RESILIENT SERVICE QUALITY IN A MANAGED MULTIMEDIA DELIVERY NETWORK

• US 20090144417A1
• Filed: 10/30/2008
• Published: 06/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Schutte, Tiaan, Robinson, Dave Cecil, Kisel, Andrey
• Application Number:
  US12/261,640
• Publication Number:
  US 20090144417A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5025 by proactively reacting to service quality change, e.g. by reconfiguration after service quality degradation or upgrade
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/55 Testing of service level quality, e.g. simulating service usage
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1063 Discovery through centralising entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1072 Discovery involving ranked list compilation of candidate peers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

A managed multimedia delivery network (1) for providing a multimedia service with resilient service quality is disclosed. The network comprising a plurality of caching nodes (3) for caching multimedia data segments; an edge caching node (4) for colleting requested multimedia data segments from the caching nodes (3) and for serving a user equipment (2) with the collected multimedia data; and a service gateway (5) for providing cache information to the edge caching node (4) indicating how to obtain the requested multimedia data segments from the caching nodes (3). The edge caching node (4) comprises a service quality monitoring unit for monitoring the collection of the data segments from the caching nodes (3) and for requesting cache information from the service gateway (5) when the collection of data segments impacts the service quality.

Claims

1. Managed multimedia delivery network for providing a multimedia service with resilient service quality, comprising:

a plurality of caching nodes for caching multimedia data segments;

an edge caching node for colleting requested multimedia data segments from the caching nodes and for serving a user equipment with the collected multimedia data; and

a service gateway for providing cache information to the edge caching node indicating how to obtain the requested multimedia data segments from the caching nodes,

wherein the edge caching node comprises a service quality monitoring unit for monitoring the collection of the data segments from the caching nodes and for requesting cache information from the service gateway when the collection of data segments impacts the service quality.

2. Network of claim 1, wherein the service gateway, upon receiving a cache information request, evaluates available resources to transmit the requested data segments to the edge caching node and provides cache information to the edge caching node indicating recommended caching nodes for maintaining the service quality.

3. Network of claim 2, wherein the service gateway determines recommended caching nodes for transmitting the requested data segments to the edge caching node based upon at least one of availability of the requested data segments on the caching nodes, load of the caching nodes, available bandwidth for transmitting the requested data segments, and transmission network congestion.

4. Network of claim 2, wherein the service gateway responds to the cache information request by denying recommending alternative caching nodes if the speed of collecting data segments from the caching nodes that are presently used for the delivery of the multimedia service is going to improve.

5. Network of claim 1, comprising a network cache information storage for storing cache information of the caching nodes, wherein the service gateway accesses the network cache information storage when evaluating available resources for transmitting the requested data segments to the edge caching node.

6. Network of claim 1, wherein the service quality monitoring unit determines whether the speed of arriving data segments is sufficient to pull the end of each segment before it has to be delivered to the user equipment.

7. Method for providing a multimedia service with resilient service quality on a managed multimedia delivery network comprising a plurality of multimedia data caching nodes, the method comprising the steps performed by an edge caching node:

collecting multimedia data segments from a subset of the caching nodes for delivery to a user equipment;

monitoring the collection of the data segments from the caching nodes; and

requesting data collection information from a service gateway when the collection of data segments impacts the service quality of the multimedia service; and

the steps performed by the service gateway;

evaluating available resources at the caching nodes for transmitting the requested data segments to the edge caching node; and

providing data collection information to the edge caching node indicating alternative caching nodes for improving the service quality.

8. Method of claim 7, comprising:

determining whether the speed of collecting data segments falls below a level necessary to maintain the service quality.

9. Method of claim 7, comprising:

requesting data collection information from the service gateway when the multimedia service is initialized.

10. Method of claim 7, comprising:

periodically sending caching state information from the caching nodes to a centralized state database; and

accessing the centralized state database to obtain the caching state information of the caching nodes by the service gateway when evaluating the available resources at the caching nodes to compile alternative caching nodes for improving the service quality.