Two-way packet data protocol methods and apparatus for a mobile telecommunication system

• US 6,654,610 B1
• Filed: 05/05/2000
• Issued: 11/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Chuah, Mooi Choo, Chen, Xiaobao X.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trost, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, DANH C
• Application Number:
  US09/565,510
• Time in Patent Office: 1,299 Days
• Field of Search: 455/450, 455/451, 455/452, 455/62, 455/422, 370/347, 370/348, 370/443, 370/461, 370/462, 370/458, 709/226, 709/214
• US Class Current: 455/450
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/16 in connection oriented networks, e.g. frame relay
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/724 at intermediate nodes, e.g. resource reservation protocol [RSVP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/808 User-type aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/824 Applicable to portable or mobile terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities

Abstract

Two-way resource reservation techniques for use in UMTS and other telecommunication systems. A determination is made as to whether a user requires resource reservations in both an uplink direction and a downlink direction within the system, and if the user requires such two-way resource reservations, a two-way protocol is implemented to establish the required resource reservations. The two-way protocol integrates resource negotiation procedures for both the uplink direction and the downlink direction so as to ensure that the required resource reservations are provided for both directions. The two-way protocol may be a Packet Data Protocol (PDP) based on a Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP) resource negotiation procedure. The determination may be based on one or more flag bits which identify whether the user requires resource reservations for both the uplink and downlink directions. The flag bits may be associated with a Quality of Service (QoS) Information Element (IE) of the system, and may be used to permit the user to select between application of the two-way protocol and application of a one-way protocol.

Claims

1. A method of establishing resource reservations in a telecommunication system, the method comprising the steps of:

determining if a user requires resource reservations in both an uplink direction and a downlink direction within the system; and

implementing a two-way protocol to establish the required resource reservations, wherein the two-way protocol integrates resource negotiation procedures for both the uplink direction and the downlink direction so as to ensure that the required resource reservations are provided for both directions;

the two-way protocol determining particular values for one or more negotiable quality of service (QoS) parameters for at least one of the uplink direction and the downlink direction;

the determination of the particular values for one or more negotiable QoS parameters utilizing at least a first context involving a first set of system elements and a second context involving a second set of system elements, each of the first and second contexts corresponding to one or more of the negotiable QoS parameters;

the two-way protocol being configured so as to associate at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the first context with at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the second context.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the telecommunication system is configured in accordance with the Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS) standard.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the two-way protocol comprises a Packet Data Protocol (PDP).

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the two-way protocol first performs a resource reservation negotiation for the uplink direction, followed by a resource reservation negotiation for the downlink direction.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the resource negotiation procedure comprises a Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP) procedure.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the two-way protocol is implemented in a system operating scenario in which RSVP signaling messages are terminated only at Mobile Terminal (MT) elements of the system.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the two-way protocol is implemented in a system operating scenario in which RSVP signaling messages are terminated at both MT and Gateway GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) Support Node (GGSN) elements of the system.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein receipt of a first-time PATH message from a Terminal Equipment (TE) element of the system in an MT element of the system triggers a procedure to activate a secondary PDP context if no secondary PDP context exists.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein receipt of a first-time RESV message from a TE element of the system in an MT element of the system triggers a procedure to update a secondary PDP context if an incomplete two-way PDP context exists.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein receipt of a first-time PATH message from an external network element of the system in a GGSN element of the system causes an MT element of the system to trigger a procedure to activate a secondary PDP context if no secondary PDP context exists.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein receipt of a first-time RESV message from a TE element of the system in an MT element-of the system triggers a procedure to activate a secondary PDP context if no secondary PDP context exists.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein receipt in an MT element of the system of both a first-time RESV message from a TE element of the system and a first-time RESV message forwarded from an GGSN element of the system triggers a procedure to activate a secondary PDP context.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the two-way protocol is implemented for a given MT element of the system after a primary or default resource reservation context has been established for the MT element.

14. A method of establishing resource reservations in a telecommunication system, the method comprising the steps of:

determining if a user requires resource reservations in both an uplink direction and a downlink direction within the system; and

implementing a two-way protocol to establish the required resource reservations, wherein the two-way protocol integrates resource negotiation procedures for both the uplink direction and the downlink direction so as to ensure that the required resource reservations are provided for both directions;

wherein the determining step utilizes one or more flag bits to identify whether the user requires resource reservations for both the uplink and downlink directions.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the one or more flag bits are associated with a Quality of Service (QoS) Information Element (IE) of the system.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the one or more flag bits permit the user to select between application of the two-way protocol and application of a one-way protocol.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the one or more flag bits comprise a pair of flag bits, with the values of the bits indicating whether the user needs no resource reservations in either the uplink direction or the downlink direction, resource reservations in only the uplink direction, resource reservations in only the downlink direction, or resource reservations in both the uplink and downlink directions.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the one or more flag bits comprise a single flag bit indicating for a given direction of resource reservation requirement whether or not the requirement is coupled with a corresponding requirement in the opposite direction.

19. An apparatus for establishing resource reservations in a telecommunication system, the apparatus comprising:

one or more system elements operative to determine if a user requires resource reservations in both an uplink direction and a downlink direction within the system; and

to implement a two-way protocol to establish the required resource reservations, wherein the two-way protocol integrates resource negotiation procedures for both the uplink direction and the downlink direction so as to ensure that the required resource reservations are provided for both directions;

the two-way protocol determining particular values for one or more negotiable quality of service (QoS) parameters for at least one of the uplink direction and the downlink direction;

the determination of the particular values for one or more negotiable QoS parameters utilizing at least a first context involving a first set of system elements and a second context involving a second set of system elements, each of the first and second contexts corresponding to one or more of the negotiable QoS parameters;

the two-way protocol being configured so as to associate at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the first context with at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the second context.

20. A machine-readable medium for storing one or more software programs for use in establishing resource reservations in a telecommunication system, wherein the one or more programs when executed provide the steps of:

determining if a user requires resource reservations in both an uplink direction and a downlink direction within the system; and

implementing a two-way protocol to establish the required resource reservations, wherein the two-way protocol integrates resource negotiation procedures for both the uplink direction and the downlink direction so as to ensure that the required resource reservations are provided for both directions;

the two-way protocol determining particular values for one or more negotiable quality of service (QoS) parameters for at least one of the uplink direction and the downlink direction;

the determination of the particular values for one or more negotiable QoS parameters utilizing at least a first context involving a first set of system elements and a second context involving a second set of system elements, each of the first and second contexts corresponding to one or more of the negotiable QoS parameters;

the two-way protocol being configured so as to associate at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the first context with at least a subset of the one or more QoS parameters of the second context.