Call control strategy for high capacity telecommunication services

• US 5,042,064 A
• Filed: 05/03/1990
• Issued: 08/20/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T, Inc.
• Inventors: Crescenti, John, Chung, Li-Jin W., Machol, Richard E.
• Primary Examiner(s): SCHREYER, STAFFORD
• Application Number:
  US07/518,678
• Time in Patent Office: 474 Days
• Field of Search: 379/113, 379/243, 379/244, 379/258
• US Class Current: 379/112.04
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/36 Statistical metering, e.g. recording occasions when traffic exceeds capacity of trunks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4228 in networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13561 congestion - inc. overflow
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0016 Arrangements providing connection between exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0029 Provisions for intelligent networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/665 Circuit arrangements therefor

Abstract

A threshold-based call control facility is provided for use in a telecommunications network switch to control the processing of calls associated with so-called high capacity (HICAP) telecommunications services. In addition, a feature is provided for dynamically changing a respective threshold value at each network switch until the number of such calls reaching a respective destination switch, and hence an associated trunk group, reaches an optimum level, in which each such change in the value of the threshold is determined as a function of traffic data accumulated by the destination switch for the associated trunk group.

Claims

1. An arrangement for controlling the rate at which telephone calls are processed by a telecommunications network, said network comprising a plurality of switches, said arrangement comprising

means for storing in memory contained in at least one of said switches a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of different types of telephone services identified by associated telephone calls originating at said one switch, in which each of said thresholds is operative for controlling the number of calls of the associated type that are routed to a respective destination during a respective interval of time, and

means, contained in said at least one switch and operative upon receipt of dialed digits indicative of one of said different types of services, for routing the associated telephone call to its respective destination if said routing of said call does not cause the associated threshold value to be exceeded for the respective current interval of time.

2. The arrangement set forth in claim 1 wherein said thresholds values are associated with respective telephone numbers each indicative of a respective one of said different types of services and wherein said arrangement includes means, external to said one switch and responsive to one of said telephone numbers being active, for dynamically changing the value of the associated threshold until said value substantially reaches an optimum level.

3. An arrangement for controlling the rate at which telephone calls are processed by a telecommunications network, said network comprising a plurality of switches, said arrangement comprising

means for storing in memory contained in at least one of said switches a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of different types of services, in which each of said thresholds is operative for controlling the number of calls of the associated type that are routed to their respective destinations during a respective interval of time, and

means, contained in said at least one switch and operative upon receipt of dialed digits indicative of one of said different types of services, for routing said one type of call to its destination if said routing of said one of type of call does not cause the associated threshold value to be exceeded for the respective current interval of time, wherein said arrangement further comprises an operations system, wherein said destination switch being arranged for accumulating over a predetermined interval traffic data associated with routing to a customer a call associated with a telephone number identified by said dialed digits and for passing said data to said operations system at the end of said traffic interval, and wherein said operations system includes means operative for changing the value of said associated threshold as a function of said data and for sending said changed value to each of said switches for use over the next, subsequent traffic interval.

4. An arrangement for controlling the number of telephone calls associated with different types of high capacity calling services that are processed, within respective intervals of time, by each of a plurality of switches forming a telecommunications network, said arrangement comprising

at least one memory contained in each of said switches, said one memory having stored therein a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of said services,

means, contained in each of said switches, for determining the number of originating telephone calls received over the respective interval of time for each of said services, and

means, contained in at least one of said switches and responsive to receipt of a telephone call associated with one of said services and originating at said one switch, for routing said call to a destination switch if the value of the associated one of said thresholds exceeds the value of the number of originating calls associated with said one service that said one switch has thus far received within the respective current interval of time.

5. The arrangement set forth in claim 4 wherein said threshold values are associated with respective telephone numbers identifying respective ones of said services and wherein said arrangement includes means, external to said switches and responsive to one of said telephone numbers being active, for dynamically changing the value of the associated threshold until said value substantially reaches an optimum level.

6. An arrangement for controlling the number of telephone calls associated with different types of high capacity calling services that are processed, within respective intervals of time, by each of a plurality of switches forming a telecommunications network, said arrangement comprising

at least one memory contained in each of said switches, said one memory having stored therein a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of said services,

means, contained in each of said switches, for determining the number of calls received over the respective interval of time for each of said services, and

means, contained in at least one of said switches and responsive to receipt of a telephone call associated with one of said services, for routing said call to its destination if the value of the respective one of said thresholds exceeds the value of the number of calls associated with said one service that said one switch has thus far received within the respective current interval of time, wherein said arrangement further comprises

an operations system, wherein said destination switch being arranged for accumulating over a predetermined interval traffic data associated with routing to a customer said telephone call and for passing said data to said operations system at the end of said traffic interval, and wherein said operations system includes means operative for changing the value of the threshold associated with said one service as a function of said data and for sending said changed value to each of said switches for use over the next, subsequent traffic interval.

7. A network comprising

at least one destination switch for receiving calls routed through said network,

at least one other switch for receiving said calls from different sources of calls and routing said calls to said destination switch, said destination switch including means for generating traffic data, including an overflow count, associated with a predetermined trunk group operative for extending said calls to their ultimate destination, said other switch including means for limiting, in accordance with a respective threshold value, the number of said calls that are routed to said destination within a predetermined interval of time, and

means, responsive to said traffic data, for changing the value of said threshold at said other switch until said overflow count at said destination switch substantially equals zero.

8. A method of controlling the rate at which telephone calls are processed in a network comprising at least one destination switch and at least one other switch, said method comprising the steps of

receiving at said destination node said calls and forwarding them to an associated outgoing trunk group,

receiving at said other node and from different sources said calls and routing them to said destination switch,

arranging said destination switch so that it generates traffic data associated with said trunk group, and arranging said other switch so that it limits, in accordance with a respective threshold value, the number of said calls that are routed to said destination within a predetermined interval of time, and

changing, in accordance with said traffic data, the value of said threshold at said other switch until said value substantially equals an optimum level.

9. A method of controlling the rate at which telephone calls are processed by a telecommunications network, said network comprising a plurality of switches, said method comprising the steps of

storing in memory contained in a least one of said switches a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of different types of calls originating at said one switch, in which each of said thresholds is operative for controlling the number of originating calls of the associated type that are routed to their respective destinations during a respective interval of time, and

arranging said at least one switch so that it responds to receipt of dialed digits indicative of one of said different types of originating calls by routing said one type of call to its destination if said routing of said one of type of call does not cause the associated threshold value to be exceeded for the respective current interval of time.

10. A method for controlling the number of telephone calls associated with different types of high capacity calling services that are processed, within respective intervals of time, by each of a plurality of switches forming a telecommunications network, said method comprising the steps of

providing at least one memory in each of said switches, and storing in said one memory a plurality of threshold values associated with respective ones of said services,

arranging each of said switches so that it determines the number of originating calls that it receives, over the respective interval of time, for each of said services, and

arranging at least one of said switches so that it responds to receipt of a telephone call originating at said one switch and associated with one of said services by routing said call to its destination if the value of the associated one of said thresholds exceeds the value of the number of associated calls that said one switch priorly received within the respective current interval of time for said one service.