System and Method for Testing Mobile Telephone Data Services

• US 20100080143A1
• Filed: 09/30/2008
• Published: 04/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Spirent Communications Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Spirent Communications Incorporated
• Inventors: Topaltzas, Dimitrios M., Lloyd, Rupert C.
• Application Number:
  US12/242,309
• Publication Number:
  US 20100080143A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/253
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/34 ensuring sequence integrity, e.g. using sequence numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

A system and method of determining the quality of data services of a mobile telephone is provided. In one embodiment, a method comprises wirelessly receiving content as data stream of data packets at the mobile telephone via a mobile telephone network, storing the received data packets in a memory, storing in the memory reception sequence data comprising data of the sequence of reception of each data packet received, storing in a memory reception timing data comprising data of the timing of the reception of each packet received, reconstructing the data stream by providing the data packets to an end user application in a sequence determined by the reception sequence data and spaced apart in time as determined by the reception time data, presenting the content with the end user application, and determining a quality assessment of the content based on the output of the end user application. The end user application may be resident on a mobile telephone device or a computer. The presentation by the end user device may be recorded and processed by quality assessment program code and/or a panel of observers to provide a quality assessment.

Claims

1. A method of determining the quality of data services of a mobile telephone, comprising:

wirelessly receiving content in a plurality of data packets at the mobile telephone via a mobile telephone network;

storing in a memory reception sequence data comprising data of the sequence of reception of each data packet received;

storing in a memory reception timing data comprising data of the timing of the reception of each packet received;

providing the sequence data and the timing data to a remote computer; and

with the remote computer, determining a quality assessment of the received content based on the sequence data and the timing data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content is configured to be presented to an end user via an end user application and wherein determining a quality assessment comprises:

providing the data packets to an end user application in a sequence determined by the reception sequence data and spaced apart in time as determined by the reception timing data; and

determining a quality for a presentation of the content provided by the end user application.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein determining the quality assessment for a presentation of the content comprises:

storing an output of the presentation from the end user application; and

assessing a quality of the output via use of a computer executable program code.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein said determining the quality assessment for a presentation comprises receiving a quality assessment input from one or more human observers of the presentation.

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

receiving transmission sequence data comprising data of the sequence of transmission of two or more data packets received; and

wherein said determining a quality assessment comprises processing the received reception timing data, reception sequence data, and transmission sequence data.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising receiving transmission timing data comprising data of the timing of the transmission of each data packet;

and

wherein said determining a quality assessment comprises processing the received reception timing data, reception sequence data, transmission sequence data, and transmission timing data.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said determining a quality assessment comprises:

providing the received data packets to a mobile telephone in a sequence determined by the reception sequence data and spaced apart in time as determined by the reception time data;

wherein the mobile telephone is configured to process the provided data packets to output a presentation of the content; and

wherein said determining a quality assessment comprises determining a quality assessment for the presentation outputted by the mobile telephone.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein said determining the quality assessment for the presentation, comprises:

storing the presentation from the mobile telephone in a memory; and

assessing a quality of the output via use of a computer executable program code.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content comprises video content.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content comprises audio content without a video component.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising storing in a memory reception packet size data comprising data of the size of each data packet received;

and

wherein said determining the quality assessment of the received content is further based on the reception packet size data.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the quality assessment of the received content comprises determining a statistical parameter of the number of data packets received out of sequence.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said determining the quality assessment of the received content further comprises determining a delay in the reception of one or more received data packets.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein said determining the quality assessment of the received content comprises determining a delay in the reception of one or more received data packets.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein said determining the quality assessment of the received content comprises determining a statistical parameter of the number of data packets lost.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content comprises voice over IP content.

17. A method of determining the quality of data services of a mobile telephone, comprising:

wirelessly receiving content as a data stream of data packets at the mobile telephone via a mobile telephone network;

storing in the memory reception sequence data comprising data of the sequence of reception of each data packet received;

storing in a memory reception timing data comprising data of the timing of the reception of each data packet received;

reconstructing the data stream by providing the received data packets to an end user application in a sequence determined by the reception sequence data and spaced apart in time as determined by the reception time data;

presenting the content with the end user application; and

determining a quality assessment for a presentation of the content provided by the end user application.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said determining a quality assessment of the content comprises:

storing an output of the presentation from the end user application; and

assessing a quality of the output via use of a computer executable program code.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein the end user application is resident on a mobile telephone.

20. The method according to claim 17, wherein the end user application is resident on a computer.

21. The method according to claim 17, wherein the content comprises video content and the end user application comprises a video player.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein said determining a quality assessment further comprises processing the reception timing data and reception sequence data.

23. The method according to claim 22, further comprising storing in memory reception packet size data comprising data of the size of each data packet received;

and

wherein said determining the quality assessment of the received content further comprises processing the reception packet size data.

24. The method according to claim 17, wherein said reconstructing comprises reconstructing the data stream with at least some of the data packets out of sequence from a transmitted sequence.

25. A method of determining the quality of a communication of a mobile telephone receiving a plurality of data packets comprising content, comprising:

determining reception sequence data comprising data of the sequence of reception of each of the data packet received by the mobile telephone;

determining reception timing data comprising data of the timing of the reception of each of the data packets received by the mobile telephone;

reconstructing the data stream by providing the received data packets to an end user application in a sequence determined by the reception sequence data and spaced apart in time as determined by the reception time data;

presenting the content with the end user application; and

determining a quality assessment of the presentation of the content based on the output of the end user application.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein said determining a quality assessment of the content comprises:

storing an output of the presentation from the end user application; and

assessing a quality of the output via use of a computer executable program code.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein the end user application is resident on the mobile telephone.

28. The method according to claim 25, wherein the end user application is resident on a computer.

29. The method according to claim 25, wherein the content comprises video content and the end user application comprises a video player.

30. The method according to claim 25, wherein the quality assessment comprises a perceived quality assessment, the method further comprising:

comprises processing the reception timing data and reception sequence data and said quality assessment comprises a statistical quality assessment.

31. The method according to claim 25, wherein said determining a quality assessment further comprises processing the reception timing data and reception sequence data.

32. The method according to claim 25, wherein said reconstructing comprises reconstructing the data stream with at least some of the data packets out of sequence from a transmitted sequence.

33. A method of determining the quality of a communication of a mobile telephone receiving a plurality of data packets comprising content, comprising:

determining an order of reception of each of the data packet received by the mobile telephone;

comparing the order of reception of each data packet received with a packet sequence number in each data packet received by the mobile telephone;

identifying a portion of the data packets that are received by the mobile telephone out of order;

determining a number of data packets transmitted to the mobile telephone;

determining a portion of data packets lost; and

assessing a quality of data service based, at least in part, on the portion of data packets received out of order and the portion of data packets lost.

34. The method according to claim 33, further comprising determining timing data comprising data of the timing of the reception of each of the data packets received by the mobile telephone;

and

wherein said assessing a quality of data services is further based on the timing data.