Circuit switched/packet switched (CS/PS) coordination in a shared network

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9510245-B2
Application number	US-201314439487-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 29, 2013
Priority date	Oct 30, 2012
Publication date	Nov 29, 2016
Grant date	Nov 29, 2016

Abstract

The embodiments herein relate to a method in a RAN node ( 305 ) for determining which operator that should serve a device ( 301 ) when it has been handed over from a source network to a target shared network ( 300 ). When the device ( 301 ) has been handed over to the target shared network ( 300 ), the RAN node ( 305 ) transmits, to a non-registered CN node ( 312 ) in a non-registered domain ( 300 nr ), a request for an identity of the device ( 301 ). The RAN node ( 305 ) transmits a request, to CN nodes ( 310 ) in a registered domain ( 300 r ), for a serving operator which has registered the device ( 301 ). The RAN node ( 305 ) receives information indicating the serving operator. The RAN node ( 305 ) determines that the same serving operator which served the identified device in the registered domain ( 300 r ) should also serve the device ( 301 ) in the non-registered domain ( 300 nr ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method in a Radio Access Network (RAN) node for determining which serving operator should serve a device when the device has been handed over from a source network to a target network, wherein the target network is a shared network shared by a plurality of serving operators and comprises a registered domain in which the device is registered and a non-registered domain in which the device is not registered, wherein the device is registered with one of said plurality of serving operators, the method comprising:
when the device has been handed over to the target shared network, transmitting, by the RAN node, to a non-registered Core Network (CN) node in the non-registered domain a request for an identity of the device, wherein the request for the identity of the device does not include information indicating the identity of the device;
receiving, at the RAN node, a response to the request for the identity of the device from the non-registered CN node, said response comprising said information indicating the identity of the device;
after receiving the response comprising the information indicating the identity of the device, the RAN node transmitting to a CN node in the registered domain a request for information indicating an identity of the serving operator with which the device is registered, wherein the transmitted request comprises the information indicating the identity of the device;
after transmitting the request for information indicating the identity of the serving operator, receiving from the CN node in the registered domain a message comprising information indicating the identity of the serving operator with which the device is registered; and
determining that the serving operator with which the device is registered should serve the device in the non-registered domain.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
selecting a non-registered CN node which is associated with the serving operator with which the device is registered.

3. The method according to claim 2 , further comprising:
transmitting a Location Area Update (LAU) request or a Routing Area Update, RAU, request to the selected non-registered CN node in the non-registered domain.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the LAU request or RAU request transmitted to the selected non-registered CN node comprises the determined serving operator when the selected non-registered CN node represents all sharing operators and when the target shared network is a GateWay Core Network (GWCN).

5. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the LAU request or the RAU request is transmitted to the selected non-registered CN node representing the serving operator when the target shared network is a Multi Operator Core Network (MOCN).

6. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a Location Area Update (LAU) request or a Routing Area Update (RAU) request from the device.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the device is in idle mode in the non-registered domain.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the device is in idle mode or in connected mode in the registered domain.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the device is in Dual Transfer Mode, DTM, or in non-Dual Transfer Mode, non-DTM.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the device is a non-supporting device.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the target shared network supports both Packet Switching (PS) and Circuit Switching (CS) and
wherein the registered domain is a PS domain and the non-registered domain is a CS domain, or the registered domain is a CS domain and the non-registered domain is a PS domain;
and wherein the handover of the device is a CS handover or a PS handover.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the target shared network is a GateWay Core Network (GWCN) or a Multi Operator Core Network (MOCN).

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the RAN node is a Base Station Controller (BSC) or a Radio Network Controller (RNC) wherein the non-registered CN node is a Mobile Switching Center (MSC) or a Serving General packet radio service Support Node (SGSN), and wherein the registered CN node is a SGSN or a MSC.

14. A Radio Access Network (RAN) node for determining which serving operator should serve a device when the device has been handed over from a source network to a target network, wherein the target network comprises a registered domain in which the device is registered and a non-registered domain in which the device is not registered, the RAN node comprising:
a transmitter adapted to transmit, to a non-registered Core Network (CN) node in the non-registered domain, a request for an identity of the device when the device has been handed over to the target shared network; and
a receiver adapted to receive information indicating the identity of the device from the non-registered CN node in the non-registered domain;
wherein the transmitter is further adapted to:
transmit a request to CN nodes in the registered domain, wherein the request comprises the identity of the device and is a request for a serving operator which has registered the identified device;
wherein the receiver is further adapted to:
receive a response from one of the requested CN node in the registered domain, wherein the response comprises information indicating the serving operator which has registered the identified device; and
wherein the RAN node further comprises:
a processor adapted to determine that the same serving operator which served the identified device in the registered domain should also serve the device in the non-registered domain.

15. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the processor is further adapted to:
select a non-registered CN node which is associated with the determined serving operator, wherein the device is to be registered with the non-registered CN node.

16. The RAN node according to claim 15 , wherein the transmitter is further adapted to:
transmit a Location Area Update (LAU) request or a Routing Area Update (RAU) request to the selected non-registered CN node in the non-registered domain.

17. The RAN node according to claim 16 , wherein the LAU request or RAU request transmitted to the selected non-registered CN node comprises the determined serving operator when the selected non-registered CN node represents all sharing operators and when the target shared network is a GateWay Core Network (GWCN).

18. The RAN node according to claim 17 , wherein the LAU request or the RAU request is transmitted to the selected non-registered CN node representing the serving operator when the target shared network is a Multi Operator Core Network (MOCN).

19. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the receiver is further adapted to:
receive a Location Area Update (LAU) request or a Routing Area Update (RAU) request from the device.

20. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the device is in idle mode in the non-registered domain.

21. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the device is in idle mode or in connected mode in the registered domain.

22. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the device is in Dual Transfer Mode, DTM, or in non-Dual Transfer Mode, non-DTM.

23. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the device is a non-supporting device.

24. The RAN node according to claim 14 , wherein the target shared network supports both Packet Switching

Assignees

• Ericsson Telefon Ab L M
• ERICSSON TELEFON AB L M (publ)

Inventors

• Karlsson Josefin
• Olsson Lars-Bertil
• Ramle Peter

Classifications

• H04W36/0005

  Control or signalling for completing the hand-off · CPC title

• H04W36/12

  Reselecting a serving backbone network switching or routing node · CPC title

• H04W48/18 Primary

  Selecting a network or a communication service · CPC title

• H04W36/00

  Hand-off or reselection arrangements · CPC title

• H04W36/08

  Reselecting an access point · CPC title