System and method for adjusting code speed in a transmission path during call set-up due to reduced transmission performance

• US 8,488,447 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2007
• Issued: 07/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC A Delaware Limited Liability Company
• Original Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bugenhagen, Michael K., Morrill, Robert J., Wiley, William L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Chirag
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kang, Suk Jin
• Application Number:
  US11/809,882
• Publication Number:
  US 20080002670A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,238 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/228
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS

Abstract

A system and method for establishing a phone call over a packet network. The process may receive a call request from an originating call device to a termination call device. A determination may be made to determine whether the terminating call device is available. If the terminating call device is determined to be available, transmission path status information between the originating and terminating call devices may be retrieved. Status of the transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices may be determined. If the status of the transmission path is determined to be within a first range, a call may be established between the originating and terminating call devices via an encoder/decoder (CODEC) having a first data rate. Otherwise, the call may be established between the originating and terminating call devices via a CODEC having a second, lower data rate.

Claims

1. A method for establishing a telephone call over a packet network, said method comprising:

receiving a call request to initiate the telephone call from an originating call device to a terminating call device at a call control manager located on the packet network, wherein the originating call device and the terminating call device are not in current communication;

determining, by the call control manager, whether the originating call device is authorized to communicate with the terminating call device;

responsive to a determination that the originating call device is not authorized to communicate with the terminating call device, transmitting a reject message to the originating call device indicating that the call request is rejected;

responsive to a determination that the originating call device is authorized to communicate with the terminating call device, retrieving, by the call control manager, transmission path status information of a transmission path between the originating and terminating call devices;

determining, by the call control manager, status of the transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices; and

responsive to a determination that the status of the transmission path is determined to be within a first range, establishing, by the call control manager, the telephone call between the originating and terminating call devices over the transmission path using a first CODEC having a first data rate;

responsive to a determination that the transmission path is determined to be within a second range, determining if there is an alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices;

in which the status of the alternate path is within the first range;

responsive to a determination that there is an alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices having a status within the first range, establishing the telephone call between the originating and terminating call devices over the alternate transmission path using the first CODEC having the first data rate; and

responsive to a determination that there is no alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices having a status within the first range, establishing the telephone call between the originating and terminating call devices over the transmission path using a second CODEC having a second, lower data rate.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes accessing a table including status information of node segments associated with both of the originating and terminating call devices.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein accessing the table includes accessing a centralized table on the packet network.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes:

determining each segment along the transmission path between the originating and terminating call devices; and

determining a status value indicative of worst operational performance of the segments along the transmission path.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes determining an identifier indicative of the range in which the status of the transmission path is within.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes determining that the status is within the first range, the first range being indicative that the transmission path is operating in a normal condition.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes determining that the status is within the second range indicative that the transmission path is operating in an impaired condition.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path includes determining that the status is within a third range indicative that the transmission path is operating in a congested condition.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising rejecting the call request in response to determining that the transmission path is operating in a congested condition.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising calculating transmission path status information of each node segment along the transmission path based on network performance information collected at respective node segments.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein calculating transmission path status information includes calculating a value within a scale indicative of operational performance of a network node.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining status of the transmission path information includes determining status based on transmission path information of real-time content transmission.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein receiving a call request includes receiving a session initiation protocol (SIP) call request.

14. A system for establishing a telephone call over a packet network, said system comprising:

an input/output (I/O) unit configured to communicate over a network;

a storage unit configured to store network performance information associated with node segments on the packet network;

a processing unit in communication with said I/O unit and said storage unit and configured to execute instructions to;

receive, at said system, a call request to initiate the telephone call from an originating call device to a terminating call device, said system located on said packet network, wherein the originating call device and the terminating call device are not in current communication;

determine whether the originating call device is authorized to communicate with the terminating call device;

transmit a reject message to the originating call device indicating that the call request is rejected in response to a determination that the originating call device is not authorized to communicate with the terminating call device;

in response to a determination that the originating call device is authorized to communicate with the terminating call device;

retrieve transmission path status information of a transmission path between the originating and terminating call devices;

determine status of the transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices; and

responsive to a determination that the status of the transmission path is determined to be within a first range, establish the telephone call between the originating and terminating call devices over the transmission path using a first CODEC having a first data rate;

responsive to a determination that the status of the transmission path is determined to be within a second range, determining if there is an alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices;

in which the status of the alternate path is within the first range;

responsive to a determination that there is an alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices having a status within the first range, establishing the telephone call between the originating and terminating, call devices over the alternate transmission path using the first CODEC having the first data rate; and

responsive to a determination that there is no alternate transmission path on the packet network between the originating and terminating call devices having a status within the first range, establish the telephone call between the originating and terminating call devices over the transmission path using a second CODEC having a second, lower data rate.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is configured to determine status of the transmission path by accessing a table including status information of node segments associated with both of the originating and terminating call devices.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein said processing unit is configured to access the table by accessing a centralized table on the packet network.

17. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path, is further configured to:

determine each segment along the transmission path between the originating and terminating call devices; and

determine a status value indicative of worst operational performance of the segments along the transmission path.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path, is further configured to determine an identifier indicative of the range in which the status of the transmission path is within.

19. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path, is further configured to determine that the status is within the first range, the first range being indicative that the transmission path is operating in a normal condition.

20. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path, is further configured to determine that the status is within the second range, the second range being indicative that the transmission path is operating in an impaired condition.

21. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path, is further configured to determine that the status is within a third range, the third range being indicative that the transmission path is operating in a congested condition.

22. The system according to claim 21, wherein said processing unit, in response to determining that the transmission path is operating in a congested condition, rejects the call request.

23. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit is further configured to calculate transmission path status information of each node segment along the transmission path based on network performance information collected at respective node segments.

24. The system according to claim 23, wherein said processing unit, in calculating transmission path status information, is further configured to calculate a value within a scale indicative of operational performance of a network node.

25. The system according to claim 14, wherein said processing unit, in determining status of the transmission path information, is further configured to determine status based on transmission path information of real-time content transmission.

26. The system according to claim 14, wherein the call request is a SIP call request.