KR101661623B1 - Subscriber classification system and method for controlling mobile communication service - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention divides whether a subscriber subscribes to a specific service in a mobile communication system when a mobile communication subscriber uses a packet data service through a mobile terminal to individually control the provision or blocking of a packet data service for a specific subscriber , When the mobile terminal accesses the Internet through the packet-switching center, the packet analyzer provided between the packet-switching center and the Internet network receives the packet data charging information from the packet-switching station and subscribes to the packet data charging information in the mobile communication service It checks whether the information of the subscriber is included. If the information of the subscriber who subscribes to the specific service is included, the subscriber individually controls the provision and blocking of the service according to the service policy.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a subscriber classification system and method for controlling a mobile communication service,

The present invention relates to a subscriber classification system and method for controlling use of a mobile communication service, and more particularly, to a subscriber classification system and method for controlling use of a mobile communication service when a mobile communication subscriber uses a packet data service through a terminal, And controlling the blocking or Qos adjustment of the packet data service only for a specific subscriber individually.

In the overseas mobile communication market, data traffic is increasing sharply due to the spread of smartphones and data spread. In the domestic market where traffic has been stable, traffic is also surging.

In addition, due to intensified competition of services, the upper capacity of data flat rate is gradually increasing, and as subscriber of data flat is spreading, it becomes difficult for mobile communication companies to control traffic demand.

In particular, about 3.7% of heavy users subscribing to data plans account for 86% of total data traffic, and the distribution of traffic usage is spreading as the recent subscriber base spreads.

When analyzing data traffic in detail, data traffic occupies a high proportion of the web browsing service and video service use. In particular, the web browsing service occupies about 32% of the time of mobile internet service use, but the utilization rate of data service is concentrated in the mobile communication service such as 69% of the bandwidth occupancy rate.

Accordingly, there is a need to restrict the use of heavy services by a large number of users in order to prevent a shortage of network capacity and a lack of frequency and to provide a stable service to all subscribers.

In addition, when a heavy service is provided, it is necessary to limit the bandwidth so that the subscriber does not inconvenience to use other services.

However, in order to control the current data service, it is only possible to restrict the use of the service to all the mobile communication subscribers, and it is impossible to control the service provision to some subscribers.

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem [8] Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for controlling a subscriber, And to provide a classification system and method.

To this end, according to a first aspect of the present invention, a subscriber classification system according to the present invention is a system in which a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service accesses an Internet network through a packet- A subscriber information server storing information of the subscriber; If the packet data charging information received from the packet-switching center includes information on subscribers subscribed to a specific service among the mobile communication services and includes information on subscribers subscribed to a specific service, A packet analyzing device for controlling a service; And a subscriber interworking gateway for classifying subscribers subscribed to a specific service in subscriber information previously stored in the subscriber information server, and creating the service policy and providing the service policy to the packet analyzing apparatus.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a packet analyzing apparatus for analyzing a packet, the apparatus comprising: a device for implementing a system in which a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service accesses an Internet network through a packet- And mapping the packet data charging information received from the packet switching center to information of a subscriber subscribed to the mobile communication service to confirm whether or not the subscriber includes subscriber information subscribed to a specific service of the mobile communication service, And if the information includes information of a subscriber who subscribes to a specific service, the subscriber is controlled according to a service policy.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a subscriber interworking gateway according to the present invention comprises: a server for implementing a system in which a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service accesses an Internet network through a packet- A subscriber information server that stores information on subscribers subscribed to the mobile communication service, and a packet analyzer that analyzes and controls packet data transmitted from the packet-switching station, And generates and manages a policy for a service to be controlled.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for a subscriber identification method according to the present invention, in which a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service accesses an Internet network through a packet- Receiving packet data charging information generated by the packet switching center in a packet analyzer located between the exchange and the Internet network; Exchanging packet data charging information received from the packet-switching station with information of a subscriber subscribed to the mobile communication service to confirm whether the subscriber includes subscriber information of the mobile communication service; Wherein the packet data accounting apparatus includes a step of controlling the subscriber according to a service policy if the packet data accounting information includes information of a subscriber subscribing to a specific service.

In the case where the mobile communication subscriber uses the data service through the mobile terminal, conventionally, the provision of the data service can be controlled with respect to the entire mobile communication subscriber. However, according to the present invention, So that it is possible to individually control services for specific subscribers. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent excessive occupation of data traffic of a large number of users, thereby contributing to stable operation of a network by a mobile communication service provider.

In addition, to allow only certain subscribers who have subscribed to a specific rate plan to use the subscribers to attract subscribers to the subscription, or to limit the service to subscribers who subscribe to a specific rate plan, or to lower the transmission rate, .

1 is a diagram illustrating a network configuration of a subscriber classification system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the overall operation of the subscriber sorting system according to the embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of updating a policy for service control between the packet analyzing apparatus and the subscriber interworking gateway.
4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of mapping an IP address of a subscriber in step S37 of FIG.
5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of performing a service control in a packet analysis apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the packet analyzing apparatus when the mobile terminal terminates the use of the data service.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The configuration of the present invention and the operation and effect thereof will be clearly understood through the following detailed description. Before describing the present invention in detail, the same components are denoted by the same reference symbols as possible even if they are displayed on different drawings. In the case where it is judged that the gist of the present invention may be blurred to a known configuration, do.

1 is a diagram illustrating a network configuration of a subscriber classification system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The subscriber classification system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a mobile terminal 100, a radio access network 200 for enabling wireless connection of the mobile terminal 100, a packet switching station 300, a packet analysis apparatus 400, An interworking gateway 500, and a subscriber information server 600. [

The mobile terminal 100 is provided with a packet data service corresponding to a specific service to which the subscriber subscribes to a subscriber terminal subscribed to the mobile communication service.

The radio access network 200 includes a Node-B 220 and a Radio Network Controller (RNC) 240 in the case of W-CDMA. A plurality of base stations 220 may be provided for each region and a mobile terminal 100 associated with each base station 220 may receive a relay service from the base station 220 and transmit communication services such as voice call, multimedia streaming, Can receive. The RNC 240 connects the mobile communication subscriber in the network to another network and performs transmission and reception of the packet traffic received from the base station 220 or the packet switching station 300 to the destination of the corresponding location. That is, circuit traffic of a circuit switch domain, IP (internet protocol) packet traffic of a packet switch domain, and the like are transmitted through a base station 220 to a mobile terminal, And so on.

In the case of CDMA, the base station 220 of the radio access network 200 may correspond to a base transceiver station (BTS), and the RNC may correspond to a base station controller (BSC).

The packet switching center 300 controls the call processing of the packet network with respect to the download / upload of multimedia data of the mobile terminal 100, the wireless Internet service, the portable internet service, etc., generates billing data according to the service use time, And transmits it to the packet analyzing apparatus 400 together with the request of the packet analyzing apparatus 400.

This packet-switching station 300 corresponds to a Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) or Serving GPRS Supporting Node (SGSN) in the case of W-CDMA, and may correspond to a Packet Data Serving Node (PDSN) in the case of CDMA.

The packet analyzing apparatus 400 maps the stored subscriber information based on the billing data received from the packet-switching station 300, and controls the traffic of the packet data of the subscriber when the subscriber is controlled through the mapping.

Here, the billing data includes the MIN (Mobile Identification Number) number of the subscriber as information for identifying the subscriber. The subscriber information previously stored in the packet analyzing apparatus 400 is received from the subscriber interworking gateway 500 as subscriber information subscribed to a specific service among the data stored in the subscriber information server 600. The pre-stored subscriber information may include the subscriber's MIN number, the specific rate plan and subscribed subscriber's IP address.

In addition, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 according to the embodiment of the present invention may include a monitoring module that is responsible for updating the service policy information to be maintained as the latest information. The network manager may enter commands to perform updates via the monitoring module.

In addition, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 according to the embodiment of the present invention stores and manages attributes of subscriber information that can be mapped to billing data received from the packet-switching station 300 in the database from the subscriber interworking gateway 500. At this time, the attribute of the subscriber information may include the MIN number of the subscriber, the specific plan and the IP address to which the subscriber subscribes, as described above, since the IP address is set to the default address before the data service is used It is necessary to map the allocated IP address when using the data service. A detailed description thereof will be specifically described with reference to FIG.

The subscriber information server 600 stores information on subscribers subscribed to the mobile communication service. The subscriber information stored in the subscriber information server 600 includes an identification number (e.g., telephone number, MIN number, MDN number, etc.) of a subscriber, a service code corresponding to a specific service / And the like.

The subscriber interworking gateway 500 is a server for interworking between the subscriber information server 600 and the packet analyzer 400. The subscriber interworking gateway 500 can classify and manage only subscribers subscribed to a specific service among mobile communication subscribers. In addition, a policy for the service to be controlled is generated in the subscriber interworking gateway 500, and the generated policy is transmitted to the packet analyzer 400. [

The subscriber interworking gateway 500 for this purpose is provided with a monitoring module through which a network administrator can input an update command or the like. The subscriber interworking gateway 500 transmits the subscriber information stored in the subscriber information server 600 to the network manager You can update accordingly.

Therefore, when the subscriber uses the packet data service through the mobile terminal 100, the subscriber classification system according to the embodiment of the present invention transmits data related to the use of the packet data service to the packet switching station 300 through the base station 220 This data is transmitted to the Internet network 700 via the packet analyzing apparatus 400 before using the actual data service.

At this time, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 maps the billing data received from the packet-switching station 300 to the stored subscriber information to check whether the data traffic received from the packet-switching station 300 is a control target of the service, And controls the data traffic received from the packet-switching station 300 according to the service policy information received from the subscriber interworking gateway 500, if the service is a control target. Traffic control can be a way to block or allow traffic, but the quality of traffic can be guaranteed by keeping the traffic rate low, high, or intact through the QoS adjustment.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the overall operation of the subscriber sorting system according to the embodiment of the present invention, and the overall operation thereof will be described.

The packet analyzing apparatus 400 updates the policy information of the service every certain period or when the network manager is running in order to keep the policy information of the service generated by the subscriber interworking gateway 500 up to date with the subscriber interworking gateway 500 (S1). To this end, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 is provided with a monitoring system for monitoring whether the policy information of the service is updated or not, and a network manager can input commands.

The subscriber interworking gateway 500 specifies and classifies a specific subscriber requiring control of the service according to the policy of the created service, and performs an update to reflect an attribute of the existing subscriber stored in the subscriber information server 600 or a new subscriber (S2). Then, the updated data is transmitted to the packet analysis apparatus 400, and the subscriber information is stored in the database of the packet analysis apparatus 400.

After that, when the mobile terminal 100 accesses the packet-switching center 300 to use the packet data service, the packet-switching center 300 not only transmits the request information of the packet data service, but also transmits packets for smooth provision and billing of the mobile- Generates and transmits data charging information to the packet analyzer 400 (S3, S4).

The packet analyzing apparatus 400 maps the packet data charging information received from the packet switching station 300 to the subscriber information stored in the internal database based on the data capable of identifying the subscriber, such as the MIN number of the subscriber (S5 ).

Then, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 compares the mapped subscriber information with the control policy received from the subscriber interworking gateway 500 and performs service control according to the corresponding control policy (S6).

Thereafter, when the mobile terminal 100 terminates the use of the packet data service, the packet switching center 300 transmits a connection termination message of the service to the packet analysis apparatus 400, and the packet analysis apparatus 400, (S7 to S9).

The process S1 for updating the service policy between the packet analyzing apparatus 400 and the subscriber interworking gateway 500 will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, the subscriber interworking gateway 500 creates and stores a service policy so that the subscriber interworking gateway 500 can control the service (S30). Then, the policy of the created service is transmitted to the packet analysis apparatus 400 (S31). At this time, the network administrator can directly enter the policy of the service through the monitoring system of the subscriber interworking gateway 500.

For example, if the target service to be controlled is the FTP service and the service is requested from the subscriber related to the FTP service, the protocol = "FTP" if the service itself is to be blocked. You can create policies for services like Current_Policy = "block". The menus and attributes that make up the policy may vary.

The packet analyzing apparatus 400 stores the policy of the service received from the subscriber interworking gateway 500, monitors the policy of the service when the policy is updated, and immediately updates the policy according to an instruction from the network manager (S32).

Then, the subscriber interworking gateway 500 requests the subscriber information server 600 for subscriber information subscribed to the mobile communication service, in order to update the attribute of the subscriber stored therein (S33). In response, the subscriber information server 600 transmits the subscriber information to the subscriber interworking gateway 500 (S34).

The subscriber interworking gateway 500 classifies the specific subscriber information corresponding to the service code among the subscriber information transmitted from the subscriber information server 600 and transmits the classified subscriber information (i.e., MIN number) and the policy To the packet analyzing apparatus 400 (S35, S36).

Then, the packet analyzing apparatus 400 stores the attribute of the received specific subscriber information (S37). The attributes of the subscriber information may include a MIN number, a policy for the service to be controlled, an IP address, and the like. At this time, the IP address of the subscriber information is an IP address assigned to the mobile terminal, which is a subscriber, in the packet switching center, and is set to a predetermined initial address before the data service is used.

The operation of mapping the subscriber's IP address in step S37 of FIG. 3 will be described in detail.

In general, when using the packet data service, the packet-switching station 300 of the mobile communication network gives the subscriber an IP address. However, since the address is changed at each connection, it is necessary to check which subscribers use which IP to control the service.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, when the mobile terminal 100 accesses the packet switching center 300 through the radio access network and starts using the packet data service (S40), the packet switching center 300 transmits the data In addition, packet data billing information containing information for starting use of the service is generated and transmitted to the billing system. At this time, the packet data accounting information transmitted to the billing system is also transmitted to the packet analyzer 400 (S41). The packet data charging information includes the MIN number for identifying the subscriber, the IP address assigned to the subscriber by the packet switching center 300, and the like, so that the IP address of the packet analyzing apparatus 400 can be confirmed.

The packet analyzing apparatus 400 inquires whether the MIN number included in the packet data charging information exists in the pre-stored subscriber information (S42).

If the MIN number included in the packet data charging information exists in the subscriber information as a result of the inquiry, the IP address of the subscriber information is mapped to the IP address included in the packet data charging information and updated with the mapped IP address (S43).

5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of performing a service control in a packet analysis apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. This is a detailed operation procedure for the service control step S6 described with reference to FIG.

In the service control step, the packet analysis apparatus 400 maps the packet data charging information received from the packet-switching station 300 to the stored subscriber information to check whether the MIN number included in the packet data charging information is in the subscriber information S53).

If the MIN number included in the packet data charging information corresponds to the pre-stored subscriber information, the control target subscriber checks a policy for controlling which service (S54).

At this time, if the service used by the subscriber is a control target service in policy, the service is controlled (S55). The service control may apply a method of blocking or allowing traffic received from the packet-switching center, but it is possible to apply a method of maintaining the transmission rate of the traffic at a low or high level by adjusting the QoS.

For example, when the mobile terminal 100 requests a Web service, the mobile terminal 100 determines whether the requested service is an allowed service. If the mobile terminal 100 permits the service, the web service is permitted and accesses the Internet based on the accepted service.

As another example, if the mobile terminal 100 requests the FTP-based service, it is checked whether the requested service is an allowed service. If the mobile terminal 100 corresponds to the control target protocol, the FTP-based service is blocked or provisionally blocked Can be controlled. Or QoS of FTP-based service is lowered and quality is lowered compared to other services, thereby preventing excessive occupation of data traffic and compensating for the disadvantage caused by service blocking.

If the MIN number included in the packet data charging information does not exist in the pre-stored subscriber information, the subscriber is not the subscriber to be controlled and thus allows all the services (S56, S57).

6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the packet analyzing apparatus when the mobile terminal terminates the use of the data service. This is a detailed operation process for the subscriber information mapping release step S9 described in FIG.

When the mobile terminal 100 terminates the data use, the packet-switching center 300 generates packet data charging information including the termination time of the service and transmits the packet data charging information to the charging system (S61, S62). At this time, the packet data charging information includes the MIN number and the IP address for identifying the subscriber.

The packet switching station 300 transmits the packet data charging information to the packet analyzing apparatus 400. The packet analyzing apparatus 400 receives the packet data charging information and determines whether the MIN number included in the packet data charging information exists in the subscriber information stored in the inside (S63).

If the corresponding MIN number exists, the IP address of the subscriber information is deleted and set to a predetermined address initially (S64).

The foregoing description is merely illustrative of the present invention, and various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed in the specification of the present invention are not intended to limit the present invention. The scope of the present invention should be construed according to the following claims, and all the techniques within the scope of equivalents should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

Conventionally, packet data service can only restrict the use of data service for all mobile communication subscribers, and it is impossible to control service provision for some subscribers. However, according to the present invention, It is possible to control the service only for a specific subscriber. Accordingly, it is effective to prevent excessive occupation of data traffic of a large number of users, thereby contributing to stable operation of a network by a mobile communication service provider. In addition, by allowing a specific service only to subscribers subscribing to a specific service, The mobile communication business can be further activated.

100: mobile terminal 200: radio access network
220: base station 240: RNC
300: Packet switching station 400: Packet analyzing apparatus
500: Subscriber interworking gateway 600: Subscriber information server

Claims (17)

delete delete delete An apparatus for implementing a system in which a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service accesses an Internet network through a packet-switching station and receives packet data service,
Exchanges the packet data charging information received from the packet-switching center with the information of the subscriber subscribed to the mobile communication service to confirm whether or not the information includes the subscriber who subscribed to the specific service among the mobile communication services, If the information of the subscriber who subscribes to a specific service is included, the subscriber is controlled according to the service policy,
Wherein the service control adjusts QoS by lowering or increasing a transmission rate of traffic received from the packet-switching station. delete 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the subscriber who has subscribed to the mobile communication service subscribes to the specific service, the service policy, and the subscriber to be controlled according to the service policy are previously stored in the database and updated. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the packet data charging information includes a Mobile Identification Number (MIN) number and an IP address for identifying a subscriber. The method according to claim 4 or 6,
Wherein the information of the subscriber includes a subscriber's MIN number and an IP address allocated to the subscriber by the packet-switching station. 9. The method of claim 8,
Wherein the IP address is set to an initial address before using the packet data service, and if the information of the subscriber to be controlled is included in the packet data charging information, the IP address is mapped to an IP address included in the packet data charging information and is updated Lt; / RTI > delete A method for a mobile terminal of a subscriber subscribed to a mobile communication service to access a packet data service through a packet-switching center,
Receiving packet data charging information generated by the packet-switching station in a packet analyzing apparatus located between the packet-switching station and the Internet network;
Exchanging packet data charging information received from the packet-switching station with information of a subscriber subscribed to the mobile communication service to confirm whether the subscriber includes subscriber information of the mobile communication service;
If the packet data charging information includes information of a subscriber subscribing to a specific service, the packet analyzing device controls the subscriber according to a service policy
Lt; / RTI >
The step of controlling the subscriber according to a service policy includes:
Wherein the QoS is adjusted by lowering or increasing the transmission rate of the traffic received from the packet-switching station. delete 12. The method of claim 11,
The packet analyzing apparatus may further include a step of storing information on a subscriber subscribing to a specific service among the subscribers subscribed to the mobile communication service, a service policy, and a subscriber to be controlled according to the service policy in advance in a database Characterized in that the subscriber identification method. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the step of mapping the packet data charging information with information of a subscriber subscribed to the mobile communication service uses the MIN number and IP address of the subscriber included in the packet data charging information. The method according to claim 13 or 14,
Wherein the information of the subscriber includes the MIN number of the subscriber and the IP address allocated to the subscriber by the packet switching center. 16. The method of claim 15,
Wherein the IP address is set to an initial address before using the packet data service, and if the information of the subscriber to be controlled is included in the packet data charging information, the IP address is mapped to an IP address included in the packet data charging information and is updated How to identify subscribers. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the packet analyzing apparatus permits all services if the packet data charging information does not include information of subscribers subscribed to a specific service.

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