U.S. patent application number 10/425208 was filed with the patent office on 2003-10-16 for methods for identifying service processing of telephone calls.
Invention is credited to Brown, John Carl, Chen, Jin-Shi, Lo, Ron, Visser, Eldred James.
Application Number | 20030194076 10/425208 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 25240141 |
Filed Date | 2003-10-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030194076 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Brown, John Carl ; et
al. |
October 16, 2003 |
Methods for identifying service processing of telephone calls
Abstract
The present invention comprises methods for efficiently
identifying international outbound calls, in the telecommunications
network (TN) of the outgoing country, which should be screened as
possibly requiring processing according to a Global Virtual Network
Service (GVNS), as opposed to conventional international long
distance (ILD) call processing. In particular, the present
invention is directed to outbound international GVNS calls, known
as "on-net," which are from-one GVNS location to another GVNS
location of the same customer. International calls that are not
Outbound International GVNS On-net calls, referred to as Other ILD
calls, include at least three types: standard ILD, non-GVNS data
and international GVNS off-net calls. Standard ILD, non-GVNS data
calls and international GVNS off-net calls all have a routing
number which comprises a country code (CC) followed by a national
number (NN). In the present invention, all Outbound International
GVNS On-net calls have a routing number which begins with a CC
followed by a country code suffix (CC-suffix). Therefore, the
presence of a CC-suffix after the CC in a call routing number
indicates that the call should be screened as being, possibly, an
Outbound International GVNS On-net call. It is desirable to
minimize the number of Other ILD calls which are subject to extra
screening for being, possibly, an Outbound International GVNS
On-net call. Selecting a CC-suffix which comprises the national
trunk prefix (NTP) or domestic application prefix digit (DAPD) of
the call receiving country insures that only a small percentage of
Other ILD calls, such as are represented by mis-dialed standard ILD
calls or mis-dialed non-GVNS data calls, contain the CC-suffix. If
the NTP or DAPD cannot be used, then a national destination code
(NDC) of the receiving country which receives minimal Other ILD
call traffic is selected as the CC-suffix.
Inventors: |
Brown, John Carl; (Matawan,
NJ) ; Chen, Jin-Shi; (Holmdel, NJ) ; Lo,
Ron; (Holmdel, NJ) ; Visser, Eldred James;
(Annandale, NJ) |
Correspondence
Address: |
AT&T CORP.
P.O. BOX 4110
MIDDLETOWN
NJ
07748
US
|
Family ID: |
25240141 |
Appl. No.: |
10/425208 |
Filed: |
April 29, 2003 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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10425208 |
Apr 29, 2003 |
|
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|
09506254 |
Feb 17, 2000 |
|
|
|
6611587 |
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09506254 |
Feb 17, 2000 |
|
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|
08823925 |
Mar 25, 1997 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
379/220.01 ;
379/88.22 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04Q 2213/13399
20130101; H04Q 2213/13148 20130101; H04Q 2213/13383 20130101; H04Q
2213/13091 20130101; H04Q 2213/13531 20130101; H04Q 3/0016
20130101; H04Q 3/0029 20130101; H04Q 2213/13353 20130101; H04Q
2213/13141 20130101; H04Q 2213/1313 20130101; H04Q 3/665 20130101;
H04Q 2213/13097 20130101; H04Q 2213/13103 20130101; H04Q 2213/1338
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
379/220.01 ;
379/88.22 |
International
Class: |
H04M 001/64; H04M
007/00 |
Claims
We claim:
1. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of a plurality of digits;
and triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence
is of a first sequence value.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first type of
processing is processing according to a customer identification
parameter.
3. A method according to claim 1 wherein the first type of
processing is processing according to a billing parameter.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first type of
processing is processing according to a service quality
parameter.
5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first type of
processing is processing according to a service priority
parameter.
6. A method according to claim 1, wherein to first sequence value
comprises at least one digit whose value is part of the national
trunk prefix of a country to receive the communication.
7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first sequence value
comprises at least one digit whose value is part of the domestic
application prefix of a country to receive the communication.
8. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first sequence value
comprises a national destination code of a country to receive the
communication receiving which national destination code receives
minimal communication traffic from a country sending the
communication.
9. A method according to claim 1 wherein the second sequence of
digits is a suffix to the first sequence of digits.
10. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of one or more digits; and
triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence is
of a first sequence value, wherein the first type of processing is
processing according to a customer identification parameter.
11. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of one or more digits; and
triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence is
of a first sequence value, wherein the first type of processing is
processing according to a billing parameter.
12. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of one or more digits; and
triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence is
of a first sequence value, wherein the first type of processing is
processing according to a compression rate.
13. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of one or more digits; and
triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence is
of a first sequence value, wherein the first type of processing is
processing according to a network.
14. A method of triggering a first type of processing for a
communication, comprising the steps of: scanning a routing number
of the communication for a first sequence of one or more digits
indicative of a country to receive the communication; and scanning
the routing number for a second sequence of one or more digits; and
triggering the first type of processing if the second sequence is
of a first sequence value, wherein the first type of processing is
processing according to a service priority parameter.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This is a Divisional of co-pending application Ser. No.
09/506,254, filed Feb. 17, 2000, which is a Continuation of
application Ser. No. 08/823,925, filed Mar. 25, 1997 now
abandoned.
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to identifying the service
processing of a telephone call. More particularly, the present
invention relates to identifying the service processing of an
international telephone call by adding a predetermined suffix to
the country code of the call's routing number.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention relates to the call processing on a
telecommunications network (TN), such as the AT&T Switched
Network (ASN), for outbound international calls on a Global Virtual
Network Service (GVNS), such as the AT&T Global Software
Defined Network (GSDN) service, where the call is from one GVNS
location to another GVNS location of the same customer. A GVNS call
from one GVNS location to another GVNS location (for the same
customer) is known as an "on-net" call. The type of call the
present invention relates to is referred to as an Outbound
International GVNS On-net call. In accordance with ITU-T
Recommendation F.16 (ITU is the International Telecommunications
Union), incorporated herein by reference, GVNS is a global switched
service supported by multiple international networks and is offered
to customers over Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and/or
Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). While minimizing the
need for dedicated network resources, GVNS provides private network
functions to users at geographically dispersed international
locations. GVNS provides a customer with a virtual private network
(VPN).
[0004] International calls that are not Outbound International GVNS
On-net calls (of either the voice or data type) will be referred to
as Other international long distance (ILD) calls. There are at
least three types of Other ILD calls (for the ASN): standard ILD
calls, non-GVNS data calls and international GVNS off-net
calls.
[0005] A standard (ILD) call has a routing number known as an
international public number (IPN). For the purposes of this patent,
IPN refers to the international public telecommunications number or
the international ISDN number. An IPN comprises a country code (CC)
followed by a national (significant) number (NN). The NN comprises
a national destination code (NDC) followed by a subscriber number
(SN). The term national (significant) number is defined by the ITU,
but will be referred to as the NN for the purposes of this patent.
The terms NDC and SN are defined by ITU-T recommendation E.164,
incorporated herein by reference.
[0006] A non-GVNS data call has the same kind of IPN routing number
as a standard ILD call.
[0007] A known way of distinguishing Other ILD calls from an
Outbound International GVNS On-net call is to begin the Outbound
International GVNS On-net routing number with a pseudo country code
(PCC). A PCC fills the same position in a routing number filled by
a CC in Other ILD calls, but a PCC is a numeric code which has not
been assigned to a particular geographic region or global service
application by the ITU-Telecommunication Standardization Sector
(ITU-TSS). Because PCCs fill the same position as a CC, they can be
screened efficiently by a TN both in terms of minimal additional
call processing time for Other ILD calls and minimal changes to TN
software. While PCCs provide an efficient means by which a TN may
distinguish between Other ILD calls and Outbound International GVNS
On-net calls, there are two major problems with the use of PCCs.
Firstly, there are a limited number of PCCs. Secondly, a PCC can,
without warning to the TN provider, be assigned (e.g., become a
real CC) if the ITU-TSS so decides.
[0008] It would therefore be desirable to provide an efficient
method for distinguishing between Other ILD calls and an Outbound
International GVNS On-net call which would overcome the
disadvantages of PCCs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The above and other objects of the invention are
accomplished by methods which provide a country code suffix
(CC-suffix) whose presence after the CC in a call routing number
indicates that the call should be screened as being, possibly, an
Outbound International GVNS On-net call. It is desirable to
minimize the number of Other ILD calls which are subject to extra
screening for being, possibly, an Outbound International GVNS
On-net call. Selecting a CC-suffix which comprises the national
trunk prefix (NTP) or domestic application prefix digit (DAPD)
insures that only a small percentage of Other ILD calls, such as
are represented by mis-dialed standard ILD calls or mis-dialed
non-GVNS data calls, contain the CC-suffix. The DAPD is defined as
a single digit code which can only be used for the domestic
applications of the terminating GVNS country. If the NTP or DAPD
cannot be used, then an NDC of the receiving country which receives
minimal Other ILD call traffic is selected.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The above and other objects of the present invention will be
apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description,
taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like
reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in
which:
[0011] FIG. 1 is an illustrative schematic diagram that depicts the
main telecommunication network components involved in processing an
Outbound International GVNS On-net call according to the present
invention;
[0012] FIGS. 2A-2F depict the call flow processing for an Outbound
International GVNS On-net call according to the present
invention;
[0013] FIGS. 3A-3B depict a procedure for selecting a CC-suffix
according to the present invention; and
[0014] FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary extension to the call flow
processing of FIGS. 2A-2F to provide special treatment of calls
depending upon more than one CC-suffix value per country code.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The present invention comprises a method by which a TN can
efficiently and effectively identify outbound International GVNS
On-net calls from Other ILD calls.
[0016] Most international calls are of the Other ILD call type and,
therefore, require conventional processing by the TN.
[0017] However, certain international calls (on TNs which provide
the GVNS service) are of the Outbound International GVNS On-net
type and require non-conventional processing by the TN. According
to the present invention, these GVNS calls have a routing number
(in the TN of the call originating country) which begins with a CC
followed by a country code suffix (CC-suffix). The remainder of the
routing number is of a GVNS format which permits further processing
of the call within the TN of the call receiving country. For a GVNS
call, the remainder of the routing number could comprise a Customer
ID (CID) and a Terminating Network Routing Number (TNRN). The terms
GVNS user group ID (GUG ID) and TNRN are defined in ITU-T
recommendation Q.85.6, incorporated herein by reference. For the
purposes of this patent the term CID is understood to be synonymous
with GUG ID.
[0018] The current maximum length of a routing number is 15 digits.
In this example, the routing number for a GVNS call is divided
among these 15 digits as follows. The CCs and CC-suffixes each
range from 1-3 digits in length, with the maximum length of any CC
concatenated with any CC-suffix being 4 digits. The maximum length
of the CID is 4 digits and the length of the TNRN is 7 digits.
[0019] FIG. 1 is an illustrative schematic diagram that depicts the
main telecommunication network components involved in processing an
Outbound International GVNS On-net call according to the present
invention. FIG. 1 is divided into two halves by dashed line 8, with
the left half being the TN of the call originating country and the
right half being the foreign country's receiving TN. FIG. 1 depicts
a user 1 connected to a private branch exchange (PBX) 2.
Alternatively, user 1 could be connected to local exchange carrier
(LEC) switch. FIG. 1 will now be further explicated in conjunction
with the call processing flowchart of FIG. 2.
[0020] The call processing flow chart of FIG. 2 begins with the
question of whether the user placing the call is doing so from an
on-net location (Step 10). If the user is not at an on-net
location, Steps 20-40 describe the conventional call processing
performed when calling an IPN. Specifically, the user dials an
international prefix plus an international public number in Step
20. Next, in Step 30, by conventional ILD call processing the
appropriate originating switch (OS) processes the call. In Step 40,
the OS sends the call to the appropriate ISC.
[0021] If user 1 is at an on-net location, steps 50-90 describe the
process by which a call from user 1, to another on-net location, is
routed to the originating switch 3 (OS 3).
[0022] In Step 50 the user dials a number (known as the dialed
number or "DN") in order to make a GVNS call to a foreign on-net
location. The DN may be an IPN or a number private to the GVNS (or
VPN) customer the user is associated with. In Step 60, the call
flow processing is divided depending upon whether the customer's
PBX is directly connected to the OS.
[0023] Step 70 illustrates the case where user 1 is directly
connected to OS 3 via a private branch exchange 2 (PBX 2). In this
case, the OS receives the 10-digit automatic identification number
(ANI) of the facility over which the DN arrives at the OS. FIG. 1
depicts this type of connection wherein dialed number 9 (DN 9),
dialed by user 1, travels from PBX 2 to OS 3.
[0024] Steps 80-90 depict the case where user 1 is connected to OS
3 via a local exchange carrier (LEC) switch. In this case, the DN
goes to a LEC with a LEC-prefix which tells the LEC that the DN is
for the ASN. At Step 90, the LEC determines the ANI and sends it,
and the DN, to the OS.
[0025] Steps 100-220 depict the processing by OS 3 of the call it
receives from user 1.
[0026] Steps 100-120 describe the process by which OS 3 formulates
a query 10 which it sends to a network database 4. Specifically,
the OS identifies the incoming call as a VPN call based upon the
facility that carries the incoming call (Step 100). Next, the OS
identifies the network database that a query should be sent to
based on the ANI. In Step 120, the OS sends a query to the network
database including the ANI and the DN.
[0027] Steps 130-150 illustrate the processing by the network
database 4 by which it formulates a reply 11 which is sent back to
OS 3. First, the network database accesses the appropriate customer
record based on the ANI in the query received (Step 130). Next, the
network database finds a field within the customer record which
matches the DN. For a GVNS on-net call, the field found will
include the information listed in Step 140. The network database
then formulates a reply to the OS query including the information
listed in Step 150.
[0028] Step 140 depicts the information returned in response to the
specific dialing, in Step 50, to a foreign on-net location. Among
the information returned is a foreign administration ID (FAI) which
identifies the carrier (or terminating administration) in the
foreign country to whom the call should be sent.
[0029] Steps 160-220 depict the process by which OS 3 receives the
network database reply (Step 160) and then routes the call to the
appropriate international switching center 5 (ISC 5). This process
also involves extracting billing information from the reply for
billing purposes (Step 170). Of particular importance is the
service identity (SI) value derived in Step 180. The SI value
indicates which type of service a call is part of, which is the
"GVNS on-net" service in the case of Step 180. Next, the OS
analyzes the first three digits of the routing number and
determines that these digits identify a GVNS country (Step 190).
Then, the OS uses the first three digits of the routing number and
the SI to determine the ISC that the call should be routed to,
unless the call is to a multi-carrier country, in which case the
FAI is also utilized (Step 200). In the case where ISC 5 is a
different switch from OS 3 (determined by Step 210), the call is
sent from OS 3 to ISC 5 via a signaling message 12. The contents of
the signaling message includes the information listed in Step
220.
[0030] Steps 230-330 describe the processing of ISC 5. The key
aspect of the present invention is illustrated in Steps 240-280.
Step 240 depicts the conventional digit-by-digit translation which
is currently done for Other ILD calls as well as for GVNS calls.
Therefore, Other ILD calls processed according to Steps 20-40 will
also be processed according to step 240 when they arrive at the
appropriate ISC. Step 250, however, sorts out possible Outbound
International GVNS On-net calls from Other ILD calls by looking for
a CC-suffix after the CC. The CC-suffix is chosen such that almost
all Other ILD calls do not appear to have a CC-suffix and are
therefore processed in the conventional manner of Step 260. Those
Outbound International GVNS On-net calls which have a CC-suffix, or
those few Other ILD calls which appear to have a CC-suffix, undergo
the additional screening of Step 270 in which the SI value is
checked.
[0031] A major object of the present invention is to minimize the
number of Other ILD calls which appear to have a CC-suffix and
therefore pass through the additional processing of Step 270. The
number of "false positives" is determined by the particular digit
values chosen as a country's CC-suffix. Step 280 depicts how the
choice of CC-suffix determines the two main types of processing
which may follow the determination that a call is an Other ILD
call. The fewest Other ILD calls are effected if the CC-suffix
selected cannot be part of a correctly dialed Other ILD call. In
this case, only mis-dialed Other ILD calls are subjected to the
additional screening of Step 270 and such calls are killed upon
being identified as shown in Step 282. The killing of a call by ISC
5 is represented graphically in FIG. 1 by killed call 14 traveling
into call "bucket" 7.
[0032] For certain countries, however, one may be forced to pick a
CC-suffix which can be part of a correctly dialed Other ILD call.
In this case, a CC-suffix which is least in use among Other ILD
call traffic, while introducing minimal routing administration
costs, is chosen. As shown in Step 280, a call which appears to
have a CC-suffix but which is not recognized as an Outbound
International GVNS On-net call is therefore processed according to
the conventional ILD call processing of Step 260.
[0033] For an Outbound International GVNS On-net call, Steps
290-330 handle determining the appropriate terminating
administration (TA) and reformatting the routing number for the
TA.
[0034] Specifically, Step 290 determines whether the destination
country is a multi-carrier country. If it is a multi-carrier
country, Step 300 determines the TA from the FAI value. Next, the
CC digits are deleted from the routing number (Step 310). Then the
CC-suffix is deleted from the routing number (Step 320). Finally,
in Step 330, the ISC determines the outgoing international trunk
and prefixes the routing number with the service ID needed by the
TA (SIDTA).
[0035] The specific procedure for selection of a CC-suffix will now
be presented.
[0036] CC-suffixes are chosen to fulfill the following two goals:
(i) to minimize their impact on the call processing of Other ILD
calls, and (ii) to minimize routing administration issues at the
ISCs. A CC-suffix may be in one of the four following specific
formats. These formats are presented in order of decreasing
fulfillment of these two main goals.
[0037] Firstly, a CC-suffix may comprise the national trunk prefix
(NTP) of the GVNS destination country plus the "0" digit. Table 1
(below) identifies a subset of potential GVNS countries, their CCs
and their NTPs. As can be seen, most countries use the "0" digit as
the NTP.
1TABLE 1 Examples of GVNS Countries, their Country Codes and
National Trunk Prefixes National Trunk GVNS Countries Country Code
(CC) Prefix (NTP) 1. Australia 61 0 2. Belgium 32 0 3. Brazil 55 0
4. Finland 358 0 5. Hong Kong 852 None*** 6. Ireland 535 0 7.
Netherlands 31 0 8. New Zealand 64 0 9. Norway 47 None*** 10. Spain
34 9 ***Does not have an NTP but uses, or plans to use, "0" as the
domestic application prefix digit.
[0038] The NTP is defined by the ITU-T recommendations as being
that value which a country uses to identify its intra-country long
distance calls. The ITU-T recommends that the NTP be the "0" digit
and that this value be precluded from being used as the first digit
of an NN.
[0039] Having the NTP as part of the CC-suffix, by itself, ensures
that the overwhelming bulk of Other ILD calls will not be subjected
to the additional screening of Step 270. This is because the
overwhelming bulk of Other ILD calls comprises correctly dialed
standard ILD or non-GVNS data calls. Appending an additional "0"
digit to the NTP even further reduces the number of Other ILD calls
subjected to the additional screening of Step 270.
[0040] Secondly, a CC-suffix may comprise the domestic application
prefix digit (DAPD) of the GVNS destination country plus the "0"
digit. As with the NTP, having the DAPD as part of the CC-suffix,
by itself, ensures that the overwhelming bulk of Other ILD calls
will not be subjected to the additional screening of Step 270. As
with the NTP, appending an additional "0" digit to the DAPD even
further reduces the number of Other ILD calls subject to the
additional screening of Step 270. The DAPD is less desirable than
the NTP because of the greater potential routing administration
costs if the receiving country decides to change its DAPD.
[0041] Thirdly, a CC-suffix may comprise the NTP or the DAPD of the
destination GVNS country (without a following "0" digit). For
countries with three-digit country codes, there is only one digit
left for the GVNS CC-suffix assigned to these countries. As stated
above, the use of the NTP or DAPD, by itself, as part of the
CC-suffix ensures that all correctly dialed standard ILD or
non-GVNS data calls, which represent the overwhelming bulk of calls
to any country, will not be subjected to the extra call screening
of Step 270.
[0042] Fourthly, a CC-suffix may comprise the leading digit or
digits of a valid (or in-use) national destination code (NDC) of
the call receiving country. In this case, it is best to use an NDC
which receives the least Other ILD call traffic so that the minimum
amount of Other ILD call traffic is subjected to the additional
screening required of GVNS calls.
[0043] It should be noted that a vacant (unused) NDC would not be
used for a CC-suffix despite the fact that the only Other ILD calls
to use it would be misdialed calls. This is because a vacant NDC,
like the PCCs of prior art, could become valid NDCs without notice
to the telecommunications provider of the sending country.
[0044] Consistent with achieving the above two goals, and producing
a CC-suffix in one of the four formats discussed above, FIGS. 3A-3B
show a general procedure for selecting a CC-suffix which may be
applied to any particular country. The procedure of FIGS. 3A-3B
divide the selection of a CC-suffix into eight cases.
[0045] The first Step of the procedure is to determine whether the
GVNS country in question has an NTP (Step 10).
[0046] Steps 20-100 deal with the case of the country having an
NTP, while Steps 110-150 deal with a country that lacks an NTP.
[0047] Step 20 asks whether the length of the country's NTP is one
digit with an answer of "yes" leading to the processing of Steps
30-50. An answer of "no" to Step 20 leads to the processing of
Steps 60-100.
[0048] Step 30 asks whether the length of the country's CC is less
than three digits. If the answer is "yes," then Step 40 generates a
CC-suffix for this country which is the country's NTP plus the "0"
digit (Case 1). If the answer to Step 30 is "no," then a CC-suffix
for the country is generated which is simply the country's NTP
(Case 2).
[0049] Step 60 asks whether the length of the country's CC is equal
to three digits. If the answer is "yes," then Step 70 generates a
CC-suffix for the country which is the first digit of the country's
NTP (Case 3). If the answer to Step 60 is "no," then Step 80 asks
whether the length of the country's CC is equal to two digits. If
the answer to Step 80 is "yes," then a CC-suffix is generated (by
Step 90) for the country which is either the country's NTP or the
first two digits of the country's NTP (Case 4). If the answer to
Step 80 is "no," then a CC-suffix is generated (by Step 100, Case
5) for the country which is either (i) the country's NTP plus the
"0" digit, or (ii) the first three digits of the country's NTP.
[0050] Step 110 asks whether the country in question has a DAPD. If
the country does not, Step 130 generates a CC-suffix which is an
NDC of the receiving country that carries the least amount of
traffic outbound from the sending country (Case 8). Otherwise, Step
120 asks whether the length of the country's CC is less than three
digits. If the answer to Step 120 is "yes," then Step 140 generates
a CC-suffix which is the DAPD plus the "0" digit (Case 6). If the
answer to Step 120 is "no," then Step 150 generates a CC-suffix
which is simply the DAPD (Case 7).
[0051] In addition to indicating that calls to a particular country
should be screened as possibly requiring processing for a
particular service, the CC-suffix can further be used to carry
additional information such that when the service processing of a
call is verified it receives an additional special treatment. The
additional information which a CC-suffix can carry may be grouped
into the following four categories: customer identification
parameters, billing parameters, routing and service quality
parameters and service priority parameters. Examples of customer
identification parameters would be using a CC-suffix to identify
either a particular customer or a customer class. Examples of
billing parameters would be using a CC-suffix to identify billing
rates or discount rates. Examples of routing and service quality
parameters would be using a CC-suffix to identify the compression
rate, network or type of facility. Having the CC-suffix indicate
the network of the receiving country is a means of augmenting the
function provided by the FAI. Examples of service priority
parameters would be using a CC-suffix to identify call completion
rate.
[0052] FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary extension to the call flow
processing of FIG. 2E to provide special treatment of calls
depending upon the additional information CC-suffix parameters. In
particular, FIG. 4 depicts replacing Step 250 of FIG. 2E with Steps
250 and 251 that test for, respectively, one of two CC-suffixes for
a particular country. If the first CC-suffix is found, then the
call service screening of Step 270 is performed. If the service
type indicated by the first CC-suffix is verified (the answer to
Step 270 is yes), then Steps 290-330 of FIGS. 2E-2F are performed,
but modified to accomplish a first special treatment of the call.
If the answer to Step 270 is no, then a first CC-suffix was falsely
identified in Step 250 and alternative processing proceeds with
Step 280. If the second CC-suffix is found (by Step 251), then the
call service screening of Step 340 is performed. If the service
type indicated by the second CC-suffix is verified (the service
type indicated by the second CC-suffix being the same as the
service type indicated by the first CC-suffix), then a separate set
of steps, similar to those of Steps 290-330, is performed to
accomplish the same basic service as accomplished by Steps 290-330
but modified to provide a second special treatment of the call
(wherein the second special treatment differs from the first
special treatment provided by modified Steps 290-330). If the
answer to Step 340 is no, then a second CC-suffix was falsely
identified in Step 251 and alternative processing proceeds with
Step 280.
[0053] A particular way of encoding the additional information is
to provide each category of CC-suffix parameter with its own field
of digits in the CC-suffix.
[0054] A specific example of using the CC-suffix to indicate the
network of the receiving country is for Case 1 of FIG. 3A. For Case
1, if this is a GVNS hub country, multiple CC-suffixes are assigned
to that country, instead of just the NTP plus the "0" digit, to
identify different types of GVNS calls to that hub country. NTP
plus the "0" digit is assigned to GVNS traffic to the hub country.
CC-suffixes consisting of the NTP plus the digit "1" through "9"
are reserved to facilitate network routing arrangements by
identifying a "child" of the GVNS hub (parent) country to which a
GVNS call should be routed.
[0055] Table 2 (below) depicts the application of each of the eight
cases of FIGS. 3A-3B to the countries of Table 1 and lists the
countries to which each case is applicable.
2TABLE 2 Case 1 Descriptions: The GVNS country has an NTP defined
and the length of its NTP is 1 and the length of its country code
is less than 3. CC-suffix = NTP+ the "0" digit Example Applicable
GVNS Countries (6): Non-hub GVNS countries: Australia, Belgium,
Brazil, Netherlands, Spain, and New Zealand. For GVNS hub
countries: i) NTP+"0" is for the GVNS hub traffic, and ii) NTP+N,
where N is from 1 to 9, are reserved to indicate traffic to a child
of the hub country. Case 2 Descriptions: The GVNS country has an
NTP defined and the length of its NTP is 1 and the length of its
country code is 3. CC-suffix = NTP Example Applicable GVNS
Countries (2): Finland, Ireland Case 3 Descriptions: The GVNS
country has an NTP defined and the length of its NTP is greater
than 1 and the length of its country code is 3. CC-suffix = the
first digit of NTP Example Applicable GVNS Countries (0): None Case
4 Descriptions: The GVNS country has an NTP defined and the length
of its NTP is greater than 1 and the length of its country code is
2. CC-suffix = NTP or the first two digits of NTP Example
Applicable GVNS Countries (0): None Case 5 Descriptions: The GVNS
country has an NTP defined and the length of its NTP is greater
than 1 and the length of its country code is 1. CC-suffix = i) NTP
+ "0", or ii) NTP, or iii) the first three digits of NTP Example
Applicable GVNS Countries (0): None Case 6 Descriptions: The GVNS
country has a Country Code length of less than 3- digits and has
not defined an NTP but has defined a domestic application prefix
digit. CC-suffix = The one-digit code + "0" Example Applicable GVNS
Countries (1) Norway Case 7 Descriptions: The GVNS country has a
Country Code length of 3-digits and has not defined an NTP but has
defined a domestic application prefix digit. CC-suffix = The
one-digit code Example Applicable GVNS Countries (1) Hong Kong Case
8 Descriptions: The GVNS country has not defined an NTP nor a
domestic application prefix digit. CC-suffix = A valid NDC that
carries the least amount of international outbound traffic Example
Applicable GVNS Countries (0): None
[0056] In accordance with the invention, Table 3 (below) lists the
proposed CC-suffixes for GVNS countries and the cases which they
fall under from FIGS. 3A-3B. In accordance with the procedure
described above, each of the GVNS hub countries of Table 3
(Netherlands and Spain) have been assigned multiple
CC-suffixes.
3 TABLE 3 National Country Trunk Proposed GVNS GVNS Countries Code
(CC) Prefix (NTP) CC-suffix Case 1 Countries: The GVNS countries
that have defined an NTP and the length of their NTPs is 1 and the
length of their country codes is less than or equal to 2. 1.
Australia 61 0 00 2. Belgium 32 0 00 3. Brazil 55 0 00 4.
Netherlands 31 0 00-GVNS hub country 01-Child 1 02-Child 2 5. Spain
34 9 90-GVNS hub country 91-Child 1 6. New Zealand 64 0 00 Case 2
Countries: The GVNS countries that have defined an NTP and the
length of their NTPs is 1 and the length of their country codes is
3. 1. Finland 358 0 0 2. Ireland 353 0 0 Case 6 Countries: The GVNS
countries that have not defined an NTP but have defined a domestic
application prefix digit and the length of their country codes is
less than 3. 1. Norway 47 None 00 Case 7 Countries: The GVNS
countries that have not defined an NTP but have defined a domestic
application prefix digit and the length of their country codes is
3. 1. Hong Kong 852 None 0
[0057] If the user had dialed a foreign off-net location in Step
50, known as an outbound international GVNS off-net call, then Step
140 would have returned the following information from the network
database.
[0058] The routing number comprises the CC plus the NN. The FAI
value is not present if the call is routed proportionally to a
multi carrier country. The on/off net indicator is set to
"off-net." The international/domestic indicator is set to
"international." Processing of this type of call, from Steps 50 to
130, is substantially the same as shown in FIG. 2. Following Step
140, the most significant difference for processing a GVNS off-net
call, from that shown in FIG. 2, is that the SI value is derived as
"GVNS off-net" in Step 180 by the OS. In addition, even if a
possible CC-suffix is located in Step 250 by the ISC, Step 270
cannot find the call having an SI value of "GVNS on-net." As shown
in Step 50, the DN dialed for an outbound international GVNS
off-net call can be either an IPN or a number private to the
customer the user is associated with.
[0059] If the user had dialed a domestic location in Step 50, then
Step 140 would have returned the following information from the
network database. The routing number comprises a domestic public
number (if the call is to an off-net location) or a network
specific routing number (if the call is to an on-net location).
There is no FAI value. The on/off net indicator is set to "on-net"
for a call to an on-net location or "off-net" for a call to an
off-net location. The domestic/international indicator is set to
"domestic." The form of the domestic DN dialed in Step 50 (for a
call to either an on-net or off-net location) can be either a
domestic public number or a number private to the customer the user
is associated with. The processing of domestic calls, following
Step 140, could be done in a way known to those of skill in the art
and is not of relevance to the present invention.
[0060] While the present invention has been utilized to identify
calls which should be screened for Outbound International GVNS
On-net call processing, persons skilled in the art will appreciate
that the present invention can be used to identify calls which
should be screened for other types of services at Step 270.
[0061] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that
the CC-suffix of the present invention can be used to trigger
directly, without screening for the SI value, any type of call
processing, including processing according to those four categories
of additional information discussed above: customer identification
parameters, billing parameters, routing and service quality
parameters and service priority parameters.
[0062] Furthermore, the CC-suffix of the present invention could be
utilized by the TA. In the case of FIG. 2F, this means not deleting
the CC-suffix at Step 320. At Step 330, the ISC sends a routing
number including the CC-suffix to the TA which then recognizes the
CC-suffix to trigger specific call processing logic. It is
important to note that this transmission of a routing number
including a CC-suffix to a TA can be utilized in outbound
international GVNS off-net, as well as in Outbound International
GVNS On-net, calls. The use of a CC-suffix in outbound
international GVNS off-net calls simply requires that the network
database, in a Step comparable to Step 140 of FIG. 2C, return a
routing number that comprises a CC-suffix and that the ISC or the
TA be capable of interpreting the CC-suffix it receives.
[0063] Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that the present
invention may be practiced by other than the described embodiments,
which are presented for purposes of illustration and not of
limitation, and the present invention is limited only by the claims
which follow.
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