Data storing method, data storing system, data recording control apparatus, data recording instructing apparatus, data receiving apparatus, and information processing terminal

• US 20050076077A1
• Filed: 05/07/2003
• Published: 04/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Katayama, Yasushi
• Granted Patent: US 7,444,421 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 13/3761 using code combining, i.e. using combining of codeword portions which may have been transmitted separately, e.g. Digital Fountain codes, Raptor codes or Luby Transform [LT] codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0042 Encoding specially adapted to other signal generation operation, e.g. in order to reduce transmit distortions, jitter, or to improve signal shape H04L1/0067 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/005 Iterative decoding, including iteration between signal detection and decoding operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0061 Error detection codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0066 Parallel concatenated codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0071 Use of interleaving interleaving per se H03M13/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0092 Error control systems characterised by the topology of the transmission link

Abstract

A distributed storage system having n nodes (20₁), (20₂), . . . , (20_n), a recording commanding device (10) for commanding recording of data in each node, and a transmission commanding device (30) for reading out the data recorded in the respective nodes. These nodes and the devices are interconnected over a network. The recording commanding device (10) applies FEC coding, with the coding rate of q/p, to data composed of p blocks, to generate q blocks, and appends a recording probability a, recorded by the node, to the data, to send out the resulting data to the network. In readout, the transmission commanding device (30) responds data to which has been appended the response probability β in responding the data.

Claims

1. A data storage method for distributing and recording data in a plurality of information terminals interconnected over a network, comprising

an encoding step for encoding blocked first data to generate blocked second data;

a packetizing step of packetizing said second data;

a recording probability generating step of generating a recording probability indicating whether or not the packet generated in said packetizing step is to be recorded in said plural information processing terminals;

a transmission step of transmitting said packet and the recording probability to said plural information processing terminals; and

a recording step of recording said packets in said information processing terminal based on said recording probability;

wherein

the method includes, as processing for reading out said packet recorded in one or more of said plural information processing terminals with said recording probability,

a response request data generating step of generating response request data with a response probability attached thereto for indicating whether or not said packet is to be responded;

a transmission step of transmitting said response request data to said plural information processing terminals; and

a response step of responding said packet in said plural information processing terminals based on said response probability.

2. The data storage method according to claim 1 wherein said recording probability is included in said packet and is transmitted along with said packet to said plural information processing terminals.

3. The data storage method according to claim 1 wherein said recording probability is transmitted with a packet different from said packet.

4. The data storage method according to claim 1 wherein the number of the packets responded in said responding step is the same as or larger than the number of the blocks of said first data.

5. The data storage method according to claim 4 further comprising

a packet distribution controlling step of changing the ratio of said first and second data, recording probability and the response probability to control the distribution of said packets.

6. The data storage method according to claim 4 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling step, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

7. The data storage method according to claim 6 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling step, a data loss probability in said network, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of said data loss probability in said network, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

8. The data storage method according to claim 4 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling step, the probability of said plural information terminals not responding, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of the probability of said plural information terminals not responding, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

9. The data storage method according to claim 1 wherein, in said recording probability generating step and in said response probability generating step, said recording probability, response probability or the coding rate is increased to lower the probability of overlapping of the packets responded in said responding step.

10. A data storage system for distributing and recording data in a plurality of information terminals interconnected over a network, comprising a data recording controlling device;

said data recording controlling device including encoding means for encoding blocked first data to generate blocked second data;

packetizing means for packetizing said second data;

recording probability generating means for generating a recording probability indicating whether or not the packet generated in said packetizing means is to be recorded in said plural information processing terminals; and

transmission means for transmitting said recording probability and said response request data to said plural information processing terminals;

said data storage system also comprising a plurality of information processing terminals, said information processing terminals each including

transmission/receiving means for transmitting/receiving said packet and the recording probability to/from said data recording controlling device;

recording means for recording said packet; and

controlling means for managing control whether or not the received packet is to be recorded based on said recording probability and whether or not the recorded packet is to be responded with said response probability;

said means being interconnected in their entirety over a network.

11. The data storage system according to claim 10 wherein said recording probability is included in said packet and is transmitted along with said packet to the information processing terminals.

12. The data storage system according to claim 10 wherein said recording probability is transmitted with a packet different from said packet.

13. The data storage system according to claim 10 wherein the number of the packets received in said receiving means in said data receiving controlling device is the same as or larger than the number of the blocks of said first data.

14. The data storage system according to claim 13 further comprising

a packet distribution controlling means of changing the ratio of said first and second data, recording probability and the response probability to control the distribution of said packets.

15. The data storage system according to claim 13 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling means, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

16. The data storage system according to claim 15 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling means, a data loss probability in said network, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of said data loss probability in said network, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

17. The data storage system according to claim 13 wherein, in said packet distribution controlling means, the probability of said plural information terminals not responding, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data are changed so that the product of the probability of said plural information terminals not responding, said recording probability, response probability, the number of said information processing terminals and the number of blocks of said second data is the same as or larger than the number of blocks of said first data.

18. The data storage system according to claim 10 wherein, in said recording probability generating means and in said response probability generating means, said recording probability, response probability or the coding rate is increased to lower the probability of overlapping of the packets responded by said information processing terminals.

19. A data recording controlling apparatus for distributing and recording data in a plurality of information terminals interconnected over a network, said apparatus comprising

encoding means for encoding blocked first data to generate blocked second data;

packetizing means for packetizing said second data;

recording probability generating means for generating a recording probability specifying whether or not the packet generated by said packetizing means is to be recorded in said plural information processing terminals;

response request data generating means for generating response request data with a response probability attached thereto, said response probability indicating whether or not said packet is to be responded;

transmission means for transmitting the packet including said recording probability and said response request data to said plural information processing terminals; and

receiving means for receiving the packet sent from said terminals.

20. A data recording commanding apparatus for distributing and recording data in a plurality of information terminals interconnected over a network, said apparatus comprising

encoding means for encoding blocked first data to generate blocked second data;

packetizing means for packetizing said second data;

recording probability generating means for generating a recording probability indicating whether or not the packet generated in said packetizing means is to be recorded in said plural information processing terminals; and

transmission means for transmitting said packet inclusive of the recording probability to said plural information processing terminals.

21. A data receiving apparatus for receiving data from a plurality of information processing terminals interconnected over a network, said apparatus comprising

response request data generating means for generating response request data with a response probability attached thereto, said response probability indicating whether or not a packet recorded in said plural information processing terminals is to be responded;

transmitting means for transmitting said response request data to said information processing terminals; and

receiving means for receiving the packet sent from said information processing terminals.

22. An information processing terminal comprising

transmitting/receiving means for transmitting/receiving data with an external device connected thereto over a network;

recording means for recording the packet; and

controlling means for controlling whether or not said packet is to be recorded based on the recording probability attached to said packet and whether or not the recorded packet is to be responded with the response probability sent from said external device.