Method for distributing and conditioning traffic for mobile networks based on differentiated services

• US 20030142681A1
• Filed: 01/31/2002
• Published: 07/31/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telcordia Legacy Inc.
• Original Assignee: Telcordia Technologies Incorporated (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson), Toshiba Corporation
• Inventors: Ohba, Yoshihiro, Baba, Shinichi, McAuley, Anthony, Chen, Jyh Cheng
• Granted Patent: US 7,161,942 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5006 Creating or negotiating SLA contracts, guarantees or penalties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2408 for supporting different services, e.g. a differentiated services [DiffServ] type of service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2425 for supporting services specification, e.g. SLA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/765 triggered by the end-points
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/786 Mapping reservation between domains
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/808 User-type aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/824 Applicable to portable or mobile terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5014 using dynamic host configuration protocol [DHCP] or bootstrap protocol [BOOTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]

Abstract

A method for distributing and conditioning IP traffic for mobile networks based on differentiated services, wherein edge/border routers are only required to maintain QoS profiles for related mobile stations. A new IP address or a new service level subscription or service level agreement of an mobile station is only sent to related edge/border routers. As a result, unnecessary IP traffic is significantly reduced. The routers in accordance with methods of the invention disregard the contents of an IP payload and therefore all of the IP addresses that a mobile station may posse. A mobile station is permitted to enter into a domain and obtain a desired quality of service (e.g., Gold or Standard service) without the need to maintain the service while moving through the domain.

Claims

1. A method for distributing and conditioning IP traffic for a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

determining a new IP address of a mobile station which enters a new IP domain in a wireless IP network;

negotiating for one of a new service level specification and a new service level agreement for the mobile station based on a source IP address of the mobile station at a server in the wireless IP network;

providing the new IP address to the server upon completion of the negotiation for one of the new service level specification and the service level agreement for the mobile station; and

forwarding the new IP address from the server to a new QoS local node.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said negotiating step comprises:

specifying the new service level specification and the new service level agreement using Dynamic Service Negotiation Protocol.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said providing step comprises:

forwarding the new IP address to the server based on Address Notification Protocol.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the server is a QoS global server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the QoS global server is one of a dynamic bandwidth broker and a policy decision point in a policy-based management framework.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

instructing a prior QoS Local Node to delete a corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station from a database in the prior QoS Local Node.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

determining whether a re-negotiation for one of a new service level specification and a new service level agreement is required; and

sending IP message from the mobile sation to the server while the mobile station roams from domain-to-domain in the wireless IP network if the re-negotiation for one of a new service level specification and a new service level agreement is required.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

deleting a corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station in a database of a prior QoS Local Node immediately after the mobile station leaves the prior domain in the wireless IP network.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

updating the corresponding IP address entry in the database of the QoS Local Node after the mobile station begins to roam from domain-to-domain.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

sending a command from the server to at least one QoS Local Node such that a corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station is deleted from a database in the server; and

sending a command from the server to the at least one QoS Local Node such that the corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station is added to a database in the at least one QoS Local Node.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the server is a QoS global server.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

distributing QoS profiles of the mobile station prior to entry of the mobile station in a new domain.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the QoS Local node is at least one of an edge router and a border router in the wireless IP network.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a database in the server, the database comprising a table containing four columns of data, which at least four columns of data are a User ID which remains constant for each mobile sation, a current IP address of the mobile station, a QoS Profile of mobile station and a flag adapted to indicate which QoS Local Node is maintaining the QoS profile of the mobile station.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a database in a QoS Local Node, which database comprises a table containing three columns of data, wherein at least three columns of data are a User ID which remains constant for each mobile station, a current IP address of the mobile station and a QoS profile of the mobile station.

16. A method for distributing and conditioning IP traffic for a wireless network, comprising the steps of:

checking a database in a QoS Local Node upon receipt of IP traffic destined for a specific mobile station in a wireless IP network;

determining whether a corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station is located in the database in the QoS Local Node;

requesting the corresponding IP address entry from a database in a server if the corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station is found in the database in the QoS Local Node;

forwarding a response message from the server to the QoS Local Node;

treating the IP traffic destined for the specific mobile terminal as best service if the server responds with a “

no entry”

message;

marking differentiated service bytes within IP packet headers of the IP traffic with a type of best service effort,

conditioning IP traffic in the QoS Local Node based on the message sent from the server to the QoS Local Node if the corresponding IP address entry for the mobile station is not found in the database in the QoS Local Node; and

recording an IP address of the QoS Local Node in a database in the server.

17. The method of claims 16, wherein the server is a QoS global sever.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the QoS global server is one of a dynamic bandwidth broker and a policy decision point in a policy-based management framework.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the database in the server comprises a table containing four columns of data and wherein the four columns of data are a User ID which remains constant for each mobile sation, a current IP address of the mobile station, a QoS Profile of mobile station and a flag adapted to indicate which QoS Local Node is maintaining the QoS profile of the mobile station.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the database in the QoS Local Node comprises a table containing three columns of data, wherein the at least three columns of data are a User ID which remains constant for each mobile station, a current IP address of the mobile station and a QoS profile of the mobile station.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein said conditioning step comprises:

negotiating for one of a new service level specification and a new service level agreement for the mobile station.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the QoS Local Node is at least one of an edge router and a border router in the wireless IP network.

23. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

providing a new IP address to the QoS global server once the mobile station moves to a new subnet.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said step of provided the new IP address to the QoS global server is performed by way of Address Notification Protocol.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the Address Notification Protocol is initiated by way of one of a DHCP/DRCP server and the mobile station.