JP2000332750A - Centralized billing and settlement system using network access agents - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] In a type of service that guarantees QoS, the load for propagating (flooding) domain information to the entire network is reduced, and the present invention can be applied even when the price is frequently changed. Provide a centralized billing and settlement system. In a network having a plurality of network service providers arranged in respective domains and a service provider connected to a content provider, and providing the content upon request to a user, any of the plurality of network service providers is provided. A network access agent connected to the crab. And, by the network access agent,
Performs inter-domain resource management, routing and billing clearing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a centralized accounting / payment system using a network access agent.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Until now, the only provision of services on the existing Internet has been to provide unreliable services characterized by the best-effort type.

On the other hand, at present, QoS (Qua1ity of Servic
e: Quality of service) Research on the realization method of guaranteed services is ongoing. However, much has not been studied about the billing / payment method for QoS guaranteed services.

[0004] In the QoS guaranteed type service, it is necessary to reserve and secure network resources in advance according to a user's declaration. For this reason, a more strict usage-based charging scheme must be applied. If a fixed rate connection such as the Internet or a time-based charging method is applied to the QoS guaranteed service, users are expected to reserve a large amount of resources as much as possible.

[0005] On the other hand, from the viewpoint of the network provider, an incentive to invest in capacity enhancement at a place where a large amount of use is expected or at a place of congestion is created by a billing method based on the usage amount, so that the development and use efficiency of the entire network are reduced. However, a billing method based on usage is desired.

[0006]

However, it is not so difficult when the network is operated by a single operator, but when the network is constituted by networks operated by countless network providers such as the Internet, There are the following issues.

First, a method for determining the lowest cost route among the routes satisfying the QoS requested by the user is realized. In particular, scalability needs to be considered. That is, since the network is extremely large-scale, it is necessary to consider calculation efficiency.

[0008] The second is to establish a settlement method when communication is performed via a network (hereinafter referred to as a domain) provided by a plurality of network providers. Each user must pay a number of network providers, including those who have not subscribed directly. Also, each network provider needs to be paid by many users. For this reason, a large amount of settlement work is required for authentication.

Further, it is necessary to establish a failure detection, rerouting and settlement process when a failure occurs in a certain domain and the requested QoS cannot be provided during communication through a plurality of domains. It is.

[0010] Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a centralized billing / payment system that satisfies each of the above requirements in a service of a type that guarantees QoS.

[0011]

The above object can be attained by providing a network access agent (hereinafter referred to as Nagent as needed) according to the present invention.

As a preferred mode, in a network having a plurality of network service providers arranged in respective domains and a service provider connected to a content provider, and providing the content upon request to a user, the plurality of networks are provided. It has a network access agent connected to any of the service providers.

The network access agent registers a service quality (QoS) condition and a price provided by each domain of the plurality of network service providers, receives a communication request from the user, and receives a service quality (QoS) of the communication request. ) Select the cheapest route among the routes that satisfy the conditions.

[0014] Further, the present invention is characterized in that a network service provider via a selected route is notified, and the settlement of the user for execution of the communication request is distributed to the network service provider used in executing the communication request.

Further, a preferred embodiment further monitors whether or not the specified quality of service (QoS) is provided, and if the provided quality of service (QoS) is lower than the specified, the domain causing the quality is identified. analyse. Then, the difference in income is compensated by a network provider managing the corresponding domain.

In a preferred embodiment, the route is selected by using a Nucleus & Spoke (nucleus and arrow) model.

[0017] Still further, as a preferred mode, monitoring whether or not the specified quality of service (QoS) is provided is performed between the selected service provider and the user.
Each is characterized by observing the quality of service (QoS), measuring the quality of service (QoS) at the exit of the domain to be passed when there is a difference, and identifying the domain that is the cause.

Further features of the present invention will be apparent from embodiments of the present invention described with reference to the following drawings.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals or reference symbols.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a network configuration and a business model of a system for realizing a centralized billing / payment method using a network access agent (Nagent) to which the present invention is applied.

A plurality of network providers 20 to 22 exist in a network, and connect the networks. Further, a service provider 23 exists and sends out the content from the content provider 3 to the requesting user 2.

As a feature of the present invention, a network access agent (Nagent) 1 connected to any network provider is installed. In FIG. 1, it is connected to a network provider 20.

This Nagent 1 has a function of performing resource management between domains, routing, accounting / payment, fault management, and the like. Such a function is realized by the software configuration of Nagent1, as shown in FIG.

The routing unit 10,
Each functional unit of the connection management unit 11 and the accounting settlement unit 12 is configured. The routing unit 10 generates and registers a user registration table, a network provider registration table, and a service provider registration table described later.

The connection management unit 11 receives a quality service (QoS) request from a user, and executes a resource reservation request and release to the network service provider corresponding to the quality service (QoS) request.

The charge settlement unit 12 is connected to the connection management unit 11
Has a table for performing charge settlement based on communication start and end notifications from.

Further, details of the operation of each functional unit will be described later. Here, the outline of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1 for easy understanding.

In FIG. 1, each network provider 20 to 22 registers the QoS conditions and prices provided by its own domain by Nag.
Register to ent1.

The Nagent 1 selects the cheapest route among the routes that satisfy the QoS condition of the communication request received from the user 2 and notifies the provider via which the route is cheapest.

For settlement, User 2 pays Nagent 1 for a fee. Then, the payment is distributed to the provider used by Nagent1.

The Nagent 1 further monitors whether the specified QoS is provided. If the provided QoS is lower than specified, analyze the domain that is causing the problem. Then, the difference between the incomes is compensated for by the provider that manages the domain.

A specific embodiment of the centralized billing / payment method by the network access agent (Nagent) 1 according to the present invention will be described with reference to a signal sequence flow between Nagent-provider-user in FIG.

FIGS. 4 to 15 show the contents of signals transmitted and received in accordance with the sequence flow of FIG. The sequence of FIG. 3 will be described with reference to these drawings as appropriate.

The network access agent (Nagen
t) 1 includes QoS from network providers 20 to 22
A condition registration signal is sent in advance (step S1). this
The contents of the QoS condition registration signal are as shown in FIG. That is, the port ID of the network provider
or The target Port ID or Bypass ID is sent as the bypass (Bypass) ID.

Further, as the connection information, when the target is a port (Port), the port (Port) ID of another provider connected to the port, and when the target is bypass (Bypass), the bypass is connected. The port ID of the own domain is sent.

Also, as the QoS condition, the target is a port (Por
In the case of t), the port and Nucleus described later
The QoS between the ports (price, bandwidth, maximum delay, etc.). If the target is bypass, the QoS between the connected ports is sent.

Thus, the network access agent (Nagent) 1 registers the following network provider registration table in the routing unit 10 (see FIG. 2).

[0038]

[Table 1]

Similarly, a service condition registration signal is sent from the service provider 23 to the network access agent (Nagent) 1 in advance (step S).
2). The contents of the service condition registration signal are as shown in FIG. That is, the own server ID is sent as the server ID of the service provider.

Further, the port ID of the provider to which the server is connected is sent as the port ID. Also, the service recommendation or the permissible QoS condition is sent as the QoS condition.

As a result, the routing unit 10 of the network access agent (Nagent) 1 registers the following service provider registration table.

[0042]

[Table 2]

When there is a QoS request from the user (step S3), the user is registered with the network access agent (Nagent) 1 in advance.
As this user registration, the following user registration table is created by the routing unit 10 based on the information from the user 2 sent through the connection management unit 11 of the network access agent (Nagent) 1.

[0044]

[Table 3]

As described above, the user registration table, the network provider registration table, and the service provider registration table are registered in Nagent1.

Under these conditions, user 2 sends Nagent
1 is sent a QoS request (step S3). Here, the contents of the QoS request sent from the user 2 are as shown in FIG.

That is, the user ID assigned at the time of contract with Nagent 1 (however, users who have not contracted with Nagent 1 are omitted), the port of the provider to which the
ID (however, omitted if user ID is specified), QoS conditions (bandwidth, etc.) allowed for user terminal or subscriber line
Subscriber conditions (omitted if a user ID is specified),
The ID of the server you want to communicate with and the QoS conditions recommended or permitted by the service (Guarantee (required), B
est Effort (as much as possible) can be specified).

The network access agent (Nagen
t) 1 selects a route when a QoS request is sent from the user 2. This route selection algorithm is based on the Nuc shown in FIG.
Leus & Spoke (arrows) explained by model routing.

That is, a plurality of networks 1a to 1g
Each constitute a domain, and nodes in each domain are arranged on domain boundaries. For example, nodes 100 to 105 are arranged in the domain 1a.

Then, for example, the source (Source) terminal 2
As a method of selecting the shortest route from 00 to the destination (Destination) terminal 201, SPF (Shortest Path Firs
t) there.

First, a domain to be searched is selected and marked at the domain level by the SPF. In FIG. 16, the domains 1a to 1d whose domain boundaries are solid lines are targeted. Next, the arrow (Spoke) that connects to the link between the marked domains is marked. It is a solid arrow (Spoke) in the domains 1a to 1d. For example, arrows (Spoke) 110 to 113 in the domain 1a.

Next, from the nucleus (Nuc1eus) 120 of the domain 1a accommodating the source terminal 200 to the nucleus (Nuc1eus) 121 of the domain 1d accommodating the target terminal 201, the SPF is optimized for the marked arrow (Spoke). Calculate routes and their costs.

Further, the source terminal 200
12 of domain 1a accommodating source terminal 200 from
0 and the target terminal 201 to the target terminal 20
The total cost is calculated by adding the costs up to the core 121 of the domain 1d accommodating 1. In this way, the route with the smallest total cost is selected.

The route selection processing by the SPF is performed by N
This is executed by the connection management unit 11 of the agent 1.

Referring back to FIG. 3, after the route is selected, the network access agent (Nag
ent) 1 notifies the user 2 of the QoS condition (step S5). The contents of the QoS condition notification are as shown in FIG. An ID (using the same value as the resource reservation request signal) for specifying the connection in a subsequent signal is notified as the connection ID. Further, the provided QoS includes the content of the provided QoS.

Upon receiving the QoS condition notification, the user 2 sends an acceptance notification signal to the Nagent 1 (step S).
6). The contents are as shown in FIG. 8. The connection ID is the connection ID for responding to the acceptance / rejection, and the acceptance or rejection is whether or not to perform communication based on the QoS condition notified by the QoS condition notification signal. Answers are included.

When Nagent1 receives a reply from the user 2 indicating that communication is to be performed under the QoS conditions notified by the QoS condition notification signal, it sends a resource reservation request to the network providers 20 to 22 (step S7).

The contents of the resource reservation request are as shown in FIG. As connection ID, an ID for specifying a connection in a subsequent signal, a source port (Sour
ce Port) Source port requesting reservation as ID
The (port) ID, the port ID of the sink requesting the reservation as the sink port ID, and the content of the requested QoS as the requested QoS are included.

Next, the network providers 20 to 2
2 returns an answer signal to Nagent1. This answer signal includes a connection ID corresponding to the answer and an allowance / non-allowance answer result as the connection ID as shown in FIG.

Then, through the network provider that has sent the acceptable answer, the service provider 23
Is transmitted to the user 2 (step S9).

At this time, the following connection management table is generated in the Nagent 1 by the connection management unit 11. In the connection management table, in addition to the connection ID, each ID of the requesting user, the server, and the via network provider is registered. Further, the QoS condition and the resource reservation time are registered.

[0062]

[Table 4]

When the communication ends, a communication end notification is sent from the user 2 to the Nagent 1 (step S10). As shown in FIG. 11, the content of the communication end notification includes, as the connection ID, the ID of the connection to end the communication.

Upon receiving the communication end notification, Nagent1 sends a resource release request signal to the corresponding one of the network providers 20 to 22 (step S11). The content of the resource release request includes, as shown in FIG. 12, the ID of the connection for which resource release is requested as the connection ID.

When the resources are released, a fee is notified from the Nagent 1 to the user 2 (step S1).
2). As shown in FIG. 13, the charge notification is a connection ID corresponding to the charge notification as the connection ID.
And the charge.

The charge to be notified is based on the charge settlement table 12 (see FIG. 2) generated by the charge calculation unit 12 as shown in the following table.

[0067]

[Table 5]

When the user 2 is notified of the fee, the user 2 notifies the Nagent 1 of the payment method (step S13). This notification of the payment method is transmitted as shown in FIG.
As D, I of the connection corresponding to the payment method notification
D and the payment method corresponding to the communication are notified as the payment method. For example, the user must be Nagent
For one, several payment methods are registered. Then, an appropriate method registered in the payment method notification signal is designated.

Next, Nagent1 notifies the network providers 20 to 23 of the payment of the fee (step S1).
4). In this notification, as shown in FIG. 15, the connection ID corresponding to the charge settlement and the charge are indicated as the connection ID. The network providers 20 to 22 register the payment method at the time of contract with Nagent1.

As described above, signal transmission / reception is performed between Nagent1, the providers 20 to 22, and the user according to the sequence of FIG.

Next, a description will be given of the QoS observation and the reflection on the accounting settlement at the time of failure. As measures to be taken when the specified QoS is not actually provided, there are a case where communication is terminated and a case where communication is continued at a reduced price.

It is desirable that the user can select one of the above measures. QoS guarantee service
Because we have the resources needed to provide
If the QoS drops due to a certain domain, the network provider that manages the domain needs to make up for the price difference to other providers.

Referring to FIG. 17, which shows a QoS observation point and a settlement method when QoS cannot be provided. First, the analysis of the domain causing the decrease in QoS by the Nagent 1 is performed by always using the endpoint (the information source and the information source). Observe and compare the QoS at the destination.

If there is a difference, the QoS is observed at the entrance of the passing domain, and a domain that has been reduced is searched for. FIG. 17 shows an example in which three domains A, B, and C are used. In this case, Q (x) up to the exit of domain A
, But drops to Q (y) at the exit of domain B. Thus, it can be understood that the cause is the failure caused by the domain B.

For this reason, only the price corresponding to Q (y) instead of the QoS quality Q (x) can be applied to the user. The difference is borne by the provider who manages domain B. The calculation method is described below. (1) In domains A and C that do not cause a decrease in QoS, the price is based on the original QoS base. Each price is PA (Q
(X)) and PB (Q (y)). (2) The total amount of the difference between the prices in the domains A and C that do not cause a decrease in QoS is calculated. The total difference is PA
(Q (x))-PB (Q (y)). (3) In domain B, which is the cause of QoS degradation,
The price obtained by subtracting the difference obtained in (2) from the price after the S decrease is defined as the price.

That is, PB (Q (y))-(PA (Q
(X))-PA (Q (y)))-(PC (Q (x))-
PC (Q (y))).

The Qo respectively requested by the main A, B, and C
It is assumed that, despite securing resources to provide SQ (x), only Q (y) can be provided to the user due to a certain domain. Therefore, the prices corresponding to the respective QoS are P (Q (x)) and P (Q (y)), and the user has P (Q (x)).
Charge P (Q (y)) instead of (Q (x)).

Originally, P (Q (x)) which should be obtained is P (Q (x)).
(y)), the difference P (Q (x))
-Make P (Q (y)) bear the burden of the provider who manages the domain B that caused the decrease in QoS.

Here, in a general network, a border node (a node directly connected to a node in another domain: also called an edge node) exchanges a metric of each other's network with a border node in an adjacent domain. , Is propagated throughout the network. BGP4 (Border 4)
Gateway Protocol Version 4) is commonly used.

Dynamic information in consideration of the network load cannot be exchanged because the load becomes too large. N
The agent 1 exchanges fixed information with a domain to which no contract is made by BGP4.

FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining transmission and reception of fixed information between Nagent1 and a non-contract domain. A plurality of contract domains 301 exist in the contract domain set area 300. The contract domain 301 is connected to the non-contract domain 302 through respective border nodes 310 and 311.

The border node 310 of the domain 301 contracting with Nagent1 sends the received information to Nagent1. The Nagent 1 regards the entire contracted domain as one network, and sends and receives metrics to and from the other uncontracted domains 302.

As a result, the domain 30 for which no contract has been made
For 2, domain 3 with a contract with Nagent1
The set of 01 looks like one large domain 300.

In selecting a route, Nagent1 uses dynamic information for the contract domain 301 and the non-contract domain 3
For 02, fixed information is used. However, at this time, the fixed information may be different from the actual value, and in that case, a block (a case where the requested QoS cannot be provided at the offered price) occurs in the selected route.

In this case, the route is selected again.
When communicating across non-contract domains,
At t1, only the route selection processing is performed, and billing to the user 2 and distribution to the provider 22 and settlement when the promised QoS cannot be provided are not performed.

In a situation where the non-contract domain 302 exists, it is difficult to perform a charging process according to the usage amount, and it is virtually impossible to provide a QoS guarantee service.

However, as shown in FIG. 19, Nagent1 is not necessarily required to be unique, and Nagen
It is expected that t (A) and (B) will be set up and each domain will contract with Nagent1 in its own area.

Each of the Nagents (A) and (B) interact with each other to execute the accounting calculation and distribution for their own contract domain. The fee is charged by the Nag contracted with the domain accommodating the subscriber 2 who pays the communication fee.
ent (in FIG. 19, it is Nagent (A)).

[0089]

As described above with reference to the drawings, in the present invention, the amount of routing calculation is reduced by centralized routing by a network access agent (Nagent). Also, compared to performing routing calculation in each transit domain, only one location is required, so connection time is short.

Further, since the load for propagating (flooding) the domain information to the entire network is reduced, the present invention can be applied to a case where the price is frequently changed. Also, the number of settlements is reduced from U * N to U + N. Here, U is the number of users, and N is the number of network providers.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to centrally control the network management functions such as charging and routing, and it is possible to easily reflect the failure in charging when the failure occurs.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a network configuration and a business model of a system for realizing a centralized billing / payment method by a network access agent (Nagent) to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating functions of a Nagent 1 that performs resource management, routing, accounting / payment, failure management, and the like between domains.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a signal sequence flow between Nagent-provider-user.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating Qo transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the contents of an S condition registration signal.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the contents of a service condition registration signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating Qo transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the contents of an S request signal.

FIG. 7 shows Qo transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the contents of an S condition notification signal.

8 is a diagram illustrating Q transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG.
It is a figure showing the contents of the oS acceptance notice signal.

9 is a diagram showing the contents of a resource reservation request signal transmitted / received according to the sequence flow of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing contents of an answer signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

11 is a diagram showing the contents of a communication end signal transmitted / received according to the sequence flow of FIG.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the contents of a resource release signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing contents of a fee notification signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the contents of a payment method notification signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing contents of a charge settlement notification signal transmitted and received according to the sequence flow of FIG. 3;

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating routing by a nucleus (nucleus) and arrow (spoke) model.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a QoS observation point and a settlement method when QoS cannot be provided.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating transmission and reception of fixed information between Nagent and a non-contract domain.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating billing settlement by interacting a plurality of Nagents.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Network access agent 2 User 3 Content provider 20-23 Network service provider 10 Routing unit 11 Connection management unit 12 Billing settlement unit

Continued on the front page F-term (reference) 5B045 AA00 BB11 BB43 GG01 5B089 GA11 GA21 GB03 HA01 KA06 KA13 KA15 KB06 KB12 KG08 5K025 AA06 AA07 AA08 BB06 CC01 HH06 LL03 5K030 GA20 HB08 HC01 MC03 MC07 MC01 MC03 BB04 CC03 CC07 DD10 HH09 JJ18 JJ64 KK37 KK56 LL02 LL05 LL09

Claims (9)

[Claims] Claims: 1. In a network having a plurality of network service providers arranged in respective domains and a service provider connected to a content provider and providing the content upon request to a user, the plurality of network service providers A centralized accounting / payment system using a network access agent, comprising: a network access agent connected to any one of the above, wherein the network access agent performs resource management, routing, and accounting settlement between domains. 2. The network access agent according to claim 1, wherein the network access agent includes a routing unit for registering the network service provider, the service provider, and a user; receiving a service (quality QoS) request from a user; A) a connection management unit for executing a resource reservation request to the network service provider corresponding to the request; and a charging clearing unit having a table for performing charging clearing based on communication start and end notifications from the connection management unit. A centralized billing / payment system using a network access agent. 3. A plurality of network service providers in a network having a plurality of network service providers arranged in respective domains and a service provider connected to a content provider and providing the content to a user upon request. A network access agent connected to any one of the above, registers a service quality (QoS) condition and a price provided by each domain of the plurality of network service providers, receives a communication request from the user, Selecting the cheapest route among the routes satisfying the quality of service (QoS) condition, notifying a network service provider via the selected route, and setting the user's settlement for the execution of the communication request in the communication request; The network server used for execution A network access agent in a centralized billing and settlement system, which distributes settlements to service providers. 4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising monitoring whether or not the specified quality of service (QoS) is provided. If the provided quality of service (QoS) is less than the specified quality of service, A network access agent in a centralized billing / payment system, characterized by analyzing a domain that exists and making a difference in income to a network provider managing the domain. 5. The network access agent according to claim 2, wherein the route is selected using a Nucleus & Spoke (nucleus and arrow) model. 6. The system according to claim 4, wherein monitoring whether the specified quality of service (QoS) is provided includes: observing the quality of service (QoS) between the selected service provider and the user; If there is, measure the quality of service (QoS) at the exit of the domain through which it passes, and identify the cause domain 7. In a network having a plurality of network service providers arranged in respective domains and a service provider connected to a content provider, and providing the content upon request to a user, the plurality of network service providers Each of the plurality of network providers registers quality of service (QoS) conditions and prices provided by its own domain with the network access agent, and the network access agent communicates from a user. Accepting the request, selecting the cheapest route among the routes satisfying the quality of service (QoS) condition of the communication request, notifying a provider passing through the selected route, and adjusting the execution of the communication request to the The user Tsu network to pay execute a fee to access the agent, further, the network access agent, centralized billing and settlement process by the network access agent, characterized in that distributing the settlement network provider used upon execution of the communication request. 8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the network access agent further monitors whether a specified quality of service (QoS) is provided, and when the provided quality of service (QoS) is lower than the specified quality of service, A centralized billing / payment method using a network access agent, which analyzes a domain that causes the problem and makes a difference in income be compensated for by a network service provider that manages the domain. 9. The system according to claim 8, wherein monitoring whether or not the specified service quality (QoS) is provided comprises: observing the service quality (QoS) between the selected service provider and the user; A centralized billing / payment method by a network access agent, which measures the quality of service (QoS) at the exit of the domain through which there is, and identifies the domain causing the problem.