Network resource reservation control method and apparatus, receiving terminal, sending terminal, and relay apparatus

• US 6,496,479 B1
• Filed: 09/24/1998
• Issued: 12/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Shionozaki, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Yao, Kwang Bin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Harper, Kevin C.
• Application Number:
  US09/160,472
• Time in Patent Office: 1,545 Days
• Field of Search: 370/229, 370/230, 370/231-234, 709/200, 709/223, 709/226, 709/227, 709/228, 709/229
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5616 Terminal equipment, e.g. codecs, synch.
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/563 Signalling, e.g. protocols, reference model
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5667 IP over ATM
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0478 Provisions for broadband connections

Abstract

Resources such as VCs (Virtual Connections) are efficiently reserved. When an ASP (AMInet Setup Protocol) message is sent from a receiving terminal (RECEIVER) to a sending terminal (SENDER), virtual connections of a predetermined bandwidth individually specified by the ASP message are established in the direction from the receiving terminal to the sending terminal and in the direction from the sending terminal to the receiving terminal independently at an edge router, backbone routers, and an edge router in this order through which the ASP message passes.

Claims

1. A network resource reservation control method of controlling resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network, comprising the steps of:

sending a message composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal, and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

reserving the resource requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message sent in the sending step.

2. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said message is sent in one of directions from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal.

3. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a direction in which said resource reservation is performed is specified independently of the direction in which said message is sent.

4. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said message is sent from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal to reserve the resource requested by said message.

5. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said message is sent from the receiving terminal to said sending terminal to reserve the resource requested by said message.

6. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said network is an ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) network.

7. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the steps of sending and receiving are AMInet setup protocol compliant.

8. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said network is an AMInet network.

9. A network resource reservation control apparatus for controlling resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network, comprising:

a sending means for sending a message composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

a resource reserving means for reserving the resource requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message sent by said sending means.

10. The network resource reservation control apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said network is an ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) network.

11. The network resource reservation control apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the network is an AMInet network.

12. A receiving terminal for receiving data from a sending terminal through a network,

said receiving terminal having a sending means for sending a message to said sending terminal, said message being composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction,

said receiving terminal having a receiving means for receiving said message from said sending terminal.

13. A sending terminal for sending data to a receiving terminal through a network,

said sending terminal having a sending means for sending a message to said receiving terminal, said message being composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction,

said sending terminal having a receiving means for receiving said message from said receiving terminal.

14. A relay apparatus for performing resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network to relay said data, comprising:

a relay means for relaying a message composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

a resource reserving means for reserving the resource requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message relayed by said relay means.

15. A network resource reservation control method of controlling resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network, comprising the steps of:

sending via a first communication protocol a message composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal, and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

reserving via a second communication protocol resources of the network requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message sent via the first communication protocol in the sending step.

16. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said message is sent in one of directions from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal.

17. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein a direction in which said resource reservation is performed is specified independently of the direction in which said message is sent.

18. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said message is sent from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal to reserve the resource requested by said message.

19. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said message is sent from the receiving terminal to said sending terminal to reserve the resource requested by said message.

20. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the steps of sending and receiving are AMInet setup protocol compliant.

21. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said network is an ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) network.

22. The network resource reservation control method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said network is an AMInet network.

23. A network resource reservation control apparatus for controlling resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network, comprising:

a sending means for sending via a first communication protocol a message composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

a resource reserving means for reserving via a second communication protocol the resource requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message sent via the first communication protocol by said sending means.

24. The network resource reservation control apparatus as claimed in claim 23, wherein said network is an ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) network.

25. The network resource reservation control apparatus as claimed in claim 23, wherein said network is AMInet.

26. A relay apparatus for performing resource reservation between a sending terminal for sending data and a receiving terminal for receiving said data through a network to relay said data, comprising:

a relay means for relaying a message via a first communication protocol composed of first information for specifying, as a direction in which said resource reservation is performed, one of unidirectional communication in which said resource reservation is performed in one of directions including a first direction from said sending terminal to said receiving terminal, a second direction from said receiving terminal to said sending terminal and bidirectional communication in which said first direction and said second direction are combined and second information for independently requesting resources in said first direction and said second direction; and

a resource reserving means for reserving via a second communication protocol the resource requested by said second information in the direction specified by said first information of said message relayed via the first communication protocol by said relay means.