SIP Server Session Continuity During Mobile Gateway Handover

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current methods fail to ensure continuous management of communication sessions for fourth-generation mobile terminals during macro-mobility, leading to risks of service interruption when mobile terminals move out of the coverage area of the initial base station and switch to a different access gateway.

Innovation Solution

A method that involves transmitting an alert message to a new SIP server when a mobile terminal changes access gateways, allowing the new server to request the call context from the previous server and send an invitation message with connection parameters to the terminal, enabling seamless session management without requiring modifications to the SIP clients.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Device complexity

If centralized session management is used with a single SIP server, then session management is simplified, but service continuity is lost during macro-mobility events

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesession management structureVSAvoidservice continuity during mobility
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The centralized SIP server is segmented into multiple distributed SIP servers (first SIP server, second SIP server). Each server can independently manage communication sessions, allowing the system to maintain service continuity when a terminal moves between access gateways by transferring session management to a different server.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

An alert message mechanism acts as an intermediary between access gateways and SIP servers. When a terminal changes access gateway, the new gateway sends an alert message to trigger session context transfer between SIP servers, ensuring seamless handover without terminal involvement.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If session context is transferred between SIP servers during macro-mobility, then service continuity is maintained, but network signaling overhead increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice continuity during mobilityVSAvoidsignaling overhead
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The session context transfer mechanism extracts only the essential session management information (session parameters, terminal identification) from the complete session data. This selective transfer minimizes signaling overhead while maintaining service continuity, avoiding unnecessary data transmission.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Reliability

If multiple SIP servers are distributed across the network, then service continuity during macro-mobility is improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice continuity during mobilityVSAvoidsession management architecture
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Each distributed SIP server is designed with universal functionality to manage communication sessions independently. Any SIP server can take over session management for a moving terminal, eliminating the need for complex server-specific configurations and simplifying the overall system architecture despite the distributed nature.

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

4Productivity

If session management is tied to a specific access gateway, then local optimization is achieved, but macro-mobility continuity is compromised

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvelocal session management efficiencyVSAvoidsession continuity during gateway switching
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The session management system transitions from a static gateway-bound model to a dynamic server-based model. Session context can be dynamically transferred between SIP servers based on terminal mobility, allowing the system to adapt to changing network conditions while maintaining local management efficiency through the alert message trigger mechanism.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP2508017B1Method for ensuring continuity during the management of communication sessions operated from a fourth-generation mobile terminal
Publication Date: 2015.06.17 THALES SA
  • EP2508017B1 patent drawingFigure 1a
  • EP2508017B1 patent drawingFigure 1b
  • EP2508017B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3

AI summary

The invention relates to a method for ensuring continuity during the management of communication sessions operated from a fourth-generation mobile terminal (130) communicating on an IP network, said network including at least one radio network (110) provided with a plurality of base stations (111) with which said terminal (130) is capable of communicating, said radio network (110) being connected by means of access gateways (113, 113b, 113c) to an interconnect network (120) provided with application servers (150a, 150b, 150c) for managing communication sessions, the sessions of a mobile terminal (130) being managed by means of one of said servers (150a, 150b, 150c), wherein the method comprises at least the following steps: during a movement of the mobile terminal (130) resulting in a change of the access gateway, the new gateway (113b) transmits an alarm message to a new server for managing the communication sessions (150b); the new management server (150b) issues an interrogation request to at least one of the session management servers (150a, 150c) of said interconnect network different from said new server in order to recover the call context from the initial server (150a) that managed the session before the movement of the terminal (130); the new session management server (150b) transmits to the mobile terminal (130) an invitation along with the connection parameters such that said terminal can be connected to the new server (150b).