Abstract: Exemplary methods and systems are disclosed herein that may, among other benefits, help a mobile station to conserve power by intelligently determining how often to scan for incoming pages. An exemplary method may be carried out by a mobile station that has most-recently registered with a radio access network in a zone of last registration, and involves the mobile station (a) determining a location of the mobile station in relation to the zone of last registration, (b) using the location of the mobile station in relation to the zone of last registration as a basis for determining a scan period to wait between scans of the paging channel; and (c) periodically scanning the paging channel according to the determined scan period. Furthermore, an exemplary method may be carried out in order to conserve battery power when a mobile station determines that its battery power is low.

Abstract: A method and system for setting up a communication with a given mobile station served by a RAN that defines one or more coverage areas. The RAN may receive an indication of a location of the given mobile station. The RAN may then use the location of the given mobile station to identify one or more wireless coverage areas associated with the given mobile station. The RAN may also receive a request to set up a communication with the given mobile station. In response, the RAN may assign a channel for the communication to the given mobile station in each identified wireless coverage area without first paging the given mobile station.

Abstract: A radio access network (RAN) may radiate to define a wireless coverage area that is configured to provide wireless coverage to wireless communication devices (WCDs). If the utilization of the wireless coverage area is below a low-utilization threshold, the RAN may begin transmitting noise frames in the wireless coverage area. In doing so, the transmitted signal strength of the wireless coverage area may increase, which in turn may increase the likelihood that the WCDs can acquire and use the wireless coverage area.

Abstract: Exemplary methods and systems are disclosed herein that may help to prevent pages to the same mobile station from being repeatedly shed in order to send overhead messages. An exemplary method may involve a base station: (a) detecting a page-shedding event; (b) in response to detecting the page-shedding event, adjusting a maximum period between overhead-message transmissions; and (c) transmitting at least one overhead message according to the adjusted maximum period between overhead-message transmissions. A page-shedding event typically involves an overhead message being sent in a given paging-channel slot instead of a page that was previously scheduled for the given paging-channel slot. Preferably, in order that a page is not repeatedly shed in the same slot during the slot cycle, the maximum period between overhead-message transmissions may be adjusted such that the slot cycle duration is not a multiple of the maximum period.

Abstract: A method and system is disclosed for maintaining codec consistency across a communication session. When a communication session is set up for an access terminal (AT) operating in a wireless communication system, a network device, such a base station, can determine a coding rate to assign the AT for its air interface in a manner that accounts for network capacity variations across the session. If the AT is predicted to handoff to multiple sectors during the session, then a coding rate that best accommodates the air interfaces of all the predicted handoff sectors, but that does not result in consistently low coding rates for the AT, may be used.

Abstract: A method of processing a call in a voice-command platform includes a step of transferring the call from the voice-command platform to a second voice-command platform. The method continues with the step of transmitting, either directly or indirectly, grammar information from the voice command platform to the second voice-command platform for use by a voice command application executing in the second voice-command platform in processing the call. The grammar information could be logic defining application-level grammar or system-level grammar. Alternatively, the grammar information could be a network address (e.g., URI or URL) where the grammar is stored in a file, e.g., a VXML document. The features of this invention enhance the user experience by preserving and using grammars used initially in the first voice command platform in other, downstream, voice command platforms.

Abstract: A downlink resource block in an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) communication system can be shared among multiple wireless communication devices (WCDs) by assigning one or more orthogonal codes to each WCD. To transmit data to the WCDs using the downlink resource block, a base station may receive a data stream that includes respective data for each of the WCDs and encode each WCD's respective data with a respective orthogonal code assigned to that WCD to generate an encoded data stream. An OFDM transmitter in the base station may receive the encoded data stream and transmit the encoded data in the form of OFDM symbols in the downlink resource block. A WCD can receive the downlink resource block, recover the encoded data from the OFDM symbols, and use the one or more orthogonal codes assigned to it to recover the data for that WCD from the encoded data.

Abstract: An access network may receive an incoming communication for an idle access terminal having a last-known location in a first service area of the access network. In response to receiving the incoming communication, the access network may determine whether the last-known location is proximate to a border between the first service area and a second service area of the access network. If so, the access network may define a border paging area encompassing one or more coverage areas within the second service area that are proximate to the last-known location. In turn, the access network may determine a representative paging-channel occupancy of the border paging area. Based on the representative paging-channel occupancy, the access network may then select a time at which to initiate a border page of the access terminal in the border paging area and then perhaps initiate the border page at the selected time.

Abstract: A method, system, and apparatus for managing spreading codes used in communication over a radio frequency air interface. When a radio access network (RAN) is to assign a spreading code to a mobile station in the coverage area, the RAN may determine which mobile station currently having an assigned traffic channel in the coverage area has a highest forward-link signal quality, and the RAN may select a spreading code based on the spreading code of that determined mobile station's assigned traffic channel. For instance, the RAN may select a spreading code that is quasi-orthogonal to the spreading code of the determined mobile station's assigned traffic channel.

Abstract: Disclosed is a mobile hotspot that includes multiple cellular radios and that is arranged to limit the number of concurrent local connections that it will support, based at least in part on which of its cellular radios is currently active.

Abstract: The described systems and methods allow for safer operation of a wireless communication device (WCD). The methods may be carried out at the WCD or at a wireless-communications network that interfaces to the WCD. A hands-free-audio (HFA) profile associated with the WCD may be set to enabled or disabled. A speed-condition of the WCD is determined and compared to a speed-threshold. If the speed-condition is greater than the speed-threshold and the HFA profile is enabled, then the WCD is operable to engage in wireless communications (e.g., voice calls or text messaging) via an HFA device associated with the WCD. If the speed-condition is greater than the speed-threshold and the HFA profile is set to disabled, then the WCD may prevent and/or postpone wireless communications from occurring. After the speed-condition is determined to be less than the speed-threshold, previously received communications (e.g., text messages) may be presented via the WCD.

Abstract: A wireless communication device (WCD) may be able to acquire wireless service from preferred wireless coverage areas that are managed by the WCD's service provider. In some cases, the WCD may instead use wireless service from non-preferred wireless coverage areas of the service provider's roaming partners. In order to save roaming fees, the service provider's RAN may determine when the WCD is likely to roam to a non-preferred wireless coverage area. In response to this determination, the RAN may transmit a redirect message to the WCD, causing the WCD to switch from one preferred wireless coverage area to another preferred wireless coverage area. In some situations, the RAN may transmit such a redirect message because the WCD has reported that it has a low remaining battery life.

Abstract: A method and system for dynamically adjusting reverse-link ACK transmission power based on forward-link timeslot utilization. A radio access network (e.g., a base station) may monitor timeslot utilization on the forward link and, upon detecting that the timeslot utilization is threshold high, may cause one or more served access terminals to increase their ACK transmission power, thereby possibly helping to minimize re-transmissions for data packets that have already been successfully received, and thus helping to minimize unnecessary use of potentially scarce forward-link timeslots.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for managing transmission of messages such as SMS messages. A device will determine based on access probe count history whether to transmit a message on a reverse access channel or on a reverse traffic channel, and the device will transmit the message accordingly.

Abstract: A method and corresponding system to help manage allocation of subframes for relay communication. The allocation may alternate or rotate between which subframes per cycle are used for backhaul communication and which subframes per cycle are used for access communication. By changing the allocation of one or more subframes per cycle between backhaul and access, it becomes possible to only tentatively take away certain subframes of access communication, while reverting to use those subframes for access communication perhaps as soon as the next cycle.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for allocating fully-orthogonal and quasi-orthogonal spreading codes to access terminals in radio access networks based on a tolerance level for additional interference on a per-access-terminal basis. An embodiment takes the form of a method that includes receiving a request for allocation of a spreading code to an access terminal, and responsively comparing an additional-capacity number to an available-codes number. The additional-capacity number represents, based on an average contribution per access terminal to the current reverse noise, how many additional fully-orthogonal spreading codes could be allocated to access terminals without exceeding a maximum-allowed reverse noise. The available-codes number represents how many fully-orthogonal spreading codes are currently available for allocation.

Abstract: A method and system provides for monitoring access to particular network content and providing a summary of the rating of the content accessed. In one embodiment, a telecommunications network entity, such as a mobile access gateway, can identify one or more resources accessed by a wireless device. The gateway can then associate the one or more resources accessed by the wireless device with a rating for each of the resources, and the gateway can provide a summary of the ratings for the resources accessed by the wireless device.

Abstract: Disclosed are a method, apparatus, and system for managing connections in a wireless communication network. When a user equipment device (UE) transitions between an idle state and an active state, a radio link is established between a base station and the UE and a core network link is established between the base station and a core network entity. In response to detecting that no data packets are exchanged between the UE and the base station, a timer is initiated. Further, in response to detecting that data packets are being exchanged between the UE and the base station, the timer is reset. The radio link is released in response to the timer reaching a first predetermined value associated with a first inactivity period and the core network link is released in response to the timer reaching a second predetermined value associated with a second inactivity period.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a method and system to help reduce latency in responding to a location based service request from a mobile station. According to the method, the mobile station will include base station delay measurements with the location based service request. That way, when a network entity (such as the location based service provider, or a proxy between the mobile station and the location based service provider) receives the mobile station's request for a location-based service, the entity may readily convey the provided base station delay measurements to the positioning system to enable the positioning system to triangulate the mobile station's location without the need to request the base station delay measurements from the mobile station.

Abstract: A method, device, and system for re-routing an incoming call via a stronger serving system. When a wireless communication device such as a cell phone is receiving an incoming call via a first serving system with which it is registered, the device may detect that a second serving system (possibly a competing carrier's system) would provide improved signal strength. In response, the device may prompt its user to request the call be re-routed to the device via the other serving system. If the user approves, the device may then signal to the network to cause the call to be re-routed to the device, and the device may register with the new serving system. That way, as the network sets up the call to the device again, the call will extend via the new (improved signal strength) serving system to the device, thus reducing the likelihood of a call drop.