KR20140017277A - Apparatus and method for managing location information of subscribers - Google Patents

Abstract

In the management of the location information of a subscriber using a location change report at each APN for a VoLTE subscriber, information generated in a mobility management and bearer provision side, managed in MME and S-GW/PDN-GW by transmitting the location information to the PDN-GW through a location change report process for managing the location information of a specific mobile terminal by connection with a call processing server, is reflected on a service providing policy in real time; or a smooth VoLTE-based multimedia service is provided by reflecting service related information generated in a call processing step on a mobility management and bearer provision policy. [Reference numerals] (222) Network connection unit; (224) Location information obtaining unit; (226) Location information processing unit; (228) Control unit; (230) Memory unit

Description

[0001] APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MANAGING LOCATION INFORMATION SUBSCRIBERS [0002]

The present invention relates to voice over LTE (VoLTE) call processing, and more particularly, to subscriber location information management using location change information for each access point name (APN) for a VoLTE subscriber, GW / PDN-GW by providing location information to the PDN-GW through the location change reporting process in order to manage the information in connection with the call processing server. A subscriber location information management device that can provide a smooth VoLTE-based multimedia service by reflecting information on the service provision policy in real time or reflecting the service related information generated in the call processing process to the mobility management and bearer provision policy, ≪ / RTI >

3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) mobile communication systems based on Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) radio access technology are widely deployed around the world. HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access), which can be defined as the first evolutionary phase of WCDMA, provides 3GPP mobile communication system with highly competitive wireless access technology in the mid-term future.

However, as the requirements and expectations of users and operators continue to increase and competition for developing wireless access technologies continues, there is a need to evolve new technologies in 3GPP mobile communication systems in order to gain competitiveness in the future. Reduced cost per bit, increased service availability, the use of flexible frequency bands, simple structure and open interface, and adequate power consumption of the terminal are demanding requirements. In addition, prevention of unnecessary latency at the network node and efficient use of network resources can also promote the technology evolution in 3GPP.

In 3GPP Release 8, a Network Architecture called Evolved Packet Core (EPC) is described as one of mobile communication systems for meeting the above-mentioned requirements. EPC is a set of network nodes for 3GPP LTE (Long Term Evolution) system. The EPC evolves the core network of the existing 3GPP system architecture to support Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), which is an evolved RAN, And has an efficient network structure that simplifies the network node.

Meanwhile, as described above, EPC or LTE, which is a fourth generation mobile communication, must implement IMS-based VOIP technology in order to provide a voice service as a base of a mobile communication service as a data-only network. In this way, the service proposed to enable voice communication in EPC or LTE is called VoLTE (Voice over LTE) service.

The VoLTE voice and video service is a multimedia service that uses a packet bearer on an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) in an LTE / EPC network, and a mobile terminal accesses an LTE / EPC network attaches and updates the subscriber location and status information through the subscriber information authentication step, receives a session setup and a bearer allocation for the multimedia service, and receives a QoS (Quality of Service) level acceptable to the subscriber A multimedia service is provided according to the service.

At this time, after the bearer allocated for the specific multimedia service is completed, the corresponding service is provided according to the interworking between the UE and the service providing server in the IMS domain, and the MME and the S -GW / PDN-GW are generally not involved in operations other than mobility management (MM) and bearer resource management (resource allocation / recovery, QoS reallocation, etc.), respectively.

Accordingly, according to the technical characteristics of the VoLTE service, information generated in terms of mobility management and bearer management managed by the MME and the S-GW / PDN-GW is reflected in the service provision policy in real time, Is reflected in the mobility management and bearer provision policy, it is difficult to provide seamless VoLTE-based multimedia service. Therefore, it is necessary to provide specialized technical improvement measures.

Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2009-0118871 Published Nov. 18, 2009 discloses a method and apparatus for providing a voice call service in a mobile communication system and a technology related to the system.

Accordingly, in the subscriber location information management using the APN-based location change report for VoLTE subscribers, in order to manage the location information of the specific mobile terminal in association with the call processing server, Information is transmitted to the MME and the S-GW / PDN-GW in real time to reflect the information generated in terms of the mobility management and bearer management in the service provision policy, or the service- And to provide a seamless VoLTE-based multimedia service by reflecting it in a provision policy.

The present invention relates to a subscriber location information management apparatus, comprising: a network connection unit for receiving a location change report request from a call processing server of a mobile communication network; A location information acquisition unit for acquiring location information of the mobile terminal, and a mobile terminal using a session created by a specific APN (access point name) among the mobile terminals from which the location information is acquired, And a location information processing unit for transmitting the location information to the call processing server.

In addition, the location information processing unit preferentially transmits a location change report to the call processing server for a mobile terminal using a bearer given a specific QCI (QoS Class Identifier) level in the APN among the searched mobile terminals .

The location information processing unit may receive information of a bearer corresponding to a predetermined number of QCI levels randomly selected among a plurality of bearers having different QCI levels in the APN or selected from the top according to a priority, And transmits the location change report to the call processing server preferentially to the mobile terminal using the QCI level bearer.

In addition, when receiving a session initiation protocol (SIP) signal from the call processing server, the location information processing unit analyzes the SIP signal to determine a session state of the mobile terminal performing the location change report, The mobile terminal does not perform the location change report.

The specific APN can be changed and set according to the load of the communication network.

The specific APN may be an APN for an LTE data session or an APN for a VoLTE data session.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of managing subscriber location information, the method comprising: receiving a location change report request from a call processing server of a mobile communication network; Searching for a mobile terminal using a session created by a specific APN among the mobile terminals from which the location information is acquired and transmitting the location change report of the searched mobile terminal to the call processing server, .

In addition, in the step of transmitting the location change report, a location change report is preferentially transmitted to the call processing server for a mobile terminal using a bearer given a specific QCI level in the APN among the searched mobile terminals. do.

Receiving a SIP signal from the call processing server after the step of transmitting the location change report; and searching for a mobile terminal whose session is terminated among the mobile terminals that have performed the location change report by analyzing the SIP signal And not performing the location change report for the mobile terminal whose session has been terminated.

In the subscriber location information management using an APN-based location change report for VoLTE subscribers, location information is managed in the PDN-GW through a location change report process in order to manage location information of a specific mobile terminal in association with a call processing server The MME and the S-GW / PDN-GW to reflect the information generated in terms of mobility management and bearer management in real time in the service provision policy or to provide the service related information generated in the call processing to the mobility management and bearer provision policy So that it is possible to provide a smooth VoLTE-based multimedia service.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a heterogeneous mobile communication hybrid service system including a heterogeneous mobile communication hybrid call processing apparatus to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied;
2 is a detailed block diagram of an MME according to an embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a signal processing for location information management of a VoLTE subscriber mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail the operating principle of the present invention. In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of well-known functions or constructions will be omitted. The following terms are defined in consideration of the functions of the present invention, and may be changed according to the intentions or customs of the user, the operator, and the like. Therefore, the definition should be based on the contents throughout this specification.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a heterogeneous mobile communication hybrid service system including a heterogeneous mobile communication hybrid call processing apparatus to which an embodiment of the present invention can be applied. FIG. 1 illustrates a case where a WCDMA mobile communication system 100 operates as a legacy network. The WCDMA mobile communication system 100 includes a LTE (Long Term Evolution) mobile communication system 200, But the present invention is not limited to this. For example, other asynchronous mobile communication systems such as GSM (Global System for Mobile) or other synchronous mobile communication systems such as CDMA2000 and the like may be used together with the LTE mobile communication system 200, An example will be described.

The WCDMA mobile communication system 100 includes a Node B 110, an RNC 120, a Mobile Switching Center / Visitor Location Register (MSC / VLR) 130, a CGS 140, (Serving General Packet Radio Service Support Node) 150 and a Gateway General Packet Radio Service Support Node (GGSN) 160.

The Node B 110 and the RNC 120 correspond to a radio access network area and the MSC / VLR 130 and the CGS 140 correspond to a circuit exchange core network. The SGSN 150 and the GGSN 160 exchange packets. Corresponds to the core network.

The NodeB 110 is composed of a plurality of cells, and a plurality of terminal devices can be connected to the cells. The NodeB 110, which is an aggregate of these cells, secures the frequency used for connection with the terminal devices and ensures a stable connection with the terminal devices.

The RNC 120 controls a plurality of NodeBs 110, allocates communication resources to each of the NodeBs 110, and handles functions such as handover.

The MSC / VLR 130 stores visitor location information, receives subscriber profile information, authentication and location related data from the HLR 410, and performs switching control for voice communication.

The CGS 140 serves as a gateway for connecting the WCDMA mobile communication system 100 to the general communication network, and enables communication with other communication systems connected to the general communication network. For example, the CGS 140 serves as a gateway between the circuit network 420 and the MSC / VLR 130 and is connected to the LTE mobile communication system 200 through the IMS 300 connected to the circuit network 420, Thereby enabling circuit communication between the systems 100. This CGS 140 may also be referred to as a GMSC (Gateway MSC) or a gateway exchange.

The SGSN 150 and the GGSN 160 belonging to the packet-switched core network area are connected to an IP network 430 such as the Internet, that is, a packet data network (PDN), to receive a packet- IP-based protocol interworking for matching with

For this, the SGSN 150 is connected to the RNCs 120 to manage the mobility of the mobile communication terminal and the packet session management. The GGSN 150 sets a PDP context with the GGSN 160, And performs the function of transmitting the data unit. Also, the SGSN 160 can perform IP routing and can perform an interaction such as location registration of the mobile communication terminal.

The GGSN 160 directly connects to the IP network 430 and acts as a gateway for connecting the IP network 430 and the packet switched (PS) domain of the WCDMA mobile communication system 100. The SGSN 150, And maintains routing information with the external network, and performs tunneling and IP routing functions.

The LTE mobile communication system 200 includes an eNodeB 210, an MME 220, an S-GW 230, a PDN GW 240, and a Policy & Charging Rule Function (PCRF)

The eNodeB 210 is a device that supports next generation technologies and services such as LTE, and functions as radio frequency (RF) transmission of transmission signals, measurement of signal strength and quality of transmission and reception, baseband signal processing, and channel card resource management . The eNodeB 210 ensures a stable connection with a plurality of terminal devices.

The MME 220 manages mobility of a terminal device, and is responsible for session management, idle subscriber management, paging, and subscriber authentication functions. That is, the MME 220 performs control such as processing a control signal when there is a binding request from the terminal device or another network node, for example, from the PDN GW 240 or the S-GW 230, And receives the subscriber profile information, authentication and location-related data from the HLR 410, and controls the setting of an EPS bearer or an IP tunnel, mobility management, and the like Function.

In order to manage the location information of the mobile terminal (UE) 60 in association with the call processing server, the MME 220 manages the PDN- GW 240 receives a location change report request via the S-GW 230 and selectively transmits the location change report to the VoIP subscribers in response to the request, And transmits it to the call processing server.

That is, the MME 220 transmits a separate session of the specific mobile terminal 60 receiving the VoLTE service and a separate QoS class identifier (QCI) defined in advance through a location change report procedure And a specific signaling event separately discriminated in the VoLTE service call processing step as a trigger point to selectively distinguish between the call processing phase separated during a certain period of time And transmits the location information report. Accordingly, it is possible to manage the location information of the mobile terminal 60 in connection with the call processing server by using the location information reporting on the mobile terminal 60 subscribed to the VoLTE service.

The S-GW 230 is a user plane node that performs session control for processing payload traffic according to a set session. The S-GW 230 interfaces with the eNodeB 210 through an S1-U interface, (Handover) in the communication system 200 and the 3GPP, establishes an ESP bearer (Evolved Packet System bearer) with the PDN GW 240, and delivers PDU (Packet Data Unit) using tunneling.

The PDN GW 240 is a user plane node that assigns an IP address of a terminal device and performs session control in cooperation with an external Internet network and a non-3GPP network. The PDN GW 240 is a user plane node that provides S- And has tunneling and IP routing functions. And delivers the PDU to the S-GW 230 and the external network.

The PCRF 250 provides dynamic QoS and billing rules according to the service data flow to perform communication policies and billing processing in the communication network.

The IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) 300 includes a Call Session Control Function (CSCF) 310, an Inter-working Media Gateway (IMG) 320, and a Home Location Register (HLR)

CSCF 310 is an infrastructure system that performs call processing and performs basic functions for multimedia session control based on SIP (Session Initiation Protocol). The CSCF 310 handles subscriber registration, authentication, billing, triggering and routing by service, inquiry of the location of the called party, compression and release of SIP messages, and can be divided into Proxy_CSCF, Interogating-CSCF and Serving-CSCF according to their roles.

The IMG 320 converts signaling and media for interworking with the LTE mobile communication system 200 connected to the CSCF 310 and the WCDMA mobile communication system 100 connected to the circuit network 420.

The HLR 330 is a network node including a data base including subscriber information for a wireless communication system for the WCDMA mobile communication system 100 and / or the LTE mobile communication system 200, Information, authentication, and location-related data.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the WCDMA mobile communication system 100 and the LTE mobile communication system 200 operate the HLR 410 in an integrated manner, and the IMS 300 operates the HLR 330 independently , The WCDMA mobile communication system 100 or the LTE mobile communication system 200 may also operate the HLRs independently. In addition, the WCDMA mobile communication system 100, the LTE mobile communication system 200, and the IMS 300 may operate one HLR in an integrated manner.

2 shows a detailed block configuration of the MME 220 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The MME 220 includes a network connection unit 222, a location information obtaining unit 224, a location information processing unit 226, A controller 230, a controller 228, and the like.

Hereinafter, operation of each component of the MME 220 of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

The network connection unit 222 interfaces the transmission / reception data between the eNodeB 210, the S-GW 230, the PDN-GW 240 and the like in the EPC network and the MME 220.

In addition, upon receiving a location change report request from the call processing server of the CSCF 310, TAS, etc. of the mobile communication network including the IMS network 300 and the EPC network 200, do.

The location information obtaining unit 224 requests location information to the eNodeB 210 of the mobile terminal 60 managed by the call processing server when the location change report request is received and transmits the location information from the eNodeB 210 to the mobile terminal 60 And acquires position information for each mobile terminal by receiving position information.

The location information processing unit 226 receives a location change report request from the PDN GW 240 via the S-GW 230 on a session basis of the subscriber and sends a location change report request to the VoLTE subscriber And selectively transmits the changed location information to the call processing server for the session created based on the specific APN.

That is, the location information processing unit 226 performs a location change report procedure to separate a separate session of the specific mobile terminal 60 receiving the VoLTE service and a separate QoS class identifier (QCI) And a specific signaling event separately discriminated in the specific bearer and VoLTE service call processing step allocated to the base station is used as a trigger point, The location information report is selectively transmitted. Accordingly, it is possible to manage the location information of the mobile terminal 60 in connection with the call processing server by using the location information reporting on the mobile terminal 60 subscribed to the VoLTE service.

Hereinafter, the operation in the position information processing unit 226 will be described in more detail.

First, the location information processor 226 generates a general LTE data session with APN: lte.sktelecom.com and a VoLTE data session with APN: volte.sktelecom.com or ims.sktelecom.com. com, a filtering process is performed on the VoLTE data session, and a location change report is selectively performed. In this case, the corresponding APN can be instantaneously changed by the user interface. Accordingly, when the network traffic increases due to a large increase in the location change report (LCR) message, Emergency response can be made. In addition, when the APN is normally set to perform the position change report for a plurality of VoLTE APNs, the overload may be changed by changing the setting so that some APNs having a high priority are selectively performed.

Next, the location information processing unit 226 selectively transmits a location change report to a bearer to which a certain QCI (Qos Class Identifier) (for example, QCI = 1, QCI = 2, You can add functions to perform. This allows the operator to perform location change reporting on some bearers requiring location information management, including voice / video among a plurality of bearers set in the same APN classified for the VoLTE service, so that signaling ) Can be improved.

Next, the location information processing unit 226 uses the identifier (e.g., IMSI, MSISDN) of a specific subscriber as an aggregator to request a location change report only for a specific session, PDN (Multi-PDN) generated by the PDSN (60). Accordingly, even after a specific session is created or deleted, the location information and movement related information of the corresponding mobile terminal 60 can be managed by the call processing server.

When a separate function for detecting VoLTE call signaling is activated, the location information processing unit 226 transmits a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) signaling event (e.g., after Ringing or after a 200 OK call setup) End), the position change reporting can be performed by arbitrarily setting a period during which the position information is required. Through this, it is possible to transmit the location information associated with the main event among the call processing events, and at the same time, unnecessary signaling can be prevented from occurring so that the signaling efficiency can be improved. That is, when receiving the SIP signaling from the call processing server, for example, the location information processing unit 226 analyzes the SIP signaling to determine the session state of the mobile terminal 60 performing the location change report, It is possible to prevent the occurrence of unnecessary signaling by preventing the mobile terminal 60 from performing the location change report.

The memory unit 230 stores a program for the operation of the MME 220.

The control unit 228 controls the overall operation of the MME 220 including the network connection unit 222, the location information obtaining unit 224 and the location information processing unit 226 according to the program stored in the memory unit 230. [ When receiving the location change report request through the network connection unit 222, the location change report request is transmitted to the location information obtaining unit 224 and the location information processing unit 226, And controls the location change information to be transmitted to the call processing server through the location change report.

FIG. 3 illustrates a signal processing flow for location information management of a VoLTE subscriber mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG.

Hereinafter, in the embodiment of the present invention, a location change report of a mobile terminal using a session generated based on a specific APN classified for a VoLTE subscriber among the methods of managing location information of a mobile terminal in association with a call processing server in the MME is performed However, the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, a specific bearer allocated based on a predefined QCI (QoS Class Identifier) may be used, or a specific signaling event such as SIP signaling separately classified in the VoLTE service call processing step may be referred to as a trigger point the present invention is equally applicable to a case in which a trigger point is used.

First, a location change report request may be received from the PDN GW 240 via the S-GW 230 to the MME 220 for location change information for the mobile terminal subscribed to the VoLTE service (S30).

Then, the MME 220 receives a location change report request from the PDN GW 240 via the S-GW 230 on a session basis of the subscriber, and according to the request, The location information of the mobile terminal 60 is requested to the managing eNodeB 210.

Accordingly, the eNodeB 210 checks the location information of the mobile terminal 60 through the communication of the mobile terminal 60 (S32), and transmits the evolved cell global identifier (ECGI) including the location information of the mobile terminal 60 And transmits an information update message to the MME 220 (S34).

Then, the MME 220 detects the location-changed mobile terminal 60 using the location information of the mobile terminal 60 included in the ECGI information update message (S36), and selects the specific APN based for the VoLTE subscribers The mobile terminal 60 using the generated session is detected (S38).

Then, the MME 220 selectively transmits a location change report to the mobile terminal 60 using a session created based on the specific APN for the VoLTE subscribers detected above, 230 (S40). The location change notification is transmitted to the PDN GW 240 again via the S-GW 230 (S42).

Then, the PDN GW 240 receives the location information of the mobile terminal 60 requiring location information through the location change notification, and transmits a location change notification Ack to the S-GW 230 (S44), the S-GW 230 transmits a location change notification confirmation to the MME 220 (S46).

As described above, in the subscriber location information management using the APN-based location change report for the VoLTE subscriber, in order to manage the location information of the specific mobile terminal in association with the call processing server, Information is transmitted to the MME and the S-GW / PDN-GW in real time to reflect the information generated in terms of the mobility management and bearer management in the service provision policy, or the service- It is possible to provide a smooth VoLTE-based multimedia service.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited by the described embodiments but should be defined by the appended claims.

In the present invention, in the subscriber location information management using the APN-based location change report for VoLTE subscribers, in order to manage the location information of a specific mobile terminal in association with the call processing server, location information is reported to the PDN- The MME and the S-GW / PDN-GW to reflect the information generated in terms of mobility management and bearer management in real time in the service provision policy or to provide the service related information generated in the call processing to the mobility management and bearer provision policy To provide a seamless VoLTE-based multimedia service, which can be applied to an EPC network.

222: network connection section 224: position information obtaining section
226: Position information processor 228:
230: memory unit

Claims (9)

A network connection unit for receiving a location change report request from a call processing server of the mobile communication network,
A location information obtaining unit for obtaining location information of a mobile terminal managed by the call processing server when receiving the location change report request;
A location information processing unit for searching for a mobile terminal using a session generated with a specific APN (access point name) among the mobile terminals from which the location information is obtained and transmitting a location change report of the corresponding mobile terminal to the call processing server.
The subscriber location information management apparatus comprising:
The method of claim 1,
The position information processing unit,
Subscriber location information management device, characterized in that for transmitting the location change report to the call processing server preferentially for the mobile terminal using the bearer given a specific QCI (QoS Class Idenifier) level in the APN of the searched mobile terminal.
3. The method of claim 2,
The position information processing unit,
And a bearer corresponding to a predetermined number of QCI levels randomly selected from among a plurality of bearers having different QCI levels in the APN or selected from the top according to a priority, And transmits the location change report to the call processing server preferentially to the terminal.
The method of claim 1,
The position information processing unit,
In case of receiving a session initiation protocol (SIP) signal from the call processing server, the SIP signal is analyzed to determine the session state of the mobile terminal that performs the location change report, and the location change is performed for the mobile terminal where the session ends. Subscriber location information management device characterized in that it does not perform a report.
The method of claim 1,
The specific APN,
Subscriber location information management device, characterized in that the change can be set according to the load of the communication network.
The method of claim 1,
The specific APN,
Subscriber location information management device, characterized in that any one of the APN for LTE data session or the APN for VoLTE data session.
Receiving a location change report request from a call processing server of a mobile communication network;
Acquiring location information of a mobile terminal managed by the call processing server when receiving the location change report request;
Searching for a mobile terminal using a session generated by a specific APN among the mobile terminals from which the location information is acquired;
Transmitting a location change report of the searched mobile terminal to the call processing server;
The subscriber location information management method comprising:
The method of claim 7, wherein
In the step of transmitting the location change report,
Subscriber location information management method characterized in that for transmitting the location change report to the call processing server preferentially for the mobile terminal using a bearer given a specific QCI level in the APN of the searched mobile terminal.
The method of claim 7, wherein
After transmitting the location change report,
Receiving an SIP signal from the call processing server;
Analyzing the SIP signal and searching for a mobile terminal whose session has been terminated among mobile terminals that have performed the location change report;
The step of not performing the location change report for the mobile terminal that has finished the session
Subscriber location information management method further comprising.

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