Optimized delivery techniques

• US 10,264,326 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2017
• Issued: 04/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Brown, Tom, Gasloli, Rick
• Primary Examiner(s): Liu, Jung
• Application Number:
  US15/851,192
• Publication Number:
  US 20180316980A1
• Time in Patent Office: 481 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2385 Channel allocation H04N21/266 takes precedence; Bandwidth allocation H04N21/24 takes precedence ; allocation of channels according to the instantaneous demands of the users in time-division multiplex systems H04J3/1682; admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896; negotiating bandwidth in wireless networks H04W28/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64723 Monitoring of network processes or resources, e.g. monitoring of network load traffic related reporting in data switching networks H04L43/062
• 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

Abstract

Systems and methods are described that relate to on-demand compression for electronic data, such as media content, through a communication pathway. The communication pathway may be a configured to multicast media content to a plurality of end-users in a service group. In certain embodiments, the service group may comprise a service group node having a quadrature amplitude modulation device. In one exemplary method, it may be determined whether the amount of media content being transmitted meets a first utilization threshold. The determination may be based on, at least in part, by measurements taken at one or more electronic devices located throughout a network or system. If the first bandwidth utilization threshold is not met, media content may be transmitted in a first format. If the first bandwidth utilization threshold is met, at least a portion of the media content may be transmitted in a first optimized delivery technique.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to;

receive, from a data source and via a first network, content;

transmit, to an end device and via a second network, at least a portion of the content;

determine whether a first quantity of data, transmitted via the second network during a first time period, satisfies a first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied;

transmit one or more additional portions of the content; and

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied;

request that first optimized content be delivered from the data source; and

after receiving the first optimized content, transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the first optimized content.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first optimized content comprises an optimized version of another portion of the content.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

after transmitting the at least the portion of the first optimized content, determine whether a second quantity of data, transmitted via the second network during a second time period, satisfies the first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied for the second time period;

transmit one or more additional portions of the first optimized content; and

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied for the second time period;

request that non-optimized content be delivered from the data source; and

transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the non-optimized content.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

after transmitting the at least the portion of the first optimized content, determine whether a second quantity of data, transmitted via the second network during a second time period, satisfies a second threshold value;

based on determining that the second threshold value is not satisfied for the second time period;

transmit one or more additional portions of the first optimized content; and

based on determining that the second threshold value is satisfied for the second time period;

request that second optimized content be delivered from the data source and via the first network; and

transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the second optimized content.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to request that the first optimized content be delivered from the data source by causing the apparatus to send one of:

a request for engagement of a compression protocol;

or

a request for delivery of at least one file previously stored in a compressed format.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a service group node.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to receive the content from the data source by causing the apparatus to receive the content via a multicast transmission.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the content comprises content in a first format and wherein the first optimized content comprises content in a second format.

9. An apparatus comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to;

receive, from a data source and via a first network, data;

transmit, to an end device and via a second network, at least a portion of the data;

determine whether a bandwidth utilization of the second network during a first time period satisfies a first bandwidth utilization threshold; and

based on determining that the first bandwidth utilization threshold is not satisfied;

transmit one or more additional portions of the data; and

based on determining that the first bandwidth utilization threshold is satisfied;

request that first optimized data be delivered from the data source; and

after receiving the first optimized data, transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the first optimized data.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

determine, after transmitting the at least the portion of the first optimized data, whether a bandwidth utilization of the second network during a second time period satisfies the first bandwidth utilization threshold; and

based on determining that the first bandwidth utilization threshold is satisfied for the second time period;

transmit one or more additional portions of the first optimized data; and

based on determining that the first bandwidth utilization threshold is not satisfied for the second time period;

request that a non-optimized version of the data be delivered from the data source.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

receive a first request for the data; and

after receiving the first request and before the determining whether the first bandwidth utilization threshold is satisfied, transmit, via the second network, another portion of the data.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

determine, after transmitting the at least the portion of the first optimized data, whether a second bandwidth utilization threshold for the second network is satisfied during a second time period; and

based on determining that the second bandwidth utilization threshold is not satisfied for the second time period;

transmit one or more additional portions of the first optimized data; and

based on determining that the second bandwidth utilization threshold is satisfied for the second time period;

request that second optimized data be delivered from the data source.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

based on determining that either the first bandwidth utilization threshold or the second bandwidth utilization threshold is satisfied for an elapsed period of time, request that third optimized data be delivered from the data source.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to request that the first optimized data be delivered from the data source by causing the apparatus to send one of:

a request for engagement of a compression protocol;

or

a request for delivery of at least one file previously stored in a compressed format.

15. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the apparatus comprises a service group node.

16. An apparatus comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to;

receive a first indication of whether a first quantity of data, transmitted by a device during a first time period and via a first network to at least a portion of a plurality of locations within a service group of the first network, satisfies a first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied;

cause at least a portion of content to be delivered to the device, from a data source and via a second network, using a first optimized delivery technique;

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied;

cause at least a portion of the content to be delivered to the device, from the data source and via the second network, without using the first optimized delivery technique;

receive a second indication of whether a second quantity of data, transmitted by the device via the first network during a second time period, satisfies the first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied for the second time period;

cause at least an additional portion of the content to be delivered to the device, from the data source and via the second network, using the first optimized delivery technique; and

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied for the second time period;

cause at least the additional portion of the content to be delivered to the device, from the data source and via the second network, without using the first optimized delivery technique.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to cause the at least the portion of the content to be delivered to the device using the first optimized delivery technique by causing the apparatus to send one of:

a request for engagement of a compression engine configured to compress the content;

or

a request for delivery of at least one file previously stored in a compressed format.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the apparatus to:

after causing the at least the additional portion of the content to be delivered to the device, receive a third indication of whether a third quantity of data, transmitted by the device via the first network during a third time period, satisfies a second threshold value; and

based on determining that the second threshold value is satisfied for the third time period;

cause at least a second additional portion of the content to be delivered to the device, from the data source and via the second network, using a second optimized delivery technique; and

based on determining that the second threshold value is not satisfied for the third time period;

cause at least the second additional portion of the content to be delivered to the device, from the data source and via the second network, using the first optimized delivery technique.

19. A system, comprising:

a first computing device; and

a second computing device,

wherein the first computing device comprises;

one or more first processors; and

first memory storing first instructions that, when executed by the one or more first processors, cause the first computing device to;

receive, from the second computing device and via a first network, content;

transmit, to an end device and via a second network, at least a portion of the content;

determine whether a first quantity of data, transmitted via the second network during a first time period, satisfies a first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied;

transmit one or more additional portions of the content; and

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied;

transmit a request that first optimized content be delivered from the second computing device; and

after receiving the first optimized content, transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the first optimized content; and

wherein the second computing device comprises;

one or more second processors; and

second memory storing second instructions that, when executed by the one or more second processors, cause the second computing device to;

send the content;

receive the request that the first optimized content be delivered; and

send the first optimized content.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the first optimized content comprises an optimized version of another portion of the content.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the second instructions, when executed by the one or more second processors, further cause the second computing device to:

generate the first optimized content by engagement of a compression protocol;

or

access the first optimized content by retrieving a file stored in a first compressed format.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the first instructions, when executed by the one or more first processors, further cause the first computing device to:

after transmitting the at least the portion of the first optimized content, determine whether a second quantity of data, transmitted via the second network during a second time period, satisfies the first threshold value;

based on determining that the first threshold value is satisfied for the second time period;

transmit one or more additional portions of the first optimized content; and

based on determining that the first threshold value is not satisfied for the second time period;

request that non-optimized content be delivered from the second computing device; and

transmit, to the end device and via the second network, at least a portion of the non-optimized content.