PROVIDING QUALITY OF SERVICE FOR VARIOUS TRAFFIC FLOWS IN A COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENT

• US 20070242738A1
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Published: 10/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Tsirtsis, Georgios, O'Neill, Alan William, Park, Vincent D., Corson, M. Scott
• Granted Patent: US 7,907,970 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 375/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2425 for supporting services specification, e.g. SLA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2441 relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0892 by using authentication-authorization-accounting [AAA] servers or protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/72 Subscriber identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0252 per individual bearer or channel dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/24 Negotiating SLA [Service Level Agreement]; Negotiating QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

The claimed subject matter relates to providing appropriate QoS treatment to one or more traffic flows associated with a terminal, wherein the QoS treatment is defined within a profile assigned to the terminal and implemented when the terminal requests access to a network. An access mode can receive identifying indicia associated with the terminal and relays such indicia to an authentication and authorization server (AAS). The AAS can thereafter provide the access node with a profile that defines QoS treatment to associate with one or more traffic flows related to the terminal.

Claims

1. A method for configuring QoS with respect to a terminal, comprising:

receiving identifying indicia associated with the terminal; and

subsequently delivering a profile to an access node that is communicatively coupled to the terminal after receipt of the identifying indicia, the profile includes parameters that prescribe treatment with respect to one or more traffic flows associated with the terminal and one or more filter rules that associate at least one traffic flow with a prescribed treatment.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing authentication and authorization with respect to the terminal based at least in part upon the identifying indicia.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying indicia comprises at least one of a subscriber NAI and a terminal NAI.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising delivering the profile to multiple access nodes that are communicatively coupled to the terminal after receipt of the identifying indicia.

5. The method of claim 1, an authentication and authorization server configured to perform the method of claim 1.

6. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a memory that retains instructions for analyzing identifying indicia associated with a terminal requesting access to a network and providing a profile based at least in part upon the analysis, the profile includes QoS parameters with respect to multiple traffic flows associated with the terminal; and

a processor that executes the instructions.

7. The communications apparatus of claim 6 being an authentication and authorization server.

8. The communications apparatus of claim 6, the QoS parameters relate to one or more of latency associated with the multiple traffic flows, minimum data rate associated with the multiple traffic flows, and maximum data rate associated with the multiple traffic flows.

9. A communications apparatus, comprising:

means for receiving identifying indicia associated with a wireless terminal that is requesting access to one or more network services; and

means for subsequently delivering a profile to an access node that is communicatively coupled to the terminal after receipt of the identifying indicia, the profile defines QoS parameters with respect to one or more traffic flows associated with the terminal.

10. The communication apparatus of claim 9, further comprising means for generating the profile.

11. The communications apparatus of claim 9, further comprising means for retrieving the profile from a database of profiles upon receipt of the identifying indicia.

12. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions for:

receiving an identity of at least one of a terminal and a subscriber; and

delivering a profile assigned to the at least one of the terminal and the subscriber to a base station, wherein the profile defines QoS parameters for one or more traffic flows associated with the at least one of the terminal and the subscriber and includes filter rules that associate at least one prescribed QoS treatment to the one or more traffic flows.

13. The machine-readable medium of claim 12, wherein at least two QoS parameters defined within the profile are relative to one another.

14. A processor that executes the following instructions:

receiving identifying indicia associated with a wireless terminal that is requesting access to one or more network services; and

delivering a profile to a base station that is communicatively coupled to the wireless terminal, the profile includes QoS treatments to provide to one or more traffic flows associated with the wireless terminal and filter rules that associate prescribed QoS treatments to the one or more traffic flows.

15. The processor of claim 14 further configured to execute the following instructions:

updating the profile based upon changes in a subscription associated with the wireless terminal.

16. A method for providing QoS treatment to one or more traffic flows associated with a terminal, comprising:

receiving a profile assigned to a wireless terminal, the profile includes QoS treatments to provide to the wireless terminal with respect to one or more traffic flows and filter rules that facilitates assignment of data packets to the one or more traffic flows and association of the data packets with prescribed QoS treatments; and

providing QoS treatment to the one or more traffic flows based at least in part upon contents of the profile.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

determining identifying indicia associated with the wireless terminal; and

relaying the identifying indicia to an authentication and authorization server.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising providing QoS treatment to the one or more traffic flows based at least in part upon resource availability of an access node and contents of the profile, the profile is received from an AAS following authentication of the terminal.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein QoS treatments for a traffic flow are relative to one another.

20. A base station configured to perform the method of claim 16.

21. A communications apparatus, comprising:

a memory that retains a profile associated with a wireless terminal, the profile includes QoS treatments to provide to multiple traffic flows associated with the wireless terminal; and

a processor that provides appropriate QoS treatments based at least in part upon contents of the profile.

22. A base station, comprising:

means for providing data that identifies at least one of a terminal and a subscriber to an authentication and authorization server;

means for receiving a profile assigned to the at least one of the terminal and the subscriber from the authentication and authorization server, the profile defines QoS treatments to provide to one or more traffic flows associated with the terminal and includes filter rules that associate prescribed QoS treatments to data packets that correspond to the one or more traffic flows; and

means for providing QoS treatments to the one or more traffic flows based at least in part upon contents of the profile.

23. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions for:

receiving a profile assigned to at least one of a wireless terminal and a subscriber, the profile includes QoS treatments to provide to the wireless terminal with respect to one or more traffic flows and filter rules that facilitate assigning data packets to the one or more traffic flows; and

providing QoS treatment to the one or more traffic flows based at least in part upon contents of the profile.

24. A processor that executes the following instructions:

providing data that identifies at least one of a terminal and a subscriber to an authentication and authorization server;

receiving a profile assigned to the at least one of the terminal and the subscriber from the authentication and authorization server, the profile defines QoS treatments to provide to one or more traffic flows associated with the terminal; and

providing QoS treatment to the one or more traffic flows based at least in part upon contents of the profile.