Method and Apparatus for Reliably Delivering Multicast Data

• US 20090147718A1
• Filed: 06/27/2006
• Published: 06/11/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Inventors: Boyce, Jill MacDonald, Ramaswamy, Kumar, Liu, Hang
• Granted Patent: US 8,451,762 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/312
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0001 Systems modifying transmission characteristics according to link quality, e.g. power backoff adaptive data allocation for multicarrier modulation H04L5/0044; controlling transmission power for radio systems H04W52/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1863 comprising mechanisms for improved reliability, e.g. status reports arrangements for detecting or preventing errors by carrying supervisory signal the return channel H04L1/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0093 Point-to-multipoint
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/16 Multipoint routing
• 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 61/2503 Translation of Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1026 at the edge
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

A method and apparatus are described including mapping a multicast connection to a unicast uniform resource identifier, establishing a state for a multicast-to-unicast conversion, allocating ports, receiving multicast addressed data packets and converting the multicast addressed data packets to unicast addressed data the packets.

Claims

1. A method, said method comprising:

mapping a multicast connection to a unicast resource identifier;

establishing a state for a multicast-to-unicast conversion;

allocating ports;

receiving multicast addressed data packets;

converting said multicast addressed data packets to unicast addressed data packets; and

transmitting said converted data packets to said allocated ports.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request for a program; and

transmitting a response to said received request.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an announcement containing information regarding available programs, said available programs comprising a plurality of said multicast addressed data packets;

storing said information;

receiving a request to subscribe to one of said available programs;

modifying said information;

transmitting a response to said request, said response including said modified information;

receiving a request to receive one of said available programs, said request including a receiver port address; and

transmitting a response to said request to receive one of said available programs, said response including a server port address.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein said modifying step further comprises removing multicast connection information from said one of said available programs.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting an unsolicited internet group management protocol report;

receiving an internet group management protocol query; and

transmitting an internet group management protocol query response.

6. The method according to claim 3, further comprising:

receiving a request to cease receiving said one of said available programs;

releasing resources associated with receiving said one of said available program;

responding to said request to cease receiving said one of said available programs; and

transmitting an internet group management protocol message if no other requests for said one of said available programs is outstanding.

7. An apparatus, comprising:

means for mapping a multicast connection to a unicast uniform resource identifier;

means for establishing a state for a multicast-to-unicast conversion;

means for allocating ports;

means for receiving said multicast addressed data packets;

means for converting said multicast addressed data packets to unicast data packets; and

means for transmitting said converted data packets to said allocated ports.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising:

means for receiving a request for a program; and

means for transmitting a response to said received request.

9. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising:

means for receiving an announcement containing information regarding available programs, said available programs comprising a plurality of said multicast addressed data packets;

means for storing said information;

means for receiving a request to subscribe to one of said available programs;

means for modifying said information;

means for transmitting a response to said request, said response including said modified information;

means for receiving a request to receive one of said available programs, said request including a receiver port address; and

means for transmitting a response to said request to receive one of said available programs, said response including a server port address.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a communications protocol is used between a media gateway and said requester to establish a multicast-to-unicast mapping and to deliver said converted data packets to said requester, further wherein said communications protocol being a real-time streaming protocol, and further wherein said multicast-to-unicast mapping is performed at an applications layer of said communications protocol.

11. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said means for modifying further comprises means for removing multicast connection information from said one of said available programs.

12. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising:

means for transmitting an unsolicited internet group management protocol report;

means for receiving an internet group management protocol query; and

means for transmitting an internet group management protocol query response.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

means for receiving a request to cease receiving said one of said available programs;

means for releasing resources associated with receiving said one of said available program;

means for responding to said request to cease receiving said one of said available programs; and

means for transmitting an internet group management protocol message if no other requests for said one of said available programs is outstanding.

14. A method, said method comprising:

receiving a request for one of a plurality of available programs via a first communications interface;

maintaining state information;

performing address conversion between a multicast address of a source of said one of said plurality of available programs and a unicast address of a requester of said one of said plurality of available programs;

transmitting said request for one of said plurality of available programs via a second communications interface;

receiving multicast addressed data packets of said requested program via said second communications interface;

converting said multicast addressed data packets to unicast addressed data packets; and

transmitting said unicast addressed data packets of said requested program via said first communications interface.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

receiving information regarding available programs via said second communications interface;

storing said information; and

transmitting said information via said first communications interface.

16. An apparatus, comprising:

means for receiving a request for one of a plurality of available programs via a first communications interface;

means for maintaining state information;

means for performing address conversion between a multicast address of a source of said one of said plurality of available programs and a unicast address of a requester of said one of said plurality of available programs;

means for transmitting said request for one of said plurality of available programs via a second communications interface;

means for receiving multicast addressed data packets of said requested program via said second communications interface;

means for converting said multicast addressed data packets to unicast addressed data packets; and

means for transmitting said unicast addressed data packets of said requested program via said first communications interface.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising:

means for receiving information regarding available programs via said second communications interface;

means for storing said information; and

means for transmitting said information via said first communications interface.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein said apparatus is an application proxy of a media gateway.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said application proxy hides multicast information from said requester.

20. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said application proxy comprises:

a controller for performing session control;

a first processing unit for processing multicast session description files received from a streaming server via said second communications interface;

a second processing unit for processing messages communicated between said media gateway and said requestor via said first communications interface;

a third processing unit for processing messages received from said streaming server via said second communications interface; and

a data forwarding unit for converting said multicast addressed data packets to unicast addressed data packets.

21. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein said first communications interface is a wireless local area network interface.

22. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said first communications interface is a wired Ethernet interface, said media gateway communicating with said requestor via a connection between said media gateway to a wireless local area network access point via said wired Ethernet interface.

23. The apparatus according to claim 22, wherein said first communications interface comprises both a wireless local area network interface and a wired Ethernet interface.