COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND COMMUNICATION CONTROL METHOD

• US 20150110106A1
• Filed: 04/15/2013
• Published: 04/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Kamada, Shinya
• Granted Patent: US 9,379,967 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/389
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/12 Shortest path evaluation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/302 Route determination based on requested QoS

Abstract

A communication system 1000 has a communication path configured by connecting a starting-point device to an end-point device so as to be capable of communicating via at least one relay-point device. The communication system 1000 includes; a communication path determined band acquiring part 1001 that, for each of sections between communication devices adjacent to each other in the communication path, acquires a section available band, and acquires the smallest value between the section available band and a communication path request band that is a communication band requested for the communication path, as a communication path determined band; a band reserving part 1002 that reserves the acquired communication path determined band in the communication path; and a communication traffic controller 1003 that transmits communication traffic satisfying a traffic flow condition so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path where the communication path is reserved.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising a plurality of communication devices,

the communication system having a communication path configured by connecting a starting-point device to an end-point device so as to be capable of communicating via at least one relay-point device, the starting-point device being one of the plurality of communication devices, the end-point device being one of the communication devices other than the starting-point device among the plurality of communication devices, and the relay-point device being a communication device other than the starting-point device and the end-point device among the plurality of communication devices, and

the communication system comprising:

a communication path determined band acquiring unit for, for each of sections between communication devices adjacent to each other in the communication path, acquiring a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and acquiring, as a communication path determined band, a smallest value between the acquired section available band and a communication path request band that is a communication band requested for the communication path;

a band reserving unit for reserving a communication band in the communication path by reserving the acquired communication path determined band in each of the sections configuring the communication path; and

a communication traffic controlling unit for transmitting communication traffic so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path where the communication band is reserved, the communication traffic satisfying a traffic flow condition including a condition that a transmission source communication device is the starting-point device and a transmission destination communication device is the end-point device.

2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication path determined band acquiring unit is configured so that:

a communication device configuring a most upstream section in a first direction in the communication path among the sections configuring the communication path acquires, as a section provisional band, a smallest value between the communication path request band and a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and notifies the acquired section provisional band as a section request band to a communication device configuring a downstream section in the first direction;

a communication device configuring a section other than the most upstream section in the first direction and a most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path acquires, as a section provisional hand, a smallest value between the section request band notified from upstream in the first direction and a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and notifies the acquired section provisional band as a section request band to a communication device configuring a downstream section in the first direction; and

a communication device configuring the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path acquires the section request band notified from upstream in the first section, as the communication path determined band.

3. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein the band reserving unit is configured so that:

the communication device configuring the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path notifies the acquired communication path determined band to a communication device configuring an upstream section in the first direction;

a communication device configuring a section other than the most upstream section in the first direction and the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path reserves, in the section, the communication path determined band notified from downstream in the first direction, and notifies the communication path determined band to a communication device configuring an upstream section in the first direction; and

the communication device configuring the most upstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path reserves, in the section, the communication path determined band notified from downstream in the first direction.

4. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to assign the communication path where the communication band is reserved to each of the traffic flow conditions, and transmit communication traffic satisfying the traffic flow condition so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path assigned to the traffic flow condition.

5. The communication system according to claim 4, wherein the communication path determined band acquiring unit is configured to accept a flow request band that is a communication band necessary for transmitting the communication traffic satisfying the traffic flow condition, and determine the communication path request band based on the accepted flow request band.

6. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of the communication paths are configured,

the communication system being configured to:

execute a band reservation process on each of the communication paths in order, the band reservation process being to acquire the communication path determined band and reserve the acquired communication path determined band in the communication path; and

use a sum of the flow request bands for the traffic flow conditions that the communication paths are not assigned yet, as the communication path request band for the communication path that is a target of the band reservation process.

7. The communication system according to claim 6, wherein the communication device is configured to accept communication path information in which the communication path that the starting-point device is configured by the communication device is associated with the end-point device configuring the communication path, and execute the band reservation process on a communication path associated with a same end-point device as the transmission destination communication device provided in the traffic flow condition in the accepted communication path information.

8. The communication system according to claim 7, wherein the communication path information is information in which the communication path is associated with a communication path priority representing a rank,

the communication system being configured to execute the band reservation process on the communication path in order of rank represented by the communication path priority associated with the communication path in the accepted communication path information.

9. The communication system according to claim 4, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to accept flow information in which the traffic flow condition is associated with a flow priority representing a rank, and assign the communication path to each of the traffic flow conditions in order of rank represented by the flow priority associated with the traffic flow condition in the accepted flow information.

11. The communication system according to claim 1, being configured to, in a case where the section available band is changed after the communication band is reserved in the communication path, reacquire the communication path determined band based on the changed section available band, and reserve the acquired communication path determined band anew in the communication path.

12. The communication system according to claim 1, comprising a communication path additionally available band acquiring unit for, after the communication band is reserved in the communication path, acquiring a section additionally available band for each of the sections configuring the communication path, and acquiring a smallest value of the acquired section additionally available bands as a communication path additionally available band, the section additionally available band being a communication band available in the section other than the reserved communication band,

wherein the band reserving unit is configured to reserve a communication band anew in the communication path based on the acquired communication path additionally available band.

13. The communication system according to claim 1, being configured to, in a case where one section configures a plurality of communication paths, communicate information on the plurality of communication paths in a state of being contained in one unit data having a predetermined format.

16. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to assign the communication path where the communication band is reserved to each of the traffic flow conditions, and transmit communication traffic satisfying the traffic flow condition so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path assigned to the traffic flow condition.

17. The communication system according to claim 3, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to assign the communication path where the communication band is reserved to each of the traffic flow conditions, and transmit communication traffic satisfying the traffic flow condition so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path assigned to the traffic flow condition.

18. The communication system according to claim 6, wherein the communication path information is information in which the communication path is associated with a communication path priority representing a rank,

the communication system being configured to execute the band reservation process on the communication path in order of rank represented by the communication path priority associated with the communication path in the accepted communication path information.

19. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to accept flow information in which the traffic flow condition is associated with a flow priority representing a rank, and assign the communication path to each of the traffic flow conditions in order of rank represented by the flow priority associated with the traffic flow condition in the accepted flow information.

20. The communication system according to claim 6, wherein the communication traffic controlling unit is configured to accept flow information in which the traffic flow condition is associated with a flow priority representing a rank, and assign the communication path to each of the traffic flow conditions in order of rank represented by the flow priority associated with the traffic flow condition in the accepted flow information.

10. A communication control method applied to a communication system including a plurality of communication devices, the communication system having a communication path configured by connecting a starting-point device, to an end-point device so as to be capable of communicating via at least one relay-point device, the starting-point device being one of the plurality of communication devices, the end-point device being one of the communication devices other than the starting-point device among the plurality of communication devices, and the relay-point device being a communication device other than the starting-point device and the end-point device, among the plurality of communication devices,

the communication control method comprising:

for each of sections between communication devices adjacent to each other in the communication path, acquiring a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and acquiring, as a communication path determined band, a smallest value between the acquired section available band and a communication path request band that is a communication band requested for the communication path;

reserving a communication band in the communication path by reserving the acquired communication path determined band in each of the sections configuring the communication path; and

transmitting communication traffic so that the communication traffic passes through the communication path where the communication band is reserved, the communication traffic satisfying a traffic flow condition including a condition that a transmission source communication device is the starting-point device and a transmission destination communication device is the end-point device.

14. The communication control method according to claim 10, wherein:

a communication device configuring a most upstream section in a first direction in the communication path among the sections configuring the communication path acquires, as a section provisional band, a smallest value between the communication path request band and a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and notifies the acquired section provisional band as a section request band to a communication device configuring a downstream section in the first direction;

a communication device configuring a section other than the most upstream section in the first direction and a most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path acquires, as a section provisional band, a smallest value between the section request band notified from upstream in the first direction and a section available band that is a communication band available in the section, and notifies the acquired section provisional band as a section request band to a communication device configuring a downstream section in the first direction; and

a communication device configuring the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path acquires the section request band notified from upstream in the first section, as the communication path determined band.

15. The communication control method according to claim 14, wherein:

the communication device configuring the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path notifies the acquired communication path determined band to a communication device configuring an upstream section in the first direction;

a communication device configuring a section other than the most upstream section in the first direction and the most downstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path reserves, in the section, the communication path determined band notified from downstream in the first direction, and notifies the communication path determined band to a communication device configuring an upstream section in the first direction; and

the communication device configuring the most upstream section in the first direction among the sections configuring the communication path reserves, in the section, the communication path determined band notified from downstream in the first direction.