Individual Telephone Number Assignment via Centralized Administrator
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing system for telephone number assignment requires service providers to acquire and maintain large blocks of numbers, leading to inefficiencies and wastage, as users cannot request specific or novelty numbers.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a numbering administrator to acquire and manage individual telephone numbers, allowing for real-time availability checks and assignments, utilizing blockchain technology for distributed registries and efficient communication between carriers and administration agencies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If service providers acquire large blocks of telephone numbers, then they have sufficient numbers available for assignment, but they must maintain extensive infrastructure and personnel for numbering management
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the telephone number management function from service providers and centralizes it in a numbering administrator. Service providers no longer need to acquire or manage blocks of numbers; instead, they request individual numbers from the administrator who manages the numbering plan area (NPA) and central office (CO) code assignments centrally, eliminating the need for extensive provider infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The numbering administrator acts as an intermediary between the numbering plan authority and service providers. This intermediary manages the telephone number inventory, processes requests from multiple providers, and assigns numbers individually, reducing the management burden on service providers while ensuring efficient number allocation.
2Quantity of substance
If service providers acquire large blocks of telephone numbers, then they have sufficient numbers for current and future users, but unassigned numbers remain unused and wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static block allocation to dynamic individual number assignment. Service providers request numbers on-demand based on actual user needs, and the numbering administrator assigns individual numbers from the available inventory. This dynamic approach ensures numbers are allocated only when needed, eliminating waste from unassigned numbers in provider blocks.
Solution Approach 2:
Service providers can request telephone numbers as needed through the numbering administrator's system, which automatically checks availability and assigns numbers from the managed inventory. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for providers to pre-acquire large blocks, allowing numbers to be allocated efficiently based on actual demand.
3Duration of action of stationary object
If service providers acquire large blocks of telephone numbers, then they have inventory for long periods, but the system is onerous to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the inventory management responsibility from service providers and transfers it to the numbering administrator. Providers no longer need to maintain long-term inventory; instead, the administrator centrally manages the NPA and CO code inventory, processing individual number requests as they arise, significantly reducing operational burden on providers.
4Quantity of substance
If service providers acquire blocks of telephone numbers, then they have numbers for assignment, but users cannot request specific or novelty numbers
Solution Approach 1:
The numbering administrator pre-assigns CO codes and NPAs to service providers in advance, creating an inventory of available numbers under each provider's CO code. When users request specific or novelty numbers, the system checks the administrator's records to determine which provider's inventory contains the desired number and processes the assignment accordingly, enabling user-specific requests while maintaining efficient inventory management.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for individual telephone numbering assignment and administration in a telecommunications network are disclosed. Particularly, the invention relates to the concept of acquiring individual telephone numbers instead of acquiring a block of telephone numbers from an administration agency. According to disclosed embodiments, the system and method allow a carrier to request an individual telephone number from a numbering administrator. The numbering administrator verifies that the carrier is authorized to request an individual telephone in a particular geographic area. If the carrier is authorized, the numbering administrator obtains an individual telephone number from its database and provides it to the carrier. The carrier initiates an intra-carrier assignment with an administrative agency to get the individual telephone number assigned to it. The administrative agency processes the assignment activation request, and upon completion of the addignment process, notifies all carriers that the individual telephone number is assigned to the requesting carrier.