Telecommunication networks

• US 20120064908A1
• Filed: 07/05/2011
• Published: 03/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vodafone IP Licensing Limited (Vodafone Group PLC)
• Original Assignee: Vodafone IP Licensing Limited (Vodafone Group PLC)
• Inventors: Fox, David Andrew, Chami, Youssef, Cheng, Matthew, Allen, Steve, McCracken, John, Gallego-Lopez, Marina
• Granted Patent: US 8,639,260 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/452.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1456 Hardware arrangements for backup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1464 for networked environments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1485 Tariff-related aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1489 dependent on congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/147 for predicting network behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/149 for prediction of maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/822 Collecting or measuring resource availability data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/83 based on usage prediction
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/10 Flow control between communication endpoints
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

A mobile telecommunications network includes a core and a radio access network having a radio for wireless communication with mobile terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller operable to control the use of network resources by the mobile terminals. The controller may include an application programming interface, API, which provides a consistent interface to a multiplicity of applications hosted on the control mean. The controller may be provided at an access node site and/or a gateway site.

Claims

1. A mobile telecommunications network, comprising:

a core; and

a radio access network having a radio that wirelessly communicates with mobile terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller that controls allocation of network resources to the mobile terminals, and wherein the controller gauges radio conditions available to the mobile terminals and controls transmission of data between the radio access network and the mobile terminals in dependence thereon.

2. The network of claim 1, wherein the radio access network includes a plurality of cells and the controller controls the transmission of data within at least one of the cells according to conditions therein.

3. The network of claim 1, wherein the controller gauges the radio conditions by measuring radio conditions at the mobile terminals.

4. The network of claim 1, wherein the controller gauges the radio conditions by predicting the radio conditions at the mobile terminals.

5. The network of claim 4, wherein the controller builds and maintains a record of radio quality across a coverage area of the network, and uses the record to predict the radio conditions at the mobile terminals.

6. The network of claim 1, wherein the controller gauges backhaul resources available to the mobile terminals and controls transmission of data between the radio access network and the mobile terminals in dependence thereon, and wherein the controller gauges radio conditions by at least one of:

assessing the backhaul resources available to the mobile terminals, predicting backhaul capacity available to the mobile terminals, and building and maintaining a record of backhaul capacity for one of;

a cell and a radio site and using the record to predict the backhaul capacity available to the mobile terminals.

7. The network of claim 1, wherein the controller calculates at least one of:

location and velocity of the mobile terminals and wherein the controller controls the transmission of data in dependence thereon.

8. The network of claim 7, wherein the controller uses a record of radio quality across coverage area and the calculated location and velocity of one of the mobile terminals to estimate radio conditions available to the one of the mobile terminals at a future location and controls the transmission of data between the radio access network and the one of the mobile terminals at the calculated location in dependence thereon.

9. The network of claim 8, wherein the controller increases an amount of data transmitted at the calculated location of the mobile terminal if radio conditions at the future locations are predicted to be below a quality threshold, and wherein the controller decreases an amount of data transmitted at the calculated location of the mobile terminal if the radio conditions at the future location are predicted to be above a quality threshold.

10. The network of claim 1, wherein the controller triggers initialization, suspension or termination of applications based on one of measured radio conditions, predicted radio conditions, measured backhaul capacity, and predicted backhaul capacity.

11. A method of operating mobile telecommunications network including a core and a radio access network having a radio for wireless communication with mobile terminals registered with the network, the method comprising:

operating a controller to control allocation of network resources to the mobile terminals;

gauging radio conditions available to the mobile terminals; and

controlling transmission of data between the radio access network and the mobile terminals according to the radio conditions.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the radio access network includes a plurality of cells and the controller controls the transmission of data within a particular one of the cells in dependence upon the gauged conditions within the particular one of the cells.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the controller gauges the radio conditions by at least one of:

assessing the radio conditions available to the mobile terminals and predicting the radio conditions available to the mobile terminals.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the controller builds and maintains a record of radio quality across a coverage area of the network, and uses the record to predict radio conditions available to the mobile terminals.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the controller calculates one of:

location and velocity of the mobile terminals and controls the transmission of data in dependence thereon.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the controller uses a record of radio quality across a coverage area and uses the one of:

the calculated location and velocity of one of the mobile terminals to estimate radio conditions available to the one of the mobile terminals at a future location and controls the transmission of data between the radio access network and that mobile terminal at the calculated location in dependence thereon.

17. The network of claim 16, wherein the controller increases the amount of data transmitted at the calculated location of the mobile terminal if the radio conditions at the future location are predicted to be below a quality threshold and wherein the controller decreases the amount of data transmitted at the calculated location of the mobile terminal if the radio conditions at the future location are predicted to be above a quality threshold.

18. A mobile telecommunications network, comprising:

a core; and

a radio access network having a radio that wirelessly communicates with terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller that controls the use of network resources by the terminals, wherein the controller hosts at least one application that provides service to at least one of the terminals, and wherein the controller adjusts the use of network resources in dependence upon the application providing service to the terminal.

19. A mobile telecommunications network, comprising:

a core; and

a radio access network having a radio that wirelessly communicates with mobile terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller that controls the use of network resources by the mobile terminals, and wherein the controller controls a transfer of data between the mobile terminals and a store.

20. A mobile telecommunications network, comprising:

a core; and

a radio access network having a radio that wirelessly communicates with mobile terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller that controls the use of network resources by the mobile terminals, and wherein the controller controls charging for use of the network resources.

21. A mobile telecommunications network, comprising:

a core; and

a radio access network having a radio that wirelessly communicates with terminals registered with the network, wherein the radio access network includes a controller that controls the use of network resources by the mobile terminals, wherein the controller performs self-organizing network functions.