Communications network

• US 20030023727A1
• Filed: 08/23/2002
• Published: 01/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Original Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Inventors: Hunt, Rowland G, Williamson, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 7,979,559 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/225
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking

Abstract

A service platform in a communications network connects callers to a service resource platform when implementing services requiring specialised resources. A number of different services use a common service resource platform. The service platform is programmed with respective maximum values for the number of calls originating from each service that may be connected to the service resource platform at one time and allows the call to be connected to the service resource platform at one time and allows the call to be connected to the service resource platform only when the count value for the respective service is less than the maximum count value. The service resource platform may have a single network address and a common range of ports that are freely allocated to calls generated by the different services running on the service platform.

Claims

1. A method of operating a communications network including a plurality of network switches, a service platform connected by a signalling interface to the plurality of network switches, and a service resource platform, the method including:

when a service provisioned for a party to a call requires service resources from the service resource platform then, under the control of the service platform, connecting a party to the call via a network switch to the service resource platform;

for each of a plurality of different services requiring the service resources of the service resource platform, maintaining a count of the respective number of ongoing calls connected to the service resource platform;

storing for one or more of the plurality of services a maximum count value; and

connecting a further call to the service resource platform when the count value for the said service is less than the maximum count value.

2. A method according to claim 1, in which the service resource platform has a single network address and a plurality of ports associated with the said single network address, and a common range of ports are accessed by the plurality of services.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, including storing the said count of the respective number of ongoing calls connected to the service resource platform for each of the plurality of different services in an overload control server connected to the service platform.

4. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the service platform includes a plurality of transaction servers and in which, in the step of maintaining a count, a separate count is maintained, for each service, for each of the plurality of transaction servers.