Intelligent Networks

T-110.300/301
Jouni Karvo, Timo Kiravuo
 Intelligent Networks

• Based mainly on the lecture material from Pasi

Kemppainen at Intellitel Communications Ltd. for
this course on autumn 2001
• Also "Intelligent Networks" by Thomas Magedanz
& Radu Popescu-Zeletin
 History
• The most intelligent switches (humans) were gradually
replaced by electromechanical switches in the first half of
the 20th century
• Analog transmission started to lose ground for digital in the
backbone in the 1960's
• This lead to the idea of digital switches, then called "Stored
Program Control'' switches
• Management databases emerged at the 1970's
• Freephone (800) services etc. at 1980's (by proprietary
technology)
• Intelligent Networks
– The idea of supplementary services (calling cards and 800-
numbers) launched the "Intelligent Networks" concept, first as
a marketing hype
– Objective; to separate services and switching, and vendor
independence
 IN Motivation

• Revenues
– Revenue for carrying data (€/bits) is low
– For voice, it is better, but it would not hurt to earn more
– It is possible to charge for supplementary services;
– Supplementary services also create additional traffic,
and new customers
• Cost reduction
 IN Development

• IN/1 was developed by Bellcore (the research and

development institution of the "Baby Bells"
generated by the separation of AT&T. 1986
– SCP (Service Control Point), SSP (Service Switching
Point) introduced as concepts
– used SS#7 signaling
– for creating new services both SSP and SCP needed to
be updated
– three services; freephone, credit card billing and private
numbering plan
• Further development after this at Bellcore and ITU
 IN Objectives

• Open standards, vendor independence

• Rapid service creation and deployment
• Centralized subscriber and service data management
• Differentiated services to customers
• Rapid adaptation to market needs and competition
• Competitive advantage
– Proprietary systems are expensive to maintain
– Standards for reducing service introduction costs
– To enable multivendor networks
– To centralize service management for a specific customer
 IN Conceptual Model (INCM)

• INCM defines a top-down approach to service creation

– Service requirements are mapped to SIBs and further to the
physical plane
• Four level model
– Service Plane (Services, Service Features)
– Global Functional Plane
– SIBs (Service Independent Building Blocks) for service
creation
– Distributed Functional Plane (Functional Entities)
– Physical Plane (Physical Entities, protocols)
• INCM does not describe the IN system, it is a tool for
designing services
 INCM
Feature 1 Service
Feature 2
Service Plane

SIB1 SIB2
Global Functional Plane

SDF SCF SSF

Distributed Functional Plane

SCP SSCP
SDP
Physical Plane
 Some IN Services

• Freephone, 800 numbers

• Premium charging (600, 700, 900 numbers)
• Call forwarding
• Follow-me diversion
• Call limiter
• Automatic call back
 Freephone Implementation

– The switching system recognizes the 800 prefix

– At the SSP, Service Switching Point
– The SSP is usually a digital exchange with IN
capabilities
– The 800 prefix is one of the triggers the SSP
recognizes
– The SSP queries the SCP, Service Control Point for
instructions on handling this call
– The SCP has the functionality to connect the call
– Can be a direct mapping of the number or a complex
time and region dependent dynamic function
 Service Feature Interactions

• The "unsolved" problem of IN

• How to combine different services without unforeseen
consequences
• E.g. Freephone and call-forwarding used together, should
– Freephone calls not be forwarded
– Freephone calls be forwarded and the first called party pays
– Freephone calls be forwarded and the forwarded-to party pays
• Only solution is to define allowed interactions of all the
services when new services are introduced
– The whole network can be seen as a single machine
– Additional data may be requested from a database in SDP,
Service Data Point
 Service Independent
Building Blocks
• A SIB has the following functionality
– It is a reusable building block, describing a single
complete activity
– It has a unified and stable interface
– It is completely independent of any physical architectural
considerations
• The SIBs are a powerful concept in the IN service
creation
– SIBs are descriptions, not physical components
• SIBs are located in the global functional plane
 Some SIBs

• Basic call process

• User interaction
• Queue
• Charge
• Screen: compares identifier against a list
• Status notification: provides status of network
resources
• Translate: translates input information (e.g.
telephone number) and parameters (e.g. time) to
output information
 Functional Entities

• In the distributed functional plane

• These are functions performed by the physical components
– Client-server relationships
– Information flows

CCAF Call Control Agent Function, interface between

subscriber terminal and switch

CCF Call Control Function, means for controlling bearer

services, call and connection handling in the
traditional sense
SSF Service Switching Function, recognize calls
requiring IN service, interaction with call processing
and service logic
 Functional Entities cont.
SCF Service Control Function, the logical control for IN
calls (service logic)

SCEF Service Creation Environment Function, tools for

creation, verification and testing of new IN
services
SDF Service Data Function, access for service related
data and network data

SRF Specialized Resource Function, end user

interaction with the network using DTMF, voice
recognition, announcements etc.
SMF Service Management Function, service
provisioning and management control, access to
IN functional entities
 Physical Plane

• The actual components and products that

implement the services
– Related to Functional Entities
– E.g. CCAF (Call Control Agent Function), CCF (Call
Control Function) and SSF (Service Switching Function)
are implemented by a Service Switching Point (SSP)
– Note that SSP means Signal Switching Point in
SS#7, in practice it is usually a local echange
 Simplified IN Architecture
SMS
SMF
SCP SDP
SCF SDF

IP
SS#7 Network
SRF

SSP SSF SSP SSF

CCF CCAF CCF CCAF
 Service Switching Point, SSP

• A PSTN exchange modified to recognize and

trigger IN services
• Can have dialogues with different Service Control
Points (SCP)
– Trigger points define the required IN services
– Interconnections via Signaling Transfer Points (STPs)
– SS#7 used for talking to SCPs

• SSP + Service Control Function + Service Data

Function = SSCP, Service Switching and Control
Point
 Service Control Point, SCP

• Service logic is implemented in Service Logic

Program (SLP)
• Services (SLPs) are run in Service Logic
Execution Environment (SLEE)
• Service Data can be located in Service Data Point
i.e. (relational) database
• Service interfaces (talks) to the SSP using TCAP
or INAP protocols
• High availability (doubled)
 Service Management System,
SMS
• Allows operator to load new services to SCPs
• Supports centralized subscriber and service data
management
• Gathers billing data and statistics
• Ensures data consistency in SDPs
• Often proprietary interfaces and protocols
– TMN (Telecommunications Management Network)
specified in ITU CS2 standards for IN
 Intelligent Peripheral, IP

• Manages specific resources, such as

– Announcements
– Speech recognition
– Protocol conversions
• Can be an interface to services outside the IN
• Often integrated with SSP
– Interface includes both signaling and data
 IN summary

• Intelligent Networks consider the whole telephone

network to be one giant machine consisting of
smaller parts
• Services can be created of building blocks
• The functionalities are standardized and vendor
independent
• IN has been important for the creation of mobile
telephone networks