WO2003013122A2

WO2003013122A2 - Method and device for indicating costs

Info

Publication number: WO2003013122A2
Application number: PCT/DE2002/002311
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rene Ewald
Original assignee: Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
Priority date: 2001-07-20
Filing date: 2002-06-25
Publication date: 2003-02-13
Also published as: DE10135425A1; WO2003013122A3

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and device for indicating costs, which accrue during an exchange of information between radio units, particularly during conversations or data transfers between mobile radio terminals. To this end, cost parameters are established for each conversation or each data transfer. An item of cost information, which is stored in the radio unit, contains a specification of costs according to these cost parameters. This specification is used to determine the rate for an exchange of information with a specific subscriber based on the established cost parameters.

Description

description

Method and device for displaying costs

The present invention relates to a method and a device for displaying costs that arise in the exchange of information between radio devices, in particular in the case of mobile radio terminals.

Many telephone subscribers make the vast majority of their calls from a mobile radio terminal, and today they can choose from a large number of tariffs, the costs of which depend on the location of the user, the time, the number of the called party and, of course, the number of calls. provider to provider vary. Of course, every mobile radio subscriber tries to minimize the costs for themselves by choosing the tariff model that suits them:

For example, various network operators offer discounted tariffs for certain time zones, for example so-called "moonlight tariffs". Furthermore, some network operators offer to call selected numbers at reduced tariffs or abroad, which are usually more expensive than domestic calls, because in addition to the home network operator, other network operators are needed to mediate.

While the tariffs of the home country may still be partially known to the user, the "tariff jungle" becomes opaque when foreign tariffs are added. In particular when traveling abroad, the user often has no knowledge of the costs he incurs certain conversation.

The same applies to a person who is called abroad: For reasons of data protection, it is, for example, a German mobile phone user who is another German subscriber who is currently not in German country, calls, does not know that the called party is abroad. For this reason, the called party must also bear the additional costs that are incurred for such a call due to the international charges and the amount of which is normally not known to him.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide the user with the desired cost information with little effort.

This task is solved by the independent claims. Further developments result from the dependent claims.

According to the invention, the costs for an information exchange between at least two radio devices on a first

Radio shown. For this purpose, identification information is entered on the radio, which uniquely determines the second radio. At least in the first radio device, a list of the costs is stored as a function of cost parameters, which, among other things, determine the costs. Using this list, the costs are determined and displayed on the radio.

The identification information can be understood to mean, for example, the subscriber number of a mobile radio subscriber (MSISDN number: Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Digital Network number).

The cost information can, for example, be structured in tabular form, the costs being specified as a function of cost parameters such as the duration of the call or the selected identification information. The cost parameter can of course also depend only on parts of the number, for example the country code (Country Code CC) or the identification of the mobile network or the area code of a landline connection. In particular, further developments provide for the costs to be dependent on the current time or the current location of the user of the method. rens to indicate. With these cost parameters, the costs can then be determined and displayed.

A corresponding device comprises an input unit by means of which the identification information can be selected or entered. For example, in the case of a mobile radio device, this is the keyboard, for example the number field for entering a phone number or the address book function for selecting a phone number or voice recognition for acoustic input of a phone number. A storage unit enables cost information to be stored, a radio unit to carry out an information exchange, the display unit to display the costs and the processor unit to carry out the cost determination using the cost parameters.

The advantage of this method or device lies in the fact that the costs of a call are made transparent to the user, without the connection having already been established, since the cost information is already stored in the radio. Furthermore, parameters determined anyway are used in a new way, such as the location of the radio as a cost parameter.

In particular, this method has advantages if the costs are displayed before the information is exchanged, since the customer is given a decision criterion to conduct the call or not. The communication network is not unnecessarily burdened in this way, since a connection is established only for an intended connection and not, for example, to query the costs.

A further development provides that the costs are also displayed for the radio called before the call is started. For example, the costs can be analogous to that in the first radio based on a part of the identification formation of the first radio are determined. In the event that the identification information is the telephone number, it can be sent along with a call and is then known to the called party. This further development has advantages, for example, if the user of the second radio is abroad and therefore would also incur costs.

Another development of the invention is that it is displayed when the costs change during the exchange of information. This can occur, for example, if a cost parameter changes, for example when overwriting a country border or a time zone. This feature always shows the user the current costs.

In another development, the costs are determined and displayed after a first actuation of the button with which the connection is conventionally established. For example, a mobile radio device can be the button that corresponds to the "pick-up function". A connection to the second radio device is only established when this connection button is pressed again.

Another development provides that the cost information is available at a central point in a communication network, for example a mobile radio network, from where it is loaded onto the radio. This can be, for example, the download from a WAP side (WAP: Wireless Application Protocol), which can be carried out automatically at certain time intervals or initiated by the user. The cost information can also be made available to the user via another service of the mobile radio provider.

Of course, the device can be expanded accordingly, so that further developments of the method according to the invention are also possible the device are executable. In particular, the device has interfaces via which the cost information can be obtained.

The invention will now be explained in more detail with the aid of a few selected examples, some of which are also shown in the figures.

Show it:

Figure 1 is a schematic of the data flow and Figure 2 shows the schematic flow of a call.

The data flow is shown schematically in FIG. A tariff model, for example in tabular form, is stored in the storage unit (FS: File Save). The storage unit can be a storage area on the SIM card or a storage area on an additional multimedia card (MMC). This table includes at least one of the cost parameters such as network, quality of service, clocking and time zones, and of course a local breakdown and a breakdown by phone number. Each column of a table then contains the costs of an information exchange in the event that certain cost parameters or combinations of these parameters are available.

This tariff model can be loaded into the communication device via an input channel. The tariff mode can be obtained, for example, from a web server on the Internet via the WAP or another Internet interface, as well as via other services from the mobile communications provider. For example, the mobile operator can send the user monthly updates of the cost table via a data service. However, the user can also actively request this cost table himself or automate the request for himself.

The information in the storage device is given to the processor unit (CU: Central Unit), as is the Data of the connection (DoC: Data of Connection). As already explained above, these data of the connection include the identification information and further cost parameters such as, for example, the time, location of the user and the network currently in use.

All of this information is used to determine the expected costs for a conversation or an information exchange in the processor unit CU. This can be done on the basis of a time standard, which means, for example, that the cost of the call per minute is specified. Likewise, it is also provided that the user uses the user interface (MMI: Man Machine Interface) to give manual information (MI: Manual Input) to the processor unit CU, in which he indicates the expected duration of the call. The identification information, such as the telephone number or an Internet address, can also be entered using the MMI user interface, for example using a keypad or a telephone book function; Furthermore, the user interface MMI also has a display device (D: display) for displaying the costs incurred and for carrying out the user dialog.

FIG. 2 explains an exemplary sequence of the method for displaying costs based on a conversation between two mobile radio devices.

The mobile radio subscriber first dials the number of the desired call partner 10. Now the cost parameters are determined 14. The term cost parameters includes, for example: The time base for which the costs are calculated. It can be selected according to the fee schedule of the respective tariff model, for example, in seconds or minutes. In one embodiment variant, it is provided that the user can enter a fictitious call duration 12, for which the costs of the call are then determined.

- The location of the mobile radio device, which is known, for example, via the identification of the mobile radio cell (Cell ID) is: In some tariff models, the amount of the costs varies depending on the location.

- The current time: It can be determined via the time measurement in the cell phone itself or, for example, using a built-in radio clock. The current time is required for tariff models with time zones.

- The identification information: This can be the phone number, for example 0049 0171 6971413. The first four digits specify the home country, the next four digits the home network and the following digits represent an individual number. The total number, each of the three, can now be used as a cost parameter Components for themselves, or a combination of the three components, depending on how the costs are broken down in the respective tariff model.

A calculation of the costs 18 follows on the basis of the cost parameters. Depending on the version, it can be one or more cost parameters. The cost is then displayed 20. Now the user must make a decision 22 as to whether or not to start the call. In the latter case, the process is over at the end of 24. If he wants to start the call, the connection is established 26.

In the event that the desired subscriber is not in his home cellular network, it is also convenient for him to know the cost of the call in advance. The costs can be determined largely analogously to the procedure outlined above if the number of the callers is expediently also sent. If the called party also decides to accept the call, the connection is set up. In this way, connections are avoided which are only used to query the costs of the connection and which may be terminated immediately if the costs are too high for the subscriber. During the call, a loop 28 is run through in which it is checked whether the cost parameters of the call change. This happens, for example, when crossing a time or region zone. The cost parameters 14 are thus determined each time this loop 28 is run through. Decision 16 is then made as to whether the cost parameters have changed. If they have changed, the costs 18 are recalculated, which are then displayed again 20. This loop 28 is run through during the entire duration of the conversation at automatically determined or user-definable time intervals. These time intervals can be determined depending on the speed of movement of the user.

At the end of the call 30, the user is shown 32 the costs incurred and the fee counter 34 is updated. The display can be done as well as acoustically.

Of course, the invention and its embodiment variants are not limited to a conversation in a mobile radio environment, but can also be used for connections to and from the fixed network, just as the information exchange can not only be a conversation, but also a data transfer.

In the case of future mobile radio networks in particular, it is planned to stagger the costs according to the corresponding transmission rate and / or the transmission quality (quality of service). In this respect, the transmission rate or quality of service can also be used as cost parameters in design variants.

Of course, a conversation can also be viewed as a data transfer.

In addition to the examples explained above, a large number of further embodiment variants are within the scope of the invention and are not described further here. This further execution tion variants can be easily put into practice by a person skilled in the art on the basis of the exemplary embodiments explained.

Claims

claims

1. A method for displaying the cost of an information exchange between a first and a second radio, in which

identification information for identifying the second radio device is entered on the first radio device,

cost information is stored in the first radio device and contains the costs of an information exchange as a function of at least one cost parameter,

- The costs for an information exchange depending on the cost parameter or parameters are determined on the basis of the stored cost information and

- The determined costs are displayed on the first radio.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the costs for the information exchange are displayed before the information exchange.

3. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cost parameter depends on at least a first part of the identification information for identifying the second radio.

4. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the current time is determined and this represents a cost parameter.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the current location of the user is determined and this represents a cost parameter.

6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein in the second radio before accepting the call, the cost of the call depending on at least a first part the identification information of the first radio is displayed.

7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which is displayed if during the information exchange

Change costs due to a change in the cost parameters.

8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the costs are displayed when a connection button of the first radio device is pressed for the first time and a connection to the second radio device is set up when the connection button is subsequently pressed.

9. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cost information is available at a central point in a communication network and is loaded from there onto the radio.

10. Device - an input unit for selecting identification information

a storage unit for storing cost information for the exchange of information as a function of at least one cost parameter, a radio unit for the exchange of information,

- With a display unit, as well

- A processor unit which is designed in such a way that the costs for an information exchange with the further radio device associated with the identification information are determined on the basis of the cost parameter (s) and the cost information stored in the memory unit and the determined costs are displayed by means of the display unit.