Methods of header compression within a wireless communications network

• US 8,867,566 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2008
• Issued: 10/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Gill, Harleen K., Ananthanarayanan, Arul
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mohebbi, Kouroush
• Application Number:
  US12/195,064
• Publication Number:
  US 20100046544A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,253 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4061 Push-to services, e.g. push-to-talk or push-to-video
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/04 Protocols for data compression, e.g. ROHC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/45 for Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-to-Talk over cellular [PoC] services

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention disclose header compression within a wireless communications network. In an example, the method includes establishing, between an access network and an access terminal, a flow identifier (ID) and mapping protocol to support header compression for packets sent to the access network from the access terminal and intended for an application server. The mapping protocol can be configured to convert packets including the flow ID into packets that conform with a given addressing protocol for routing to the application server. The access terminal sends and the access network receives a first packet of a stream of packets. The first packet includes the flow ID and is in a compressed format compared to that of the same packet conforming with the given addressing protocol. The access network converts the received first packet into a routing packet based on the mapping protocol that conforms with the given addressing protocol.

Claims

1. A method of header compression within a wireless communications network, comprising:

establishing, with an access network, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent to the access network and intended for an application server, the mapping protocol being configured to convert packets including the flow ID into packets that conform with a given addressing protocol for routing to the application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established; and

sending a stream of packets to the access network, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of the given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the given addressing protocol is internet protocol version 4 (IPv4).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the given addressing protocol is internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the application server is a push-to-talk (PTT) server.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the flow ID is dynamically assigned by the access network to distinguish between other transmissions and is not a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

configuring the initial packet of the stream of packets to include a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

establishing, with the access network, a compression flag for initial packets in streams of packets, the compression flag indicating to the access network that the initial packet in each stream of packets is in the compressed format.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending a second packet of the stream of packets to the access network, the second packet including the flow ID and being in the same compressed format as the initial packet.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending a second packet of the stream of packets to the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the compressed format of the second packet is Robust Header Compression (RoHC), and the compressed format of the initial packet is not RoHC.

13. A method of header compression within a wireless communications network, comprising:

establishing, with an access terminal, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent from the access terminal and intended for an application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established;

receiving a stream of packets from the access terminal, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of a given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID;

converting the initial packet into a routing packet based on the mapping protocol, the converted routing packet conforming with the given addressing protocol; and

forwarding the converted routing packet to the application server based on the given addressing protocol.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the given addressing protocol is internet protocol version 4 (IPv4).

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the given addressing protocol is internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the application server is a push-to-talk (PTT) server.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the flow ID is dynamically assigned by the access network to distinguish between other transmissions and is not a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the initial packet of the stream of packets includes a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

21. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

establishing, with the access terminal, a compression flag for initial packets in streams of packets, the compression flag indicating to the access network that the initial packet in each stream of packets is in the compressed format.

22. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a second packet of the stream of packets at the access network, the second packet including the flow ID and being in the same compressed format as the initial packet.

23. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a second packet of the stream of packets at the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the compressed format of the second packet is Robust Header Compression (RoHC), and the compressed format of the initial packet is not RoHC.

25. An access terminal, comprising:

a processor, comprising;

logic configured to establish, with an access network, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent to the access network and intended for an application server, the mapping protocol being configured to convert packets including the flow ID into packets that conform with a given addressing protocol for routing to the application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established; and

logic configured to send a stream of packets to the access network, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of the given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID.

26. The access terminal of claim 25, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

27. The access terminal of claim 25, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

28. The access terminal of claim 27, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

29. The access terminal of claim 25, wherein the processor further comprises:

logic configured to configure the initial packet of the stream of packets to include a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

30. The access terminal of claim 25, wherein the processor further comprises:

logic configured to send a second packet of the stream of packets to the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

31. An access network, comprising:

a processor, comprising;

logic configured to establish, with an access terminal, a flow identifier (ID) and mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent from the access terminal and intended for an application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established;

logic configured to receive a stream of packets from the access terminal, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of a given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID;

logic configured to convert the initial packet into a routing packet based on the mapping protocol, the converted routing packet conforming with the given addressing protocol; and

logic configured to forward the converted routing packet to the application server based on the given addressing protocol.

32. The access network of claim 31, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

33. The access network of claim 31, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

34. The access network of claim 33, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

35. The access network of claim 31, wherein the initial packet of the stream of packets includes a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

36. The access network of claim 31, wherein the processor further comprises:

logic configured to receive a second packet of the stream of packets at the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

37. An access terminal, comprising:

means for establishing, with an access network, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent to the access network and intended for an application server, the mapping protocol being configured to convert packets including the flow ID into packets that conform with a given addressing protocol for routing to the application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established; and

means for sending a stream of packets to the access network, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of the given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID.

38. The access terminal of claim 37, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

39. The access terminal of claim 37, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

40. The access terminal of claim 39, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

41. The access terminal of claim 37, further comprising:

means for configuring the initial packet of the stream of packets to include a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

42. The access terminal of claim 37, further comprising:

means for sending a second packet of the stream of packets to the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

43. An access network, comprising:

means for establishing, with an access terminal, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent from the access terminal and intended for an application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established;

means for receiving a stream of packets from the access terminal, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of a given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID;

means for converting the initial packet into a routing packet based on the mapping protocol, the converted routing packet conforming with the given addressing protocol; and

means for forwarding the converted routing packet to the application server based on the given addressing protocol.

44. The access network of claim 43, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

45. The access network of claim 43, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

46. The access network of claim 45, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

47. The access network of claim 43, wherein the initial packet of the stream of packets includes a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

48. The access network of claim 43, further comprising:

means for receiving a second packet of the stream of packets at the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

49. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code stored thereon, the program code being configured to operate within an access terminal, comprising:

program code to establish, with an access network, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent to the access network and intended for an application server, the mapping protocol being configured to convert packets including the flow ID into packets that conform with a given addressing protocol for routing to the application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established; and

program code to send a stream of packets to the access network, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of the given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID.

50. The computer-readable medium of claim 49, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

51. The computer-readable medium of claim 49, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

52. The computer-readable medium of claim 51, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

53. The computer-readable medium of claim 49, further comprising:

logic configured to configure the initial packet of the stream of packets to include a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

54. The computer-readable medium of claim 49, further comprising:

program code to send a second packet of the stream of packets to the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.

55. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code stored thereon, the program code configured to operate within an access network, comprising:

program code to establish, with an access terminal, a flow identifier (ID) and a mapping protocol to support a header compression for packets sent from the access terminal and intended for an application server, wherein the flow ID and the mapping protocol are established based on an uncompressed packet sent before a communication session with the access network is established;

program code to receive a stream of packets from the access terminal, wherein an initial packet of the stream of packets is configured to include the flow ID and to be in a compressed format of a given addressing protocol, and the compressed format is detected by the application server based at least on a length of bits of the flow ID;

program code to convert the initial packet into a routing packet based on the mapping protocol, the converted routing packet conforming with the given addressing protocol; and

program code to forward the converted routing packet to the application server based on the given addressing protocol.

56. The computer-readable medium of claim 55, wherein the given addressing protocol is one of internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) or internet protocol version 6 (IPv6).

57. The computer-readable medium of claim 55, wherein the flow ID is a reduced portion of an addressing portion associated with the given addressing protocol.

58. The computer-readable medium of claim 57, wherein the flow ID includes a first portion that uniquely identifies a given access terminal and a second portion that uniquely identifies the application server.

59. The computer-readable medium of claim 55, wherein the initial packet of the stream of packets includes a compression flag, the compression flag being configured to indicate, to the access network, that the initial packet of the stream of packets is in the compressed format.

60. The computer-readable medium of claim 55, further comprising:

program code to receive a second packet of the stream of packets at the access network, the second packet being in a different compressed format as the initial packet.