U.S. patent application number 14/136164 was filed with the patent office on 2015-06-25 for manual public land mobile network search prioritization.
This patent application is currently assigned to QUALCOMM Incorporated. The applicant listed for this patent is QUALCOMM Incorporated. Invention is credited to Ankammarao Ravuvari, Venugopal Krishna Srinivasa Srungaram.
Application Number | 20150181506 14/136164 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52282941 |
Filed Date | 2015-06-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150181506 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ravuvari; Ankammarao ; et
al. |
June 25, 2015 |
MANUAL PUBLIC LAND MOBILE NETWORK SEARCH PRIORITIZATION
Abstract
A method for performing manual public land mobile network (PLMN)
search includes: receiving a command to perform manual PLMN search
on an inactive subscription associated with a first subscriber
identity module (SIM) of a communication device; determining if a
data connection is enabled on an active subscription associated
with a second SIM of the communication device; and if the data
connection is not enabled on the active subscription, performing
the manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription by tuning away
from the active subscription to identify available operators
associated with the first SIM.
Inventors: |
Ravuvari; Ankammarao;
(Hyderabad, IN) ; Srungaram; Venugopal Krishna
Srinivasa; (Hyderabad, IN) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
QUALCOMM Incorporated |
San Diego |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
QUALCOMM Incorporated
San Diego
CA
|
Family ID: |
52282941 |
Appl. No.: |
14/136164 |
Filed: |
December 20, 2013 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
455/434 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 8/183 20130101;
H04W 84/042 20130101; H04W 76/19 20180201; H04W 48/18 20130101;
H04W 48/16 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04W 48/16 20060101
H04W048/16; H04W 84/04 20060101 H04W084/04; H04W 76/02 20060101
H04W076/02 |
Claims
1. A method for performing manual public land mobile network (PLMN)
search, the method comprising: receiving a command to perform
manual PLMN search on an inactive subscription associated with a
first subscriber identity module (SIM) of a communication device;
determining if a data connection is enabled on an active
subscription associated with a second SIM of the communication
device; and if the data connection is not enabled on the active
subscription, performing the manual PLMN search on the inactive
subscription by tuning away from the active subscription to
identify available operators associated with the first SIM.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising upon completion of the
manual PLMN search returning a list of available PLMN operators and
displaying the list on the communication device.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising; if the data
connection is enabled on the active subscription, disconnecting the
data connection on the active subscription and performing the
manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription by tuning away from
the active subscription to identify available operators associated
with the first SIM.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: determining if the
user interface is switched from the user interface through which
the manual PLMN search was initiated; reestablishing the data
connection on the active subscription if the user interface is
switched; and performing the manual PLMN search on the inactive
subscription in parallel with transmitting and receiving data on
the active subscription.
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: displaying a pop-up
message on the communication device indicating that results of the
manual PLMN search are available; and providing an option to
display the search results on the communication device.
6. The method of claim 3, further comprising: determining if the
user interface is switched from the user interface through which
the manual PLMN search was initiated; maintaining the disconnected
state of the data connection on the active subscription if the user
interface is not switched; and performing the manual PLMN search on
the inactive subscription.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising upon completion of the
manual PLMN search returning a list of available PLMN operators and
displaying the list on the communication device.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising: reestablishing the
data connection on the active subscription.
9. A communication apparatus, comprising: a control unit configured
to control operation of the apparatus; a communication unit
configured to transmit and receive radio frequency (RF)
communication signals; an interface device comprising an input
device configured to receive a command to perform manual public
land mobile network (PLMN) search on an inactive subscription
associated with one of a first subscriber identity module (SIM)
containing identification information for a first communication
network and a second SIM containing identification information for
a second communication network; and a determination unit configured
to determine whether a data connection is enabled on an active
subscription associated with the other of the first SIM and the
second SIM, wherein if the determination unit determines that a
data connection is not enabled on the active subscription, the
control unit controls the communication unit to perform the manual
PLMN search on the inactive subscription by tuning away the
communication unit from the active subscription to identify
available operators associated with the inactive subscription.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the interface device further
comprises a display device, and wherein upon completion of the
manual PLMN search the control unit returns a list of available
PLMN operators associated with the inactive subscription and causes
the list to be displayed on the display device.
11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein if the determination unit
determines that a data connection is enabled on the active
subscription, the control unit controls the communication unit to
disconnect the data connection on the active subscription and to
perform the manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription by
tuning away the communication unit from the active subscription to
identify available operators associated with the inactive
subscription.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein if the control unit
determines that the user interface is switched from the user
interface from which the manual PLMN search was initiated, the
control unit reestablishes the data connection on the active
subscription, and controls the communication unit to perform the
manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription in parallel with
transmitting and receiving data on the active subscription.
13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the control unit causes a
pop-up message indicating that results of the manual PLMN search
are available to be displayed on the communication apparatus.
14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein if the control unit
determines that the user interface is not switched from the user
interface through which the manual PLMN search was initiated, the
control unit controls the communication unit to maintain the
disconnected state of the data connection on the active
subscription and perform the manual PLMN search on the inactive
subscription.
15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein upon completion of the
manual PLMN search the control unit returns a list of available
PLMN operators associated with the inactive subscription and causes
the list to be displayed on the communication apparatus.
16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein upon completion of the
manual PLMN search the control unit controls the communication unit
to reestablish the data connection on the active subscription.
17. A communication system, comprising: a first communication
network; a second communication network; and a communication device
comprising: an interface device comprising display device and an
input device configured to receive a command to perform manual
public land mobile network (PLMN) search on an inactive
subscription associated with one of a first subscriber identity
module (SIM) containing identification information for a first
communication network and a second SIM containing identification
information for a second communication network; and a control unit
configured to control operation of the communication device,
wherein when a command is received via the interface device to
perform manual PLMN search on an inactive subscription associated
with one of the first and second communication networks, the
control unit determines if a data connection is enabled on an
active subscription associated with the other of the first and
second communication networks, and if the data connection is not
enabled on the active subscription, the control unit controls the
communication device to perform the manual PLMN search on the
inactive subscription by tuning away from the active subscription
to identify available operators associated with the one of the
first and second communication networks.
18. The communication system of claim 17, wherein upon completion
of the manual PLMN search the control unit returns a list of
available PLMN operators on the inactive subscription associated
with one of the first and second communication networks and causes
the list to be displayed on the display device.
19. The communication system of claim 17, wherein if the control
unit determines that a data connection is enabled on the active
subscription, the control unit controls the communication device to
disconnect the data connection on the active subscription and to
perform the manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription by
tuning away from the active subscription to identify available
operators associated with the one of the first and second
communication networks.
20. The communication system of claim 19, wherein if the control
unit determines that the user interface is switched from the user
interface through which the manual PLMN search was initiated, the
control unit reestablishes the data connection on the active
subscription, and controls the communication device to perform the
manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription in parallel with
transmitting and receiving data on the active subscription, and
wherein if the control unit determines that the user interface is
not switched from the user interface through which the manual PLMN
search was initiated, the control unit controls the communication
device to maintain the disconnected state of the data connection on
the active subscription and perform the manual PLMN search on the
inactive subscription, and upon completion of the manual PLMN
search the control unit controls the communication device to
reestablish the data connection on the active subscription.
Description
FIELD
[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to
wireless communications, and more particularly to manual public
land mobile network (PLMN) search prioritization for mobile devices
having multiple subscriber identity modules (SIMs).
BACKGROUND
[0002] Wireless communication networks support communications for
multiple users by sharing the available network resources. Some
wireless devices are configured to facilitate communication on two
separate networks via two separate subscriptions. For example,
dual-Subscription Identity Module (SIM), dual standby (DSDS)
devices may include two SIM cards--one card for a first
subscription and a second card for a second subscription, and are
capable of receiving services from two different networks.
[0003] Each SIM card may correspond to a subscription with a
different service provider. Further, each subscription may be
associated with one or more technology types. For example, a first
subscription may support 2G communication technology such as Global
System for Mobile communications (GSM), while the second
subscription may support one or more 3G communication technologies
such as Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA). For various
reasons, for example poor call or data reception, it may be
advantageous to switch from one subscription to the other
subscription.
[0004] Currently, multi-SIM devices do not support manual PLMN
(MPLMN) search on one subscription while a data connection is
active on another subscription.
SUMMARY
[0005] Apparatuses, systems, and methods for manual PLMN search
prioritization for multi-SIM mobile devices are provided.
[0006] According to an aspect of the present invention there is
provided a method for performing manual public land mobile network
(PLMN) search. The method may include: receiving a command to
perform manual PLMN search on an inactive subscription associated
with a first subscriber identity module (SIM) of a communication
device; determining if a data connection is enabled on an active
subscription associated with a second SIM of the communication
device; and if the data connection is not enabled on the active
subscription, performing the manual PLMN search on the inactive
subscription by tuning away from the active subscription to
identify available operators associated with the first SIM.
[0007] According to another aspect of the present invention there
is provided a communication apparatus. The communication apparatus
may include: a control unit configured to control operation of the
apparatus; a communication unit configured to transmit and receive
radio frequency (RF) communication signals; a first subscriber
identity module (SIM) containing identification information for a
first communication network; a second SIM containing identification
information for a second communication network; an interface device
comprising an input device configured to receive a command to
perform manual public land mobile network (PLMN) search on an
inactive subscription associated with one of the first SIM and the
second SIM; and a determination unit configured to determine
whether a data connection is enabled on an active subscription
associated with the other of the first SIM and the second SIM.
[0008] According to another aspect of the present invention there
is provided a communication system. The communication system may
include: a first communication network; a second communication
network; a communication device including: a first subscriber
identity module (SIM) containing identification information for the
first communication network; a second SIM containing identification
information for the second communication network; an interface
device comprising display device and an input device configured to
receive a command to perform manual public land mobile network
(PLMN) search on an inactive subscription associated with one of
the first SIM and the second SIM; and a control unit configured to
control operation of the communication device.
[0009] Other features and advantages of the present inventive
concept should be apparent from the following description which
illustrates by way of example aspects of the present inventive
concept.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] Aspects and features of the present inventive concept will
be more apparent by describing example embodiments with reference
to the accompanying drawings.
[0011] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a mobile device
according to an example embodiment of the present inventive
concept.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating operation of a DSDS
mobile device during MPLMN search according to an example
embodiment of the present inventive concept.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0013] While certain embodiments are described, these embodiments
are presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit
the scope of protection. The apparatuses, methods, and systems
described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms.
Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the
form of the example methods and systems described herein may be
made without departing from the scope of protection.
[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a DSDS mobile device
according to an example embodiment of the present inventive
concept. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a mobile device 100 may include
a control unit 110, a communications unit 120, an antenna 130, a
first SIM 140, a second SIM 150, a switch unit 160, an interface
device 170, and storage 180. The mobile device 100 may be, for
example but not limited to, a mobile telephone, smartphone, tablet,
computer, etc., capable of mobile communications with one or more
wireless networks.
[0015] Referring to FIG. 1, the communication unit 120 transmits
and receives radio frequency (RF) signals to and from wireless
communication networks through the antenna 130. The first SIM 140
and the second SIM 160 contain subscriber identification
information for network service subscriptions and are electrically
connected to the control unit 110 through the switch unit 160. The
switch unit 160 is configured to electrically connect the first SIM
140, the second SIM 160, or both the first and second SIM to the
control unit 110.
[0016] The first and second SIMs 140, 150 each contain data
necessary to subscribe the mobile device 100 to a communication
network. For example, the first SIM 140 may subscribe the mobile
device 100 with communication network A and the second SIM 150 may
subscribe the mobile device 100 with communication network B. In
some example embodiments, mobile devices may have more than two
SIMs and may be capable of accessing services from more than two
different networks.
[0017] Communication networks A and B may be operated by the same
or different service providers, and/or may support the same or
different technologies, for example, but not limited to, WCDMA and
GSM. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any
available combination of technologies and service providers will
fall within the scope of the present inventive concept.
[0018] The control unit 110 controls overall operation of the
mobile device 100 including control of the communications unit 120,
switch unit 160, interface device 170, and storage 180. The control
unit 110 may be a programmable device, for example, but not limited
to, a microprocessor or microcontroller. The control unit 110 may
include a determination unit 112 which determines whether a data
connection is enabled on an active subscription. Alternatively, the
determination unit 112 may be implemented as electronic circuitry
separate from the control unit 110. The control unit 110 may
control the switch unit 160 to select the first SIM 140 or the
second SIM 150 based on which subscription is active. The storage
180 may store application programs necessary for operation of the
mobile device 100 that are executed by the control unit 110, as
well as application data and user data.
[0019] The interface device 170 may include an input device 172 and
a display device 174. The input device 172 may be, for example, but
not limited to, a keypad and/or a touch screen. The display device
174 may be, for example, but not limited to, a liquid crystal
display (LCD). One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate
that other input and display devices may be used without departing
from the scope of the present inventive concept.
[0020] FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating operation of a DSDS
mobile device during manual PLMN search according to an example
embodiment of the present inventive concept. In the example
illustrated in FIG. 2, subscription 1 is the active subscription
and subscription 2 is the inactive subscription. Accordingly, in
this example manual PLMN search is performed on subscription 2. One
of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that manual PLMN
search may also be performed on subscription 1 when subscription 2
is the active subscription.
[0021] Referring to FIG. 2, the mobile device 100 receives a
command to initiate manual PLMN search on the inactive subscription
(215-Y). A determination is made whether a data connection is
enabled on the active subscription, i.e., subscription 1 (220). The
determination may be made by the determination unit 112 by
monitoring data traffic on the active subscription or by any other
suitable method known to those of ordinary skill in the art. If a
data connection is not enabled on subscription 1 (220-N), the
control unit 110 controls the communication unit 120 to perform
manual PLMN search on subscription 2 (225).
[0022] During manual PLMN search, tune away is performed on
subscription 2 and channel data, for example, but not limited to,
signal strength and quality of service (QoS) data, as well as
operator information of available operators associated with
subscription 2 is received by the mobile device 100 (230). In an
example embodiment, received signal strength (RSSI) on the bands
supported by Subscription 2 may be calculated, and acquisition on
the top few absolute radio frequency channel numbers (ARFCNs)
attempted. If acquisition is successful, operator information
including mobile country code (MCC), mobile network code (MNC),
operator name, and whether or not that PLMN is forbidden may be
obtained.
[0023] Upon successful completion of the manual PLMN search, a list
of available operators associated with subscription 2 is returned
and displayed on the display device 174 of the interface device 170
(240). The list of available operators may be displayed in rank
order of, for example, but not limited to, QoS, strength of signal,
etc.
[0024] If the determination unit 112 determines that the data
connection is enabled on subscription 1 (220-Y), the control unit
110 initiates manual PLMN search on subscription 2 (245) and the
data call on subscription 1 is disconnected (250). A determination
is made by the control unit 110 whether the user stays on the same
user interface (UI) from which the manual PLMN search is initiated
or switches to other web activities while waiting for the manual
PLMN search results (255).
[0025] If the user stays on the same UI from which the manual PLMN
search is initiated (255-Y), the control unit 110 controls the
communication unit 120 to perform the manual PLMN search on
subscription 2 (260). During manual PLMN search, tune away is
performed on subscription 2 and channel data, for example, but not
limited to, signal strength and QoS data, as well as operator
information for available operators associated with subscription 2
is received by the mobile device (265). In an example embodiment,
received signal strength (RSSI) on the bands supported by
Subscription 2 may be calculated, and acquisition on the top few
ARFCNS attempted. If acquisition is successful, operator
information including MCC, MNC, operator name, and whether or not
that PLMN is forbidden may be obtained.
[0026] Upon successful completion of the manual PLMN search, a list
of available operators is returned and displayed on the display
device 174 of the interface device 170 (270), and the data call on
subscription 1 is reestablished (275). The list of available
operators may be displayed in rank order of, for example, but not
limited to, QoS, strength of signal, etc.
[0027] If while waiting for manual PLMN search results the user
moves on to other web activities, for example, but not limited to,
web browsing or gaming (255-N), the control unit 110 reestablishes
the data call on subscription 1 (280), and controls the
communication unit 120 to perform the manual PLMN search and data
transmission and reception on the subscription 1 data call in
parallel (285). Parallel execution of the subscription 1 data call
and the manual PLMN search may result in somewhat lower performance
of the mobile device 100 during the parallel execution.
[0028] During manual PLMN search, tune away is performed on
subscription 2 and channel data, for example, but not limited to,
signal strength and QoS data, as well as operator information of
available operators associated with subscription 2 is received by
the mobile device (290). In an example embodiment, received signal
strength (RSSI) on the bands supported by Subscription 2 may be
calculated, and acquisition on the top few ARFCNS attempted. If
acquisition is successful, operator information including MCC, MNC,
operator name, and whether or not that PLMN is forbidden may be
obtained.
[0029] Upon successful completion of the manual PLMN search, a list
of available operators associated with subscription 2 is returned
and a pop-up graphic is displayed on the display device 174 of the
interface device 170 and provides an option to switch the UI
display to view the results of the manual PLMN search (295). If the
user elects to view the list, the list of available operators may
be displayed in rank order of, for example, but not limited to,
QoS, strength of signal, etc. Operators may also be listed in order
of home PLMN (HPLMN), preferred PLMNs, then forbidden PLMNs.
[0030] While certain embodiments have been described, these
embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not
intended to limit the scope of the protection. The apparatuses,
methods, and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety
of other forms. Various omissions, substitutions, and/or changes in
the form of the example apparatuses, methods, and systems described
in this disclosure may be made without departing from the spirit of
the protection.
[0031] The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended
to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope
and spirit of the protection. For example, the example apparatuses,
methods, and systems disclosed herein can be applied to multi-SIM
mobile devices subscribing to multiple communication networks
and/or communication technologies. The various components
illustrated in the figures may be implemented as, for example, but
not limited to, software and/or firmware on a processor,
ASIC/FPGA/DSP, or dedicated hardware. Also, the features and
attributes of the specific example embodiments disclosed above may
be combined in different ways to form additional embodiments, all
of which fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
[0032] Although the present disclosure provides certain example
embodiments and applications, other embodiments that are apparent
to those of ordinary skill in the art, including embodiments which
do not provide all of the features and advantages set forth herein,
are also within the scope of this disclosure. Accordingly, the
scope of the present disclosure is intended to be defined only by
reference to the appended claims.
* * * * *