Service Control Processor Billing Resilience
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing dual backup solution for service control processors in intelligent networks leads to loss of phone bills during switching, resulting in economic loss for operators due to the inability to charge ongoing calls effectively.
Innovation Solution
A method is introduced to generate zero-time and emergency phone bills before and during abnormal communication, which are then modified and compensated to ensure complete charging by scanning and adjusting the talk time and service keys, allowing for normal charging even during service controller switching.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If dual backup solution is adopted for service control processors, then system reliability is improved, but phone bill loss occurs during switching
Solution Approach 1:
The patent generates a zero-time phone bill in advance before the actual call starts. This preliminary action ensures that if switching occurs during the call, the billing information is already recorded and cannot be lost. The zero-time phone bill contains all necessary billing data with talk time set to zero, which is then updated later if the call completes normally.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a backup billing record (zero-time phone bill) beforehand to cushion against the potential loss of billing information during switching. This cushioning mechanism ensures that even if the host CP switches to standby CP and loses ongoing session information, the billing data is already preserved in the pre-generated zero-time phone bill.
2Speed
If host CP is switched to standby CP quickly, then service continuity is improved, but control over charging is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary billing action by generating the zero-time phone bill before switching occurs. This allows the standby CP to quickly take over service control without needing to recover billing information, as the billing is already initiated and recorded in advance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a copy of the billing record (zero-time phone bill) that can be independently processed. This copy contains all essential billing information and can be updated or finalized by the standby CP without requiring the original host CP, enabling independent charging control after switching.
3Loss of information
If zero-time phone bill is generated in advance, then phone bill loss is prevented, but additional processing steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The zero-time phone bill is designed to be self-updating. When a call completes normally, the system automatically updates the zero-time phone bill with the actual talk time and generates the final billing record. This self-service mechanism reduces manual intervention and simplifies the overall process despite the additional initial step.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a two-stage billing approach where the zero-time phone bill is initially created, then either updated with actual talk time if the call completes, or used as-is if switching occurs. This allows the system to discard the preliminary zero-time bill in favor of a finalized bill when appropriate, recovering the simplicity of normal billing processes.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5
AI summary
A method for preventing the loss of phone bills due to the switching of service control processors comprises the following steps: generating a zero-time phone bill before a talk between two calling parties is initiated, and generating a talk time phone bill when a user ends the talk; switching the service control processors under the circumstance that the communication is abnormal, scanning all generated phone bills, and sorting out the zero-time phone bills which have lost the talk time phone bills; and modifying the sorted zero-time phone bills to compensate the talk time phone bills which generate the loss.