Network coding for content-centric network

• US 9,497,282 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2014
• Issued: 11/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kurihara, Jun, Uzun, Ersin, Garcia-Luna-Aceves, Jose J.
• Primary Examiner(s): ABRAHAM, ESAW T
• Application Number:
  US14/470,788
• Publication Number:
  US 20160065685A1
• Time in Patent Office: 811 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0076 Distributed coding, e.g. network coding, involving channel coding coding in both space and time H04L1/0618; cooperative diversity H04B7/022
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/08 by repeating transmission, e.g. Verdan system H04L1/1858 and H04L1/189 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/108 characterised by resources being split in blocks or fragments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/06 Notations for structuring of protocol data, e.g. abstract syntax notation one [ASN.1]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/10 Streamlined, light-weight or high-speed protocols, e.g. express transfer protocol [XTP] or byte stream

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for facilitating network coding in an information centric network. During operation, the system sends, from a content consumer node, one or more interests for a plurality of chunks associated with a content object. A respective interest indicates the corresponding chunk using a hierarchically structured variable length identifier which comprises contiguous name components ordered from a most general level to a most specific level. In response, the system then receives a number of network-coded data packets, wherein a respective data packet corresponds to an independent linear combination of all the chunks for the content object. The system subsequently re-constructs the content object based on the received data packets.

Claims

1. A computer-executable method for facilitating network coding in an information centric network, the method comprising:

sending, from a content consumer node, one or more interests for a plurality of chunks associated with a content object, wherein a respective interest indicates the corresponding chunk using a hierarchically structured variable length identifier which comprises contiguous name components ordered from a most general level to a most specific level,

wherein the identifier includes a name component which indicates whether the corresponding interest is a retry interest;

in response, receiving a number of network-coded data packets, wherein a respective data packet corresponds to an independent linear combination of all the chunks for the content object; and

re-constructing the content object based on the received data packets, which involves;

determining that at least one more data packet is needed for re-constructing a missing chunk; and

sending a first retry interest which indicates the missing chunk.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the first retry interest is in response to determining that the corresponding missing chunk has not been seen by the content consumer node and that a previous pending interest for the corresponding missing chunk has timed out.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the hierarchically structured variable length identifier includes a component which indicates use of network coding and a number of chunks for the content object.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a name for the first retry interest includes a name component which indicates that the corresponding interest is a retry interest.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the hierarchically structured variable length identifier includes a component which indicates one or more chunks that have already been re-constructed.

6. A computer system for facilitating network coding in an information centric network, the computer system comprising:

a processor; and

a storage device storing instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to perform a method, the method comprising;

sending, from a content consumer node, one or more interests for a plurality of chunks associated with a content object, wherein a respective interest indicates the corresponding chunk using a hierarchically structured variable length identifier which comprises contiguous name components ordered from a most general level to a most specific level,

wherein the identifier includes a name component which indicates whether the corresponding interest is a retry interest; and

in response, receiving a number of network-coded data packets, wherein a respective data packet corresponds to an independent linear combination of all the chunks for the content object; and

re-constructing the content object based on the received data packets, which involves;

determining that at least one more data packet is needed for re-constructing a missing chunk; and

sending a first retry interest which indicates the missing chunk.

7. The computer system of claim 6, wherein sending the first retry interest is in response to determining that the corresponding missing chunk has not been seen by the content consumer node and that a previous pending interest for the corresponding missing chunk has timed out.

8. The computer system of claim 6, wherein the hierarchically structured variable length identifier includes a component which indicates use of network coding and a number of chunks for the content object.

9. The computer system of claim 6, wherein a name for the first retry interest includes a name component which indicates that the corresponding interest is a retry interest.

10. The computer system of claim 6, wherein the hierarchically structured variable length identifier includes a component which indicates one or more chunks that have already been re-constructed.