Providing multiple communication protocol failover and remote diagnostics via a customer premise apparatus

• US 20070064594A1
• Filed: 09/16/2005
• Published: 03/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Norton, T.
• Application Number:
  US11/228,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20070064594A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/218
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0631 using root cause analysis; using analysis of correlation between notifications, alarms or events based on decision criteria, e.g. hierarchy, tree or time analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06

Abstract

Computer-implemented methods, computer program products and customer premise equipment (CPE) apparatuses provide multiple communications protocol failover and remote diagnostic functionality in facilitating communication services to and from a user'"'"'s premise. A method involves configuring a CPE apparatus for a primary data path and a secondary data path, receiving communications traffic via the CPE apparatus, aggregating the communications traffic, and routing the communications traffic via the primary data path. The method also involves determining whether the primary data path is active and in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive, failing over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the secondary data path thereby allowing redundancy via the CPE apparatus.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for providing multiple communications protocol failover and remote diagnostic functionality via a customer premise equipment (CPE) device, the method comprising:

enabling the CPE device to have a primary data path and a secondary data path;

routing communications traffic via the primary data path;

determining whether the primary data path is active; and

in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive, failing over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the secondary data path.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive, invoking remote diagnostic functionality to determine a cause of the primary data path becoming inactive.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein invoking the remote diagnostic functionality comprises:

detecting whether the cause of the primary data path becoming inactive has been determined;

in response to the cause being determined, detecting whether the cause is self reparable; and

in response to the cause being self reparable;

invoking a self repair of the cause;

invoking the primary data path for subsequent communications traffic; and

generating a report log.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising in response to the cause not being determined or the cause not being self reparable:

invoking a repair ticket;

generating a report log;

relaying a message to a user of the CPE device; and

receiving repair instructions.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the secondary data path is active;

in response to determining that the secondary path is inactive, invoking remote diagnostic functionality to determine a cause of the secondary data path becoming inactive; and

in response to determining that the secondary data path is active, continuing to route the communications traffic to a secondary termination point via the secondary path.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising in response to determining that the primary data path is active, continuing to route the communications traffic to a primary termination point via the primary data path.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the CPE device is compatible with at least one of Internet Protocol multimedia service (IMS), TDM, or VON and wherein failing over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the secondary data path comprises one of the following:

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a digital subscriber line (DSL) data path to a T1 data path;

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a T1 data path to a DSL data path;

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a DSL data path to a voice over network (VON) data path;

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a VON data path to a DSL data path;

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a dedicated internet access (DIA) data path to a VPN data path; and

re-routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a VPN data path to a DIA data path.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein continuing to route the communications traffic to a secondary termination point via the secondary path comprises routing at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic to one of a DSLAM termination point or a DACS termination point.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein invoking a repair ticket comprises issuing a troubleshooting and repair notice via the remote diagnostic functionality to the Internet.

10. The method of claim 4, wherein relaying a message comprises sending a text message to a customer via at least one of electronic mail or a graphical user interface.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

enabling the CPE device for a tertiary data path; and

in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive, failing over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the tertiary data path and the secondary data path thereby allowing redundancy via the CPE device.

12. A computing apparatus for facilitating multiple protocol failover and remote diagnostic functionality for integrated communications services, the apparatus comprising:

an integrated access device (IAD) operative to configure, to install, and to provision integrated voice and data services, the IAD enabled to have a primary data path and a secondary data path;

an analog modem in associative communication with the IAD and operative to convert digital signals to analog signals and to transform incoming analog signals to a digital equivalent; and

a router in associative communication with the IAD and the analog modem, the router operative to determine what path to send each data packet received;

wherein the apparatus is compatible with at least one of time division multiplexing, voice over network, or IP multimedia service and wherein the apparatus is operative to;

determine whether the primary data path is inactive;

failover one or more of the communications services from the primary data path to at least the secondary data path in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive; and

facilitate remote diagnostic functionality to determine a cause of failing over.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, further operative to return the communications services to the first data path upon resolving the cause of failing over.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, further operative to determine whether the secondary data path is active and invoke the remote diagnostic functionality in response to determining that the secondary data path is inactive.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the apparatus operative to facilitate remote diagnostic functionality is operative to:

detect whether the cause of the primary data path becoming inactive has been determined;

in response to the cause being determined, detect whether the cause is self reparable; and

in response to the cause being self reparable;

invoke a self repair of the cause;

invoke the primary data path for subsequent communications traffic; and

generate a report log.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the apparatus operative to facilitate remote diagnostic functionality is operative in response to the cause not being determined or the cause not being self reparable to:

invoke a trouble ticket;

generate a report log;

relay a message to a user of the apparatus; and

receive repair instructions.

17. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having control logic stored therein for causing a customer premise computing apparatus to provide multiple communications protocol failover and remote diagnostic functionality when a communication service data path becomes inactive, the control logic comprising computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to:

enable a primary data path and a secondary data path for communications traffic;

receive the communications traffic;

aggregate the communications traffic;

route the communications traffic via the primary data path;

determine whether the primary data path is active; and

in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive, fail over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the secondary data path thereby allowing redundancy via the computing apparatus.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, further comprising computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to invoke remote diagnostic functionality to determine a cause of the primary data path becoming inactive in response to determining that the primary data path is inactive.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to invoke remote diagnostic functionality comprises computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to:

detect whether the cause of the primary data path becoming inactive has been determined;

in response to the cause being determined, detect whether the cause is self reparable;

in response to the cause being self reparable;

invoke a self repair of the cause;

invoke the primary data path for subsequent communications traffic; and

generate a report log; and

in response to the cause not being determined or the cause not being self reparable;

invoke a trouble ticket;

generate a report log;

relay a message to a user of a communications service; and

receive repair instructions.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the computing apparatus is compatible with at least one of Internet Protocol multimedia service (IMS), TDM, or VON and wherein the computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to fail over the communications traffic from the primary data path to the secondary data path comprises one of the following:

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a digital subscriber line (DSL) data path to a T1 data path;

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a T1 data path to a DSL data path;

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a DSL data path to a voice over network (VON) data path;

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a VON data path to a DSL data path;

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a dedicated internet access (DIA) data path to a VPN data path; and

computer-readable program code for causing the computing apparatus to re-route at least one of a voice call or data packet traffic from a VPN data path to a DIA data path.

21. A computing apparatus for providing multiple protocol failover functionality for communications services, the apparatus comprising:

an integrated access device (LAD) operative to configure, to install, and to provision integrated voice and data services, the IAD enabled to have a T1 data path and a voice over network (VON) data path for communications traffic;

an analog modem in associative communication with the IAD and operative to convert digital signals to modulated analog signals for transmission over a communications path and to transform incoming analog signals to a digital equivalent; and

a router in associative communication with the IAD and the analog modem, the router operative to examine each data packet received to determine what path to send the data packet and to send the data packet to a destination;

wherein the apparatus is operative to;

route the communications traffic via the T1 data path;

determine whether the T1 data path is inactive; and

failover the communications traffic from the T1 data path to the VON data path in response to determining that the T1 data path is inactive.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising a phone in associative communication with the IAD, wherein the apparatus is further operative to generate the communications traffic.