Ensuring quality of service in a communications network
First Claim
1. A method, comprising:
- receiving at a resource manager of a network a service quality request from an end device;
approving at the resource manager the service quality request received from the end device;
transmitting (a) data corresponding to authorization information associated with the approval of the service quality request and (b) signature key information from the resource manager to the end device;
transmitting the authorization information from the resource manager to a network access device of the network;
the end device combining the received signature key information with the received data corresponding to the authorization information in order to determine the authorization information;
the end device including the determined authorization information in a communication data flow transmitted from the end device to the network access device;
the network access device determining based on the authorization information included in the communication data flow received from the end device whether the communication data flow is authorized to be transmitted through the network with a quality of service; and
if the communication data flow is determined to be authorized, then transmitting the communication data flow from the network access device into the network with the quality of service.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A network access device checks communication data flows coming into a network for specific authorization information. The quality of service class (QOS) with which a flow is retransmitted from the network access device through the network is determined by the result of the check. Each end device that transmits a flow to the network access device can first request authorization for the flow from a gate keeper and resource manager mechanism of the network. The mechanism returns specific authorization information which the end device includes in the flow before the flow is transmitted to the network access device. In one embodiment, only if an incoming flow is determined to have the specific authorization information will the network access device allow the flow to be retransmitted through the network with a particular quality of service (QOS) class.
33 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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receiving at a resource manager of a network a service quality request from an end device; approving at the resource manager the service quality request received from the end device; transmitting (a) data corresponding to authorization information associated with the approval of the service quality request and (b) signature key information from the resource manager to the end device; transmitting the authorization information from the resource manager to a network access device of the network; the end device combining the received signature key information with the received data corresponding to the authorization information in order to determine the authorization information; the end device including the determined authorization information in a communication data flow transmitted from the end device to the network access device; the network access device determining based on the authorization information included in the communication data flow received from the end device whether the communication data flow is authorized to be transmitted through the network with a quality of service; and if the communication data flow is determined to be authorized, then transmitting the communication data flow from the network access device into the network with the quality of service. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A system, comprising:
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a resource manager that receives a service quality request from an end device, approves the service quality request, and in response supplies (a) data corresponding to first authorization information and (b) signature key information to the end device; the end device combining the received signature key information with the received data corresponding to the first authorization information in order to determine the first authorization information, and transmitting a communication data flow along with the first authorization information determined from the data received from the resource manager; and a network access device that receives second authorization information from the resource manager and receives the communication data flow from the end device, including the first authorization information included by the end device, the network access device using the first authorization information in the communication data flow and the second authorization information to determine whether the communication data flow from the end device is authorized to be transmitted into a network with a first quality of service, wherein if the network access device determines that the communication data flow is authorized to be transmitted into the network with the first quality of service then the communication data flow is transmitted from the network access device and into the network with the first quality of service, but if the network access device determines that the communication data flow is not authorized to be transmitted into the network with the first quality of service then the communication data flow is transmitted from the network access device and into the network with a second quality of service. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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20. A system, comprising:
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a resource manager that generates authorization information and transmits (a) data corresponding to the authorization information and (b) signature key information to an end device; an end device that combines the received signature key information with the received data corresponding to the authorization information in order to determine the authorization information, and inserts the authorization information received from the resource manager into a packet of a communication data flow transmitted by the end device; and means for using the authorization information in the communication data flow transmitted by the end device to determine whether the communication data flow is authorized to be transmitted through a network with a predetermined quality of service, wherein the means receives the authorization information from the resource manager and receives the communication data flow from the end device, wherein the means is located on the network, and wherein the end device is located outside the network wherein if the means determines that the communication data flow from the end device is authorized to be transmitted through the network with the predetermined quality of service then the communication data flow is transmitted through the network with the predetermined quality of service, but if the means determines that the communication data flow is not authorized to be transmitted through the network with the predetermined quality of service then the communication data flow is transmitted through the network with a lower quality of service. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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Specification