Intelligent voice network monitoring using echo cancellation statistics

• US 7,502,337 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2005
• Issued: 03/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telogy Networks, Inc. (Texas Instruments, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Fruth, Frank, Kosanovic, Bogdan
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzlo; John
• Application Number:
  US11/096,866
• Publication Number:
  US 20060221876A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,439 Days
• Field of Search: 370286-291, 370/401, 370/508, 370/449, 370352-356, 370/400, 706/52, 455/422.1, 379/88.17
• US Class Current: 370/286
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/23 using a replica of transmitted signal in the time domain, e.g. echo cancellers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/087 Jitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/002 Applications of echo suppressors or cancellers in telephonic connections in two-way loud-speaking telephone systems H04M9/08, echo suppressors or cancellers per se H04B3/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2236 Quality of speech transmission monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1275 Methods and means to improve the telephone service quality, e.g. reservation, prioritisation or admission control

Abstract

Monitoring voice quality passively using line echo cancellation data across a telecommunications network and reporting monitoring data to a central network management system. Network is monitored for potential voice quality issues for pro-active isolation of problems prior to customer complaints about the problems. Line echo cancellation related and non-related data for IP and other networks is gathered and correlated together to provide voice quality assessments of network performance.

Claims

1. A method for intelligent real-time network monitoring in a Voice-over-IP (VOIP) network, comprising:

generating line echo cancellation (LEG) data from a line echo canceller on said VOIP network;

aggregating said analyzed echo cancellation data from a plurality of data-generating sources within one or more said network elements from throughout the entire VOIP network into correlated groups of network elements;

analyzing said line echo cancellation data using line echo cancellation rules for said VOIP network;

correlating said line echo cancellation data with voice quality data from a plurality of network elements from throughout the entire VOIP network; and

providing a voice quality assessment of said VOIP network using said aggregated voice quality data from the plurality of data-generating sources within one or more said network elements from throughout the entire VOIP network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said correlating further comprises:

tracing routes of a voice call in said VOIP network; and

correlating said echo cancellation data collected that affect said voice call along said traced routes.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said generating comprises gathering and comparing said analyzed LEC data to determine quality of a call setup and voice data transmissions along a route in said VOIP network.

4. A method of real-time monitoring a voice over packet network (VOIP), comprising:

determining, with a fuzzy inference system, line echo cancellation performance of a plurality of network elements from throughout the entire VOIP network;

generating fuzzy line echo cancellation (LEC) data assessments of said VOIP network elements from throughout an entire VOIP network, wherein said voice quality data may be generated for individual network elements or aggregated together into correlated groups of network elements;

analyzing said fuzzy assessments using a set of LEC rules for said VOIP network; and

analyzing said fuzzy assessments to determine an aspect of said LEC performance of said VOIP network.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said analyzing comprises defining a plurality of rules for scaling an output of said fuzzy inference system;

and

aggregating a plurality of said scaled outputs into a single fuzzy score, wherein said score determines a quality of LEC for an element of said VOIP network.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said aggregating comprises aggregating fuzzy data sets from a lower hierarchical level in said network into a higher hierarchical level in said VOIP network.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein said analyzing comprises monitoring for LEC of a voice over Internet Protocol call by analyzing fuzzy LEC data sets from components in said network that are associated with said call.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein said analyzing comprises combining fuzzy LEC data sets from different types of said network components to evaluate trends in said fuzzy LEC data sets.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein said analyzing further comprises determining a quality of a voice call on said network by tracing a route of said call through said network and analyzing said fuzzy LEC data sets associated with elements of said route.