An example of SS7 — Global Cellular Network interoperability
1. Figure 9.5 shows a simplified block diagram of a cellular radio network. It
provide connectivity for all mobile stations in a particular market and provide
efficient means for call set-up, call transfer and handoff.
2. The base station is the basic building block in a cellular network which serves as
the central point of network access for a subscriber in a particular geographical
region (cell). The base stations are connected by either a radio or landline link to a
MSC.
3. The MSC uses the SS7 signaling network for location validation and call
delivery for its users which are roaming, and relies on several information
databases. These database are the home location register (HLR), the visitor
location register (VLR), and the authentication center (AuC), which are used to
update location and registration records for all subscribers in the network at any
time.
4. The home location register, as shown in Fig contains a list of all users (along
with their MIN and ESN) who originally subscribed to the cellular network in the
covered geographic region. A home subscriber is billed at a different (less
expensive) rate than a roaming subscriber, so the MSC must identify every call as
being made by either a home or roaming user.
5. Roaming is a fundamental requirement of wireless networks. A mobile
subscriber becomes a roaming subscriber when it leaves the coverage area of the
MSC to which it was originally subscribed (the home MSC).
I) Registration
1. By comparing the MIN of a roaming subscriber with the MINs contained in its
HLR database, the visited MSC is able to quickly identify those users who are not
from the home system.
2. Once a roamer is identified, the visited MSC sends a registration request over
the landline signaling network to the subscriber’s home MSC.
3. The home MSC updates the HLR for the particular subscriber by storing the
MSCID of the visited MSC. The home MSC also validates that the roamer’s MIN
and ESN are correct, and using the signaling network, returns a customer profile
to the visited MSC which indicates the availability of features for the subscriber.
4. The roamer is then said to be registered in the visited MSC. The home MSC may
store additional antifraud information within its HLR, and this data is passed
along in the profile to prevent illegal access by roamers in a visited MSC.
II) Call Delivery
1. Once a roamer is registered in a visited network, calls are transparently routed to
it from the home MSC. If a call is made to a roaming subscriber from any
telephone in the world, the phone call is routed directly to the home MSC.
2. The home MSC is responsible for notifying the visited MSC of the incoming
call and delivering that call to the roamer. The home MSC first sends a route
request to the visited MSC using the signaling network.
3. The visited MSC returns a temporary directory number (TDN) to the home
MSC, using the signaling network. The TDN is a dynamically assigned temporary
telephone number which the home MSC uses to forward the call via the PSTN.
4. The incoming call is passed directly to the visited MSC over the PSTN, through
the home MSC.
5. If the roamer does not answer the call, or has certain call forwarding features in
the customer profile, the visited MSC will return a redirection command i.e. it
instructs the home MSC to reroute the incoming call.
Intersystem Handoffs
1. Intersystem handoffs are used to seamlessly connect roamers between MSCs.
2. A standard interface is used over the signaling network to allow different MSCs
to pass typical signal measurement (handoff) data, as well as HLR and VLR
information, while the subscriber moves between different wireless networks.
3. In this manner, it is possible for subscribers to maintain calls while in transit
between different markets
