G telecommunications protocol, in addition to or instead of using the SS7 connection. - 39

Since the incoming message is an off-net message, it has already passed through the home SMSC of the originating network, so it has already been re-formatted as a Mobile Terminated (MT) message as described above. This means that the message has, as its destination address (DEST#), the identifier (typically an MSISDN number) of the intended final destination of the message. The MDC 336 retains the incoming message and sends a request over the IP network 340 to the VMRS 310 to obtain the information necessary to deliver the message to the destination address. This information may include location and availability information for the destination entity, a prepaid billing check and an IMSI lookup check, as described above. This information may be requested by the VMRS 310 from components such as the VMLR 312 and the prepaid billing SOP 250 over the separate IP network 340. Alternatively, the information may be requested over the SS7 network. This information is sent back to the MDC 336 that is retaining the message, preferably over the IP network 340.

In the situation shown in Fig. 3, the destination address (DEST#) for the incoming MT message is the MSISDN of an application 318 attached to the VMRS 310 via the SHP 236. As discussed above, and as described in more detail in patent application numbers GB 0115493.4, GB 0122943.4 and GB 0203796.8, the VMRS 310 and VMLR 312 provide a mechanism by which off-net messages may be delivered to applications attached to the VMRS 310 by treating the applications as virtual mobile entities and assigning MSISDN numbers to them.

In Fig. 3, the information obtained by the VMRS 310 is sent back to the MDC 336 over the IP network 340. This allows the MDC 336 to route the MT message to its destination over the IP network 340. In this case, the message is sent 454 to the VMRS 310 for onward delivery 456, 458, via the SHP 236, to the destination application 318. In the event that the application 318 is unavailable to receive messages at that time, the message may be retained by the VMRS 310 or the SHP 236 or may be passed to the Message Store 238 for storage and later delivery.

As shown in Fig. 3, the entire message delivery process may take place over the IP - 40 network 340, which may significantly reduce congestion on the SS7 network 210.

A further message delivery process according to one embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Fig.4. The message source in Fig. 4 is an application 318 connected to the mobile network via the SHP 236. The message is sent 460, 462 from the application 318 to the MTMS 314 via the SHP 236. If the message is formatted in the same way as a mobile originated (MO) message, the MTMS 314 may parse the message to determine the destination number of the final destination of the message and may reformat the message as a mobile terminated (MT) message. In a preferred embodiment, however, the application 318 may generate the message and deliver it to the MTMS 314 in a mobile terminated format, with the final destination address in the DEST# part of the message (accessible at the SCCP protocol layer), as explained above Since the destination entity of this message is connected to a different mobile operator's network, the message is routed 464 over the IP network 340 to an MDC 336 connected to a G-MSC 246. The message is transmitted 466 from the MDC 336 to the G-MSC 246 over the SS7 network. The G-MSC 246 then transfers 468 the message to a G-MSC connected to the home network of the destination mobile entity for the message. Hence, as for the incoming application terminated message of Fig.3, outgoing application originated messages may be transmitted across the home operator's network without using the SS7 network.

In a further embodiment, network interconnect traffic may also be offloaded onto the separate IP network to be transmitted between telecommunications networks of different operators. This offload may be implemented using an IP connection or another separate network connection which may be established between MDCs connected to the G-MSCs of the two operator's networks. This may allow operators to interconnect over an IP network rather than a telecommunications network and may increase the efficiency of message flow between operator's networks.

Fig. 5 illustrates the process of sending an on-net MO message to an application - 41 connected to the same network according to one embodiment of the present invention. One embodiment of the present invention provides an improved method of routing MO SMS messages between the originating and destination mobile entity in a telecommunications network. As described above, with reference to Fig. 12, a MO message has three main parts: the SRC# 800 which contains an identifier of the originating mobile entity, the Payload 810 which contains the message data and an identifier of the destination mobile entity, and the DEST# 820 which contains an identifier of the home SMSC of the originating mobile entity. The SRC# 800 and DEST# 820 parts of the message are accessible at the SCCP and MTP layers of the SS7 protocol stack and are usually used for routing the message. The contents of the Payload 810 part of the message are available only at the higher MAP and TCAP layers and are usually not accessed until the message reaches the home SMSC.

With reference to Fig. 5, the MO message is generated at the originating mobile entity and sent via 470, via the radio network to an MSC 216 in the home mobile network. The MDC 334 connected to the MSC 216 intercepts 472 the incoming message over its connection to the MSC 216, which, in this embodiment, is an SS7 connection. The MDC 334 retains the message and parses the message payload at the MAP layer to determine the final destination address for the message.

The MDC 334 sends a request for information for the final destination address extracted from the message payload, to the VMRS 310 of the mobile network, via the IP link 340 by which they are connected. As in the previous examples, the VMRS 310 obtains the information necessary to route the message to its final destination address. This information may then be transferred back over the IP network 340 to the MDC 334. In this case, as for Fig. 3, the final destination of the message is an application 318 connected to the VMRS 310 via the SHP 236. On receipt of the location information, the MDC sends 474 the message directly to the VMRS 310, over the IP network, for onward delivery 476, 478, via the SHP 236, to the application 318. - 42

The method of routing the message according to information obtained by parsing the message payload is quite distinct from the routing methods used in the prior art.

Routing based on the message payload requires routing capabilities at the higher MAP protocol layer. As described above, routing at the MAP layer is not a feature of prior art message offload systems, in which routing is performed at the SCCP and MTP layers. Prior art telecommunications switches do not usually access the MAP protocol layer in routing the message between components in the telecommunications network and, as described above, prior art IP offload systems do not process data at the MAP layer either. As mentioned above, in other embodiments, alternative high level protocols may be used instead of the MAP protocol. The protocol used may depend on the type of message being transmitted through the telecommunications network.

Hence, in the present embodiment, a mobile originated message may be routed using the destination address extracted from the payload without using the SMSC number, and without the message passing through the SMSC. This both reduces congestion on the telecommunications network and increases the efficiency of delivering a message to its destination.

A further message sending process, according to one embodiment of the present invention, is now described with reference to Fig.6, which illustrates the process of sending an on-net MT message, generated by an application 318, to a mobile entity on the home operator's network.

The MT message is generated by the application 318 and delivered 480, 482 over the IP network 340, via the SHP 236 to the MTMS 314 and reformatted by the MTMS as a MT message. In an alternative embodiment, the message may be generated by the application 318 in a MO format, parsed by the MTMS 314 to determine the destination address. The MTMS obtains the necessary location and availability information and performs the prepaid credit and IMSI look-ups over the IP network 340, for example, using the HER 248 and the Prepaid Billing SCP 250.

If the destination mobile is able and available to receive messages, the MTMS 314 - 43 sends the message 484 over the separate IP network 340 to the MDC 334 that is closest to the MSC 216 to which the destination mobile entity is connected. The message is then transmitted 486 over the SS7 connection to the MSC 216 and on 488 to the destination mobile entity.

Fig. 7 illustrates the process of sending a message between two mobile entities in the same network. The MO message is sent 490 from the originating mobile over the radio network to the MSC to which the originating mobile is connected 216. The MDC 334 connected to this MSC 216 intercepts the incoming MO message, terminates it and retains it. The MDC 334 parses the message payload at the MAP layer for the final destination address of the message and sends a message requesting information corresponding to the final destination address from the VMRS 310 over the separate IP network 340. As above, the VMRS 310 requests the information necessary to allow delivery of the message to its final destination and sends this information to the requesting MDC 334.

In this case, the destination address of the message corresponds to a second mobile entity on the home operator's network. The first MDC 334 sends 494 the MO message, via the IP network 340, to a second MDC 330, the second MDC 330 being that connected to the MSC 220 to which the destination mobile entity is connected. The second MDC 330 receives the message and forwards it 496, 498, via the second MSC 220, to the destination mobile entity.

Hence, according to this embodiment of the present invention, messages may be sent between two mobile entities on the home operator's network without using the SS7 channel. Since the MDC 334 has access to data contained within the message payload at the MAP layer, the message can be routed more efficiently to its destination without the message itself having to be passed over the SS7 or IP network to the VMRS 310, or to an SMSC 230, to be reformatted as a MT message.

Fig. 8 illustrates the process of sending a message indirectly from a first mobile entity to a second mobile entity within the home mobile operator's network. As in - 44 Fig. 7, the message is transmitted 500 from the originating mobile entity to an MSC in the network 216 and is captured 502 by the MDC 334 attached to that MSC and the destination address is determined from the payload. The MDC 334 then requests information over the IP network from, for example, the VMRS 310. If, as in Fig. 7, the destination mobile entity is available and able to receive messages at the time of request, the message may be delivered over the IP network 340, via an MDC 320 and an MSC 220, directly to the destination mobile entity, as shown in Fig. 7. The process shown in Fig. 8, however, may be used advantageously in certain situations, for example when the message needsto be stored. This may occur when the destination mobile entity is not available to receive messages, or is unable to receive messages, for example because the mobile telephone memory is full.

In Fig.8, the message is sent 504 from the MDC 334, over the separate IP network 340 to the SHP 236 component of the AMSC 350. If the message is to be stored, for example until the destination mobile entity becomes available, the message may be transferred to the message store 238. The AMSC 350 then enters a retry cycle wherein the availability status of the destination mobile entity is monitored at regular intervals to allow the message to be sent as soon as the destination entity is available. In a preferred embodiment, the AMSC 350 may also use the Mobile Waiting Data (MOOD) system, described in more detail in UK patent application numbers GB 0115493.4, GB 0122943.4 and GB 0203796.8, wherein a mobile entity informs the network of its presence as soon as it becomes available to receive messages, hence accelerating the process of delivering messages held within the mobile network.

When the destination mobile entity becomes available to receive messages, the message is transferred 506 from the SHP 236 to the MTMS 314 and on 508, over the IP network 340 to the MDC 320 that is connected to the MSC 220 of the destination mobile entity. From the MSC 220, the message may be delivered 512 over the telecommunications network to the destination mobile entity.

Fig. 9 illustrates a further process by which messages may be sent indirectly from - 45 a first mobile entity to a second mobile entity within a mobile operator's network. In this process, the message is delivered 520 from the originating mobile entity to an MSC 216 and is captured 522 by an MDC 334. The message is transferred 524 across the IP network 340 to the SHP 236. The message may then be transferred 526 to the SMSC 230 of the mobile operator's network, either across the SS7 link between the two network components, or over an IP or SMPP link 210, which may connect the SHP or AMSC to the SMSC via the 'back-end' proprietary interface of the SMSC. If the destination mobile entity is unavailable, the message may be stored either by the SHP 236, or by the SMSC 230. When the destination mobile entity becomes available, the message may then be delivered 528, 530, 532, over the SS7 network 210, via the STP 226 and MSC 220.

The existing mobile operator's network may be used in conjunction with the separate IP network 340, as in the process shown in Fig.9, or in other similar processes. The SS7 network 210 may be used as a back-up for the IP network 340, traffic being transferred from the IP network to the SS7 network, for example if the IP network becomes overloaded or fails. The SS7 network may also be used, for example if there is no MDC connected to a particular MSC (for example if MDC 330 was not connected to MSC 220 in Fig. 9). The SS7 network may also be used as a back-up facility if an MDC is unavailable. Messages that would usually be captured by the MDC and offloaded may be delivered over SS7 to the SMSC as in the prior art system.

The ability of the system to revert to using the SS7 network also means that it is not necessary for a mobile network operator to connect every component in the SS7 telecommunications network to the separate IP network. This may allow the embodiment of the invention described above and illustrated in Figs. 2 to 9 to be implemented only in part, for example, MDCs may be connected only to the G- MSCs of the network, to transfer cross-network traffic onto the IP network for delivery to the VMRS or an SMSC. Similarly, MDCs may be connected only to MSCs that handle a high volume of traffic. A partial implementation of the MDC solution described above would allow a partial transfer of traffic from the SS7 layer and onto - 46 the separate IP network, hence reducing congestion on the SS7 layer.

The flow diagram of Fig.10 summarises the processing of a mobile terminated (MT) message according to one embodiment of the present invention. As described above, MT messages are formatted with the final destination address in the DEST# portion of the message. MT messages are received, for example from the G-MSC 600, and routing rules are applied to route the messages to their respective destinations 605. When the destination is a mobile entity, the message can be forwarded directly to the mobile entity, preferably across the IP network, as described above. If the destination address corresponds to an application, the message is forwarded to the SMSC, VMRS or MTMS 610, preferably across the IP network. The message is then forwarded to the destination application. In the case of a successful delivery, an acknowledgement of the delivery is sent back to the originating mobile entity 620. If the message cannot be delivered, the originating mobile is notified of the delivery failure and the message is dropped from the system 615.

The flow diagram of Fig.11 summarises the processing of a mobile originated (MO) message within a mobile network according to one embodiment of the present invention. The MO message is received from the originating mobile at an MSC and is captured by the MDC 700. An IMSI check is performed on the originating mobile identifier to ensure that the originating mobile is authorized to send messages to the mobile operator's network 702. As described above, the message payload is then parsed by the MDC, at the MAP layer, to determine the address of the intended final destination of the message (the MT destination) and routing rules are applied to the message according to the MT destination 710. As mentioned above, it may be possible to use a high level SS7 protocol other than MAP. In the case where the MT destination address corresponds to a mobile entity, routing information is requested by the MDC, for example from the VMRS 708. If the request for routing information fails permanently (for example, if the MT destination address is invalid), then the message may be dropped and a delivery failure message may be returned to the originating mobile entity 706. If a temporary error is encountered, (for example, if the - 47 destination mobile entity is temporarily unavailable) then the message may be forwarded to an SMSC, VMRS or MTMS for storage and later delivery 714. If the routing information is received successfully, then the message may be routed directly to the destination mobile entity, via a second MDC 712, 718. If this forwarding of the message fails, then the message may be redirected to an SMSC, VMRS or MTMS for storage and later delivery 714. If the message is delivered successfully to the MT destination, then an Acknowledgement message is sent back to the originating mobile entity 724 and an entry is made into the Call Data Records (CDR), which may be used for billing purposes 726. When the destination entity is an application, the routing rules obtained 710 will cause the message to be delivered to an SMSC, VMRS or MTMS 714. The message is then delivered to the destination application and acknowledged to the originating mobile entity 720. In the case of a failed delivery attempt, the SMSC, VMRS or MTMS retains the message and enters a retry cycle 716 until the delivery has been successful. A successful delivery is again entered into the CDR 726.

The difference between the routing methods implemented by commonly used IP offload systems and one embodiment of the present invention will now be highlighted and described in more detail with reference to Figs. 13a and 13b.

Fig. 13a shows a well established and common method of offloading SS7 traffic onto an IP network. As described above, the SS7 protocol stack consists of six main layers. In general, the MTP and SCCP layers are used for routing the message across the SS7 network and the higher layers, here MAP and TCAP layers, contain the message data. A common method of offloading SS7 traffic onto IP is to take the data contained in the MAP and TCAP layers and insert it into the higher protocol layers of an IP stack. The SS7 routing data is then extracted from the SCCP and MTP layers and inserted into the equivalent lower routing protocol layers of the IP stack. Hence, according to this system, the routing data is extracted from the lower layers of the SS7 stack to allow routing of the data over IP, but the message data in the higher MAP and TCAP layers is not processed, and is simply carried on top of the routing layers of the IP stack. - 48

Fig. 13b illustrates a method of routing MO messages according one embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, the MO message is terminated at the MDC and a new message is created in an IP stack. In parsing the payload of the message, the MDC extracts the routing data for the destination address from the MAP layer of the SS7 stack. This extracted data is reformatted to be used directly in the routing layers of the IP stack. Hence, data is extracted from the MAP layer to be used for routing, unlike in the prior art system in which the MAP and TCAP layer data is carried on top of an IP stack and not processed in the protocol translation. In the present embodiment, the intermediate routing data contained in the SCCP and MTP layers of a MO message is not used to route the message over the IP network. Hence, messages may be routed more efficiently and more directly their destinations.

For "Roaming" mobile telephone users, for example, users who are roaming onto the home network from abroad, any message generated must be routed back over the network and sent back to their home SMSC (i.e. an SMSC on their home network). Hence, messages produced by roaming users must be sent back, via the G-MSCs, to the user's home network. Messages generated by roaming users and that have been captured by an MDC may therefore be routed over the separate IP network directly to the G-MSCs of the network. Alternatively, these messages may be selectively rejected by the MDC and returned to the MSC so that they may be routed over the SS7 network, as in the prior art network.

A further feature of one embodiment may be that the MDCs have selective message capture capabilities. For example, the MDCs may capture messages from the MSCs or G-MSCs according to the SMSC number contained in the DEST# part of the message. This may allow only messages destined for the SMSCs of the home network to be intercepted by the MDCs. Similarly, the MDCs may be set up to intercept only messages which have their final destination address within a particular range. In this way, the MDCs may capture messages according to at least one predetermined condition. - 49

Once captured, messages may be routed in different ways according to an identifier of the type of message captured. The message type may be determined according to an identifier contained within the message for example, within the data accessible at the MAP layer. For example, messages identifier as "application-type" messages, may be routed directly to the IP network without further processing and without information being obtained by the AMSC. Hence, delivery of messages to their destinations may be made more efficient.

Similarly, a further feature of one embodiment may be that, if a particular application or mobile entity receives a large volume of incoming messages, a specific routing rule may be added into the routing table for delivery of messages to that application or mobile entity. This may allow messages to be routed more directly or more quickly to the destination application or mobile. For example, messages that are sent to an application to "vote" for a particular person/event may be routed directly to that application. This maybe particularly advantageous since such SMS "voting" generates a large transient volume of messages, which would require a large amount of processing power if each "vote" was to be processed individually.

In the embodiments described above, the separate network offloads messages from a telecommunications network which communications using the SS7 layer. It may be noted, however, that the system and methods described herein are directly applicable to other networks from which it is desired to offload traffic. In particular, the system may be implemented within a 2.5G or a 3G telecommunications network and the separate network of components may communicate with the telecommunications network components over communication links which use the protocol of the telecommunications network. By way of example, Figs. 1 to 9 incorporate SGSN components (Serving GPRS Support Nodes), which are fully integrated into the present system in a similar way to the MSCs, over communication links to the MDCs.

In the embodiments described above, the MDCs and other components of the separate network connect to components within the SS7 network over SS7 links. It - 50 would be possible, however, to modify the components of the telecommunications network so that they can connect to the components of the separate network using other protocols, such as IP, or SMPP (Short Message Peer-to-Peer).

* It is also noted that, a single MDC may be connected to a plurality of components of the telecommunications network, for example, to a G-MSC and an MSC.

In an alternative embodiment, the system may be implemented without a MTMS or other message handling component. In this embodiment, the individual MDCs may each perform functions such as destination lookup locally, or each MDC may have direct access to the HER of the telecommunications network to provide this capability. Other functionality that may be provided by each MDC may include, a prepaid credit lookup facility and an IMSI lookup facility. These capabilities may be provided at each MDC individually, or may be provided between a group of MDCs at a central point. Storage capabilities may also allow each MDC to store messages that cannot be delivered immediately to their destination entities, however, it would be preferable for each MDC to have access to a central memory storage unit, which may provide message storage capabilities for a number of MDCs. Existing components in the telecommunications network, such as the SMSC, may be used provide, for example storage capabilities or other functionality to the MDCs. Hence the existing functionality of the telecommunications network may be utilised by the MDCs. In addition, a number of different types of MDC may be implemented within a single telecommunications network. Different types of MDC may comprise different functionality, for example, one type of MDC may provide local destination lookup capabilities whilst a second type of MDC may request destination lookup from a central message handling component. In addition, different MDCs within a single network may handle messages in different ways according to different predetermined conditions or different routing rules stored within each MDC.

In a network of MDCs which has a central message handling component, it may be possible to control each MDC from the central component. For example, it may be possible to modify predetermined conditions set within each MDC from the central - 51 component and hence change, for example, which messages are captured by each MDC or which messages are sent back from the MDC to the telecommunications network.

In summary, the embodiments described above minimise traffic and so reduce congestion on the SS7 layer both by passing messages over a separate network for as large a proportion of their journey as possible and by minimising the distance travelled by each message by allowing routing at the MAP layer. This relieves congestion particularly at the STPs of the mobile network and also allows application-terminated messages to be transferred directly to the application across the separate network from a position close to the originating mobile. - 52

Claims

Claims: 1. A message delivery component arranged as a component of a

distributed system for controlling the routing of messages between components in a telecommunications network, the message delivery component comprising: means for connecting to the telecommunications network; means for connecting, over a network separate to the telecommunications network, to at least one other such message delivery component; means for connecting to a remote message handling component over the network separate to the telecommunications network; processing means configured, on connection to the remote message handling component, to permit control of the message delivery component and destination lookup for messages received by the message delivery component by the remote message handling component.
2. A message delivery component according to Claim 1, further comprising means for requesting destination lookup from the remote message handling component for messages received by the message delivery component.
3. A distributed system comprising: a message handling component; a plurality of message delivery components; means for connecting the plurality of message delivery components to a telecommunications network; means for interconnecting the plurality of message delivery components and the message handling component over a network separate to the telecommunications network; and wherein: the message handling component is arranged to control each of the plurality of message delivery components; the message delivery components are each arranged to receive messages - 53 from and deliver messages to components within the telecommunications network; the message handling component is arranged to perform a destination lookup for messages received by the message delivery components.
4. A distributed system according to Claim 3 wherein the message delivery components are each arranged to parse received messages at the MAP layer to extract at least one piece of information.
5. A distributed system comprising: a plurality of message delivery components; means for connecting the plurality of message delivery components to a telecommunications network; means for interconnecting the plurality of message delivery components over a network separate to the telecommunications network; and wherein: the message delivery components are each arranged to receive messages from and deliver messages to components within the telecommunications network; the message delivery components are each arranged to parse received messages at the MAP layer to extract at least one piece of information.
6. A distributed system according to any of Claims 3 to 5 wherein the components of the system are interconnected using a ring architecture.
7. A distributed system according to any of Claims 3 to 6 further comprising a plurality of software agents, wherein each software agent has a predefined function and wherein: at least one software agent is arranged to execute on each message delivery component to control at least one function of the message delivery component. - 54
8. A distributed system according to Claim 7 as dependent on Claim 3 or 2 wherein at least one software agent is arranged to execute on the message handling component to provide a destination lookup facility for messages received at a message delivery component.
9. A distributed system for controlling the routing of messages between components within a telecommunications network, comprising: a plurality of first portions arranged to control the receipt and delivery of the messages to and from the telecommunications network and each providing an interface between the telecommunications network and a network separate to the telecommunications network; a second portion arranged to control lookup of destination information for messages received from the telecommunications network and communicating with the first portion over the network separate to the telecommunications network.
10. A software suite for controlling a distributed system according to any of Claims 3 to 9, comprising: a first portion to control the receipt and delivery of the messages to and from the telecommunications network and arranged to execute on a message delivery component; a second portion to control lookup of destination information for messages received from the telecommunications network.
11. A software suite according to Claim 10 as dependent on Claim 3 or4 wherein the second portion is arranged to execute on a message handling component.
12. A data packet comprising data extracted from a message, the message being suitable for transfer between components of a telecommunications network, by a system according to any of Claims 3 to 9 wherein the data packet is addressed from a message delivery component and to a message 55 handling component arranged to process telecommunications network protocol compliant messages.
13. A data packet according to Claim 12 wherein the data packet is formatted for transfer over an IP network and the data extracted from the message includes the destination address, extracted from the payload of the message.
14. Apparatus substantially as herein described or as illustrated in any of Figs. 2to 11.