Local Profile Assistant for eUICC Remote Management
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mobile communication systems face challenges in remotely managing SIM profiles, especially when a terminal with an embedded Universal Integrated Circuit Card (eUICC) cannot be controlled, making it difficult to install, enable, or disable SIM profiles without physical access, particularly in scenarios where the terminal is not connected to a manager profile server or does not support remote management commands.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that allow a terminal to check the authority of profile servers transmitting remote management commands, switch to local management if necessary, and manage SIM profiles remotely by using a transceiver, a first-version eUICC, and a controller to handle remote management commands, even if the terminal cannot be controlled directly, by checking SM-DP+ information and switching commands to local management if the eUICC cannot handle remote management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If remote management commands are used to manage SIM profiles, then service flexibility and convenience are improved, but the system fails when the terminal cannot be controlled or is not connected to a manager profile server
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a local profile assistant (LPA) as an intermediary component stored in the terminal that can execute remote management commands locally. When the terminal is disconnected from the manager profile server, the LPA acts as a mediator to process and execute the commands that were previously received, ensuring continuous operation without requiring real-time server connection.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by storing the local profile assistant and necessary profile data in the terminal before disconnection occurs. The LPA is pre-configured with the authority information and command execution capabilities, so when the terminal disconnects from the manager profile server, it can immediately execute remote management commands without requiring real-time server interaction.
2Reliability
If the terminal checks authority of profile servers, then security is improved, but the complexity of command handling increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the authority verification logic from the complex remote management command handling process. The local profile assistant separately checks the authority information of profile servers using a dedicated authority checking mechanism, isolating this security function from the main command execution flow. This separation reduces the complexity of overall command handling while maintaining security.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the eUICC cannot handle remote management commands, then compatibility with older devices is improved, but remote management functionality is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The local profile assistant serves as an intermediary that bridges the gap between eUICCs with and without remote management capabilities. For eUICCs that cannot directly handle remote management commands, the LPA intercepts these commands, processes them locally, and executes the appropriate operations, thereby providing remote management functionality to older or incompatible eUICC implementations.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The disclosure relates to a communication technique for combining IoT technology with a 5G communication system for supporting a data transmission rate higher than that of a beyond-4G system, and a system therefor. The disclosure is applicable to intelligent services based on 5G communication technology and IoT-related technology (for example, smart homes, smart buildings, smart cities, smart cars or connected cars, health care, digital education, retail businesses, security and safety-related services). A method of a terminal includes receiving a request related to a first function from a profile server; identifying if the first function can be executed; identifying if it is possible to switch to a second function if the first function cannot be executed; and handling the request based on the second function if it is possible to switch to the second function. A terminal includes a transceiver and at least one processor. The at least one processor receives a remote management command from a profile server, determines if the remote management command can be handled, performs the received remote management command, switches the remote management command to a local management command if necessary according to the result of performing the remote management command, and controls the transceiver so as to transmit the result of performing the remote management command or the local management command to the profile server.