Reduction of network congestion

• US 10,069,746 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2015
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: APS Technology 1 LLC
• Original Assignee: APSI Wifi, LLC
• Inventors: Anderson, Chris, Ballif, Jeffrey G., Vukich, Robert B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Daniel, Jr., Willie J
• Application Number:
  US14/688,928
• Publication Number:
  US 20160191402A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,237 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0076 Distributed coding, e.g. network coding, involving channel coding coding in both space and time H04L1/0618; cooperative diversity H04B7/022
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0888 Throughput
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/12 Avoiding congestion; Recovering from congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/25 with rate being modified by the source upon detecting a change of network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/38 by adapting coding or compression rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1085 involving dynamic management of active down- or uploading connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2402 Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64738 Monitoring network characteristics, e.g. bandwidth, congestion level data switched network analysis H04L41/14; monitoring functioning in data switched networks H04L43/0817; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control

Abstract

A technology is provided for reducing network congestion. A data loss rate pertaining to a datastream between a client and a server may be determined. The datastream may comprise data packets sent and received between the client and the server. The client and the server may send to and receive from each other data packets encoded using random linear network coding (RLNC) in response to determining that the data loss rate is higher than or equal to a threshold.

Claims

1. An apparatus for reducing network congestion, the apparatus comprising:

at least one processor device and memory device;

a data traffic measurement module, controlled by the at least one processor device, that determines a data loss rate for a datastream between a client and a server, wherein the datastream comprises data packets sent and received between the client and the server; and

a control module, controlled by the at least one processor device, that causes the client and the server to;

send and receive data packets to and from each other which are encoded using random linear network coding in response to the data traffic measurement module determining that the data loss rate is higher than or equal to a first threshold; and

stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to the data traffic measurement module determining that the data loss rate is lower than a second threshold, wherein the first threshold and the second threshold are set to data loss rates that balance performance of applications with maintaining higher data throughput rates,

wherein at least a portion of the data traffic measurement module and the control module comprise one or more of hardware and executable code, the executable code stored on one or more non-transitory computer readable storage media and executed by the at least one processor device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first threshold is greater than the second threshold.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a validation module that determines whether the client possesses valid authorization, and the control module causes the client and the server to send and receive data packets encoded using random linear network coding to each other in response to the validation module determining that the client possesses valid authorization.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the control module further causes the client and server to stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to the validation module determining that the client lacks valid authorization.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a data traffic analysis module that records one or more characteristics of the datastream between the client and the server.

6. A method for reducing network congestion, the method executed by at least one processor device, comprising:

determining a data loss rate of a datastream between a first node and a second node, wherein the datastream comprises data packets sent and received on a network between the first node and the second node;

causing the first node and the second node to send to and receive from each other data packets encoded using random linear network coding in response to determining that the data loss rate is higher than or equal to a first threshold; and

causing the first node and the second node to stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to determining that the data loss rate is lower than at least one additional threshold, wherein the first threshold and the one additional threshold are set to data loss rates that balance performance of applications with maintaining higher data throughput rates.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first threshold is greater than the at least one additional threshold.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising determining whether the first node possesses valid authorization, and causing the first node and the second node to send and receive data packets encoded using random linear network coding to each other in response to determining that the first node possesses valid authorization.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising causing the first node and the second node to stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to determining that the first node lacks valid authorization.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising recording one or more characteristics of the datastream between the first node and the second node, the one or more characteristics of the datastream, including at least one of:

a data loss rate at one or more time periods, data throughput rate, or a rate of change of data in the data throughput.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising adjusting a frequency in determining the data loss rate based on analyzing the one or more characteristics of the datastream between the first node and the second node.

12. At least one non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer executable instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a computing platform, operate to:

determine a data loss rate pertaining to a datastream between a first node and a second node, wherein the datastream comprises data packets sent and received between the first node and the second node;

cause the first node and the second node to send to and receive from each other data packets encoded using random linear network coding in response to determining that the data loss rate is higher than or equal to a first threshold; and

cause the first node and the second node to stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to determining that the data loss rate is lower than at least one additional threshold, wherein the first threshold and the one additional threshold are set to data loss rates that balance performance of applications with maintaining higher data throughput rates.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the first threshold is greater than the at least one additional threshold.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to determine whether the first node possesses valid authorization, and causing the first node and the second node to send and receive data packets encoded using random linear network coding to each other in response to determining that the first node possesses valid authorization.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to cause the first node and the second node to stop sending and receiving data packets encoded using random linear network coding between each other in response to determining that the first node lacks valid authorization.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to record one or more characteristics of the datastream between the first node and the second node.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to adjust a frequency in determining the data loss rate based on analyzing the one or more characteristics of the datastream between the first node and the second node.