System and method for monitoring the connection of an end-user to a remote network

• US 8,194,643 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2006
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bugenhagen, Michael K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ton, Dang
• Assistant Examiner(s): Morlan, Robert M
• Application Number:
  US11/583,765
• Publication Number:
  US 20080095173A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,056 Days
• Field of Search: 370/230, 370/230.1, 370/231, 370/236, 370/351, 370/352, 370/395.21
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0001 Systems modifying transmission characteristics according to link quality, e.g. power backoff adaptive data allocation for multicarrier modulation H04L5/0044; controlling transmission power for radio systems H04W52/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0017 where the mode-switching is based on Quality of Service requirement
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0022 in which mode-switching is influenced by the user
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/205 jitter monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/24 Traffic characterised by specific attributes, e.g. priority or QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2491 Mapping quality of service [QoS] requirements between different networks

Abstract

A method of monitoring the connection of a first end-user device to a network includes determining the amount of bandwidth present, tracking the amount of bandwidth in use by different classes of traffic, and tracking performance of the connection to detect when a threshold crossing has been reached. The threshold associated with a decline in quality of a connection between the first end-user device and the network. The method further includes generating data in response to the determined reaching of the threshold and communicating the data to a session controller or a second end-user device that is in a communications session with the first end-user device. The method further includes changing the communications session in response to additional data received from the second end-user device.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring a link in a network between a first end-user device and a network, the method comprising:

receiving, at a receiving device, performance data collected by the first end-user device, the performance data indicating a communication quality of the link between the first end-user device and the network;

combining the received performance data collected by the first end-user device with a set of network performance data collected by the receiving device to form a combined set of network performance data associated with the communication quality of the link between the first end-user device and the network, wherein the network performance data collected by the receiving device includes performance data generated at the receiving device and performance data received from other devices on the network;

determining that a threshold has been reached based on the received performance data, the threshold associated with a decline in quality of the link, the decline in quality being associated with a decline in quality applicable to multiple sessions communicated on at least a portion of the link;

transmitting a query to the first end-user device in response to the determined reaching of the threshold, the query requesting from a user of the first end-user device a communication action to perform based on the threshold being reached;

receiving the communication action from the first end-user device;

determining whether a change is to be made to a communication session between the first end-user device and the network based on the received communication action specified by the user of the first end-user device;

responsive to a determination that a change to is to be made to the communication session based on the received communication action, changing the communications session between the first end-user device and the network in accordance with the received communication action, wherein the change is to an amount of bandwidth used by a particular application on the first end-user device, the particular application specified in the communication action returned by the user of the first end-user device in response to the query; and

responsive to a determination that a change to the communication session is not to be made based on the received communication action, maintaining the communications session between the first end-user device and the network unchanged.

2. The method of claim 1, and further comprising receiving a command entered by a user of a second end-user device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication action is preselected by the user of the first end-user device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of bandwidth has been reached.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of packet loss has been reached.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of jitter has been reached.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication action is to switch the communications session between the first end-user device and the network to another network mode.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the link between the first end-user device and the network is a wired connection link and the performance data indicating the communication quality of the wired connection link between the first end-user device and the network.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein changing the communications session comprises terminating the communications session and initiating a new communications session between the first end-user device and a second end-user device.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the threshold is established based on previous performance data collected by the first end-user device.

11. A system of monitoring a link in a network between a first end-user device and a network, the system comprising:

a communication interface for receiving performance data collected by the first end-user device, the performance data indicating a communication quality of the link between the first end-user device and the network;

a processor configured to execute instructions to;

determine that a threshold has been reached based on the received performance data, the threshold associated with a decline in quality of the link, the decline in quality being associated with a decline in quality applicable to multiple sessions communicated on at least a portion of the link; and

transmit a query to the first end-user device in response to the determined reaching of the threshold, the query requesting from a user of the first end-user device a communication action to perform based on the threshold being reached;

receiving, using the communication interface, the communication action from the first end-user device, the communication action auto-generated by the first-end user device based on previously established preferences, wherein the previously established preferences prioritizes communications of one or more parties in communications with the first end-user device and prioritizes modes of connections with the one or more parties in communications with the first end-user device;

wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions to;

determine whether a change is to be made to a communication session between the first end-user device and the network based on the received communication action specified by the user of the first end-user device;

responsive to a determination that a change to is to be made to the communication session based on the received communication action, change the communications session between the first end-user device and the network in accordance with the received communication action, wherein changing the communications session between the first end-user device and the network includes switching the communications session from the first end-user device and the network to a second end-user device and the network, the second end-user device selected based on the previously established preferences; and

responsive to a determination that a change to the communication session is not to be made based on the received communication action, maintain the communications session between the first end-user device and the network unchanged.

12. The system of claim 11, and further comprising receiving, using the communication interface, a command entered by a user of the second end-user device.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the communication action is preselected by the user of the first end-user device.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of bandwidth has been reached.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of packet loss has been reached.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein determining that the threshold has been reached comprises determining that an amount of jitter has been reached.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the communication action is to switch the communications session between the first end-user device and the network to another network mode.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the link between the first end-user device and the network is a wired connection link and the performance data indicating the communication quality of the wired connection link between the first end-user device and the network.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein changing the communications session comprises terminating the communications session and initiating a new communications session between the first end-user device and a second end-user device.