System and method for performing multi-enforcement point charging

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9313640-B2
Application number	US-201314024772-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 12, 2013
Priority date	Sep 12, 2012
Publication date	Apr 12, 2016
Grant date	Apr 12, 2016

Abstract

Systems and methods for accomplishing charging operations in telecommunications networks that include multiple charging and enforcement components may include configuring a first charging and enforcement component to receive user traffic, determine usage information associated with the received user traffic, send the associated usage information to a charging system component, and send the user traffic and the associated usage information to a second charging and enforcement component. The second charging and enforcement component may be configured to receive the user traffic and usage information, compute updated usage information, and send the updated usage information to the charging system component. The charging system may use this updated usage information to ensure that the subscriber accounts were billed correctly.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of charging in a telecommunications network in which a plurality of charging and enforcement (CaE) components operate as enforcement points for a single data communication, comprising:
receiving user traffic in a first CaE component of the plurality of CaE components that operate as enforcement points for the single data communication;
determining usage information associated with the received user traffic in the first CaE component;
sending the determined usage information from the first CaE component to a charging system component;
sending the user traffic and the determined usage information to a second CaE component of the plurality of CaE components that operate as enforcement points for the single data communication;
receiving the user traffic and the usage information associated with the received user traffic in the second CaE component;
determining updated usage information in the second CaE component based on the received usage information and the received user traffic; and
sending the updated usage information from the second CaE component to the charging system component.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first CaE component is one of:
a traffic detection function component; and
a policy and charging enforcement function component.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the usage information includes charging information.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to a second CaE component includes labeling the user traffic with usage information.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to a second CaE component comprises routing the user traffic based on the usage information.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to a second CaE component comprises sending the user traffic over multiple virtual local area networks (VLANs) based on the usage information.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining updated usage information in the second CaE component based on the received usage information and the received user traffic comprises adjusting the usage information with usage information received from the first CaE component.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining updated usage information in the second CaE component based on the received usage information and the received user traffic comprises performing gating operations on the received user traffic.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first CaE component and the second CaE component operate at different communication architecture layers.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first CaE component operates at an application layer and the second CaE component operates at an Internet protocol layer.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein sending the user traffic and the determined usage information to a second CaE component comprises:
the first CaE component sending an indication to the second CaE component that the first CaE component will soon request additional credit from the charging system, and wherein the method further comprises:
sending the usage information from the second CaE component to the charging system in response to receiving the indication that the first CaE component will soon request additional credit from the charging system.

12. A system in which a plurality of charging and enforcement (CaE) servers operate as enforcement points for a single data communication, the system comprising:
a first CaE server of the plurality of CaE servers that operate as enforcement points for the single data communication, the first CaE server comprising a first processor;
a second CaE server of the plurality of CaE servers that operate as enforcement points for the single data communication, the second CaE server comprising a second processor; and
a charging system server comprising a third processor,
wherein the first processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:
receiving user traffic;
determining usage information associated with the received user traffic;
sending the determined usage information to the third processor in the charging system server; and
sending the user traffic and the determined usage information to the second processor in the second CaE server, and

wherein the second processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:
receiving the user traffic and the determined usage information;
determining updated usage information based on the received usage information and the received user traffic; and
sending the updated usage information to the third processor in the charging system server.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the first CaE server includes one of:
a traffic detection function; and
a policy and charging enforcement function.

14. The system of claim 12 , wherein the first CaE server component operates at an application layer and the second CaE server operates at an Internet protocol layer.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein the usage information includes charging information.

16. The system of claim 12 , wherein the first processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to the second CaE server comprises labeling the user traffic with usage information.

17. The system of claim 12 , wherein the first processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to a second CaE server comprises routing the user traffic based on the usage information.

18. The system of claim 12 , wherein the first processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that sending the determined usage information associated with the received user traffic to a second CaE server comprises sending the user traffic over multiple virtual local area networks (VLANs) based on the usage information.

19. The system of claim 12 , wherein the second processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that determining updated usage information based on the received usage information and the received user traffic comprises adjusting the usage information with usage information received from the first CaE component.

20. The system of claim 12 , wherein the second processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that determining updated usage information based on the received usage information and the received user traffic comprises performing gating operations on the received user traffic.

21. The system of claim 12 , wherein:
the first processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations such that sending the user traffic and the determined usage information to a second CaE server comprises sending an indication to the second CaE component that the first CaE component will soon request additional credit from the charging system server; the second processor is configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations further comprising sending the usage information from the second CaE server to the charging system server in response to receiving

Assignees

• Openet Telecom Ltd
• Opennet Telecom Ltd

Inventors

• Lehane Bart
• Mcnamee Alan
• O'Sullivan Michael
• Bacik Max

Classifications

• H04W4/24

  Accounting or billing · CPC title

• H04L12/1407 Primary

  Policy-and-charging control [PCC] architecture · CPC title

• H04M15/60

  based on actual use of network resources · CPC title

• H04W4/26 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic