Communication system, relay device, and communication control method

• US 7,873,704 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2003
• Issued: 01/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Kamiya, Dai, Yamada, Kazuhiro, Kondo, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Follansbee, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mejia, Anthony
• Application Number:
  US10/529,925
• Publication Number:
  US 20070143444A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,667 Days
• Field of Search: 709/219, 709/223, 709/203, 709/227, 709/228, 709/200, 726/12, 726/13
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54

Abstract

A communication management table is provided to a gateway server 400 relaying data communication between Java-enabled MS 600 and Java-enabled CS 200. Gateway server 400 refers to Java application related information included in a request message sent from the Java-enabled MS 600 and to a communication management table stored in gateway server 400, thereby determining whether to permit the communication request. In a case that the communication request is determined to be rejected, gateway server 400 does not transmit the request message RQ to Java-enabled CS 200; instead, the gateway server sends a response message to Java-enabled MS 600, indicating that the communication request will be rejected.

Claims

1. A communication system comprising:

a communication terminal; and

a relay device that relays data communication between the communication terminal and a server;

the communication terminal comprising;

a communication unit;

a first storage unit configured to store an application program executable to communicate with the server via a network and the communication unit; and

a first processing unit configured to execute the application program to communicate with the server in accordance with the application program, to generate a communication request including application related information related to the application program, and to send the communication request to the server, the application related information including an application identifier indicative of the application program and a first identifier indicative of a download source from which the application program was received by the communication terminal;

the relay device comprising;

a second storage unit configured to store regulation information to regulate the data communication requested by the communication request, the regulation information including the application identifier indicative of the application program stored in association with a second identifier indicative of an original source of the application program, the regulation information also including a traffic threshold; and

a second processing unit configured to receive the communication request from the communication terminal, wherein the second processing unit is further configured to relay the data communication in accordance with the regulation information stored in the second storage unit, and

the second processing unit is further configured to decrease an amount of data in the relayed data communication in response to the communication request satisfying a first condition and a second condition, the first condition being that traffic in the network is heavier than the traffic threshold included in the regulation information stored in the second storage unit, and the second condition comprising the download source, indicated in the first identifier received in the communication request, being identical to the original source indicated in the second identifier included in the regulation information.

2. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the application related information includes communication identification information, the communication identification information indicating, in a case that the application program executed by the first processing unit is a specific type application program, that the data communication is performed by the specific type application program, and

the second condition further comprising that the application related information included in the communication request includes the communication identification information indicating that the data communication is performed by the specific type application program.

3. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the second storage unit is further configured to store first activation type information indicating a first activation mode of the application program,

the application related information includes second activation type information indicating a second activation mode of the application program, and

the second condition further comprising that the second activation mode indicated by the second activation type information included in the application related information is equivalent to the first activation type information stored in the second storage unit.

4. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the regulation information further includes at least one of:

a condition to regulate a duration of the data communication;

a condition to regulate an amount of the data communication, a condition to regulate an amount of traffic, and a condition to regulate a communication frequency of the data communication, or a combination thereof.

13. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the second processing unit is further configured to transmit a response message to the communication terminal in response to the communication request satisfying the first and second conditions, the response message comprising an instruction to the communication terminal to regulate the data communication between the communication terminal and the server in accordance with the regulation information.

16. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the first identifier indicative of the download source identifies a first server, and the second identifier indicative of the original source of the application program also identifies the first server.

17. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the second condition further comprises that the application identifier is identical in the application related information and the regulation information.

18. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the second processing unit is further configured to relay the data communication without regard to the first condition or the second condition in response to the communication request failing to satisfy an initial predetermined condition of the application program being a specific type of application program.

5. A relay device for relaying data communication between a communication terminal and a server;

the relay device comprising;

a first storage unit configured to store regulation information to regulate the data communication in response to a communication request received from a communication terminal, the communication request including an application identifier indicative of an application program and a first identifier indicative of a download source from which the application program was downloaded to the communication terminal;

the stored regulation information including a traffic threshold and the application identifier indicative of the application program stored in association with a second identifier indicative of a predetermined original provider of the application program; and

a processing unit configured to receive the communication request from the communication terminal and confirm a first condition and a second condition are satisfied, the first condition being that a level of traffic through the relay device exceeds the traffic threshold, and the second condition comprising the download source indicated with the first identifier received in the communication request being identical to the predetermined original provider indicated with the second identifier included in the stored regulation information; and

the processing unit further configured, in response to the communication request satisfying the first condition and the second condition, to invoke a guideline for the data communication between the communication terminal and the server and relay the data communication in accordance with the regulation information stored in the first storage unit.

6. The relay device of claim 5, wherein the communication request comprises communication identification information, the communication identification information indicating a specific type of the application program being executed by the communication terminal to generate the communication request, and

wherein, the second condition further comprises that the communication request includes the communication identification information indicating the specific type of the application program.

7. The relay device of claim 5, wherein the first storage unit is further configured to store first activation type information indicating a first activation mode of the application program resident on the communication terminal, wherein

the communication request includes second activation type information indicating a second activation mode of the application program, and

the second condition further comprising that the second activation mode indicated by the second activation type information is equivalent to the first activation type information stored in the first storage unit.

8. The relay device of claim 5, wherein the regulation information includes at least one of:

a condition to regulate a duration of the data communication;

a condition to regulate an amount of the data communication, condition to regulate an amount of traffic, and a condition to regulate a communication frequency of the data communication, or a combination thereof.

14. The relay device of claim 5, wherein the processing unit is further configured to transmit a response message to the communication terminal in response to the communication request, the response message comprising the guideline for the data communication between the communication terminal and the server.

19. The relay device of claim 5, wherein the first identifier indicative of the download source identifies a first server, and the second identifier indicative of the predetermined original provider of the application program also identifies the first server.

9. A method in a communication system that includes a communication terminal and a relay device that relays data communication between the communication terminal and a server, the communication terminal including a communication unit and a first storage unit configured to store an application program executable to communicate with the server via a network and the communication unit, the relay device including a second storage unit configured to store regulation information for regulating the data communication in response to a communication request, the method comprising:

generating, with the communication terminal, the communication request to include application related information related to the application program, the application related information including an application identifier indicative of the application program and a first identifier indicative of a download source from which the application program was received by the communication terminal;

sending, with the communication terminal, the communication request to the server;

receiving, with the relay device, the communication request from the communication terminal;

comparing the communication request to the stored regulation information with the relay server, the stored regulation information including a traffic threshold and the application identifier indicative of the application program stored in association with a second identifier indicative of an original provider of the application program;

confirming with the relay device that a first condition and a second condition are satisfied, the first condition being that traffic in the network is heavier than the traffic threshold included in the stored regulation information, and the second condition comprising the download source indicated with the first identifier received in the communication request being identical to the original provider indicated with the second identifier included in the stored regulation information; and

invoking a constraint of the data communication between the communication terminal and the server with the relay device, if the communication request satisfies the first condition and the second condition, the constraint of the data communication invoked by the relay device in accordance with the regulation information stored in the second storage unit.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the application related information includes communication identification information, the communication identification information indicating, in a case that the application program executed by the communication terminal is a specific type of application program, that the data communication is performed by the specific type of application program, and

confirming the second condition is satisfied further comprises confirming that the application related information includes the communication identification information indicating that the data communication is performed by the specific type of application program.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising storing first activation type information indicating a first activation mode in the second storage unit included in the relay device, wherein

the application related information includes a second activation type information indicating a second activation mode of the application program, and

confirming the second condition is satisfied further comprises confirming that the second activation mode indicated by the second activation type information included in the application related information is equivalent to the first activation type information stored in the second storage unit.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the regulation information further includes at least one of:

a condition to regulate a duration of the data communication;

a condition to regulate an amount of the data communication, a condition to regulate an amount of traffic, and a condition to regulate a communication frequency of the data communication, or a combination thereof.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein invoking a constraint of data communication between the communication terminal and the server comprises the relaying device transmitting a response message to the communication terminal in response to the communication request, the response message comprising communication regulation information to constrain the communication terminal with regard to data communication with the server.

20. The method of claim 9, wherein comparing the communication request to the stored regulation information comprises the step of confirming that a first server identified by the first identifier is also identified by the second identifier.