(12)
`
`United States Patent
`Yu et a].
`
`(10) Patent N0.:
`(45) Date of Patent:
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`US007058036B1
`
`(54) METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR WIRELESS
`INSTANT MESSAGING
`
`(75) Inventors: Terry T. Yu, Overland Park, KS (US);
`Robert W. Hammond, Overland Park,
`KS (Us); Von K, McConnell,
`LeaWOOd, KS (Us); Baoquan Zhang,
`Overland Park, KS (Us)
`
`(73) Assignee: Sprint Spectrum L.P., Overland Park,
`KS (Us)
`
`( * ) Notice:
`
`Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this
`patent is extended or adjusted under 35
`U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days.
`
`(21) Appl' NO‘: 09/514’054
`(22) Filed
`Feb 25 2000
`'
`'
`’
`(51) Int CL
`H043 7/216
`H04M 11/00
`G06F 15/16
`(52) US‘ Cl‘
`
`(200601)
`(200601)
`(200601)
`
`_
`
`_
`_
`g3742is3s7/g/l34sif
`709/266 709/207’
`’
`’
`370/3 52*3 56
`(58) Field of Classi?cation Search
`379/8812f
`370/335 342 389 392 400
`’
`’
`’
`4’55/44 4_ %09/2’06 207
`See application ?le for Complete’ Search history?
`
`5/2002 Daly et a1. ................ .. 370/352
`6,393,014 B1 *
`6,421,707 B1* 7/2002 Miller et a1.
`709/206
`6,487,602 B1* 11/2002 Thakker ................... .. 709/230
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`ReadyCom lnc., http://WWW.readycom.com/rcihomehtml,
`printed from the WOI‘ld Wide Web 011 Dec. 8, 1999.
`Visitalk.com Free Services, http://WWW.visitalk.com/mar
`keting/ouriserviceshtm, printed from the World Wide Web
`on Dec. 8, 1999.
`
`(Continued)
`
`Primary ExamineriFrank Duong
`Assistant ExamineriMelanie Jagannathan
`
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`A Wireless instant messaging system is disclosed. A mobile
`station (MS), such as a cellular telephone for instance, may
`be registered With an instant messaging (1M) server as being
`available to receive instant messages via an IM proxy. Auser
`at an IM client terminal may then send an instant message
`destined for a user at the MS. The 1M server may direct the
`message 'to a servrdce node (S1N)(,1
`may conveirt thg
`message 1nto an 1n ustry stan ar
`message an sen
`the SMS message to the MS. At the MS, a user may read the
`SMS message and engage a callback feature, Wh1ch W111
`establ1sh a d1al-up vo1ce connect1on between‘ the MS and the
`SN. The user at the MS may then speak an lnstant message
`response, and the SN may record the response as a com
`pressed aud1o ?le. The SN may~then send the compressed
`aud1o ?le as an attachment to an 1nstant message back to the
`user at the IM client terminal. The IM client terminal may
`then play the spoken response message. The invention
`facilitates robust instant messaging communication, While
`avoiding the need for a user at the mobile station to engage
`in cumbersome text entry Via a numeric keypad
`
`45 Claims, 11 Drawing Sheets
`
`(56)
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`455/414 4
`5 950 123 A *
`9/1999 Schwelb et al
`6,097,961 A *
`8/2000 Alanara et 31.‘ .222... 455/466
`6,301,609 B1 * 10/2001 Aravamudan et a1. .... .. 709/207
`6,333,973 B1 * 12/2001 Smith et a1. ........... .. 379/8812
`
`f 26
`
`IM
`SERVER
`
`16
`
`GW
`
`24
`
`IP
`NETWORK
`
`GOOGLE EXHIBIT 1005
`
`Page 1 of 26
`
`

`

`US 7,058,036 B1
`Page 2
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`ZDNet: PC Week: Ready for instant Voice messaging?,
`http://WWW.Zdnet.con1/pcWeek/stories/neWs/
`0,4153,1017518,00.html, printed from the World Wide Web
`on Dec. 8, 1999.
`FLASHCommerceiVisitalk.con1 Introduces Instant Voice
`Messaging,
`http:// ?ashcommercecom/articles/ 99/ 10/ 05/
`
`203356240.htm, printed from the World Wide Web on Dec.
`8, 1999.
`Gallagher, MD. and Snyder, R.A., “Mobile Telecommuni
`cations Networking, Chapter 13 Short Message Service
`Functions”, pp. 285-310 (1997).
`
`* cited by examiner
`
`Page 2 of 26
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 1 6f 11
`Sheet 1 0f 11
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
`US 7,058,036 B1
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`Page 3 of 26
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`

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`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 2 6f 11
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`US 7,058,036 B1
`
`Prior Art
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`Page 4 of 26
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`

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`U.S. Patent
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`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 3 0f 11
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`US 7,058,036 B1
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`Prior Art
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`Page 5 of 26
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`U.S. Patent
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`Jun.6,2006
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`Page 6 of 26
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`

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`U.S. Patent
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`Jun. 6, 2006
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`Page 7 of 26
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`

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`U.S. Patent
`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`Jun. 6, 2006
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`Sheet 6 6f 11
`Sheet 6 0f 11
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`US 7,058,036 B1
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`Page 8 of 26
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`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 7 6f 11
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
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`Page 9 of 26
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 8 6f 11
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`US 7,058,036 B1
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`“dive
`
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`the active MIN and lnsa?
`Messager IP address ‘air. like
`the following:
`
`ACTIVE-MIN
`1234567890
`0987654321
`
`IF
`1214.5
`1214.55
`
`Fig. 8
`
`Page 10 of 26
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 9 6f 11
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
`
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`
`Page 11 of 26
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 10 6f 11
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
`
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`
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`12.3.4.5
`123.453
`
`Fig. 10
`
`Page 12 of 26
`
`

`

`U.S. Patent
`
`Jun. 6, 2006
`
`Sheet 11 6f 11
`
`US 7,058,036 B1
`
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`1234567890
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`Fig. 11
`
`Page 13 of 26
`
`

`

`US 7,058,036 B1
`
`1
`METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR WIRELESS
`INSTANT MESSAGING
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`2
`Communications over the Internet operate according to an
`established protocol suite knoWn as TCP/IP (Transmission
`Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol). Each computer terminal
`or “node” on the Internet is assigned a netWork address,
`referred to as an IP address, Which de?nes the location of the
`terminal in the netWork. A message to be sent from one
`terminal to another is divided into a sequence of packets,
`referred to as TCP or UDP packets, Which are then routed
`through the netWork to the destination IP address. At the
`destination, the packets are reassembled, and the message is
`reconstructed and presented to an end user.
`Instant messaging over the Internet can be accomplished
`in a number of Ways. By Way of example, FIG. 1 illustrates
`one possible scenario. In the arrangement shoWn in FIG. 1,
`a ?rst computer terminal 12 is coupled by a communications
`link 14 to a ?rst gateWay (GW) 16, and a second computer
`terminal 18 is coupled by a second communications link 20
`to a second GW 22. GWs 16 and 22 each provide connec
`tivity to the Internet, shoWn as IP netWork 24. Also con
`nected to IP netWork 24 is an Instant Messaging (IM) server
`26. GWs 16 and 22 and IM server 26 may be oWned and
`operated by a single company, such as a single ISP for
`instance, or may be oWned and operated by separate com
`panies.
`In practice, When a ?rst user at terminal 12 logs onto the
`Internet, an IM client application running on terminal 12
`may communicate With an IM server application running on
`server 26 in order to register the user/terminal as being
`available for instant messaging service. In doing so, the IM
`client may establish and provide to the IM server an instant
`messaging ID for the terminal. This instant messaging ID
`could comprise a combination of the terminal’s IP address
`and a designated IM port (e.g., a TCP or UDP port) at the
`terminal, for example. The IM server 26 may then store this
`instant messaging ID in a database record linked With a
`name associated With the user, such as “User-l”.
`Similarly, When a second user at terminal 18 logs onto the
`Internet, an IM client application running on terminal 18
`may provide an instant messaging ID for terminal 18 to the
`IM server 26, and IM server 26 may store this ID in a
`database record linked With a name associated With the
`second user, such as “User-2”. The IM server may also
`provide the second user With an indication of other IM
`clients currently available to receive instant messages. For
`instance, the IM server may notify the IM client on terminal
`18 that User-1 is currently on line and available for IM
`communication. (Similarly, the IM server may provide the
`?rst user With an indication that the second user is available
`to receive instant messages.)
`To send an instant message to User-2, User-1 may invoke
`the IM client application on terminal 12, type in a text
`message, and instruct the IM client to send the text message
`to User-2. The IM client on terminal 12 may then interact
`With IM server 26 in order to route the text message to a
`destination IM address comprising the IP address and IM
`port of terminal 18. For example, the IM server could
`receive and forWard the message to this address, or the IM
`server could map the user name “User-2” to this destination
`IM address and the IM client could route the message to the
`destination. At terminal 18, When the message arrives at the
`IM port, an IM client application could responsively pop up
`a WindoW on a monitor and immediately display the mes
`sage to User-2. In turn, User-2 could send a response IM to
`User-1 by a similar procedure.
`While computers have traditionally been connected to the
`Internet or other such netWorks by landline (i.e., Wired)
`connections, recent advances in Wireless telecommunica
`
`20
`
`25
`
`30
`
`35
`
`40
`
`45
`
`1. Field of the Invention
`The present invention relates to telecommunications ser
`vices and more particularly to a method and system for
`providing Wireless instant messaging.
`2. Description of Related Art
`Modern technology offers a number of Ways for people to
`interact With each other over a telecommunications netWork.
`One of the most popular modes of communication over
`computer networks, for instance, is electronic mail (e-mail).
`In an e-mail system, a user at a ?rst client terminal enters a
`message and sends the message to a destination user. An
`e-mail server on the netWork then receives the message and
`deposits it in an “in box” of the destination user. In turn, the
`destination user at a second client terminal may then retrieve
`the message from the in box, read the message and, if
`desired, prepare and send a response message in a similar
`manner.
`Traditional e-mail communication, hoWever, suffers from
`an inherent drawback: in order to fully communicate the
`message from the sending user to the destination user, the
`destination user must actively retrieve the message from a
`mailbox. If the destination user is involved With a particular
`application on the second client terminal, for example, he or
`she may need to temporarily pause that application, sWitch
`to an e-mail application, and open an in box in order to
`obtain the message.
`Ideally, telecommunications should strive to simulate
`face-to-face interaction. In face-to-face interaction, there is
`no need to retrieve a message from an in-box; a “sent”
`message appears in real-time before the recipient. In this
`respect, therefore, e-mail communications leave something
`to be desired.
`Another mode of netWork communication that has gained
`substantial popularity in recent years is “instant messaging.”
`In a typical instant messaging arrangement, a user at one
`computer can type a text message to be delivered to a user
`at another computer, and the message is then delivered in
`substantially real time to the other computer for immediate
`presentation to and receipt by the other user. Advanta
`geously, instant messaging thus avoids the need for the
`recipient to actively retrieve the message from a mailbox
`and therefore more closely approximates face-to-face com
`munications.
`Although instant messaging has been recently popular
`iZed by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) such as America
`Online, Inc., for instance, the concept dates back at least to
`early UNIX systems. Such systems included a TALK com
`mand that alloWed a user at one UNIX terminal on a netWork
`to send a text message directly to another UNIX terminal on
`the netWork. In response to the TALK command, the UNIX
`operating system Would establish a communication channel
`or “pipe” betWeen a process associated With the ?rst termi
`nal and a process associated With the second terminal. The
`text message Would then be sent along this pipe and Would
`appear immediately on the monitor at the second terminal.
`The recent popularity of instant messaging systems is due
`in large part to the groWth of the Internet and WorldWide
`Web, and the concomitant desire to “be connected.” TWo or
`more users logged onto the Internet may be geographically
`dispersed but may still Want to be able to engage in instant
`communications With each other, Without the need to Work
`through an e-mail server and mailboxes.
`
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`Page 14 of 26
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`

`

`US 7,058,036 B1
`
`3
`tions have noW opened the door for Wireless network
`connectivity as Well. At one level, for instance, a conven
`tional computer can include or be coupled With a cellular
`radio modem, Which can couple the computer With a Wire
`less telecommunications netWork and in turn, With the
`Internet. FIG. 2 shoWs an example of this arrangement.
`Referring to FIG. 2, a computer 28 is connected With a
`cellular modem 30. In accordance With conventional cellular
`radio telecommunications practice, the cellular modem 30
`communicates over an air interface 32 With a cellular base
`station controller (BSC) 34, Which is in turn coupled With a
`mobile switching center (MSC) 36. MSC 36 is, in large part,
`the Wireless equivalent of a landline telecommunications
`sWitch (often referred to as a signal sWitching point or SSP).
`MSC 36 is in turn coupled With an “interWorking function”
`(IWF) 38, Which commonly serves as a Wireless/IP gateWay
`to transparently pass Wireless protocol signals (e. g., CDMA,
`TDMA, etc.) from MSC 36 onto an IP netWork and vice
`versa. Thus, IWF 38 is coupled to an IP netWork 40, to Which
`IM server 26 is also coupled. In an alternative arrangement
`(applicable throughout this disclosure), a base station con
`troller such as BSC 34 could communicate directly With an
`interWorking function such as IWF 38, i.e., Without the need
`for an intermediate MSC.
`The cellular modem 30, BSC 34, MSC 36 and IWF 38 in
`the arrangement of FIG. 2 may thus take the place of
`communications link 14 and gateWay 16 in the arrangement
`of FIG. 1. Computer 28, like terminal 12 in FIG. 1, can run
`an IM client, Which can interact With IM server 26 so as to
`facilitate instant messaging communications With a user at
`computer 28 as described above.
`In addition, other methods for Wireless Internet commu
`nications have been devised. One of the most signi?cant
`developments in this regard has been the introduction of the
`HDML (handset display markup language) and WAP (Wire
`less access protocol) communication standards. Both of
`these standards are designed to facilitate Internet access
`from small devices such as cellular telephones, personal data
`assistants (PDA), and the like. The idea is to implement a
`scaled doWn version of a Web broWser (client) on the device,
`and to provide a corresponding HDML or WAP server on the
`Internet that can interact With that broWser. The HDML or
`WAP server can, for instance, send abridged versions of full
`Web pages to the client HDML or WAP broWser, suitable for
`display on a small screen.
`FIG. 3 depicts an example of a WAP or HDML client/
`server arrangement for instant messaging. As shoWn in FIG.
`3, a handheld (or other) device (such as a cellular telephone,
`PDA, etc.) 42 is arranged to communicate over an air
`interface 44 With a base station 46. Base station 46 is then
`coupled With an MSC 48, Which is coupled With an IWF 50,
`Which in turn provides connectivity With an IP netWork 52.
`(Alternatively the IM server could be coupled With a sepa
`rate WAP server, or IM server functionality could be inte
`grated Within a WAP server. Similarly, the WAP server could
`be coupled With a separate IM server, or WAP server
`functionality could be integrated Within an IM server.) Also
`connected to the IP netWork are a WAP server 54 and IM
`server 26. A WAP client application on device 42 may thus
`communicate over IP netWork 52 With WAP server 54. In
`turn, WAP server 54 may communicate over the IP netWork
`52 With the IM server 26. Further, a scaled doWn IM client
`on device 42 may communicate over the IP netWork and via
`WAP server 54 With IM server 26.
`Thus, in operation, a user at handheld device 42 could
`initiate a WAP session With WAP server 54 and, Within the
`WAP session, an IM session With IM server 26. Conse
`
`20
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`25
`
`30
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`35
`
`40
`
`45
`
`50
`
`55
`
`60
`
`65
`
`4
`quently, the user at device 42 could send and receive instant
`messages just like a user at terminal 12 in FIG. 1 could do,
`but With the convenience of a Wireless connection.
`Still further, another type of messaging system exists for
`communications in a Wireless netWork. This system is
`knoWn as short message service (SMS). SMS provides for
`the communication of short text messages to or from a
`mobile station (MS) (e.g., a cellular phone, a pager, etc.) or
`other entity Without establishing an active call connection
`With the entity. In general, the system may alloW a person to
`simply type in a desired text message, indicate the directory
`number associated With a destination mobile station, and
`then transmit an SMS message encapsulating the desired
`text message. The telecommunications netWork then con
`veys the text message to the destination mobile station,
`Where the message is typically displayed for receipt by an
`end-user.
`The elements and operation of an exemplary SMS system
`are de?ned generally in an industry standard that has been
`published by the Telecommunications Industry Association
`(TIA)/Electronics Industry Association (EIA) as Interim
`Standard IS-4l (“Cellular Radiotelecommunications Inter
`system Operations”). The entirety of this standard, including
`all revisions thereof (e.g., IS-4lC, IS-4lD, and so forth), is
`hereby incorporated herein by reference.
`To provide SMS service, a Wireless netWork may include
`a short message service center (“SMSC”) (sometimes also
`referred to simply as a message center (“MC”)), Which is a
`functional entity that stores and forWards SMS messages.
`The store and forWard function provides a method of send
`ing short messages to their destination recipient or storing
`those messages if the recipient is unavailable to receive
`them. This store and forWard function can generally be
`distinguished from the real-time delivery requirements of
`voice calls, although SMS messages may be delivered in real
`time.
`According to IS-4l, the message center can send mes
`sages to or from a functional entity knoWn as a short
`message entity (“SME”). The SME is often an application
`entity that resides on an MS or other device. When the SME
`resides on an MS, it may be referred to as an MS-based
`SME. Alternatively, the SME can comprise, or reside on,
`another entity in a Wireless or ?xed netWork, i.e., in Whether
`or not part of the Wireless communications netWork. For
`instance, an SME can reside on a landline computer con
`nected to the Internet.
`A typical SME might be arranged to compose, store,
`dispose of, act upon, display and/or otherWise manage short
`messages. It might also be arranged to perform signaling
`functions to support other delivery features such as MS
`location and status queries, and mapping of destination
`addresses. In turn, a typical SMSC can forWard messages to
`an SME, store short messages for later delivery to an
`unavailable SME, apply originating and terminating SMS
`supplementary services to short messages, and serve other
`functions.
`By convention, each MS is registered in a home system.
`The home system includes a home location register (“HLR”)
`that de?nes the services and features authoriZed for use by
`the MS. One such service may be SMS. When a mobile
`station enters a given serving system (typically comprising
`an MSC and one or more base stations), the serving system
`engages in signaling communication With the HLR in the
`MS’s home system to notify the HLR Where the MS is
`located and to obtain the MS’s current pro?le. The serving
`system then stores the pro?le in a local register (visitor
`location register (“VLR”) for reference).
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`Each MS-based SME is usually associated With an SMSC
`known as the “home SMSC” in the MS’s home system. At
`various instances, such as When the MS ?rst enters an
`SMS-capable serving system, the MS’s HLR Will send SME
`service pro?le information (e. g., origination and termination
`restrictions) to serving system along With MS related pro?le
`parameters, so that the serving system can knoW that the MS
`is quali?ed to receive and/or send short messages.
`Typically, a given SMSC then maintains the mobile
`identi?cation number (MIN) address information of the MSs
`that it serves. In the usual case, the MIN of an MS Will be
`the directory number (i.e., telephone number) of the MS, but
`it could be some other identi?er such as an IP address or
`e-mail address, for instance. In turn, the SMSC is typically
`addressable by the directory numbers or MINs of those MSs.
`When the SMSC receives a message for one of its MSs, it
`may then identify the location of the MS and forWard the
`message via the serving system to the MS.
`As further background, FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate some of
`the signaling involved in traditional SMS processing, as
`described, for instance, in Michael D. Gallagher and Randall
`A. Snyder, “Mobile Telecommunications Networking With
`IS-4l” (McGraW-Hill 1997). FIG. 4 ?rst illustrates a sce
`nario knoWn as tWo-Way-SMS (or mobile-originated SMS),
`in Which one mobile station, MS-A (embodying SME-A),
`sends an SMS message to another mobile station, MS-B
`(embodying SME-B).
`As shoWn in FIG. 4, at step 1, MS-based SME-A ?rst
`sends an air interface message, SMD-REQUEST (SMD
`REQ), embodying a short message to its serving system. At
`step 2, the serving system routes the short message to
`SME-A’s SMSC (message center, “MC”), using an IS-4l
`SMSDeliveryPointToPoint Invoke (SMDPP) message. Such
`an SMDPP message may be routed over an industry standard
`SS7 signaling netWork to a netWork point code associated
`With the SMSC. Alternatively, the SMDPP message could be
`routed using TCP/IP, X.25 or another desired protocol. The
`SMSC then returns an “smdpp” acknoWledgement message,
`and SME-A’s serving system returns an SMD-ACK to
`MS-A.
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`At step 3, SME-A’s message center sends an SMDPP
`message to the Destination SME’s SMSC. In turn, at step 4,
`SME-B’s message center sends an SMDPP message to
`SME-B’s serving system. At step 5, SME-B’s serving sys
`tem then forWards the short message to the destination SME
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`using the air interface SMD-REQ message, and SME-B
`responds With an acknoWledgement SMD-ACK to signal
`acceptance of the SMD-REQ message.
`An MS-based SME can be addressed by its host’s MIN
`(e.g., the MIN of the mobile station on Which the SME
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`resides). In order to then determine Which SMSC to route a
`message to for a given destination SME, an entity can
`maintain a table of MIN-to-SMSC addresses (e.g., MIN to
`SS7 destination point code, or MIN to IP address, for
`instance), as is often done today in IS-4l netWorks for
`routing IS-4l messages to an MS’s HLR. Thus, for example,
`in FIG. 4, MS-A’s serving system can maintain a table that
`indicates the address of the SME-A’s SMSC for use in step
`2, and SME-A’s SMSC can maintain a table indicating the
`address of SME-B’s SMSC for use in step 3.
`Generally speaking, in order to terminate an SMS mes
`sage to an MS-based SME, the SMSC that seeks to send the
`message must get a valid routing address for the system
`currently serving the SME. To facilitate this, IS-4l provides
`a special SMS_Address parameter that is conveyed to the
`HLR of an SMS-capable MS When the MS is registered in
`a neW serving system. In addition, IS-4l provides an
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`SMSRequest (SMSREQ) invoke message that can be used
`to request the current location of the MS-based SME.
`FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary set of processing functions
`that may be employed to register an MS-based SME (resid
`ing on MS-A) and to then terminate an SMS message to the
`SME. As shoWn in FIG. 5, When an SMS-capable MS is
`detected by a serving system, at step 1, the serving system
`sends a RegistrationNoti?cation (REGNOT) invoke mes
`sage to the MS’s HLR. If the serving system is SMS
`capable, the message includes the SMS_Address parameter,
`Which can be used to route short messages to the serving
`system for delivery to the MS-based SME. For instance, if
`the short message transport netWork is SS7-based, the
`SMS_Address parameter may contain an SS7 point code and
`sub system number. (Alternatively, as another example, if the
`transport netWork is IP-based, the SMS_Address parameter
`may contain an IP address.) When the serving system
`receives an SMDPP message addressed to this point code
`and subsystem number, it assumes the message is intended
`for a visiting MS-based SME that is speci?cally identi?ed
`by address parameters in the SMDPP message.
`In turn, When an SMSC seeks to send an SMS message to
`an MS-based SME, at step 2, it sends an SMSREQ message
`to the MS’s HLR. If the HLR has a valid SMS_Address for
`the SME, then, at step 3, the HLR returns the SMS_Address
`parameter in an SMSRequest return result (smsreq) mes
`sage. At step 4, the SMSC then uses the SMS_Address to
`route the SMDPP message to the system currently serving
`the SME, and the serving system in turn sends the message
`to the SME identi?ed in the SMDPP message, using an
`SMD-REQ message.
`In some instances, an SME may be unavailable to receive
`SMS messages. This might occur, for instance, (i) if the
`SME (e.g., an MS-based SME) is not registered With an
`HLR, (ii) if the SME is registered on an SMS-incapable
`system, (iii) if the SME is for some reason not authorized for
`SMS service on the current serving system, or (iv) if the host
`MS is out of radio contact or intentionally inaccessible (or
`if its message buffer is full). When an SME is unavailable
`and the SME’s HLR receives a request for the SME’s
`SMS_Address With an SMSRequest message for instance,
`the HLR may indicate the unavailability to the querying
`SMSC, by returning an SMS_AccessDeniedReason param
`eter (e.g., denied, postponed or unavailable).
`In an SMSRequest message, in addition to providing the
`destination MS’s MIN (and possibly its electronic serial
`number (ESN)), an SMSC can provide an SMS_Noti?ca
`tionIndicator parameter, Which advises the HLR Whether or
`not to notify the SMSC When the MS becomes available, in
`case the MS is currently unavailable. When an SMSC sends
`an SMSRequest message for an MS-based SME to the MS’s
`HLR and the MS is unavailable, the HLR may then store an
`indication that the SMSC has a message Waiting for the MS,
`unless the SMS_Noti?cationIndicator parameter indicates
`that the HLR need not notify the SMSC When the MS
`becomes available. When the MS then becomes available,
`the HLR may send an SMSNoti?cation message to the
`SMSC, providing the SMS_Address of the MS-based SME,
`and advising the SMSC that it may send the stored message
`to the SME.
`As noted above, SMS service can involve communication
`over various transport netWorks, such as conventional SS7
`netWorks, IP netWorks (e.g., the Internet), and X.25 net
`Works, for instance. In this regard, for example, an MSC,
`SMSC or other entity may be programmed as, or coupled
`With, an IWF to convert SMS messages from an SS7
`encapsulated form into a form appropriate for IP-transport.
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`US 7,058,036 B1
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`This may involve converting an SMS message into a stream
`of TCP/IP packets for transmission over the IP transport
`network. This arrangement may alloW netWork access to
`external IP applications (e.g., SMEs) as Well as inexpensive
`IP access betWeen SMSCs belonging to different netWorks.
`For instance, an SMS message generated in an SS7-based
`netWork can be conveyed over an IP netWork to a POP3
`e-mail server, Which can then convert the message into an
`Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (“SMTP”) e-mail message
`and forward the e-mail message to a designated e-mail
`recipient (Which may therefore be considered a type of
`SME). As another example, text messages generated and
`conveyed in an IP netWork (e.g., by an e-mail client) might
`be conveyed via the IWF to an SME in an SS7 netWork. An
`ISP or other entity may thus alloW an Internet e-mail
`subscriber to send a text message to a designated MS-based
`SME referenced by a given directory number, for instance.
`As still another example, an SMSC or MSC in one carrier’s
`netWork might convey an SMS message, via an IWF and an
`IP transport netWork, to an SMSC or MSC in another
`carrier’s netWork, and the other SMSC or MSC may then
`deliver the SMS message to a designated recipient.
`In summary, the existing art includes tWo Ways to extend
`instant messaging service into the Wireless domain. First, a
`computer terminal can be equipped for Wireless communi
`cations With an IM server. As described above, this can
`involve providing a cellular modem for a conventional
`computer (e.g., desktop or laptop) and having the computer
`run a regular IM client application for communication With
`the IM server. Alternatively, it can involve the use of a
`handheld device (e.g., cellular phone or PDA) With Wireless
`connectivity, Which may employ a WAP/HDML browser to
`communicate With the IM server. Second, a computer ter
`minal or MS could send a text message, Which could be
`delivered to an MS as an SMS message.
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`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`The present invention stems from a realiZation that exist
`ing systems or concepts for providing instant messaging
`service in the Wireless domain are de?cient. I