Method and Arrangement for Adapting to Variations in an Available Bandwidth to a Local Network

• US 20070286213A1
• Filed: 12/15/2003
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unwired Planet LLC (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: Unwired Planet LLC (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Inventors: Fodor, Gabor, Terzani, Alessio
• Granted Patent: US 8,804,532 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/507 Filtering out customers affected by service problems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5083 wherein the managed service relates to web hosting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5087 wherein the managed service relates to voice services management of VoIP services H04M7/0081
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/091 Measuring contribution of individual network components to actual service level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2416 Real-time traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2491 Mapping quality of service [QoS] requirements between different networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/41 by acting on aggregated flows or links
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/762 triggered by the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/801 Real time traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/808 User-type aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/822 Collecting or measuring resource availability data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/824 Applicable to portable or mobile terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/10 Flow control between communication endpoints
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

In a vehicular network (10) having a plurality of connected user equipment (20), experiencing a change in an available bandwidth a method for adapting to the change is performed comprising the steps of collecting information (S0) about the users and the bearers, detecting (S1) a change in bandwidth available for the local network (10), identifying (S2) user equipment (20) in the local network (10) to be affected by said detected change, notifying (S3) the identified user equipment of an adaptation of the bandwidth for the identified user equipment, and finally adapting (S4) the bandwidth of each identified user equipment.

Claims

1-34. -34. (canceled)

35. A method for adapting to variations in an available bandwidth to a local network in a communications system, said local network having a plurality of connected user equipment, said method comprising the step of detecting a change in bandwidth available for the local network for communicating with the communications system, characterized by the further steps of:

identifying user equipment in the local network to be affected by said detected change, based at least partly on quality of service parameters for said identified user equipment,

notifying said identified user equipment of an adaptation of the allocated bandwidth for said identified user equipment, and

adapting the allocated bandwidth of said identified user equipment.

36. A method according to claim 35, characterized in that the local network is a vehicular network.

37. A method according to claim 35, characterized in that the quality of service parameters comprise at least a current bit rate.

38. A method according to any of the claims 35, characterized in that said detection step comprises the further step of detecting a change in available bandwidth for at least one of a plurality of bearers, said bearers together providing the available bandwidth of said local network.

39. A method according to claim 38, characterized in that each of said plurality of bearers is an aggregated bearer, whereby similar data traffic from different ones of said plurality of user equipment are multiplexed into the aggregated bearer.

40. A method according to claims 38, characterized in that said step of detecting said change in available bandwidth for the at least one of the plurality of bearers in turn comprises a step of collecting information about each of said plurality of bearers and a quality of service value for each of said plurality of bearers and comparing current information to previous information in a bearer data base.

41. A method according to claim 37, characterized in that said identifying step comprises comparing said current bit rate to another quality of service parameter for said identified user equipment.

42. A method according to claim 35, characterized by the further step of collecting information comprising at least said quality of service parameters for each user equipment and storing said information in a user data base, whereby said identifying step comprises the step of comparing different quality of service parameters for said user equipment in said user data base.

43. A method according to claim 42, characterized in that the step of collecting information further comprises collecting information concerning respective utilized bearer for each user equipment.

44. A method according to claim 41, characterized in that said another quality of service parameter is one of a maximum bit rate and a minimum bit rate.

45. A method according to claim 44, characterized in that said step of identifying comprises the step of calculating the difference between the current bit rate and the minimum bit rate for each user equipment and selecting user equipment with a difference larger than zero for down-switching, thereby maintaining at least a minimum connection for each user equipment as long as possible.

46. A method according to claim 42, characterized by updating the information in said user data base in response to user equipment connecting to or disconnecting from the local network.

47. A method according to claim 40, characterized by updating the information in said bearer data base in response to changes in the quality of service values and/or new access entering of said local network.

48. A method according to claim 42, characterized in that said collecting step further comprises collecting information concerning source and destination IP addresses, maximum and minimum bit rate and utilized bearer for each user equipment and respective peer entities, and storing said information in the user data base.

49. A method according to claims 42, characterized in that said collecting step further comprises collecting information concerning source and destination ports, protocols of each user equipment and its peer entities, and storing said information in the user data base.

50. A method according to claim 42, characterized by identifying said user equipment by means of a selection method comprising the steps of:

selecting a first user equipment in the user data base,

if a down-switch is required, calculating the difference between the current bit rate and the minimum bit rate for said first user equipment,

targeting said first user equipment for a down-switch to its minimum bit rate if said difference is larger than zero,

selecting next user equipment in the user data base if said difference is equal to zero, thereby indicating that said user equipment is already at its minimum bit rate,

if an up-switch is possible, calculating the difference between a current bit rate and the maximum bit rate for said first user equipment,

targeting said first user equipment for an up-switch to its maximum bit rate if said difference is larger than zero,

selecting next user equipment in the user data base if the difference is equal to zero, thereby indicating that said user equipment is already at its maximum bit rate,

in the case of a down-switch, repeating above steps until the sum of all down-switches is at least equal to the change in available bandwidth,

in the case of an up-switch, repeating above steps until the sum of all up-switches is at most equal to the change in the available bandwidth.

51. A method according to claim 50, characterized by identifying all user equipment in the user data base utilizing said at least one bearer.

52. A method according to claim 50, characterized by updating said user data base in response to said up- or down-switches.

53. A method according to claim 50, characterized by further identifying user equipment based on a respective contract.

54. A method according to claim 52, characterized by a step of terminating one user equipment if all user equipment are already at their minimum bit rate and a down-switch is required.

55. A gateway node in a local network in a communications system, said local network having a plurality of user equipment connected to a mobile router, said node having means adapted for detecting a change in the available bandwidth characterized by said node comprising:

means adapted for identifying user equipment in the local network to be affected by said detected change, based at least partly on quality of service parameters for said identified user equipment,

means adapted for notifying said identified user equipment of an adaptation of allocated bandwidth of said identified user equipment, and

means adapted for adapting the allocated bandwidth of said identified user equipment.

56. A gateway node according to claim 55, characterized in that the local network is a vehicular network.

57. A gateway node according to claim 55, characterized in that the node is a wireless gateway.

58. A gateway node according to claim 55, characterized in that said detecting means is adapted for detecting a change in the available bandwidth of at least one of a plurality of bearers, said bearers together providing the available bandwidth to and from the local network.

59. A gateway node according to claim 55, characterized in that said detecting means comprise a bearer data base, said bearer data base comprising at least information about each bearer and/or a quality of service value for each bearer.

60. A gateway node according to claim 55, characterized in that said identifying means comprise a user data base, said user data base comprising at least the current bit rate and a maximum bit rate and/or a minimum bit rate for said user equipment.

61. A gateway node according to claim 60, characterized by said user data base comprising quality of service parameters, internet protocol information and utilized bearer for each user equipment.

62. A local vehicular network in a communication system, said local network comprising a plurality of user equipment connected to a mobile router, said local network further comprising means adapted for detecting a change in available bandwidth, characterized by:

means adapted for identifying user equipment in the local network to be affected by said detected change, based at least partly on quality of service parameters, for said user equipment,

means adapted for notifying said identified user equipment of an adaptation of the allocated bandwidth for said identified user equipment, and

means adapted for adapting the allocated bandwidth of said identified user equipment.

63. A local network according to claim 62, characterized in that said local network is a vehicular network.

64. A local network according to claim 62, characterized in that said detecting means are adapted for detecting a change in the available bandwidth of at least one of a plurality of bearers, said bearers together providing the available bandwidth to and from the local network.

65. A local network according to claim 62, characterized in that said detecting means comprise a bearer data base, said bearer data base comprising at least information about each bearer and/or a quality of service value for each bearer.

66. A local network according to claim 62, characterized in that said identifying means comprise a user data base, said user data base comprising at least the current bit rate and a maximum bit rate and/or a minimum bit rate for said user equipment

67. A local network according to claim 66, characterized by said user data base comprising quality of service parameters, internet protocol information and utilized bearer for each user equipment.