Disaster recovery with a central conferencing routing server

• US 9,178,919 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2012
• Issued: 11/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Level 3 Communications LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Level 3 Communications LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ellison, Gregory Thomas, Broadworth, Andrew James, Behmlander, Darren James
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thai
• Application Number:
  US13/708,689
• Publication Number:
  US 20130163409A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,061 Days
• Field of Search: 370/221, 370/260, 370/261, 370/263
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/18 for broadcast or conference , e.g. multicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1813 for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms instant messaging H04L51/04; protocols for multimedia communication H04L65/1101; arrangements for multi-party communication H04L65/403; telephonic conference arrangements H04M3/56; television conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0668 by dynamic selection of recovery network elements, e.g. replacement by the most appropriate element after failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/44 Distributed routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5007 Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/56 Arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities video conference systems H04N7/15

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure involve systems, methods, computer program products, and the like, for collaboration conferencing with multiple participants over a communications network, and more specifically for a conferencing routing service for managing and routing collaboration participants. In one embodiment, the conferencing routing server is configured to respond to a failure in a conference bridge to allow for repair to the network and/or account for split conferences that may occur due to the bridge failure. In one embodiment, the CCRS may account for moving a conference bridge into an offline state by removing the conference bridge from consideration for hosting a collaboration conference.

Claims

1. A method for managing collaboration conferences in a network, the method comprising:

receiving a notice of a change of state of a first conference bridge of a plurality of conference bridges associated with a telecommunications network, wherein the notice of a change of the first conference bridge is associated with a detected failure of the first conference bridge and comprises an identification of the first conference bridge and an indication of the failure;

accessing a database configured to store at least one routing rule for at least one customer to the telecommunications network, the at least one routing rule comprising a priority table comprising a list of the plurality of conference bridges and a priority level associated with each of the plurality of conference bridges;

noting the change of state of the first conference bridge in the priority table of the at least one routing rule; and

identifying at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge;

storing a state indicator for the at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge in the database, the state indicator indicating the change of state of the first conference bridge;

receiving a collaboration conference access request from a requester'"'"'s communication device directed toward the at least one existing collaboration conference;

associating an identification number with the collaboration conference access request, the identification number associated with the state indicator of the at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge; and

denying transmission of the collaboration conference access request based at least on the state indicator of the at least one existing collaboration conference.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

transmitting the state indicator for the at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge to at least one component of the telecommunications network.

3. The method of 2 further comprising:

selecting a second conference bridge from the plurality of conference associated with the telecommunications network; and

transmitting one or more routing messages to the telecommunications network to connect the requester to the second conference bridge.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

transmitting a split conference notification to an administrator of the telecommunications network, the split conference notification comprising an identification of the first conference bridge and the second conference bridge.

5. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

requesting operational information of at least the second conference bridge of the plurality of conference bridges connected to a telecommunications network, the operational information comprising at least the available capacity for the second conference bridge; and

wherein the selecting operation occurs at least in response to the operational information of the second conference bridge.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

calculating a percentage of available capacity for the second conference bridge; and

comparing the percentage of available capacity for the second conference bridge to a predetermined threshold value;

wherein, if the percentage of available capacity for the second conference bridge is less than the predetermined threshold value, the selecting operation comprises selecting the second conference bridge as the hosting conference bridge.

7. A system for managing collaboration conferences in a network, the system comprising:

a network interface unit configured to receive a communication from a communications network;

an application server in communication with the network interface unit via a network connection; and

a database connected to the application server configured to store at least one priority table comprising a list of a plurality of conference bridges associated with a telecommunications network and a priority level associated with each of the plurality of conference bridges and instructions that, when executed by the application server, perform the operations of;

receiving a notice at the network interface unit of a change of state of a first conference bridge of the plurality of conference bridges, wherein the notice of a change of the first conference bridge is associated with a measured failure of the first conference bridge and comprises an identification of the first conference bridge and an indication of the failure;

retrieving the priority table from the database;

lowering the first conference bridge in the priority table;

identifying at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge;

storing a state indicator for the at least one existing collaboration conference hosted by the first conference bridge in the database, the state indicator indicating the change of state of the first conference bridge;

receiving a collaboration conference access request to the at least one existing collaboration conference; and

denying transmission of collaboration conference access request based at least on the state indicator of the at least one existing collaboration conference.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein at least one of the one or more conference bridges is a time division multiplexing (TDM) telecommunication device.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein at least one of the one or more conference bridges is a session initiation protocol (SIP) based telecommunication device.