System and method for displaying a graphical representation of a network to identify nodes and node segments on the network that are not operating normally

• US 20080052628A1
• Filed: 05/31/2007
• Published: 02/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC A Delaware Limited Liability Company
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC A Delaware Limited Liability Company
• Inventors: Bugenhagen, Michael K., Morrill, Robert J., Edwards, Stephen K.
• Granted Patent: US 8,549,405 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/736
• 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 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5051 Service on demand, e.g. definition and deployment of services in real time

Abstract

A GUI, system, and method for displaying operating performance of a packet network may include displaying first graphical representations illustrative of network communications devices operating on a packet network, where the first graphical representations may be displayed in a first mode if respective network communications devices are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and in a second mode if respective network communications devices are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content. Second graphical representations illustrative of node segments connecting respective network communications devices may be displayed, where the second graphical representations may be displayed in a third mode if respective node segments are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and a fourth mode if respective node segments are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content.

Claims

1. A graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying operating performance of a packet network, said graphical user interface comprising:

a plurality of first graphical representations illustrative of network communications devices operating on a packet network, said first graphical representations displayed in a first mode if respective network communications devices are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and in a second mode in respective network communications devices are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content in non-real-time content; and

a plurality of second graphical representations illustrative of node segments connecting respective network communications devices, said second graphical representations displayed in a third mode if respective node segments are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and in a fourth mode if respective node segments are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content.

2. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein the first mode includes displaying said first graphical representations with a first line thickness and wherein the second mode includes displaying said first graphical representations with a second line of thickness.

3. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein the third mode includes displaying said second graphical representations with a first line thickness and wherein the fourth mode includes displaying said second graphical representations with a second line thickness.

4. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein the first mode includes displaying the first graphical representation with a first color and wherein the second mode includes displaying the first graphical representation with a second color.

5. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein the third mode includes displaying said second graphical representations with a first color and wherein the fourth mode includes displaying said second graphical representations with a second color.

6. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein a network communications device is determined to be operating normally if at least one associated network performance information parameter is within a first range and determined not to be operating normally if the at least one associated network performance information parameter is outside the first range.

7. The GUI according to claim 6, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including real-time content.

8. The GUI according to claim 7, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is further associated with communications of data packets including non-real-time content.

9. The GUI according to claim 7, wherein the real-time content includes data representative of speech of a telephone call.

10. The GUI according to claim 1, wherein in a node segment is determined to be operating normally if at least one associated network performance information parameter is within a first range and determined not to be operating normally if the at least one associated network performance information parameter is outside the first range.

11. The GUI according to claim 10, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including real-time content.

12. The GUI according to claim 11, wherein at least one associated network performance information parameter is further associated with communications of data packets including non-real-time content.

13. The GUI according to claim 1, further comprising at least one message displayed in response to determining network communications devices or node segments are not operating normally.

14. A system for displaying operating performance of a packet network, said system comprising:

a database configured to store network performance information collected from a packet network, the network performance information distinguishing network performance information associated with communications of data packets including real-time content and data packets including non-real-time content;

a processing unit in communication with said database and configured to access the stored network performance information, said processing unit further configured to generate a graphical user interface including;

a plurality of first graphical representations illustrative of network communications devices operating on a packet network, said first graphical representations displayed in a first mode if respective network communications devices are operating normally to communicate the data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and a second mode if respective network communications are not operating normally to communicate the data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content; and

a plurality of second graphical representations illustrative of node segments connecting respective network communications devices, said second graphical representations displayed in a third mode if respective node segments are operating normally to communicate the data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and a fourth mode if respective node segments are not operating normally to communicate the data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to display the first graphical representations with a first line thickness in the first mode and display the first graphical representations with a second line thickness in the second mode.

16. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to display the second graphical representations with a first line thickness in the third mode and display the second graphical representations with a second line thickness in the fourth mode.

17. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to display the first graphical representation with a first color in the first mode and wherein display the first graphical representation with a second color in the second mode.

18. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to display said second graphical representations with a first caller in the third mode and display the second graphical representations with a second color in the fourth mode.

19. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to determine that a network communications device is operating normally if indicia stored in said database is indicative of at least one associated network performance information parameter being within a first range and determine that the network communications device is not operating normally if the indicia indicative of at least one associated network performance information parameter being outside the first range.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including real-time content.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is further associated with communications of data packets including non-real-time content.

22. The system according to claim 20, wherein the real-time content includes data representative of speech of a telephone call.

23. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to determine that a node segment is operating normally, indicia stored in said database being indicative of at least one associated network performance information parameter being within a first range and not operating normally if the indicia is indicative of the at least one associated network performance information parameter being outside the first range.

24. The system according to claim 23, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of the data packets including real-time content.

25. The system according to claim 24, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is further associated with communications of the data packets including non-real-time content.

26. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to display at least one message in response to determining that network communications devices or node segments are not operating normally.

27. A method for displaying operating performance of a packet network, said method comprising:

displaying a plurality of first graphical representations illustrative of network communications devices operating on a packet network, the first graphical representations being displayed in a first mode if respective network communications devices are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and in a second mode if respective network communications devices are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content; and

displaying a plurality of second graphical representations illustrative of node segments connecting respective network communications devices, the second graphical representations being displayed in a third mode if respective node segments are operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content and a fourth mode if respective node segments are not operating normally to communicate data packets including real-time content and non-real-time content.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein displaying the first graphical representations in the first mode includes displaying the first graphical representations with a first line thickness and displaying the first graphical representations in the second mode includes displaying the first graphical representations with a second line thickness.

29. The method according to claim 27, wherein displaying the second graphical representations in the third mode includes displaying the second graphical representations with a first line thickness and wherein displaying the second graphical representations in the fourth mode includes displaying the second graphical representations with a second line thickness.

30. The method according to claim 27, wherein displaying the first graphical representations in the first mode includes displaying the first graphical representations with a first color and wherein displaying the first graphical representations in the second mode includes displaying the first graphical representations with a second color.

31. The method according to claim 27, wherein displaying the second graphical representations in the third mode includes displaying the second graphical representations with a first color and wherein displaying the second graphical representations in the fourth mode includes displaying the second graphical representations with a second color.

32. The method according to claim 27, wherein a network communications device is determined to be operating normally if at least one associated network performance information parameter is within a first range and determined not to be operating normally if the at least one associated network performance information parameter is outside the first range.

33. The method according to claim 32, wherein the at least one network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including real-time content.

34. The method according to claim 33, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is further associated with communications of data packets including non-real-time content.

35. The method according to claim 33, wherein the real-time content includes data representative of speech of a telephone call.

36. The method according to claim 27, wherein a node segment is determined to be operating normally if at least one associated network performance information parameter is within a first range and determined not to be operating normally if they at least one associated network performance information parameter is outside the first range.

37. The method according to claim 36, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including real-time content.

38. The method according to claim 37, wherein the at least one associated network performance information parameter is associated with communications of data packets including non-real-time content.

39. The method according to claim 27, further comprising displaying at least one message in response to determining that network communications devices or node segments are not operating normally.