Incremental addition and scale-back of resources adapting to network resource availability

• US 20100034195A1
• Filed: 12/30/2008
• Published: 02/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Sathyanath, Ajay, Das, Kamala Prasad
• Granted Patent: US 8,570,870 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/72 using reservation actions during connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/786 Mapping reservation between domains
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/822 Collecting or measuring resource availability data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/83 based on usage prediction

Abstract

An exemplary method includes receiving at a first network a notice of an intended communication to a called party network, wherein the intended communication requires a resource for supporting a streaming data protocol in each network between a calling party network and the called party network; forwarding the notice of an intended communication to a second network and toward the called party network; in parallel with said forwarding, initiating for the intended communication a determination of resource availability for the first network; performing for the intended communication the determination of resource availability for the first network, wherein the determination is for a first resource for the first network; and verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication. Verification of resource sufficiency is based on resource, (e.g., bandwidth) availability being greater than a threshold for plural network segment of the calling party to calling network required for the intended call.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving at a first network a notice of an intended communication to a called party network, wherein the intended communication requires a resource for supporting a streaming data protocol in each network between a calling party network and the called party network;

forwarding the notice of an intended communication to a second network and toward the called party network;

in parallel with said forwarding, initiating for the intended communication a determination of resource availability for the first network;

performing for the intended communication the determination of resource availability for the first network, wherein the determination is for a first resource for the first network; and

verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein performing for the intended communication the determination of resource availability for the first network comprises:

querying the first resource for the first network for resource availability;

receiving a first indication of resource availability of the first resource for the first network.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication comprises:

determining for the intended communication whether a first indication of resource availability for the first resource is above a threshold.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the threshold corresponds to a media type or quality of service for the intended communication.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the threshold is prescribed in the notice of intended communication.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication comprises:

reserving for the intended communication the first resource for the first network in the event the first resource has resource availability above a threshold.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the first resource is reserved at a first level, the first level greater than a level corresponding to the threshold, and the first level a minimum of a level of available resource in first network and a level of resource reserved in the second network.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication comprises:

receiving for the intended communication from the second network a second indication of resource sufficiency of a second resource for the second network.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

forwarding a re-invite for the intended communication to the second network and toward the called party network in the event a first indication of resource availability of the first resource for the first network is above a threshold and the second indication signifies resource sufficiency, wherein the first network is the calling party network, thereby indicating resource sufficiency for a corresponding resource in each network from the calling party network to the called party network.

10. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

forwarding a request to a transit network interposed the first network and the second network for verifying with the transit network a predetermined Service Level Agreement (SLA) and that the SLA assures at least one requirement of the intended communication;

receiving resource availability information for the transit network; and

forwarding a re-invite of the intended communication to the second network and toward the called party network in the event a first indication of resource availability of the first resource for the first network is above a threshold, the second indication indicates resource sufficiency and the resource availability information for the transit network is above the threshold, wherein the first network is the calling party network, thereby indicating resource sufficiency for a corresponding resource in each network from the calling party network to the called party network.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

in the event of receipt of a ringing message, forwarding a lock message, the lock message instructing that the first resource for the first network is to be used.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

forwarding a corresponding resource sufficiency message based on the resource availability information for the first network and the resource sufficiency information for the second network indicating resource sufficiency for the intended communication.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein forwarding a corresponding resource sufficiency message comprises:

forwarding the corresponding resource sufficiency message within the first network.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein forwarding a corresponding resource sufficiency message comprises:

forwarding the corresponding resource sufficiency message to a third network.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein the second network and the third network are the same network.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein performing for the intended communication the determination of resource availability for the first network is via at least one of an open loop control and an accounting based control.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein performing for the intended communication the determination of resource availability for the first network comprises:

communicating with a resource access control function (RACF) to verify the resource availability information concerning the first network.

18. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

forwarding at least one of a SDPReoffer message or a re-invitation message for the intended communication after verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein verifying resource sufficiency for the intended communication includes reserving the first resource for the if resource availability is above a sufficiency threshold, the method further comprising

receiving a ringing message;

and

locking the first resource for the first network that was reserved in response to the ringing message.

20. The method of claim 12 wherein the notice of intended communication includes a priority indicator, the method further comprising,

while verifying resource sufficiency for a first intended communication, preventing verifying resource sufficiency for a second intended communication having a priority indicator less than or equal to a priority indicator for the first intended communication.