Transmission optimization for application-level multicast

• US 20060029092A1
• Filed: 08/05/2004
• Published: 02/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Li, Jiang, Li, Shipeng, Luo, Chong
• Granted Patent: US 7,760,659 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/432
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/185 with management of multicast group membership
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1886 with traffic restrictions for efficiency improvement, e.g. involving subnets or subdomains
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/12 Shortest path evaluation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/16 Multipoint routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/48 Routing tree calculation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4046 with distributed floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5009 Adding a party to an existing conference
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• 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: H04N 7/152 Multipoint control units therefor

Abstract

Transmission optimization for application-level multicast is described. For each member of a video conference, a multicast tree is generated that represents a data communication configuration of a data source and the other members of a video conference which are data recipients that receive video and audio data from the data source. An end-to-end transmission delay from each data source to each of the respective data recipients is determined, and the available bandwidth between each data source and the respective data recipients is determined. One or more of the multicast trees, each corresponding to a data source, are refined according to the end-to-end transmission delay and available bandwidth for a particular data source to optimize the data communication configuration of the data source in the video conference.

Claims

1. A distributed optimization system for multicast data, comprising:

a data source configured as one of multiple video conference members to communicate video conference data to the video conference members via a communication network; and

optimization logic configured to;

determine an end-to-end transmission delay from the data source to each of the video conference members;

determine available bandwidth between the data source and each of the video conference members; and

optimize a data communication configuration for the data source according to the end-to-end transmission delay and the available bandwidth corresponding to each video conference member.

2. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to:

determine an end-to-end transmission delay between each of the video conference members; and

determine available bandwidth between each of the video conference members.

3. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source.

4. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, wherein the optimization logic resides at the data source.

5. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source, and wherein the optimization logic is further configured to refine the multicast tree to optimize the data communication configuration for the data source.

6. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source, and wherein the optimization logic is further configured to refine the multicast tree to optimize audio data communication for the data source.

7. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source, and wherein the optimization logic is further configured to generate the multicast tree as each of the video conference members subscribe to receive the video conference data from the data source.

8. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source, and wherein the optimization logic is further configured to:

generate the multicast tree as each of the video conference members subscribe to receive the video conference data from the data source; and

refine the multicast tree to optimize the data communication configuration for the data source.

9. A distributed optimization system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a multicast tree that includes the data source as a root node and represents the data communication configuration of the video conference members to the data source, and wherein the optimization logic is further configured to reconfigure a communication link by which a node that represents a video conference member in the multicast tree receives the video conference data.

10. A video conference data source, comprising:

a multicast tree that includes the video conference data source as a root node and that represents a data communication configuration with video conference members in a video conference, the video conference members each configured to receive video and audio data from the video conference data source; and

optimization logic configured to;

determine an end-to-end transmission delay from the video conference data source to each of the video conference members; and

refine the multicast tree according to the end-to-end transmission delay corresponding to each of the video conference members to optimize the data communication configuration for the video conference data source.

11. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to:

determine the available bandwidth between the video conference data source and each of the video conference members; and

refine the multicast tree according to the available bandwidth corresponding to each of the video conference members to further optimize the data communication configuration for the video conference data source.

12. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to refine the multicast tree to optimize audio data communication for the video conference data source.

13. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to generate the multicast tree as each of the video conference members subscribe to receive the video and audio data from the video conference data source.

14. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to reconfigure a communication link by which a node that represents a video conference member in the multicast tree receives the video and audio data.

15. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to initiate an optimization request to a video conference member to refine a corresponding multicast tree and make additional bandwidth available such that the multicast tree can be refined.

16. A video conference data source as recited in claim 10, wherein the optimization logic is further configured to initiate an optimization request to a video conference member to reconfigure a communication link in a corresponding multicast tree such that a communication link in the multicast tree can be reconfigured.

17. A method, comprising:

generating a multicast tree that represents a data communication configuration of a data source and video conference members that receive video and audio data from the data source during a video conference;

determining an end-to-end transmission delay from the data source to each of the video conference members; and

refining the multicast tree according to the end-to-end transmission delay corresponding to each of the video conference members to optimize the data communication configuration of the data source in the video conference.

18. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising determining end-to-end transmission delays between each of the video conference members.

19. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising:

determining available bandwidth between the data source and each of the video conference members; and

refining the multicast tree according to the available bandwidth corresponding to each of the video conference members to further optimize the data communication configuration of the data source.

20. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising determining available bandwidth between each of the video conference members.

21. A method as recited in claim 17, wherein refining the multicast tree includes refining the multicast tree to optimize audio data communication for the data source during the video conference.

22. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising:

determining available bandwidth between the data source and each of the video conference members; and

refining the multicast tree according to the available bandwidth corresponding to each of the video conference members to optimize audio data communication for the data source during the video conference.

23. A method as recited in claim 17, wherein:

generating the multicast tree includes generating the multicast tree to include the data source as a root node of the multicast tree and the video conference members as nodes of the multicast tree; and

refining the multicast tree includes reconfiguring a communication link by which a node that represents a video conference member in the multicast tree receives the video and audio data.

24. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising initiating an optimization request to a video conference member to refine a corresponding multicast tree and make additional bandwidth available such that the data source can refine the multicast tree.

25. A method as recited in claim 17, further comprising initiating an optimization request to a video conference member to reconfigure a communication link in a corresponding multicast tree such that the data source can reconfigure a communication link in the multicast tree.

26. One or more computer readable media comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct a video conference member to perform the method as recited in claim 17.

27. A method, comprising:

generating a multicast tree for each member of a video conference such that each multicast tree represents a data communication configuration of a member that is data source and members that receive video and audio data from the data source;

determining an end-to-end transmission delay from each data source to each of the respective members that receive the video and audio data from a data source; and

refining one or more of the multicast trees corresponding to the members of the video conference according to the end-to-end transmission delay determined for each respective data source to optimize the data communication configuration of the data source in the video conference.

28. A method as recited in claim 27, further comprising:

determining available bandwidth between each data source and each of the respective members that receive the video and audio data from the data source; and

refining one or more of the multicast trees corresponding to the members of the video conference according to the available bandwidth determined for each respective data source to further optimize the data communication configuration of the data source in the video conference.

29. A method as recited in claim 27, wherein refining the one or more multicast trees includes refining the one or more multicast trees to optimize audio data communication for the video conference.

30. A method as recited in claim 27, wherein generating the multicast tree for each respective member of the video conference includes generating each of the multicast trees to include the data source as a root node of the multicast tree and the members that receive the video and audio data from the data source as nodes of the multicast tree.

31. A method as recited in claim 27, wherein:

generating the multicast tree for each respective member of the video conference includes generating each of the multicast trees to include the data source as a root node of the multicast tree and the members as nodes of the multicast tree; and

refining the one or more multicast trees includes reconfiguring a communication link by which a node that represents a member in a multicast tree receives the video and audio data.

32. A method as recited in claim 27, further comprising initiating an optimization request from a first data source to a second data source to request that the second data source refine a corresponding multicast tree and make additional bandwidth available such that the first data source can refine a respective multicast tree.

33. A method as recited in claim 27, further comprising initiating an optimization request from a first data source to a second data source to request that the second data source reconfigure a communication link in a corresponding multicast tree such that the first data source can reconfigure a communication link in a respective multicast tree.

34. One or more computer readable media comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct a video conference member to perform the method as recited in claim 27.

35. One or more computer readable media comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct a video conference data source to:

generate a multicast tree that includes the video conference data source as a root node and that represents a data communication configuration by which video conference members receive video and audio data from the video conference data source;

determine an end-to-end transmission delay from the video conference data source to each of the video conference members;

determine available bandwidth between the video conference data source and each of the video conference members; and

refine the multicast tree according to the end-to-end transmission delay and the available bandwidth corresponding to each of the video conference members to optimize the data communication configuration of the video conference data source in a video conference.

36. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 35, further comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct the video conference data source to refine the multicast tree to optimize audio data communication for the video conference data source in the video conference.

37. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 35, further comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct the video conference data source to:

generate the multicast tree to include the video conference members as nodes of the root node in the multicast tree; and

reconfigure a communication link by which a node that represents a video conference member in the multicast tree receives the video and audio data.

38. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 35, further comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct the video conference data source to initiate an optimization request to a video conference member to refine a corresponding multicast tree and make additional bandwidth available such that the video conference data source can refine the multicast tree.

39. One or more computer readable media as recited in claim 35, further comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, direct the video conference data source to initiate an optimization request to a video conference member to reconfigure a communication link in a corresponding multicast tree such that the video conference data source can reconfigure a communication link in the multicast tree.

40. A data source, comprising:

means for communicating video conference data to data recipients configured as members of a video conference;

means for receiving additional video conference data from each of the data recipients;

means for generating a multicast tree that represents a data communication configuration of the data source and the data recipients of the video conference;

means for determining an end-to-end transmission delay from the data source to each of the data recipients; and

means for refining the multicast tree according to the end-to-end transmission delay corresponding to each of the data recipients to optimize the data communication configuration of the data source in the video conference.

41. A data source as recited in claim 40, further comprising:

means for determining available bandwidth between the data source and each of the data recipients; and

means for refining the multicast tree according to the available bandwidth corresponding to each of the data recipients to further optimize the data communication configuration of the data source.

42. A data source as recited in claim 40, further comprising means for refining the multicast tree to optimize audio data communication for the data source.

43. A data source as recited in claim 40, further comprising:

means for generating the multicast tree to include the data source as a root node of the multicast tree and the data recipients as nodes of the multicast tree; and

means for reconfiguring a communication link by which a node that represents a data recipient in the multicast tree receives the video conference data.

44. A data source as recited in claim 40, further comprising means for initiating an optimization request to a data recipient to refine a corresponding multicast tree and make additional bandwidth available such that the data source can refine the multicast tree.

45. A data source as recited in claim 40, further comprising means for initiating an optimization request to a data recipient to reconfigure a communication link in a corresponding multicast tree such that the data source can reconfigure a communication link in the multicast tree.