Call-routing efficiency with a network access server

• US 6,404,736 B1
• Filed: 06/12/1998
• Issued: 06/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Arponen, Seppo, Arkko, Jari
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu, Alpus H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHAND, ROBERTA A
• Application Number:
  US09/096,627
• Time in Patent Office: 1,460 Days
• Field of Search: 370/230, 370/237, 370/360, 709/203, 709/223, 709/226, 709/228, 709/229
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/104 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/122 where the PSTN/ISDN access is used as an access to networks other than PSTN/ISDN access arrangements to networks other than PSTN/ISDN H04M7/0066; access arrangements to public data networks H04L12/2856

Abstract

A method and apparatus enables a Network Access Server together with a telecommunications switch to route incoming calls only to devices that have sufficient resources to provide a connection to the Internet. A set of devices, RPs, reformat incoming data from subscribers to a desired Internet Protocol. During operation, each RP performs self-checks to determine whether sufficient resources exist within the RP for providing Internet communication. An example of such a resource is an Internet protocol (IP) address pool. Each RP may have several IP address pools that are associated with individual Internet service providers (ISPs). If, for example, an individual ISP'"'"'s IP address pool is depleted within a particular RP, then that RP signals as much to call routing logic. The call routing logic will not route calls for that individual ISP to that particular RP until the call routing logic receives another signal indicating that the depleted resource has been replenished.

Claims

1. A method for improving call-routing efficiency for a telecommunications switch that is associated with a network access server, comprising the steps of:

receiving at call routing logic a request for connecting a first call to a network;

receiving at said call routing logic at least one resource status indicator from said network access server;

selecting a first processing device for call assignment consideration for said first call;

determining whether said first processing device has a depleted resource, said depleted resource being a resource other than a plurality of ports of said first processing device; and

if so, trying a second processing device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

if not, selecting said first processing device for said first call.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step. of:

receiving at said call routing logic at least one signal indicating a resource depletion status in said first processing device.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of:

transmitting from said first processing device to said call routing logic said at least one signal indicating said resource depletion status.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said depleted resource is at least one Internet protocol address pool.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the steps of:

ascertaining a first B-number of said first call;

ascertaining a first Internet service provider that corresponds to said first B-number; and

wherein said step of determining further comprises the step of determining whether a first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider in said first processing device is depleted.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said depleted resource is any resource that can be depleted before all of said plurality of ports of said first processing device are depleted.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said network is the Internet.

9. A method for improving call-routing efficiency for a telecommunications switch that is associated with a network access server, comprising the steps of:

receiving at call routing logic a request for connecting a first call to a network;

selecting a first processing device for call assignment consideration for said first call;

determining whether said first processing device has a depleted resource, said depleted resource being a resource other than a plurality of ports of said first processing device;

if so, trying a second processing device; and

further comprising the steps of;

checking at intervals for resource depletion by substantially all of a plurality of processing devices in said network access server; and

providing at least one depletion signal to said call routing logic from each of said plurality of processing devices that detects resource depletion during said step of checking, said at least one depletion signal indicating which resource is depleted.

10. A method for improving call-routing efficiency for a telecommunications switch that is associated with a network access server, comprising the steps of:

receiving at call routing logic a request for connecting a first call to a network;

selecting a first processing device for call assignment consideration for said first call;

determining whether said first processing device has a depleted resource, said depleted resource being a resource other than a plurality of ports of said first processing device;

if so, trying a second processing device; and

further comprising the step of;

providing at least one non-depletion signal to said call routing logic from at least one of a plurality of processing devices in said network access server when a previously-depleted resource is no longer depleted.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said step of selecting a first processing device for call assignment consideration for said first call further comprises the step of:

selecting said first processing device based on a B-number of said first call and port availability of said first processing device.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said step of determining whether said first processing device has a depleted resource further comprises the step of:

checking said first processing device for said depleted resource after said first call is received.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said step of checking said first processing device for said depleted resource after said first call is received further comprises the step of:

interrogating, by said call routing logic, said first processing device.

14. A method for improving call-routing efficiency for a telecommunications switch that is associated with a network access server, comprising the steps of:

receiving a request for connecting a first call to a network;

ascertaining a first B-number of said first call;

ascertaining a first Internet service provider that corresponds to said first B-number;

determining a first processing device that has at least one free port and is associated with said first Internet service provider;

sending, from said first processing device, a resource status indicator for a first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider;

determining whether said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider at said first processing device is depleted responsive to said resource status indicator; and

if so, trying a second processing device.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step of:

if not, selecting said first processing device for said first call.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the steps of sending and determining further comprises the steps of:

sending, from said first processing device, said resource status indicator indicating that said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider is depleted; and

wherein said step of determining whether said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider at said first processing device is depleted determines that said first Internet protocol address pool is depleted.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said step of sending a signal indicating that said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider is depleted occurs in response to an interrogation of said first processing device, said interrogation being in response to said request for connecting said first call.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein said step of sending a signal indicating that said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider is depleted occurs in response to an affirmative result from at least one of a plurality of periodic depletion evaluations at said first processing device.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the steps of sending and determining further comprise the steps of:

sending, from said first processing device, said resource status indicator indicating that said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider is at least partially replenished; and

wherein said step of determining whether said first Internet protocol address pool corresponding to said first Internet service provider at said first processing device is depleted determines that said first Internet protocol address pool is not depleted.

20. A node in a telecommunications network that improves call-routing efficiency, said node comprising:

a telecommunications switch connected to a plurality of telecommunications network subscribers, said telecommunications switch further comprising call routing logic;

a network access server connected to said telecommunications switch, said network access server further comprising a plurality of processing devices, said plurality of processing devices providing communications with a private network, said network access server further comprising a plurality of resources for providing said communications with said private network, said network access server generating a resource status indicator of said plurality of resources to said call routing logic of said telecommunications switch; and

wherein a call from a subscriber from among said plurality of telecommunications network subscribers is routed by said call routing logic to a first processing device from among said plurality of processing devices if said first processing device has sufficient resources from among said plurality of resources responsive to said resource status indicator to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber.

25. The node of claim 20, wherein at least one of said plurality of resources is at least one Internet protocol address pool.

26. The node of claim 25, wherein:

said call routing logic ascertains a B-number of said call and an Internet service provider that corresponds to said B-number; and

said call routing logic only routes said call to said first processing device if an Internet protocol address pool of said Internet service provider at said first processing device has at least one available Internet protocol address.

27. The node of claim 20, wherein a first subset of said plurality of resources are comprised of any resource that can be depleted before all of a plurality of ports of said first processing device are depleted.

28. The node of claim 20, wherein said private network is the Internet.

31. The node of claim 20, wherein calls are initially routed based on a B-number of said call and port availability of said plurality of processing devices before considering resource availability in said plurality of processing devices.

21. A node in a telecommunications network that improves call-routing efficiency, said node comprising:

a telecommunications switch connected to a plurality of telecommunications network subscribers, said telecommunications switch further comprising call routing logic;

a network access server connected to said telecommunications switch, said network access server further comprising a plurality of processing devices, said plurality of processing devices providing communications with a private network, said network access server generating at least one resource status indicator for at least one of said plurality of processing devices;

wherein a call from a subscriber from among said plurality of telecommunications network subscribers is routed by said call routing logic to a first processing device from among said plurality of processing devices if said first processing device has sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber; and

wherein said call routing logic receives said at least one resource status indicator indicating that said first processing device does not have sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber.

22. The node of claim 21, wherein said first processing device transmits to said call routing logic said at least one signal indicating that said first processing device does not have sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber.

23. The node of claim 22, wherein said first processing device transmits to said call routing logic said at least one signal indicating that said first processing device does not have sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber in response to an interrogation of said first processing device, said interrogation being in response to said call from said subscriber.

24. The node of claim 22, wherein said first processing device transmits to said call routing logic said at least one signal indicating that said first processing device does not have sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber in response to an affirmative result from at least one of a plurality of periodic depletion evaluations at said first processing device.

29. A node in a telecommunications network that improves call-routing efficiency, said node comprising:

a telecommunications switch connected to a plurality of telecommunications network subscribers, said telecommunications switch further comprising call routing logic;

a network access server connected to said telecommunications switch, said network access server further comprising a plurality of processing devices, said plurality of processing devices providing communications with a private network;

wherein a call from a subscriber from among said plurality of telecommunications network subscribers is routed by said call routing logic to a first processing device from among said plurality of processing devices if said first processing device has sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber; and

wherein substantially all of said plurality of processing devices check for resource depletion at intervals, and each of said plurality of processing devices that discovers a depleted resource when so checking provides at least one depletion signal to said call routing logic, said at least one depletion signal indicating which resource is depleted.

30. A node in a telecommunications network that improves call-routing efficiency, said node comprising:

a telecommunications switch connected to a plurality of telecommunications network subscribers, said telecommunications switch further comprising call routing logic;

a network access server connected to said telecommunications switch, said network access server further comprising a plurality of processing devices, said plurality of processing devices providing communications with a private network;

wherein a call from a subscriber from among said plurality of telecommunications network subscribers is routed by said call routing logic to a first processing device from among said plurality of processing devices if said first processing device has sufficient resources to provide communication with said private network to said subscriber; and

wherein at least one of said plurality of processing devices provides at least one non-depletion signal to said call routing logic when a previously-depleted resource is no longer depleted.

32. An arrangement for improving call-routing efficiency for a telecommunications switch that is associated with a network access server, comprising:

means for receiving at call routing logic means a request for connecting a first call to a network;

means for receiving at said call routing logic means at least one resource status indication from said network access server;

means for selecting a first processing device of said network access server for call assignment consideration for said first call;

means for determining whether said first processing device has a depleted resource, said depleted resource being a resource other than a plurality of ports of said first processing device;

means for trying a second processing device if said means for determining determines that said first processing device has a depleted resource; and

means for selecting said first processing device for said first call if said means for determining does not determine that said first processing device has a depleted resource.