Communications link interconnecting service control points of a load sharing group for traffic management control

• US 6,473,402 B1
• Filed: 03/11/1997
• Issued: 10/29/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Moharram, Omayma El-Sayed
• Primary Examiner(s): NGO, RICKY QUOC
• Application Number:
  US08/815,258
• Time in Patent Office: 2,058 Days
• Field of Search: 370/229, 370/230, 370/231, 370/232, 370/233, 370/234, 370/235, 370/236, 370/409, 370/410, 370/503, 370/507, 379/111, 379/112, 379/113, 379/115, 379/133, 379/134, 379/220, 379/221, 379/224, 379/227, 379/229, 379/230, 707/8, 707/9, 707/10, 707/200
• US Class Current: 370/236
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0025 Provisions for signalling
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/66 Traffic distributors

Abstract

In the Intelligent Networks environment, where multiple Service Providers and multi-Vendor equipment are involved in new service offering, the risk of overloading the network elements are real and managing the traffic is a challenge. Network traffic overloads could result from equipment failures, major equipment outages, or widespread loads above engineered levels. To solve the problem of network traffic overload, a direct link interconnect feature between the two SCPs that are deployed in load sharing mode in the network is provided. The communications link interconnects the two SCPs within the load sharing group, whereby the SCPs may exchange information on their congestion levels and controls as well as route queries to the SCP that is not overloaded.

Claims

1. A method for synchronizing operation of a plurality of service control points (SCPs) in a load sharing group, comprising the steps of:

maintaining, by each SCP, respective controls lists for the plurality of SCPs, each controls list identifies controls which are active at the corresponding SCP;

generating a new control by any one SCP of the plurality of SCPs in the load sharing group;

at the any one SCP, updating the controls list corresponding to itself to add the new control and sending an add control signal which identifies the new control to all other SCPs of the plurality of SCPs in the load sharing group;

at each of the other SCPs, updating the controls list corresponding to the any one SCP, that each maintains, to add the identified new control;

at the any one SCP of the plurality of SCPs in the load sharing group, updating the maintained controls list corresponding to itself to remove an existing control therein and sending a remove control signal which identifies the existing control to the other SCPs of the plurality of the SCPs in the load sharing group; and

at each of the other SCPs, updating the controls list corresponding to the any one SCP, that each maintains, to remove the identified existing control;

wherein the step of generating the new control includes receiving, by the any one SCP, a query which results in the any one SCP being overloaded; and

further comprising routing, based on the respective controls lists for the other SCPs that are maintained by the any one SCP, the query to an available SCP of the other SPCs which does not have an active control corresponding to the query;

and wherein the plurality of SCPs are interconnected by a communications link, by which the add control signal and the remove control signal are sent from the any one SCP to the other SCPs in the load sharing group;

and wherein the query is routed from the any one SCP over the communications link to the available SCP;

and wherein individual controls in the controls lists are identified by a global title address and translation type, and each query includes respective indications for the global title address and the translation type.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the any one SCP is overloaded when the predetermined congestion level which is associated with the global title address and the translation type indicated in the received query is reached;

and the add control signal includes an address of the any one SCP, the global title address and the translation type.

3. A method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the add control signal indicates one or more levels of congestion on the any one SCP.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising disregarding queries which have a corresponding active control in all of the respective controls lists for the plurality of SCPs in the load sharing group.

5. A load sharing group of service control points (SCPs), comprising:

two SCPs; and

a communications link interconnecting the two SCPs;

wherein the two SCPs each maintains a first controls list which identifies active controls at that SCP and a second controls list which identifies the active controls at the other SCP;

and wherein when either of the two SCPs adds a new control to its first controls list, that SCP sends a subsystem congestion message which identifies the new control, over the communications link, to the other SCP which in response updates its second controls list by adding the identified new control; and

wherein when either of the two SCPs removes an existing control from its first controls list, that SCP sends a subsystem available message which identifies the existing control, over the communications link, to the other SCP which in response updates its second controls list by removing the identified existing control;

and wherein new control in the subsystem congestion message or the existing control in the subsystem available message are identified by a global title address and translation type.

6. A load sharing group as claimed in claim 5, wherein the subsystem congestion message and the subsystem available message each includes an originating SCP address, a destination SCP address, and one or more levels of congestion.