METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR USER BASED NETWORK ANALYSIS AND PLANNING

• US 20090319654A1
• Filed: 06/20/2008
• Published: 12/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: T-Mobile USA, Inc. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Khan, Aslam, GONZALEZ, JASON
• Granted Patent: US 8,717,913 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/61 taking into account QoS or priority requirements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports

Abstract

A system and method are provided for converting individual technical metrics into a single relevant metric understood and accepted by both technical and non-technical components of a business venture. An example system and/or method includes measuring current technical utilizations and capacities, translating those into a supportable users metric, forecasting future utilization levels, translating those into future network component and/or hardware requirements, and expanding/scaling technical capacity based on those values and the predetermined capacity levels of additional components and/or hardware.

Claims

1. A method of supportable user based dimensioning, comprising:

measuring a current user level;

measuring respective current utilization levels for a plurality of constraints, wherein the plurality of constraints represent a network resource service;

determining respective maximum utilization levels for the plurality of constraints; and

calculating a current maximum supportable users capacity based at least in part on the current user level, the current utilization levels of the plurality of constraints and the maximum utilization levels of the plurality of constraints.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein current utilization levels includes at least one of the following constraints:

memory utilization, signal capacity utilization, and processor utilization.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein signaling link utilization includes at least one of:

SS7, SIGTRAN, SCTP, and IP protocols.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a user is a wireless telecommunications customer, and wherein the network resource service includes a wireless communication service provider.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

forecasting at least one future user level; and

expanding the network resource service based at least in part on a ratio of the forecasted future user level and the current maximum supportable users capacity.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein expanding the network resource service includes adding sets of hardware, wherein each set has a supportable users metric associated with each respective set which represents an amount the maximum supportable users capacity is expected to increase after each respective set has been added to the network resource service, and wherein the respective sets of hardware configuration and associated number of users is predetermined.

7. A system of user based dimensioning, comprising:

a network resource service, the network resource service including a plurality of constraints;

a measurement of a current user level;

a measurement of a respective current utilization level for each constraint of the plurality of constraints;

a determination of a respective maximum utilization level for each constraint of the plurality of constraints;

wherein a current maximum supportable users capacity is based on the current user level, the respective current utilization levels of each constraint of the plurality of constraints and the respective maximum utilization levels of each constraint of the plurality of constraints.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the network resource service is expandable based at least in part on a ratio of a future user forecast and the current maximum supportable users capacity.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein current utilization levels includes at least one of the following components:

memory utilization, signaling link capacity utilization, and processor utilization.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein signaling link utilization includes at least one of:

SS7, SIGTRAN, SCTP, and IP protocols.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the user includes a wireless telecommunications customer, and wherein the network resource service includes a wireless communication service provider.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the network resource service is expandable by adding at least one set of hardware, wherein each set has an associated user capacity which represents an amount the maximum supportable users capacity is expected to increase after the respective set has been added to the network resource, and wherein the respective set and associated number of users is predetermined.

13. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions configured to be executed by a processor, the instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the performance of a method of user based dimensioning, comprising:

measuring a current user level;

measuring respective current utilization levels for a plurality of components, wherein the plurality of components represent a network resource service;

determining respective maximum current utilization levels for a plurality of components; and

calculating a current maximum supportable users capacity based in part on the current user level, the current utilization levels of the plurality of components and maximum current utilization levels of the plurality of components.

14. The medium of claim 13, wherein the current utilization levels include at least one of the following components:

memory utilization, signal capacity utilization, and processor utilization.

15. The medium of claim 14, wherein signaling link utilization includes at least one of:

SS7, SIGTRAN, SCTP, and IP.

16. The medium of claim 13, wherein the user is a wireless telecommunications customer, and wherein the network resource service includes a wireless communication service provider.

17. The medium of claim 13, further comprising:

forecasting at least one future user level; and

expanding the network resource based in part on a ratio of the future user level forecast and a current maximum supportable users capacity, the current maximum supportable users capacity being based on the current maximum supportable users metric.

18. The medium of claim 17, wherein expanding the network resource service includes adding at least one set of hardware, wherein each respective set has a supportable users metric associated with each respective set which represents an amount the maximum supportable users capacity is expected to increase after each respective set has been added to the network resource service, and wherein a configuration of the respective sets of hardware and the associated number of users is predetermined.

19. A method of supportable user based dimensioning, comprising:

measuring a current user level;

measuring respective current utilization levels for a plurality of components wherein the plurality of components represent a network resource service;

determining respective maximum utilization levels for a plurality of components;

calculating a current maximum supportable users capacity based at least in part on the current user level, the current utilization levels of the plurality of components, and the maximum utilization levels of the plurality of components;

forecasting at least one future user level; and

expanding the network resource service based at least in part on a ratio of the future user forecast and the current maximum supportable users capacity.