Messaging Gateway Inter-Working Data Encapsulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing message processing systems in busy mobile networks face significant storage and processing capacity issues due to the need for extensive storage and retrieval operations, as well as complex synchronization problems caused by correlating information across multiple systems.
Innovation Solution
A messaging method where a first system processes messages, adds inter-working data, and routes them to a second system without saving this data to a database, allowing the first system to process the returned inter-working data to generate a transaction output without database reads, using message identifiers and inter-working data encapsulated within message protocols.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the gateway stores transaction information in its own data store for each message, then the gateway can retrieve and process delivery receipts, but significant storage capacity and processing capacity is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the storage function from the gateway by removing the need for the gateway to maintain its own data store for transaction information. Instead, the service centre assumes responsibility for storing and managing all transaction-related data, including message submission details, delivery status, and charging information. This eliminates the gateway's storage requirements while maintaining complete transaction tracking capability.
2Reliability
If the gateway stores and retrieves transaction information for each message, then delivery receipts can be processed, but significant processing capacity is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the processing burden from the gateway by having the service centre generate and retain all transaction identifiers (message-id, charge-transaction-id) and maintain the association between them. When a delivery receipt arrives, the service centre performs the retrieval and correlation operations, returning the complete transaction context to the gateway without requiring the gateway to access its own data store.
3Adaptability or versatility
If transaction information is stored in multiple systems, then message processing can be distributed, but complex synchronization problems occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the data storage and transaction management functions into a single location - the service centre. By consolidating the data store at the service centre rather than distributing it across the gateway and service centre, the system eliminates synchronization problems while maintaining distributed processing capability. The gateway remains a lightweight forwarding element that does not maintain local copies of transaction data.
Data Source
AI summary
An application on a server submits the message to a gateway (1) (which it sees as a service centre). The gateway performs interaction with external applications on servers such as charging and then instead of storing transaction related information associated with this message, it packages the transaction information along with the message as inter-working data. The gateway then forwards the message including the inter-working data to the service center, while requesting a delivery receipt. The service centre may generate a message-id for this transaction, but no data relating to the transaction now needs to be stored by the gateway. The gateway (1) then informs the application that it has successfully stored the message for delivery. When the message reaches a complete state in the service centre the service centre (25) sends the gateway (1) a delivery receipt including the service centre generated message-id and the inter-working data. At this point the gateway no longer needs to retrieve transaction information relating to this message (based on service centre and message-id), as the data is already present in the message. On inspection of the transaction information the gateway can determine whether the original application requested the delivery receipt, and if so, forward the receipt to the application. Dependent on the resulting state of the message and any transaction information, the gateway may interact with external servers again. At this stage the gateway (1) then generates a Call Detail Record and acknowledges receipt of the delivery receipt.