Service management system for use in communications

• US 6,445,782 B1
• Filed: 05/12/1998
• Issued: 09/03/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Original Assignee: British Telecommunications PLC (BT Group PLC)
• Inventors: Elfe, Charles D., Freuder, Eugene C., Corley, Stephen L., Lesaint, David, Azarmi, Nader
• Primary Examiner(s): Matar, Ahmad F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): AGDEPPA, HECTOR A
• Application Number:
  US09/068,503
• Time in Patent Office: 1,575 Days
• Field of Search: 379/201, 379/207, 379/220, 379/230, 379/229, 379/219
• US Class Current: 379/201.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/4217 Managing service interactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0041 involving techniques for avoiding interaction of call service features

Abstract

A feature checker provides the ability to review communications service features for interaction problems at service creation time, or at runtime. Hence a feature can be reviewed against existing service features or against a specific other user'"'"'s features.

The feature checker is based on modelling communications service features as constraint satisfaction problems in which constraints 600, 605 determine preset relationships between values 610, 615 for variables 200, 215, 300, 400 of the feature. The model can then be searched for inconsistencies which indicate feature interaction. Interaction can be solved by building in an “alternative invoke” 610 for a feature which overcomes the inconsistency. This might be for instance a form of invoke which, when instantiated, actively suppresses a conflicting feature.

Claims

1. A feature interaction management system, for use in real-time provision of communications services over a communications network by means of running call processing logic to control the network, the feature interaction management system comprising:

(i) a feature representation store for storing constraint-based representations of communications service features;

(ii) an accessor arranged to access said feature representation store;

(iii) a simulator for providing simulations of call instance scenarios involving at least one communications service feature;

(iv) a conflict detector arranged to

receive, from the simulator, a set of values representative of a call instance;

retrieve at least two constraint-based feature representations of service features via the accessor;

generate at least one constraint satisfaction problem comprising the retrieved at least two constraint-based feature representations and the received set of values;

use the generated constraint satisfaction problem to detect conflicts relating to the simulated call instance scenario; and

(v) a resolution generator for receiving detected conflict information from the conflict detector and for generating at least a partial resolution to a detected conflict, which resolution is for use in real-time modification of the call processing logic.

2. A system according to claim 1, further comprising a store for storing resolutions output by the resolution generator in the feature representation store.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the constraint-based representations of features comprises:

i) an identifier for each of a set of variables, one of the variables being identified as said feature and at least two other of the variables being identified as call status and connect status,

ii) a set of values associated with each of at least two of the variables, wherein values can be instantiated in provision of a service or feature, and

iii) a set of constraints which define, for instance by listing, combinations of values between different variables to be instantiated at the same time in provision of the feature.

4. A system according to claim 3 wherein the conflict detector is arranged to detect a conflict by identifying any two or more constraints which are incompatible in that they contain respective combinations which specify a different value for the same variable.

5. A system according to claim 4 wherein the resolution generator is operable to propose deletion of one or more features from the feature representation store in resolution of a conflict.

6. A system according to claim 5, wherein the resolution generator is operable to proposed deletion of said one or more features in accordance with a priority indicator.

7. A system according to claim 6 wherein the resolution generator is operable to minimize the total number of features to be deleted when proposing deletion of said one or more features.

8. A system according to claim 1, further comprising an interface for receiving information from, and sending information to, the network.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the interface is arranged to retrieve user profile information from the network, the user profile information including at least one communications service feature.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein the resolution generator is operable to propose deletion of one or more features from the user profile in resolution of a conflict, said deletion being proposed in respect of at least one feature which utilizes network resources that are common to at least one other feature.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein the resolution generator is operable to propose deletion of said features in accordance with a priority indicator.

12. A system according to claim 11, wherein the resolution generator is operable to minimize the total number of features to be deleted when proposing deletion of said features.

13. A feature interaction management system, for use in the provision of communications services over a communications network by means of running call processing logic to control the network, wherein the feature interaction management system comprises:

(i) an accessible feature representation store for storing constraint-based representations of communications service features;

(ii) a scenario simulator for providing simulations of call instance scenarios involving at least one communications service feature; and

(iii) a conflict detector for detecting conflicts between feature representations in a simulated call instance scenario;

wherein the conflict detector is adapted to detect conflicts by generating at least one constraint satisfaction problem and detecting inconsistencies in the constraint satisfaction problem, the problem comprising at least two constraint-based feature representations and a set of values for call instances, the set of values being provided by a simulated call instance scenario; and

wherein the system further comprises a translator for translating service specifications for use in a service creation environment to constraint-based representations of service features.

14. A method of providing, in real-time, communications services over a communications network, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a signal representative of a request for service;

(b) generating a constraint satisfaction problem representative of service features, the problem comprising a plurality of variables and one or more predetermined relationships between values for those variables;

(c) generating a set of scenarios comprising values for at least one of the plurality of variables;

(d) running the generated scenarios and detecting conflicts arising between values assigned to any one of the plurality of variables;

(e) generating at least a partial resolution to a detected conflict;

(f) modifying, in real-time, call processing logic in accordance with the generated resolution; and

(g) providing the said requested service over the communications network on the basis of the modified call processing logic.

15. A feature interaction management system, for use in the provision of communications services over a communications network by means of running call processing logic to control the network, wherein the feature interaction management system comprises:

(i) an accessible feature representation store for storing constraint-based representations of communications service features;

(ii) a scenario simulator for providing simulations of call instance scenarios involving at least one communications service feature; and

(iii) a conflict detector for detecting conflicts between feature representations in a simulated call instance scenario;

wherein the conflict detector is adapted to detect conflicts by generating at least one constraint satisfaction problem and detecting inconsistencies in the constraint satisfaction problem, the problem comprising at least two constraint-based feature representations and a set of values for call instances, the set of values being provided by the simulated call instance scenario;

wherein a constraint-based representation of the at least one communications services comprises;

(a) an identifier for each of a set of variables, one of the variables being identified as said feature and at least two other of the variables being identified as call status and connect status;

(b) a set of values associated with each of at least two of the variables, which values can be instantiated in provision of a service or feature; and

(c) a set of constraints which define, for instance by listing, combinations of values between different variables to be instantiated at the same time in provision of the feature;

wherein the conflict detector detects a conflict by identifying any two or more constraints which are incompatible in that they contain respective combinations which specify a different value for the same variable;

wherein a resolution generated by the resolution generator comprises the introduction of a new value for a variable, together with a new constraint which applies to the new value and contains a combination which excludes the conflict; and

for use at runtime in providing the communications services, wherein the new value for the variable modifies the call processing logic, such that a feature can be provided to a user with an alternative functionality.

16. A method of providing communications services over a communications network, the method comprising:

receiving a signal representative of a request for service;

generating a constraint satisfaction problem representative of service features, the problem comprising a plurality of variables and one or more predetermined relationships between values for those variables;

generating a set of scenarios comprising values for at least one of the plurality of variables;

running the generated scenarios and detecting conflicts arising between values assigned to any one of the plurality of variables;

generating at least a partial resolution to a detected conflict;

translating service specifications of new services for use in a service creation environment to constraint-based representations of service features;

modifying call processing logic in accordance with the generated resolution and the constraint-based representations of service features; and

providing said requested service over the communications network on the basis of the modified call processing logic.

17. A method of managing, in real-time, provision of communications services over a communications network by means of running call processing logic to control the network, the method comprising:

storing constraint-based representations of communications service features in an accessible feature representation store;

providing simulations of call instance scenarios involving at least one communications service feature;

receiving a set of values representative of a call instance resulting from said simulations;

retrieving at least two constraint-based feature representations of service features;

generating at least one constraint satisfaction problem comprising the retrieved at least two constraint-based feature representations and the received set of values;

using the generated constraint satisfaction problem to detect conflicts relating to the simulated call instance scenario; and

generating at least a partial resolution to a detected conflict, which resolution is for use in real-time modification of the call processing logic.