Online Charging System Free Resource Processing Efficiency

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Solution Overview

Problem

The inefficiency in charging processes due to multiple interactions between the Online Charging System (OCS) and the Account Balance Management (ABM) in prepaid charging systems, which affects charging efficiency and timeliness.

Innovation Solution

A method and system that process free resources by generating a free resource account item and a cash account item based on the service unit applied for, and sending these items to the account balance management center for cost accounting, thereby reducing the need for repeated interactions between OCS and ABM, especially when the free resource balance is zero, allowing direct use of the cash account for cost reservation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If the OCS and ABM interact multiple times to reserve free resources and perform cost accounting, then the charging system can accurately handle free resource deductions, but the charging efficiency and timeliness are affected due to increased interaction overhead

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecharging accuracyVSAvoidcharging efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The OCS performs rating processing in advance to generate cash account items, and includes both free resource account items and cash account items in a single credit control request sent to the ABM. This preliminary action eliminates the need for subsequent interaction rounds, allowing the ABM to directly perform cost accounting based on the pre-calculated cash account items, thus resolving the contradiction between charging accuracy and charging efficiency

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent merges the free resource account item generation and cash account item generation into a single processing step at the OCS. By combining these operations and including both account items in one credit control request to the ABM, the system reduces multiple interactions to a single interaction, thereby improving charging efficiency while maintaining accurate cost accounting

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Loss of time

If the OCS performs rating and generates cash account items before sending requests to ABM, then the number of interactions between OCS and ABM is reduced, but the complexity of the OCS increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinteraction timeVSAvoidOCS complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of timeVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The OCS is designed to perform multiple functions: it not only generates free resource account items but also performs rating processing to generate cash account items. By making the OCS multi-functional, the system consolidates operations that would otherwise require separate processing steps and interactions with the ABM, thereby reducing interaction time while the added complexity is justified by the overall system efficiency improvement

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentEP2590359B1Method, system, charging equipment, and account balance management center for free resources processing
Publication Date: 2017.11.15 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD
  • EP2590359B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2590359B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP2590359B1 patent drawingFigure 4~5

AI summary

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, an apparatus, and a system for improving a service success rate. The method includes: receiving a credit control request sent by a front-end device, where the credit control request includes a service unit that is applied for and a user identifier; determining, according to the user identifier, that the current request meets a free resource processing condition, and generating a free resource account item; performing rating processing on the service it that is applied for and generating a cash account item; and sending a credit control request carrying the cash account item and the free resource account item to an account balance management center, so that the account balance management center performs cost accounting according to the cash account item; and the free resource account item. When the balance of a free resource account book is 0, a cash account book is directly used for cost accounting, without requiring the ABM to send a message to an OCS again, thereby decreasing message interactions between the OCS and the ABM, reducing ratings of the OCS, and improving charging efficiency.