CODEC negotiation considering quality and costs

• US 7,512,118 B1
• Filed: 06/30/2005
• Issued: 03/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Genband US LLC (Ribbon Communications, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nortel Networks Limited (Nortel Networks Corporation)
• Inventors: Stephens, Gary
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzlo; John
• Application Number:
  US11/171,921
• Time in Patent Office: 1,370 Days
• Field of Search: 370352-356, 370/400, 370/401, 370/252, 379/88.17
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities

Abstract

A message protocol on a communication network between an originating and terminating communication device transmits the cost and quality of service impact of selecting a CODEC standard where no single CODEC is supported in the end-to-end packet transmission. Each call agent server on the communication generates and submits a session initiation protocol (SIP) message containing a data element for the additional cost and a data element for the additional total quality of service degradation, calculating the additions considering all prior calculated data elements. The data elements are part of the session description protocol message. Either the final server prior to the terminating communication device or the terminating communication device operates an algorithm to make an optimal selection and avoid unnecessary high cost or degraded quality of service. The selected CODEC standard is communicated back to the servers in an SIP response message.

Claims

1. A packet-based communication system, comprising:

a plurality of session initiation protocol (SIP) servers coupled to an originating communication device, wherein each SIP server transmits information packets from the originating device to a linked terminating communication device wherein at least two compression/decompression standards are supported on the end-to-end communication link between the originating device and the terminating device;

each SIP server along the communication link generates and transmits a SIP message to initiate a communication session having a first data element associated with an additional cost factor and a second data element associated with an additional quality of service degradation for a compression/decompression standard supported by each SIP server; and

;

each SIP server operates an algorithm calculating the total cost and the total quality of service degradation associated with using a compression/decompression standard.

2. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein at least one SIP server transcodes a first compression/decompression standard to a second compression/decompression standard and the second standard is selected based on total costs and total quality of service.

3. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein the cost data element is associated with the bandwidth requirements for using the compression/decompression standard.

4. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein the cost data element is associated with the Central Processing Unit requirement for transcoding imposed by using the compression/decompression standard.

5. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein the quality of service data element is associated with the delay resulting from using the compression/decompression standard.

6. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein the quality of service data element is associated with the sound accuracy loss associated with using the compression/decompression standard.

7. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein a said compression/decompression standard is selected according to an algorithm for an optimal cost and optimal quality of service based on a calculated total cost and total quality of service.

8. The packet-based communication system of claim 1 wherein an algorithm calculates a cost value and a quality of service value based on the best transcoding option for an offered compression/decompression standard.

9. A method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of computer servers coupled to provide a communication link from a first communication device to a second communication device, wherein for the end-to-end transmission of an information packet from the first communication device to the second communication device there is an additional cost or a degradation in quality of service associated with using at least one compression/decompression standard;

transmitting a first message from a first computer server to a sequential second computer server containing a data element for the costs and a data element for the quality of service degradation associated with using each supported compression/decompression standard on said first computer server; and

selecting a compression/decompression standard for use based on the total costs and the total quality of service degradation for using said compression/decompression standard.

10. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 9 further comprising the step of

performing at least one transcoding from a first compression/decompression standard to a second compression/decompression during a communication session by at least one computer server.

11. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 9 further comprising the step of:

calculating the total cost and total quality of service for using a selected compression/decompression standard between each linked pair of servers using an algorithm operating on each server.

12. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 9 further comprising the step of:

transmitting the cost and quality of service data elements in a session description protocol message.

13. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 9 wherein an algorithm selects the compression/decompression standard to use.

14. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 9 further comprising the step of:

transmitting a data element designating the selected compression/decompression message in a second message.

15. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 14 wherein the first message comprises a SIP Invite message.

16. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 15 wherein the second message comprises at least of the following SIP messages:

a 180 Ringing message;

a 200 OK message;

a 181 message;

a 182 message;

a 183 message;

a PRACK message;

an ACK message.

17. The method of selecting a compression/decompression standard on a communication network of claim 15 wherein the first message comprises at least of the following SIP messages:

a 180 Ringing message;

a 200 OK message;

a 181 message;

a 182 message;

a 183 message;

a PRACK message;

an ACK message.

18. A method for providing multimedia communication over a packet-based communication network comprising the steps of:

connecting a plurality of computer servers sequentially in a communication link between an originating communication device and a terminating communication device;

transmitting information packets from the originating device to the linked terminating communication device using a plurality of compression/decompression standards;

transcoding a first compression/decompression standard to a second compression/decompression standard wherein the second compression/decompression standard is selected based on a first data element designating an additional cost and a second data element designating an additional quality of service degradation associated with using said second compression/decompression standard; and

transmitting a first message comprising a first data element designating a total cost and a second data element designating a total quality of service degradation associated with using each compression/decompression standard supported by a server.

19. The method for providing multimedia communication over a packet-based communication network of claim 18 further comprising the steps of:

operating an algorithm on a computer server to select said compression/decompression standard to use at an optimal cost and optimal quality of service based on a calculated total cost and total quality of service.

20. The method for providing multimedia communication over a packet-based communication network of claim 18 further comprising the steps of:

operating an algorithm on the terminating communicating device to select said compression/decompression standard to use at an optimal cost and optimal quality of service based on a calculated total cost and total quality of service.