System and method for managing latency in a distributed telephony network

• US 8,601,136 B1
• Filed: 06/06/2013
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Twilio, Inc.
• Inventors: Fahlgren, Christer, Boerjesson, Jonas, Wolthuis, John, Shafton, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAW, PELING ANDREW
• Application Number:
  US13/911,896
• Publication Number:
  US 20130304929A1
• Time in Patent Office: 180 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/121 by minimising delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/124 using a combination of metrics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/125 based on throughput or bandwidth
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1033 Signalling gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 Session initiation protocol [SIP]

Abstract

A system and method of preferred embodiments include at a signaling gateway of a first region, receiving a communication invitation of a first endpoint from a communication provider; signaling the communication invitation to a communication-processing server in a second region; in response to communication processing of the communication-processing server, dynamically directing signaling and media of the communication according to processing instructions and resources available in at least the first and two regions; wherein dynamically directing signaling and media communication of the communication comprises selectively routing media communication exclusively through communication resources of the first region if resources are available in the first region or selectively routing media communication between the first endpoint, the gateway, and at least the communication-processing server if media resources are not in the first region.

Claims

1. A method for architecting a geographically distributed communication computing platform comprising:

at a SIP signaling gateway of a first region, receiving a SIP communication invitation, the communication originating from a first communication endpoint directed through a provider service;

signaling a communication invitation to a communication-processing server in a second region, wherein the first region and second region are at least two thousand miles apart;

at the communication-processing server, retrieving application instructions from an internet accessible server at a URI that is associated with a destination endpoint of the communication invitation;

at the communication-processing server, processing the retrieved application instructions;

upon encountering an instruction requiring media flow, establishing a media communication flow with the first endpoint, querying a routing policy service of the second region for a selected communication route, and establishing a media communication flow with a resource of the selected communication route;

wherein establishing a media communication flow with a resource of the selected communication route comprises if the instruction includes communicating with a second endpoint of the first region, establishing a communication flow with a second gateway, the second gateway establishing communication flow with the second endpoint through a provider service of the first region, and signaling for media communication to flow between the first and second endpoints through the first and second gateways of the first region.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising if the second endpoint terminates media communication through the two gateways of the first region, re-inviting the communication-processing server, and the communication-processing server processing subsequent application instructions.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein establishing a media communication flow with a resource of the selected communication route comprises if the instruction includes a media resource not in the first region, the communication-processing server establishing media communication flow with the media resource of the second region, the communication gateway, and the first endpoint through the gateway of the first region.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second endpoints can be communicating with an audio medium, a video medium, or screen-sharing medium.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first and second endpoints communicate to the provider service with a PSTN protocol or a SIP protocol.

6. A method for architecting a geographically distributed communication computing platform with a subset of resources in a first region and a subset of resources in a second region comprising:

at a signaling gateway of a first region, receiving a communication invitation of a first endpoint from a communication provider;

signaling the communication invitation to a communication-processing server in a second region;

in response to communication processing of the communication-processing server, dynamically directing signaling and media of the communication according to processing instructions and resources available in at least the first and two regions;

wherein dynamically directing signaling and media communication of the communication comprises selectively routing media communication exclusively through communication resources of the first region if resources are available in the first region or selectively routing media communication between the first endpoint, the gateway, and at least the communication-processing server if media resources are not in the first region.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein routing media communication exclusively through communication resources of the first region comprises inviting a second gateway, the second gateway inviting a second endpoint accessible through a provider service of the first region, and the communication-processing server re-inviting the first and second communication gateway to establish media communication flow between the first and second communication gateway and away from the communication-processing server.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein upon the second endpoint terminating communication flow, re-establishing communication with the communication-processing server.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the first and second endpoints are PSTN endpoints.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the first and second endpoints are client application endpoints.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the signaling uses a SIP signaling protocol.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein communication flow support the first endpoint and second endpoint connecting to the provider service through different communication mediums, the possible communication mediums comprising audio, video, and screen-sharing.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein the communication-processing server is a call router;

and further comprising the call router retrieving telephony application instructions from an internet accessible server at a URI that is associated with a destination endpoint of the communication invitation, and processing the retrieved telephony application instructions.

14. The method of claim 6, wherein the resources available in the first region are media services.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the media services comprise a text-to-speech service, a recording service, and a transcoding service.

16. A system for managing synchronous communication across regions comprising:

a communication-processing server in a first region configured to retrieve application instructions from an addressable resource associated with a destination endpoint of a communication invitation and process the retrieved application instructions;

service provider interfaces in a second region with communication to outside communication endpoints in the second region;

a communication gateway of the second region configured to dynamically redirect signaling and media communication flow between at least one endpoint of the second region and the communication-processing server of the first region during the duration of a synchronous communication session;

wherein the first region and the second region are within geographically distinct regions wherein latency of media communication flow between the first region and the second region is greater than latency of media communication flow between endpoints of the second region.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising a routing policy server communicatively coupled to the communication-processing server and configured to select a communication gateway for communication between at least the first and second region during a communication session.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the signaling is SIP signaling;

and wherein the first and second communication endpoints can be a PSTN endpoint or a client application endpoint.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the communication medium supported by the service provider interfaces in the second region comprise audio communication, video communication, and screen-sharing communication.

20. The system of claim 17, further comprising media resources of the second region that are configured for media communication flow within the second region independent of the communication-processing server of the first region.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the media resources comprise a text-to-speech resource, a recording resource, and a media transcoding resource.

22. The system of claim 16, wherein the distance between the first region and the second region is greater than 2000 miles.