Subscriber History Facility for IP Telecommunications Troubleshooting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Service providers face challenges in diagnosing and resolving service problems in IP-based telecommunications networks due to the lack of end-to-end control over the network, which involves third-party broadband networks and the Internet, making it difficult to provide high-quality service and troubleshoot issues quickly.
Innovation Solution
A software and/or hardware facility is implemented to maintain a subscriber history of connection requests and access attempts in IP-based telecommunications networks, including converged cellular and IP-based networks, allowing service support providers to quickly identify and troubleshoot service issues by storing and analyzing identifiers, timestamps, and session details associated with mobile device access requests.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If service providers implement robust service support solutions with subscriber history tracking, then service diagnostic capability and troubleshooting efficiency are improved, but system complexity and data storage requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically capturing, storing, and organizing connection request data, identifiers, timestamps, and session details before service problems occur. This proactive data collection enables rapid troubleshooting when issues arise, as the necessary information is already prepared and accessible to service support representatives.
Solution Approach 2:
The subscriber history database and associated interfaces act as intermediaries between the IP-based telecommunications network and service support operations. This intermediary layer consolidates scattered data from multiple network components and third-party networks into a unified, accessible format that simplifies diagnostic operations without requiring direct integration with all network elements.
2Reliability
If service providers track detailed connection requests and session information for all mobile devices, then service quality monitoring is improved, but information storage requirements and data management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by storing and managing different types of information at appropriate levels of detail. Critical identifiers, timestamps, and session details are captured at the connection request level, while more granular data is collected only when needed for specific troubleshooting scenarios. This selective data collection maintains service quality monitoring capability while optimizing storage requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The subscriber history tracking system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it monitors service quality, enables troubleshooting, provides billing information, and supports network optimization. By consolidating these functions into a single multi-functional data collection and management system, the patent reduces overall data management complexity compared to having separate systems for each purpose.
3Productivity
If service support representatives have access to comprehensive subscriber history data, then troubleshooting speed is improved, but data privacy concerns and security requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments access to subscriber history data by implementing role-based access controls and selective data disclosure. Service support representatives receive access to specific datasets and fields relevant to their troubleshooting tasks, while sensitive information remains protected. This segmentation enables fast troubleshooting for authorized personnel while minimizing data privacy risks through limited exposure of sensitive data.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms that log access patterns, monitor data usage, and provide audit trails for subscriber history data. This feedback loop enables the system to detect and respond to abnormal access patterns, ensuring data privacy and security while maintaining efficient troubleshooting capabilities for authorized service support operations.
Data Source
AI summary
A facility for maintaining a subscriber history pertaining to the use of a mobile device with an IP-based telecommunications service offered by a service provider. When a connection request is made by a mobile device to access an IP-based telecommunications service, one or more identifiers associated with the requesting mobile device and access point are provided in the request and stored by the facility. In some cases, the identifiers are stored even if the mobile device is unable to, or not authorized to, access the telecommunications service. Additional parameters associated with the request from the mobile device, such as a time stamp and details of a subsequent telecommunications session, are also associated with the stored request. The history of requests to access the IP-based telecommunications service from the mobile device are maintained by the facility and provided to a service support provider.