CN1193625C - Method and system for managing communication traffic - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and a system for setting up a connection over a dedicated connection interface between a user (202) connected to an access network (200), and an access resource (212), also connected to the access network (200). The impact on signalling messages, being defined for a V5.2 interface between the access network (200) and a service node (204) for setting up the connection, is minimised by using an existing standardised V5.2 identity field for uniquely identifying the access resource (212). A free V5.2 address identity, which is not used for links of the V5.2 interface (208), is used for identifying the access resource (212).

Description

Method and system for managing communication traffic

technical field

The present invention relates to a method and system for managing communication traffic. In particular, the invention relates to call request handling of users connected to an access network.

Background technique

Telecommunications end users are usually connected to an access network (AN) in order to communicate with other users or service providers. Thus, in order to connect end users to other users or service providers, the access network can route calls from users within the access network to other networks, such as the public telephone network (PSTN) and the Internet. This enables end users to make various calls such as voice calls, video calls, web surfing and media streaming. An end user may be equipped with one or more terminals such as a telephone, mobile phone, personal computer, television and some kind of communication unit connected to an access network. Connections may be fixed or wireless. Hereinafter, all end users and/or terminals are simply referred to as "users".

1 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary prior art telecommunications system comprising an access network 100 to which a plurality of subscribers 102 are connected. The access network 100 is connected via a standard communication interface 108 to a service node 104 which acts as a gateway to the public telephone network 106 . Service node 104 may be a local switch or similar device. The public telephone network 106 also has service nodes 110, 112 that act as gateways to other networks 114, 116, such as private networks, the Internet, local area networks (LANs), and the like.

The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has developed standards relating to the interface between different telecommunication networks, such as the interface 108 between the access network 100 and the service node 104 . This interface standard specifies a communication protocol that contains predefined message and data fields, such as address fields. The V5.2 standard (EN 300 347-1) is one such standard for use between the public network and the access network, and it is used in centralized interfaces with a limited number of channels than those connected to the access network. The number of users 102 in the network 100. Therefore, call congestion may occur on the V5.2 interface during peak hours.

The V5.2 interface was originally designed for ordinary voice calls. However, in recent years there has been a shift to data traffic as many users access the Internet through the V5.2 interface and the public telephone network. Data traffic, eg in the Internet, differs from ordinary voice traffic because although connections are usually established over relatively long periods of time, actual data transmissions are relatively short-lived and bursty. For example, after a web page is downloaded to a computer or mobile phone, the user wishes to study the web page before proceeding to the next action. This behavior will lead to a reduction in the performance of the traditional traffic model based on voice calls, which is used to measure the size of the V5.2 interface.

A telecommunications system addressing this problem is disclosed in International Patent Application WO 98/58502, which is hereby incorporated by reference. In the system described in WO 98/58502, a user (TE) connected to the access network (AN) makes a request for Internet traffic, which is connected to the local exchange (LE) of the access network (AN) via the V5.2 interface detected. Such an Internet connection is routed from the TE to an Access Server (R-AS) in the access network, which is directly connected to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) through a dedicated connection interface, such The interface is more suitable for long-term data connection than the V5.2 interface. Therefore, a function is provided in the access network and the local switch, so that the long-term connection between the user and the Internet no longer passes through the V5.2 interface between the access network and the local switch, but passes through the access network through a separate interface. equipment carried out.

In this way, when the local exchange detects an Internet call request from the TE, the local exchange sends back a BCC (allocation) message to the access network for establishing a connection between the TE and the R-AS. However, it is not described in WO 98/58502 how to identify the R-AS in the BCC (allocation) message.

Contents of the invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple method for routing data traffic on a dedicated connection interface, in order to establish the connection, to the existing standard signaling messages in the V5.2 interface between the access network and the service node There is little pressure. This and other objects are achieved by providing a method and system for establishing a connection between a user connected to an access network and an access resource by using the standard V5.2 identification field to uniquely identify the access resource up.

When a connection request from a user to a specific service provider or private network is received by a service node, the service node determines that a connection should be established between the user and a corresponding access resource. Next, an allocation message is sent from the serving node to the access network, containing an identifier uniquely identifying the access resource. In response to the assignment message, the access network establishes a connection between a user port of the user and the access resource.

How to identify the target access resource to the access network through the V5.2 interface in the allocation message is unclear. In order to accommodate the identification of specific access resources and their interfaces, there will be a problem introducing a new address field, because then the protocol of the V5.2 interface will need to be modified for messages and information elements. This requires both sides to be properly updated, which is complex in a global network with many users.

According to the present invention, this problem is solved by using the V5.2 identification field, which is an existing defined protocol element in the V5.2 interface standard, to uniquely identify the access resource. This eliminates the need to introduce new address fields. It is possible to use an existing V5.2 identifier field because there are usually many free address identifiers available which are not used for links of V5.2 interfaces. This way new access resources can be established and identified with minimal stress on the V5.2 interface standard.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a telecommunication system comprising an access network, an access resource connected to the access network and a serving node also connected to the access network via a V5.2 interface, wherein It is characterized in that the system also includes: a device for receiving a connection request from a user connected to the access network, the connection request containing the indication of the access resource; means for connecting the link of the serving node; means for determining in the serving node whether a connection should be established between the user and the access resource on the basis of a connection request received; means for sending an allocation message from the serving node to the access network , the allocation message contains a V5.2 identification field that uniquely identifies the access resource, where the V5.2 identification field is an existing protocol unit in the V5.2 interface standard, and the V5.2 identification field contains a The V5.2 address identifier of the link that is idle and not used in the V5.2 interface is used to identify the access resource; in the access network, in response to the allocation message, a user port and interface of the user means for establishing a connection between incoming resources, and means for disconnecting the connection link on the V5.2 interface in the access network in response to receiving the allocation message.

Preferably, the system further comprises means for returning an allocation complete message from the access network to the serving node in response to the allocation message. The system further comprises means for maintaining a control signaling link between the user port of the user and a serving node over the V5.2 interface for controlling the connection between the user and access resources.

Description of drawings

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a typical telecommunication system according to the prior art.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a telecommunications system in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a signaling diagram showing various steps performed in the system shown in Fig. 2 when a connection is established between a user and an access resource.

Detailed ways

In Fig. 2, a telecommunication network according to the invention is shown, comprising a plurality of subscribers 202 connected to an access network 200. The access network 200 is in turn connected to the service node 204, which acts as a gateway to the public telephone network (PSTN) 206, via a V5.2 interface 208 comprising a limited number of communication links 208a.

The V5.2 standard defines an 8-bit address field in the signaling message, which can uniquely identify 256 different addresses. However, a typical V5.2 interface 208 contains a very small number of links or channels 208a, eg 16 links, each capable of carrying 2048 kbit/s. Thus there are many free addresses or link identifiers that have never been used in the V5.2 interface 208 . According to the invention, these free addresses are used to address other functions and resources than those in the V5.2 interface 208, as will be explained later.

In Figure 2, the access network 200 is also connected into a plurality of access resources 212, three of which are shown 212a-c. The term "access resource" is used herein generally to refer to a device, server or node that provides access and communication to at least one specific service provider or private network. In this example, access resource 212a is connected to an Internet service provider 214 in order to communicate over the Internet 216 .

210 refers to a set of different interfaces or links 210a from the access network 200 to the access resource 212, each interface or link 210a preferably using a communication protocol appropriate to the characteristics of the service being offered. Each interface or link 210a to access resource 212 is separate from V5.2 interface 208 to service node 204 . Access resource 212 may be physically implemented on any of access network 200, each respective service provider, and discrete nodes located therebetween.

When a user 202 sends a request to connect to a specified service provider and/or private network, such as the Internet, the request is forwarded by the access network 200 to the service node 204 . The request contains an indication of a corresponding access resource 212, which is detected by the serving node 204, for example by reading the B-number in the request. Then in an allocation message, the service node 204 instructs the access network 200 to directly establish a traffic connection between a port of the user 202 and the identified access resource via the corresponding interface 210a. Thus the traffic connection does not appear on the limited V5.2 interface 208 . During the traffic connection, only one control signaling connection is maintained on the V5.2 interface 208, which uses a control channel shared with other users.

How to identify the target access resource 212 to the access network 200 in the allocation message of the V5.2 interface 208 is unclear. If new address fields are introduced to accommodate the identification of specific access resources 212 and their interfaces, the V5.2 interface requires a protocol modification for messages and information elements. However, this is a cumbersome process that requires both sides to be properly updated, which is very complex in a global network with many users.

According to the present invention, the existing V5.2 identification field is used to uniquely identify the access resource 212a. As mentioned above, this is possible because there are usually many free address identifiers available which are not being used for the V5.2 interface 208 .

Thereby, when a connection request from the user 202 to the Internet service provider 214 is received by the service node 204, the logic in the service node 204 determines that a connection should be established between the user 202 and the access resource 212a according to the received connection request. connect. Then an allocation message is sent from the service node 204 to the access network 200, which includes a V5.2 identification field that uniquely identifies the access resource 212a. The V5.2 identification field is an existing protocol unit in the V5.2 interface standard. In response to the assignment message, access network 200 establishes a connection between a subscriber port of subscriber 202 and access resource 212a. By using an existing V5.2 identification field that identifies the access resource 212a, modification of the protocol of the V5.2 interface 208 for establishing a connection is avoided.

In Fig. 3, a typical signaling diagram is given, including V5 .2 The different signaling steps performed on the interface. In this example, the standard messages for establishing a PSTN connection are used. However, similar or corresponding methods can also be applied to other standards, such as ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) connections. Such transmission will be other corresponding messages, such as using SETUP (set up) message instead of ESTABLISH (set up) message and so on.

Thus, when the user 202 initiates a connection with the access network 200, the following signaling steps are performed, as indicated by the arrow 300. First a setup message 302 is sent to the service node 204, identifying a user port (UP) in the user 202, in this example, UP=73. The service node 204 then allocates a connection link of the V5.2 interface 208 , in this example, V5.2ID=5, and returns an allocation message 304 . After receiving the allocation message 304, the access network 200 responds with an allocation complete message 306, and the service node 204 returns a setup complete message 308. Subscriber 202 gets dial tone now, can send connection request on the connection link that has been allocated, and as shown in arrow 310, use a B number or similar value to point out and will set up a data connection to Internet service provider 214.

After the service node 204 receives the complete B number from the user 202, the logic in the service node 204 determines to establish a traffic connection between the user port of the user 202 and the access resource 212a according to the received B number. The service node 204 then sends a new allocation message 312 to the access network 200 through the V5.2 interface, which message includes a V5.2 identification of the access resource 212a, V5.2ID=240 in this example, and the user port number, UP=73. In response to the allocation message 312, the access network 200 returns an allocation complete message 314 to the service node 204.

The V5.2 identifier of the access resource 212 includes a reserved V5.2 identifier that is not used for the V5.2 interface. If 16 links are used in the V5.2 interface, then V5.2ID=1-16 is used to identify these links, leaving V5.2ID=17-256 to be used to identify the access resource 212 . Therefore, V5.2ID=240 is used to uniquely identify the access resource 212a in this example.

Returning to Fig. 3, when the access network 200 receives the new allocation message 312 with V5.2ID=240, the message is interpreted by the access network 200 as an instruction to disconnect the V5.2 interface Traffic connection link V5.2ID=5. Instead, to communicate with Internet service provider 214, access network 200 establishes a new traffic connection between user 202 and access resource 212a, as indicated by UP=73 and V5.2ID=240.

In addition, after the service node 204 receives the allocation complete message 314 from the access network 200, the service node 204 releases the V5.2ID=5 link used to transmit dial tone or receive a DTMF (Dual Tone Multi-Frequency) signal from the access network 200 road. On the V5.2 interface, a control signaling link between the user interface 73 and the service node 204 is maintained for managing the transport connection between the user 202 and the access resource 212a. Usually, one channel in the V5.2 interface can be used for this control signaling of several users. After the allocation complete message 314, the transmission can begin, as shown in FIG. 3 .

Subsequently, when the user initiates the release of the call using the normal release procedure defined for the PSTN, the call will be terminated. If the connection is an ISDN connection, a corresponding program is started. In this way, when a release message is received by the service node 204, the connection will be released by a conventional method, which is not shown in the figure. By sending a deallocation message 316 from the serving node 204 to the access network 200, the connection to the access resource 212a is also released, and the access network 200 responds with a deallocation complete message 318.

Finally, if an error occurs in the access resource 212a, the error will be indicated to the administrator of the access resource 212a, who will then generate an AN-FAULT message and send it to the access network 200. This functionality is useful because the service node 204 may mistakenly specify an address in the assignment message 312 that is not defined in the access network 200 .

Claims (9)

1. A method of establishing a connection between a user (202) connected to an access network (200) and an access resource (212) connected to the access network (200) in a telecommunications network, wherein The access network (200) is connected to a service node (204) through a V5.2 interface (208), characterized by the following steps: - the serving node receives a connection request from the user (202), the received connection request including an indication of the access resource (212), - establishing a connection link (208a) from the access network (200) to the service node (204) for the subscriber (202) on the V5.2 interface (208), - if the logic in the service node (204) determines from the received connection request that a connection should be established between the user (202) and the access resource (212), then from the service node (204) to the access network ( 200) Sending an allocation message, the allocation message includes a V5.2 identification field that uniquely identifies the access resource (212), wherein the V5.2 identification field is an existing protocol unit in the V5.2 interface standard, And the V5.2 identification field contains an idle V5.2 address identification not used for the link in the V5.2 interface (208), used to identify the access resource (212), - setting up a connection between a user port of the user (202) and the access resource (212) by the access network (200) in response to the allocation message, and - The access network (200) disconnects the connection link (208a) on the V5.2 interface (208) in response to receipt of the allocation message. 2. A method according to claim 1, characterized by the further step of returning an allocation complete message from the access network (200) to the service node (204) in response to receiving the allocation message. 3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that a V5.2 interface (208) is maintained at the user port of the user (202) in order to control the connection between the user (202) and the access resource (212) and the control signaling link between the service node (204). 4. A method according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that the received connection request is a connection request to the Internet (216), and the access resource (212) is further connected to an Internet service provider (214). 5. A system comprising an access network (200), an access resource (212) connected to the access network (200) and also connected to the access network (200) via a V5.2 interface (208) A telecommunications system for a service node (204), characterized in that the system further comprises: - means for receiving a connection request from a user (202) connected to the access network (200), the connection request containing an indication of the access resource (212), - means for establishing a connection link (208a) from the access network (200) to the service node (204) for the subscriber (202) on the V5.2 interface (208), - means for determining in the service node (204) whether a connection should be established between the user (202) and the access resource (212), depending on the connection request received, - means for sending an allocation message from the serving node (204) to the access network (200), the allocation message comprising a V5.2 identification field uniquely identifying the access resource (212), wherein the V5.2 identification field It is an existing protocol unit in the V5.2 interface standard, and the V5.2 identification domain contains the V5.2 address identification of the idle, unused link in the V5.2 interface (208), which is used to identify the access resource (212), - means in the access network (200) for establishing a connection between a user port of the user (202) and the access resource (212) in response to said allocation message, and. - Means in the access network (200) for disconnecting the connection link (208a) on the V5.2 interface (208) in response to receiving the allocation message. 6. A telecommunication system according to claim 5, characterized in that the system further comprises means for returning an allocation complete message from the access network (200) to the service node (204) in response to the allocation message. 7. The telecommunication system according to claim 5, characterized in that the system further comprises maintaining the user (202) on the V5.2 interface (208) for controlling the connection between the user (202) and the access resource (212) means for a control signaling link between the user port and the service node (204). 8. A telecommunications system according to any one of claims 5-7, characterized in that the connection request is a request for a connection to the Internet (216), and the access resource (212) is further connected to an Internet service provider Business (214). 9. A telecommunication system according to any one of claims 5-7, wherein a plurality of access resources (212) are connected to the access network (200), characterized in that each access resource (212) can be represented by a V5. 2 marks for identification.

Images