Geographical Boundary Control for D2D Public Safety

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Solution Overview

Problem

Public safety networks face challenges in ensuring secure and authorized device-to-device communications, particularly in licensed bands, especially when the controlling network is unavailable, leading to potential misuse and coverage issues during emergencies.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a method and mobile device architecture that utilizes device-to-device geographical boundary information to configure and control autonomous D2D operations, ensuring operations are restricted to permitted regions by determining geographical boundaries and referencing preconfigured or dynamically updated subscription profiles, thereby preventing unauthorized use.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If device-to-device communications are permitted in licensed bands when controlling network is unavailable, then communication coverage and availability are improved, but network security and authorization control deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenetwork availabilityVSAvoidunauthorized use
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by determining geographical boundary information and storing subscription profile data before autonomous D2D operations commence. The mobile device checks whether its current location falls within permitted geographical areas and verifies authorization based on pre-stored subscription profiles, ensuring security controls are in place before communication begins

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements location-specific authorization by determining geographical boundary information and restricting D2D operations to specific permitted areas. The system evaluates whether the mobile device is within authorised geographical boundaries using techniques such as GPS coordinates comparison or cell tower triangulation, allowing communications only in designated zones while blocking them elsewhere

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Object-affected harmful factors

If geographical boundary determination and subscription profile verification are implemented, then network security and authorization are improved, but device complexity and operational overhead increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveunauthorized useVSAvoidcontrol mechanism complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The mobile device performs self-verification by autonomously determining its own geographical location and checking it against stored boundary information. The device independently evaluates its authorization status based on pre-configured subscription profiles without requiring continuous network verification, reducing real-time computational burden while maintaining security

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts critical authorization data (geographical boundaries and subscription profiles) from the network environment and stores it locally in the mobile device before autonomous operation begins. This extraction allows the device to perform security verification using only locally stored information, eliminating the need for complex real-time network interactions during D2D communications

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentEP2810486B1Permitting direct mode communications for public safety only in certain geographical areas
Publication Date: 2019.07.10 NOKIA SOLUTIONS & NETWORKS OY
  • EP2810486B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2810486B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP2810486B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

The application relates to wireless communication terminals which can, in addition to conventional communication via the network, communicate directly with other terminals without network involvement. This kind of communication is referred to as device-to-device D2D communication or one of mobile-to-mobile, machine-to-machine, terminal-to-terminal, peer-to-peer, direct mode. However, for this type of communication, misuse is an issue. For example a public safety network may permit D2D communication to operate in an area following a natural or other incident where the controlling network entity loses coverage. However this permission to allow device to device communication without the controlling entity can lead to users of D2D apparatus such as public safety communications devices configured for use in a first region being able to perform device to device communications in a second region in licensed bands that are illegal or not permitted. Furthermore, each device should be configured to setup ad hoc network using D2D only in those areas where the licence bands can be used legally by the device. Therefore, each device determines its position (403) and blocks D2D operation (408) when outside of a geographical area to which it was configured.