Altobridge Limited

Slieve Mish Inventions Limited

Liam Kenny

Michael Godley

Richard Lord

Michael Fitzgerald

Guy Waugh

Christopher Young

Ian Walter

Tadhg Crotty

Joseph Cahill

Ian O'Shea

A method of operation of a mobile network () comprising network core central nodes including a switching node and at least one remote node () linked with the central nodes via a remote backhaul communication link (). The method performs local connection of data or voice sessions. A remote node () extracts, from signals, information concerning said devices to populate a database, and accesses said database when deciding whether to connect the call locally. The information includes device capability information including codec capabilities of the originating and terminating devices (MS-A, B, C). A remote node alters signalling information concerning codec capabilities of at least one of the devices (MS-A, B, C) to force use of the same codecs during the session. In one example, the information is extracted from a Bearer Capability field in a Call Confirmed message sent back from the terminating device and stored in the database for use in subsequent decisions concerning local connections of sessions. The invention allows legal intercept operations and is adaptive to handover conditions.

Communications system and method

A mobile network comprises remote base transceiver station (BTS) nodes () linked with a central base station controller (BSC) node (). The latter is in turn linked with a mobile switching center (MSC,), a visitor location register (VLR,), and a home location register (HLR,). Mobile stations (, MS-A, MS-B, and MS-C) are located in the cells of the BTSs (). The remote nodes ((),()) are connected to the central node BSC () over a remote backhaul satellite connection. Calls are routed locally while the central nodes continue to manage calls and services from central feature-rich and typically more reliable switches of a core network. This means that calls set up between subscribers on the same remote node get connected within the remote node but call supervision is still carried out by the central nodes. The features and services of the existing core network are preserved. For example, if the calling subscriber is a pre-paid GSM subscriber and their account runs out during the call a release signal will still be sent from the central node to the remote even though the voice traffic is being handled by the remote node.

Growing community of inventors

County Wicklow, Ireland

Liam Kenny