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Meta-tagging in content routed networks

  • US 7,526,493 B2
  • Filed: 12/16/2004
  • Issued: 04/28/2009
  • Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2003
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A computer-implemented method of forwarding a document through a content-routed network including a plurality of content based routers interconnected by links, wherein documents are forwarded through the network based on their content, comprising:

  • (a) receiving the document from a publisher at an ingress router;

    (b) said ingress router matching the content of said document received from the publisher with subscriptions for the network in accordance with a content routing protocol to identify the address of egress routers requiring the document for distribution to subscribers attached thereto based on the content of the document as received from the publisher;

    (c) said ingress router attaching a meta-data tag to the document;

    (d) said meta-data tag including at least one meta-data field updatable at each router traversed by the document and representative of the progress of said document through the network;

    (e) said meta-data tag further including an address meta-data field containing the address of the ingress router and the address of each said identified egress router requiring the document for distribution to subscribers attached thereto as determined by said content routing protocol;

    (f) forwarding said document to downstream routers determined by said address meta-data field;

    (g) receiving the document at said one or more downstream routers;

    (h) reading said at least one updatable meta-data field at one or more said downstream routers;

    (i) each of said one or more downstream routers performing a preliminary check by comparing the value of said updatable meta-data field with predetermined criteria to determine whether the document should be discarded prior to determining how said document should be forwarded; and

    (j) if the data in said meta-data field matches said predetermined criteria, discarding said document, and(k) if the data in said meta-data field does not match said predetermined criteria, determining whether the address of said downstream router appears in said address meta-data field, and if the address of said downstream router appears in said address meta-data field matching the content of said document against a database of local subscribers who require a copy of the document and forwarding the document to said local subscribers after stripping off the meta-data tag so that said local subscribers receive said document as supplied by the publisher;

    (l) each of said one or more downstream routers updating said meta-data field to indicate that the document has been received by that downstream router;

    (m) forwarding the document to any further downstream routers listed in said address meta-data field, and(n) repeating steps g to m at each remaining downstream router listed in said address meta-data field, andwherein said meta-data tag further comprises a “

    Traversed Routers”

    field, each router through which the document passes adds its own address to said “

    Traversed Routers”

    field, and when a downstream router reads its own address in said “

    Traversed Routers field”

    , that downstream router discards the document.

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