Messaging gateway system with real-time message allocation computer

• US 8,773,997 B1
• Filed: 01/22/2010
• Issued: 07/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Lin, Zhijian
• Primary Examiner(s): Kizou, Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ling, Amy
• Application Number:
  US12/692,366
• Time in Patent Office: 1,628 Days
• Field of Search: 370/235, 370/468, 709/224, 709/229
• US Class Current: 370/235
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport

Abstract

A real-time message allocation computer in a messaging gateway system may determine the maximum amount of message traffic for each of a plurality of message provider systems based on information indicative of the magnitude of message traffic that is received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems.

A message delivery controller in a message provider system may throttle the messages from the message provider system to a messaging gateway system so that the message traffic does not exceed information indicative of a maximum amount of message traffic which is received from the messaging gateway system.

Claims

1. A messaging gateway system comprising:

a message gateway configured to deliver messages, addressed to one or more mobile communication devices, to a mobile communication system from each of a plurality of message provider systems which are delivered to the message gateway through a computer network communication system;

a message traffic monitor configured to generate information indicative of the amount of message traffic received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems;

a real-time message allocator configured to determine a maximum amount of message traffic to be delivered by the mobile communication system for the one or more mobile communication devices from each of the message provider systems based on the information indicative of the amount of message traffic that is received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems; and

a message allocation communication system configured to communicate information indicative of each determined maximum amount of message traffic to a respective message provider system.

2. The messaging gateway system of claim 1 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to determine the number of messages that are received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems during a first period of time and to determine the maximum number of messages that each message provider system may send to the messaging gateway system during a subsequent, second period of time based on the number of messages that are received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems during the first period of time.

3. The messaging gateway system of claim 2 wherein the second period of time immediately follows the first period of time.

4. The messaging gateway system of claim 2 wherein both determinations are made periodically.

5. The messaging gateway system of claim 4 wherein the period of each determination is between 1 second and 60 seconds.

6. The messaging gateway system of claim 1 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to initially set the maximum amount of message traffic for each of the message provider systems to a default amount and to adjust that amount for each message provider system based on the information indicative of the amount of message traffic that is received by the messaging gateway system from the message provider systems.

7. The messaging gateway system of claim 1 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to increase the maximum amount of message traffic from one or more of the message provider systems when the amount of message traffic that is received by the messaging gateway system from one or more of the other message provider systems is below a pre-determined amount.

8. The messaging gateway system of claim 7 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to increase the maximum amount of message traffic from the one or more of the message provider systems by a cumulative amount which substantially equals the cumulative amount by which the message traffic from the one or more other message provider systems is below the pre-determined amount.

9. The messaging gateway system of claim 7 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to increase the maximum amount of message traffic from those message provider systems which are delivering messages to the messaging gateway system at the pre-determined amount.

10. The messaging gateway system of claim 7 wherein the real-time message allocator is configured to increase the maximum amount of message traffic from the one or more of the message provider systems in substantially equal amounts.

11. The messaging gateway system of claim 1 further comprising a message throttling controller that is configured to throttle each of the message provider systems so as to cause each of the message provider systems to send messages to the messaging gateway system at no more than the maximum amount of message traffic which the real-time message allocator determines for the message provider system.

12. The messaging gateway system of claim 11 wherein the message throttling controller is configured to throttle each of the message provider systems by delaying the delivery of one or more message acknowledgements to the message provider system by amounts necessary for causing the message provider system to deliver messages to the messaging gateway system at no more than the maximum amount of message traffic which the real-time message allocator determines for the message provider system.

13. The messaging gateway system of claim 11, wherein the message throttling controller is further configured to:

acknowledge, in real-time, receipt of one or more messages from a specific message provider system, during a particular time period, until a number of messages sent by the specific message provider system has reached a maximum number of messages allocated to the specific message provider system during the particular time period; and

delay, until an end of the particular time period, acknowledgement of receipt of one or more messages from the specific message provider system, during the particular time period, after the number of messages sent by the specific message provider system has reached the maximum number of messages allocated to the specific message provider system.

14. The messaging gateway system of claim 13, wherein the maximum number of messages allocated to the specific message provider system is determined by the real-time message allocator.

15. The messaging gateway system of claim 13, wherein the message throttling controller limits the number of messages sent by the specific message provider system during the particular time period as a result of the acknowledging receipt and the delaying acknowledging receipt.

16. The messaging gateway system of claim 1 wherein the message gateway is configured to establish a plurality of communication channels with each message provider system and wherein the maximum amount of message traffic from each message provider represents the maximum cumulative amount of message traffic through all of the communication channels with the messaging gateway system.

17. The messaging gateway system of claim 16 wherein the message gateway is configured to receive messages from the message provider systems in HTTP protocol and wherein the communication channels are sockets.

18. The messaging gateway system of claim 1, wherein the messaging gateway system is configured to communicate the information indicative of each determined maximum amount of message traffic to the respective message provider system, for enforcement, at the respective message provider system, of the determined maximum amount of message traffic.

19. The messaging gateway system of claim 18, wherein the messaging gateway system is further configured to enforce, at the messaging gateway system, the determined maximum amount of message traffic for the respective message provider system, as a backup.

20. A message provider system comprising:

a message communication system configured to receive messages addressed to one or more mobile communication devices and to deliver the messages to a messaging gateway system of a mobile communication system;

a message traffic monitor configured to generate information indicative of the amount of message traffic that is delivered by the message provider system to the messaging gateway system;

a message allocation communication system configured to receive from the messaging gateway system information indicative of the maximum amount of message traffic that may be sent by the message provider system to the messaging gateway system for delivery through the mobile communication system to the one or more mobile communication devices and to communicate the information indicative of the maximum amount of message traffic to a respective message provider system; and

a message delivery controller configured to throttle the messages from the message provider system to the messaging gateway system so that the message traffic does not exceed the maximum amount of message traffic.

21. The message provider system of claim 20 wherein:

the message allocation communication system is configured to periodically receive information from the messaging gateway system indicative of the maximum amount of message traffic that may be sent by the message provider system to the messaging gateway system; and

the message delivery controller is configured to periodically throttle the messages from the message provider system to the messaging gateway system so that the message traffic does not exceed the last-received maximum amount of message traffic.

22. The message provider system of claim 20 wherein the message communication system is configured to establish a plurality of communication channels with the messaging gateway system and wherein the maximum amount of message traffic is construed by the message delivery controller as the maximum cumulative amount of message traffic through all of the communication channels with the messaging gateway system.

23. The message provider system of claim 20 further comprising an acknowledgement communication system that is configured to receive an acknowledgement from the messaging gateway system of its receipt of each message by the messaging gateway system and wherein the message delivery controller is configured to delay the delivery, of a message to the message gateway system until an acknowledgement is received from the messaging gateway system of the delivery of a previous message by the message provider system.

24. The message provider system of claim 20, wherein the message delivery controller is configured to throttle the messages from the message provider system to the messaging gateway system so that the message traffic does not exceed the maximum amount of the message traffic by periodically pausing the message traffic after the maximum amount of the message traffic has been reached.

25. The message provider system of claim 20, wherein the message delivery controller is configured to throttle the messages from the message provider system to the messaging gateway system so that the message traffic does not exceed the maximum amount of the message traffic by periodically pausing the message traffic, wherein a length of a pause after a delivery of a current message is shorter than a length of a pause after a delivery of a previous message.

26. A system comprising:

a mobile communication system comprising one or more cellular networks configured to provide message communication service for mobile communication devices;

a message gateway configured to deliver messages, addressed to one or more of the mobile communications devices, to the mobile communication system from each of a plurality of message provider systems which the message gateway receives through a computer network communication system;

a message traffic monitor configured to generate information indicative of the amount of message traffic received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems;

a real-time message allocator configured to determine a maximum amount of message traffic to be delivered by the mobile communication system for the one or more mobile communication devices from each of the message provider systems based on the information indicative of the amount of message traffic that is received by the messaging gateway system from each of the message provider systems; and

a message allocation communication system configured to communicate information indicative of each determined maximum amount of message traffic to a respective message provider system.