Frame relay switched data service

• US 8,014,286 B2
• Filed: 10/21/2008
• Issued: 09/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Saksena, Vikram R., Holmgren, Stephen L., Chase, Christopher J., Medamana, John Babu
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham; Chi H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hom; Shick
• Application Number:
  US12/255,543
• Publication Number:
  US 20090041022A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,050 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/235
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2854 Wide area networks, e.g. public data networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4608 LAN interconnection over ATM networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5645 Connectionless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/10 Routing in connection-oriented networks, e.g. X.25 or ATM
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/72 Routing based on the source address
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/741 Routing in networks with a plurality of addressing schemes, e.g. with both IPv4 and IPv6
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/105 ATM switching elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0478 Provisions for broadband connections

Abstract

A new type of data transport service which uses a frame relay layer 2 data link connection identifier (DLCI) to select among various service types, feature sets, and/or closed user groups (CUGs). A layer 3 address may be extracted from a layer 2 frame, and the layer 3 address information may be used to route a data packet over a packet-switched network according to the service classes, feature sets, and/or CUGs selected. At the destination, the layer 3 data packet may again be enclosed in a layer 2 frame with a DLCI indicating the service classes, features sets, and/or CUGs. Because the use of conventional permanent virtual circuits (PVCs) is not required in aspects of the invention, new methods of measuring and managing network traffic are presented.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving frame relay data packets into a packet network, the frame relay data packets having user data in a user data field, wherein the user data comprises service category data;

discriminating between a plurality of service categories based on the user data, wherein the plurality of service categories comprises two or more of;

communication via public internet, communication via a local intranet, communication within a closed user group, communication with an extranet, live audio transmission, live video transmission, multicasting transmission or telephony over internet protocol transmission; and

routing over a virtual private network responsive to one of the plurality of service categories.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the virtual private network comprises a trading partner responsive to the one of the plurality of service categories.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

routing over a closed user group responsive to the one of the plurality of service categories.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the discriminating comprises recognizing multicast data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the discriminating comprises recognizing voice data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the discriminating comprises recognizing video data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the user data comprises an internet protocol packet.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the packet network is an asynchronous transfer mode network and the frame relay data packets are asynchronous transfer mode cells.

9. A method comprising:

receiving a plurality of frame relay packets over a permanent virtual circuit at a first node in an asynchronous transfer mode network;

generating an asynchronous transfer mode address based on a data field other than a data link connection identifier within the plurality of frame relay packets; and

routing the plurality of frame relay packets through the asynchronous transfer mode network based on the asynchronous transfer mode address.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the routing includes routing the plurality of frame relay packets responsive to one of a plurality of service categories.

11. A system comprising:

means for receiving frame relay data packets into a packet network, the frame relay data packets having user data in a user data field, wherein the user data comprises service category data;

means for discriminating between a plurality of service categories based on the user data, wherein the plurality of service categories comprises two or more of;

communication via public internet, communication via a local intranet, communication within a closed user group, communication with an extranet, live audio transmission, live video transmission, multicasting transmission or telephony over internet protocol transmission; and

means for routing over a virtual private network responsive to one of the plurality of service categories.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the virtual private network comprises a trading partner responsive to the one of the plurality of service categories.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for routing over a closed user group responsive to the one of the plurality of service categories.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein said the discriminating means recognizes at least one of:

multicast data, voice data, or video data.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the user data comprises an internet protocol packet.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the packet network is an asynchronous transfer mode network and the frame relay data packets are asynchronous transfer mode cells.