GMLC MME Identification via Event Reports
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing Mobile Positioning System (MPS) relies on the SLh interface between the Home Subscriber Server (HSS) and the Gateway Mobile Location Centre (GMLC) to determine the serving Mobility Management Entity (MME), which has limited use and business value, making it likely that support for SLh will be lacking, especially when deploying Location Based Services (LBS).
Innovation Solution
A method where the GMLC continuously receives and stores event reports from the MME, containing information about MME identity and UE identities, allowing it to determine the serving MME for a UE location service request without relying on the SLh interface, thereby enabling wider deployment of LBS and reducing the workload on the HSS.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the SLh interface between HSS and GMLC is used to determine the serving MME, then the positioning service can be provided, but the deployment is limited due to lack of SLh support and increased dependency on HSS
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the MME identification function from the HSS and relocates it to the GMLC. The GMLC now independently determines the serving MME by matching the UE's IMSI against stored MME-UE identity mappings, eliminating the mandatory dependency on the SLh interface between HSS and GMLC for this specific function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism where the GMLC acts as a mediator between the UE and the MME. By storing and processing MME event reports locally, the GMLC mediates the identification process without requiring direct HSS involvement through the SLh interface, thereby reducing HSS workload and interface dependencies.
2Reliability
If the HSS supports the SLh interface for MME determination, then location services can be deployed, but the workload on HSS increases and costs for SLh features are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
The GMLC performs self-service by maintaining local copies of MME event reports and independently determining the serving MME through IMSI matching. This self-service capability eliminates the need for the HSS to process SLh interface requests for MME identification, thereby reducing HSS workload while maintaining service reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-storing MME event reports containing UE identities and their corresponding MME associations in the GMLC before location service requests arrive. This advance preparation enables rapid local lookup and MME determination without requiring real-time HSS involvement, thus reducing HSS workload while ensuring service availability.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a method for providing location based services for a client in an infrastructure network. The network comprises at least one Home Subscriber Server, HSS, at least one Mobility Management Entity, MME, and at least one Gateway Mobile Location Centre, GMLC, for the client. The GMLC sending an UE location service response to the client based on a UE location service request received from the client. The network performs the steps of: (A) the GMLC continuously receives and stores event reports streamed from the MME(s), the reports comprising information about the MME identity and identities for UE(s) served by said MME; (B) the GMLC determines the identity of a serving MME for the UE in the UE location service request on the basis of the information in the event reports.