Distributed edge switching system for voice-over-packet multiservice network

• US 20020176404A1
• Filed: 04/15/2002
• Published: 11/28/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Systems, Inc., ESN LLC
• Original Assignee: ESN LLC
• Inventors: Girard, Gregory D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,283,519 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42314 in private branch exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0069 comprising a residential gateway, e.g. those which provide an adapter for POTS or ISDN terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0093 signalling arrangements in networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1225 Details of core network interconnection arrangements

Abstract

A network device including a plurality of communication interfaces, including a telephone line interface, a computer data interface, and a broadband network interface; a processor; a machine-readable storage medium which during use stores a call processing application and service profiles, and which stores executable instructions to mediate communications between the plurality of communication interfaces, the instructions causing the network device to detect network signaling events or trigger points in a telephone call and invoke the call processing application in response to the detected network signaling events or trigger points, the call processing application operating according to parameters defined in the service profiles.

Claims

1. A network device comprising:

a plurality of communication interfaces, including a telephone line interface, a computer data interface, and a broadband network interface;

a processor;

a machine-readable storage medium which during use stores a call processing application and service profiles, and which stores executable instructions to mediate communications between the plurality of communication interfaces, the instructions causing the network device to

detect network signaling events or trigger points in a telephone call and

invoke the call processing application in response to the detected network signaling events or trigger points, the call processing application operating according to parameters defined in the service profiles.

2. The network device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of communication interfaces further includes a video streaming device interface.

3. The network device of claim 1, wherein the broadband network interface terminates a broadband network link that joins a customer premises to a packet carrier network.

4. The network device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the network device to route IP data between the computer data interface and the broadband network interface.

5. The network device of claim 1, wherein the network device is contained in a single physical enclosure.

6. The network device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further cause the network device to provide a first SIP proxy agent to represent a telephone that uses the telephone line interface, and provide a second SIP proxy agent to represent a computer that uses the computer data interface.

7. The network device of claim 1, wherein the storage medium during use further stores call routing tables, and

the instructions further cause the network device to perform call routing for telephone calls that use the telephone line interface.

8. The network device of claim 1, wherein the storage medium during use further stores call routing tables, and

the instructions further cause the network device to perform call routing for telephone calls according to the call routing tables, the telephone calls using the telephone line interface.

9. A network device comprising:

a plurality of communication interfaces, including a telephone line interface, a computer data interface, and a broadband network interface;

a processor;

a machine-readable storage medium which during use stores call routing tables, and which stores executable instructions to mediate communications between the plurality of interfaces, the instructions causing the network device to perform call routing according to the call routing tables, the telephone calls using the telephone line interface.

10. The network device of claim 9, wherein call routing includes peer-to-peer call signaling between customer premises over a shared IP network.

11. The network device of claim 10, wherein the call signaling is performed without requiring stateful elements of the shared IP network above the IP infrastructure.

12. The network device of claim 10, wherein the broadband network interface terminates a link that joins the network device to the shared IP network.

13. The network device of claim 9, wherein call routing includes call signaling to a PSTN endpoint via a PSTN gateway that is reachable over the broadband network interface.

14. The network device of claim 9, wherein the network device is contained in a single physical enclosure.

15. The network device of claim 9, wherein the instructions further cause the network device to route IP data between the computer data interface and the broadband network interface.

16. The network device of claim 9, wherein the plurality of communication interfaces further includes a video streaming device interface.

18. The network device of claim 17, wherein the telephone event repository is included in the network device.

19. The network device of claim 17, wherein the telephone event repository is remote relative to the network device.

20. The network device of claim 17, wherein the network device is contained in a single physical enclosure.

21. The network device of claim 17, wherein the plurality of communication interfaces further includes a video streaming device interface.

17. A network device comprising:

a plurality of communication interfaces, including a telephone line interface, a computer data interface, and a broadband network interface;

a processor; and

a machine-readable storage medium which stores executable instructions to mediate communications between the plurality of interfaces, the instructions causing the network device to log a telephone event record to a telephone event repository, the event record describing a telephone call communication mediated by the network device.

22. A network device comprising:

a broadband network interface;

a plurality of interfaces, including a telephone line interface and a computer data interface;

a processor; and

a machine-readable storage medium that stores processor-executable instructions to provide proxy agents, the instructions causing the network device to

provide a telephone SIP proxy agent to represent a non-SIP telephone that uses the telephone line interface, and

provide a distinct SIP proxy agent for each additional device that uses an interface in the plurality of interfaces, and

the instructions further causing the network device to implement a proxy server that mediates all SIP communications over the broadband network interface involving the non-SIP telephone and the each additional devices.

23. The network device of claim 22, wherein the computer data interface passes IP data.

24. The network device of claim 22, wherein the plurality of interfaces includes a video streaming device interface.

25. The network device of claim 22, wherein the network device is contained in a single physical enclosure.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein for each device the broadband network interface terminates a link from the shared packet network.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the routing of telephone calls includes SIP signaling.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein the storage medium further stores processor-executable instructions to act as an SIP proxy server for devices using the telephone line interface and for devices using the computer data interface.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein the shared packet network uses IP protocols.

31. The method of claim 26, wherein the shared packet network uses ATM protocols.

32. The method of claim 26, wherein the plurality of network devices each further include a video streaming device interface

26. A method for establishing a voice-over-packet network architecture, the method comprising:

locating a system management platform in a shared packet network, the system management platform collecting call log data from a plurality of network devices; and

distributing the plurality of network devices that each include

a telephone line interface,

a computer data interface,

a broadband network interface terminating a link from the shared packet network,

a processor, and

a machine-readable storage medium storing processor-executable instructions to control telephone calls, the instructions causing each network device to route telephone calls in a peer-to-peer fashion over the shared packet network and to send call log data to the system management platform.