Systems and methods for proactively transitioning roaming user equipment to its home network

A user equipment (UE), comprising:

• a non-transitory memory;
• a processor;
• a radio transceiver;
• and
• a roaming transition manager stored in the non-transitory memory, that when executed by the processor:
• detects a presence of the UE in one of an idle state or a reduced bandwidth state;
• monitors a roaming connection established between the UE and a visited network provisioned by a visited network provider for communication on the visited network, for a trigger action other than expiration of a timer that is initiated upon the UE entering the idle state or reduced bandwidth state, wherein the trigger action is that a signal strength of the roaming connection is less than a predefined threshold;
• detects that the signal strength of the roaming connection is less than the predefined threshold;
• triggers, with the UE in one of the idle state or the reduced bandwidth state or in response to the detection of the signal strength of the roaming connection being less than the predefined threshold, the UE to search, using the radio transceiver, for an access node of a home network of the user within range of the UE, wherein the home network is provisioned by a home network provider for communication on the home network and the home network is different from the visited network;
• terminates the roaming connection between the UE and the visited network in response to locating an access node of the home network within range of the UE;
• and
• establishes a home connection between the UE and the home network in response to locating the access node of the home network within range of the UE.

A method for transitioning a roaming user equipment (UE) to its home network provisioned by a home network provider for communication on the home network, the method comprising:

• detecting by a roaming transition manager executing on UE of a user a presence of the UE in one of an idle state or a reduced bandwidth state;
• monitoring by the roaming transition manager a roaming connection established between the UE and a visited network provisioned by a visited network provider for communication on the visited network, for a trigger action other than expiration of a timer that is initiated upon the UE entering the idle state or reduced bandwidth state;
• detecting by the roaming transition manager the trigger action;
• triggering by the roaming transition manager, with the UE in one of the idle state or the reduced bandwidth state and in response to detecting the trigger action, the UE to search, using a radio transceiver of the UE, for an access node of a home network of the user within range of the UE, wherein the home network is different from the visited network;
• terminating the roaming connection between the UE and the visited network in response to locating an access node of the home network within range of the UE;
• and
• establishing a home connection between the UE and the home network in response to locating the access node of the home network within range of the UE.