RADIO EFFICIENT TCP RELEASE

• US 20140241251A1
• Filed: 10/05/2012
• Published: 08/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Willars, Per, Karlsen, Johnny
• Granted Patent: US 9,648,659 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/34 Selective release of ongoing connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/36 for reassigning the resources associated with the released connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/38 triggered by timers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/06 Transport layer protocols, e.g. TCP [Transport Control Protocol] over wireless transmission control protocol/Internet protocol [TCP/IP] or user datagram protocol [UDP] H04L69/16

Abstract

A radio communication handling device handling communication for an application running in a mobile station and communicating with an application server via a mobile communication network includes a radio resource determination unit that determines a state transition for the radio resources between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and informs, prior to the transition, at least one application communication control unit about the transition in order to allow the application communication control unit to release unused application communication connections before the transition. The application communication control unit receives the information about the following state transition and determines whether to release an application communication connection or not based on the information.

Claims

1. A method for enabling avoiding of unnecessary radio resource use by a mobile station having an application communicating with an application server via a mobile communication network using an application communication protocol, the method being performed for radio communication involving the mobile station and comprising:

determining, in a radio resource determination unit, a state transition for the radio resources between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and

informing, by the radio resource determination unit and prior to the transition, at least one application communication control unit about the transition in order to allow the application communication control unit to release unused application communication connections before the transition.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising disregarding, by the radio resource determination unit, connectivity control commands from an application handling unit in relation to a state transition.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the state change determination is based on estimating the time of expiry of at least one state change timer of the mobile communication network.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending, by the radio resource determination unit to the application communication control unit, an indication of the current state and considering, in the application communication control unit, the current state when releasing application communication connections.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the considering of the current state comprises sequentially initiating the release of multiple application communication connections.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, determining, by the application communication control unit whether to release an application communication connection or not based on knowledge of the connection release behaviour of a corresponding application server.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the radio resource determination unit is provided in the mobile station, the application communication control unit is a connection handling unit in the mobile station and the state transition is determined based on a low activity indicator of the mobile station.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the low activity indicator is obtained based on investigating the amount of data of a transmission buffer of the mobile station or the amount of data sent or received during a time period.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the low activity indicator is obtained based on a low activity level of a user interface.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the radio resource determination unit is provided in a node of the mobile communication network and one application communication control unit is a proxy unit in the mobile communication network handling communication of an application with a corresponding application server, where the informing is an informing of the proxy unit of the determined state transition, in order to let the proxy unit release at least one application communication connection.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising releasing, by the proxy unit, at least one application communication connection before the transition to the second state, thereby making the application also release at least one application communication connection.

12. A radio communication handling device handling communication for an application running in a mobile station and communicating with an application server via a mobile communication network, the radio communication handling device comprising:

a radio resource determination unit configured to;

determine a state transition for the radio resources between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and

inform, prior to the transition, at least one application communication control unit about the transition in order to allow the application communication control unit to release unused application communication connections before the transition.

13. The radio communication handling device according to claim 12, wherein the radio resource determination unit is further configured to disregard connectivity control commands from an application handling unit in relation to a state transition.

14. The radio communication handling device according to claim 12, wherein the radio resource determination unit comprises a network state change estimating element configured to estimate the time of expiry of at least one state change timer of the mobile communication network.

15. The radio communication handling device according to claim 12, further comprising at least one of said at least one application communication control unit being configured to determine whether to release an application communication connection or not based on said informing.

16. The radio communication handling device according to claim 15, said application communication control unit being configured to determine whether to release an application communication connection or not based on knowledge of the connection release behaviour of the corresponding application server.

17. The radio communication handling device according to claim 15, the application communication control unit being further configured to receive an indication of the current state from the radio resource determination unit and consider the current state when releasing application communication connections.

18. The radio communication handling device according to claim 17, wherein the considering of the state comprises sequentially initiating the release of multiple application communication connections.

19. The radio communication handling device according to claim 12, wherein the radio communication handling device is the mobile station and the application communication control unit is a connection handling unit in the mobile station.

20. The radio communication handling device according to claim 19, wherein the radio resource determination unit comprises a local state change element configured to determine the state transition based on a low activity indicator of the mobile station.

21. The radio communication handling device according to claim 20, wherein the local state change element is configured to determine the low activity indicator based on investigating the amount of data of a transmission buffer of the mobile station or the amount of data sent or received during a time period.

22. The radio communication handling device according to claim 20, wherein the local state change element is configured to determine the low activity indicator based on a low activity level of a user interface.

23. The radio communication handling device according to claim 12, where the radio communication handling device is provided in a network node.

24. The radio communication handling device according to claim 23, wherein the application communication control unit is a proxy unit provided in a network node, said proxy unit handling communication of an application in the mobile station with a corresponding application server.

25. The radio communication handling device according to claim 24, the radio communication handling device comprises said proxy unit, said proxy unit being further configured to release at least one application communication connection before the transition to the second state, thereby making the application also release at least one application communication connection.

26. A computer program product for enabling avoiding of unnecessary radio resource use by a mobile station having an application communicating with an application server via a mobile communication network using an application communication protocol, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium comprising computer program code causing a radio resource determination unit of a radio communication handing device to:

determine a state transition for the radio resources between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and

inform, prior to the transition, at least one application communication control unit about the transition in order to allow the application communication control unit to release unused application communication connections before the transition.

27. A method for controlling the release of application communication connections for an application in a mobile station, said application communicating with a corresponding application server via a mobile communication network using an application communication protocol, the method being performed in an application communication control unit and comprising:

receiving, from a radio resource determination unit for radio communication involving the mobile station, information about a following state transition for the radio communication between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and

determining whether to release an application communication connection or not based on the information.

28. The method according to claim 27, further comprising receiving an indication of the current state and considering the state when releasing application communication connections.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the considering of the state comprises sequentially initiating the release of multiple application communication connections.

30. The method according to claim 27, wherein the determining of whether to release an application communication connection or not is based on knowledge of the connection release behaviour of the corresponding application server.

31. The method according to claim 27, wherein the application communication control unit is a proxy unit in the mobile communication network handling communication of the application with the application server and further comprising releasing, by the proxy unit, at least one application communication connection before the transition to the second state thereby making the application in the mobile station also release at least one application communication connection.

32. The method according to claim 27, wherein the application communication control unit is a connection handling unit in the mobile station.

33. A connection releasing device for controlling the release of application communication connections for an application in a mobile station, said application communicating with a corresponding application server via a mobile communication network using an application communication protocol, the connection releasing device comprising an application communication control unit configured to:

receive, from a radio resource determination unit for radio communication involving the mobile station, information about a following state transition for the radio communication between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state, and

determine whether to release an application communication connection or not based on the information.

34. The connection releasing device according to claim 33, wherein the application communication control unit is further configured to receive an indication of the current state and consider the state when releasing application communication connections.

35. The connection releasing device according to claim 34, wherein the considering of the state comprises sequentially initiating the release of multiple application communication connections.

36. The connection releasing device according to claim 33, wherein the application communication control unit is further configured to determine whether to release an application communication connection or not based on knowledge of the connection release behaviour of the corresponding application server.

37. The connection releasing device according to claim 33, wherein the connection releasing device is a network node and the application communication control unit is a proxy unit handling communication of the application with the application server, the proxy unit being further configured to release at least one application communication connection before the transition to the second state thereby making the application in the mobile station also release at least one application communication connection.

38. The application communication connection releasing device according to claim 33, wherein the application communication connection releasing device is a mobile station and the application communication control unit is a connection handling unit in the mobile station.

39. A computer program product for controlling the release of application communication connections for an application in a mobile station, said application communicating with a corresponding application server via a mobile communication network using an application communication protocol, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium comprising computer program code causing an application communication control unit of a connection releasing device to:

receive, from a radio resource determination unit for radio communication involving the mobile station, information about a following state transition for the radio communication between the mobile station and the mobile communication network from a first current state to a second state, where the first state involves communication with a higher bandwidth than the second state and

determine whether to release an application communication connection or not based on the information.