Congestion control and traffic management system for packet-based networks

• US 7,054,269 B1
• Filed: 09/30/1997
• Issued: 05/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Luguern, Jean-Pierre, Accarion, Michel
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Boakye, Alexander O.
• Application Number:
  US08/941,236
• Time in Patent Office: 3,164 Days
• Field of Search: 370/232, 370/233, 370/234, 370/412, 370/413, 370/415
• US Class Current: 370/232
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/5602 Bandwidth control in ATM Networks, e.g. leaky bucket
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5615 Network termination, e.g. NT1, NT2, PBX
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5619 Network Node Interface, e.g. tandem connections, transit switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/563 Signalling, e.g. protocols, reference model
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5632 Bandwidth allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5636 Monitoring or policing, e.g. compliance with allocated rate, corrective actions

Abstract

The invention concerns a method of managing traffic for a virtual connection of a packet-based communications network, said method consisting in:

• • transmitting packets from source customer-premises equipment to destination customer-premises equipment;
  • time-division multiplexing the packets coming from the various source customer-premises equipment;
  • measuring the data-rate of the multiplexed packets;
  • temporarily storing the multiplexed packets in a queue;
  • transmitting the stored packets over the virtual connection;
  • determining a channel utilization factor related to the rate at which packets are transmitted over the virtual connection towards the destination customer-premises equipment; and
  • transmitting the channel utilization factor to data-rate management means so as to control the send information rate upstream from the multiplexing;
  • the channel utilization factor taking into account the length of the queue and the time taken to transmit the factor to the data-rate management means so as to prevent the queue from overflowing.

Claims

1. A method of managing traffic for a virtual connection of a packet-based communications network, said method comprising the steps of:

transmitting packets from source equipment to destination equipment;

time-division multiplexing the packets from the source equipment;

measuring the data-rate of the multiplexed packets;

temporarily storing said multiplexed packets in a queue;

transmitting said stored packets over said virtual connection;

determining a factor related to the rate at which packets are transmitted over said virtual connection towards said destination equipment; and

transmitting said factor to a data-rate management processor to control the rate at which the packets are sent upstream from said multiplexing, wherein said factor is based on the length of said queue and the time taken to transmit said factor to said data-rate management processor to prevent said queue from overflowing.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said factor satisfies the following relationship:

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein λ

is equal to 2.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein said factor is inserted into the packets transmitted towards said destination customer-premises equipment.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein said factor is transmitted in a special empty packet towards said destination customer-premises equipment in the absence of return traffic.