MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS

摘要

A mobile telecommunication device includes a table with rows of entries for use when roaming outside the home country. The entries have an order of preference, indicated by columns in the table. An entry may specify a subscriber identity and/or a local network. When roaming, a device will seek to establish a satisfactory connection using the subscriber identity and local network specified for the roaming country. If a satisfactory connection cannot be achieved, the next most preferred table entry is read. At least one group of entries specifies two different subscriber identities. Specifying multiple subscriber identities and local networks improves reliability by allowing a satisfactory connection to be achieved from another local network, if a specified local network is not available and allows an alternative subscriber identity from an alternative home network to be used if a failure in a home network prevents the establishment of a connection.

主权项

1. A subscriber identity module for use in operating a mobile telecommunications device in a telecommunications system to establish a connection for communication through the system, the system including a plurality of wireless networks, and the device being operable to establish a connection by means of a network locally available to the device and by using a subscriber identity stored in the subscriber identity module to identify the device user and the home network of the device, wherein the subscriber identity module contains a table of selection data, the table having a plurality of entries and the entries having a preferred order, and each entry including at least a subscriber identity, and wherein the module is operable to provide selection data to the device to establish a connection by:
reading a table entry to identify selection data which includes a subscriber identity specified in the table entry and which includes a local network if a local network is specified in the table entry; providing the selection data to the device for the device to establish a connection using the specified subscriber identity and, if any, the specified local network, and any available local network if no local network is specified; and in response to the device determining that a satisfactory connection is not available, reading the next most preferred table entry to obtain alternative selection data as aforesaid, and providing the alternative selection data to the device;and wherein the table comprises at least one group of entries for use when the device is located in a country corresponding to the group, the group including at least a first entry which specifies a first subscriber identity from a first home network, and a second entry which specifies a second subscriber identity from a second home network.