Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Miscellaneous
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-09
2002-07-02
Etienne, Ario (Department: 2155)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Miscellaneous
C709S230000, C709S232000, C709S238000, C370S332000, C370S401000, C370S466000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06415313
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUNDS OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a network communication system, and more particularly to a communication quality control system positioned on an existent data network over a datagram transfer network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the conventional communication network, for example, in a LAN (Local Area Network), a datagram is transferred according to the upper layer protocol IP and further upper layer protocol TCP, based on the physical transfer technique such as Ethernet, ATM, or the like.
Also, in The Internet connecting IP subnets of LAN, various physical transfer methods including the above-mentioned Ethernet and ATM are considered and installed on systems.
In such a network, a system of relaying or transferring a datagram for assuring End-to-End communication, that is, a connection, which system is positioned within a communication network, is designed to realize a transfer function so that every system should satisfy the communication quality previously specified on a physical transfer layer of End-to-End protocol, in order to assure the End-to-End transfer quality.
In such an existent communication network, importance is attached especially to the layer
3
transfer such as IP, and a lot of systems, which are called routers, capable of transferring the IP layer chiefly are disposed within a network.
In such a router, the IP of the layer
3
is terminated, and a datagram is transferred, according to the destination IP address derived from the datagram, by deciding a path to which the datagram is transferred, from path information previously stored into the same system. At this time, in the processing of a physical layer to which the datagram is transferred, a path which is easily derived from the path information is selected and the datagram is transferred from the interface.
A network server capable of assuring communication quality in every application and transferring data between different subnets without using a router is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Laid-Open (Kokai) No. Heisei 9-116560.
In the above mentioned conventional router, it is impossible to determine the optimum communication quality according to connection quality depending on communication attributes of a datagram in transferring the datagram. This is why, a path to which a datagram is transferred is decided from path information previously stored into the same system, according to the destination IP address derived from the datagram, hence to transfer the datagram.
More specifically, there are the following problems.
First, it is impossible to transfer a datagram in the optimum communication quality in correspondence with the communication attributes such as a moving image, a voice, and an image.
Secondly, when providing some communication quality to a traffic used by a specified user or group, the user or group cannot be specified without using destination address and source address of an IP address.
Thirdly, it is impossible to ask an account depending on the quality of a connection determined by communication attributes.
Fourthly, since it is impossible to judge whether a datagram includes very important information on security or not, any datagram is transferred in the even communication quality, however it may include important information on security; therefore, it is impossible to realize datagram transfer depending on the security quality.
Fifthly, it is impossible to determine connection quality in accordance with the novelty of a datagram.
Sixthly, it is impossible to dynamically change the communication quality of a connection which is defined in a transport layer, while judging the state of the connection.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A first object of the present invention is to provide a communication quality control system capable of transferring a datagram in the optimum communication quality suitable for the derived communication attributes, as a result of deriving attributes of the datagram communication, while realizing high-speed datagram transfer of the layer
3
and beneath.
A second object of the present invention is to provide a communication quality control system capable of realizing various advanced communication services for a user previously registered, and demanding an account depending on communication quality.
A third object of the present invention is to provide a communication quality control system capable of judging whether a datagram includes very important data on security or not and realizing data transfer according to the security quality corresponding to the datagram.
A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a communication quality control system capable of transferring a datagram in the optimum communication quality, by determining the quality of a connection while judging the novelty of a datagram and by determining the connection quality based on not only the information recognized in the same connection but also the information recognized in the other connection.
According to one aspect of the invention, a communication quality control system for realizing an optimum datagram transfer function for connection quality corresponding to attributes of communication, comprises
network end systems for respectively terminating a protocol layer of an existent data network,
protocol end systems for respectively terminating the protocol layer
3
and beneath based on quality of communication of a received datagram, and
a communication datagram transfer system for transferring the datagram to a specified end system according to quality information of a connection corresponding to communication attributes of the protocol layer
3
and beneath and communication attributes derived from the information on the respective protocol layers
4
,
5
,
6
, and
7
or one of them included in a datagram received by an arbitrary end system,
the communication datagram transfer system comprising
attribute detecting means of checking identifying information included in the information of the protocol layer
3
and beneath of a datagram received by some end system and simultaneously checking identifying information included in the information of the respective protocol layers
4
,
5
,
6
, and
7
or one of them, hence to take out the communication attribute information of the respective protocol layers, and
communication quality deciding means for, when a datagram is received by a protocol end system, deciding communication quality for sending the datagram according to a set of the communication attribute information of the respective protocol layers derived from the datagram and the quality information of a connection, and notifying the communication quality to the protocol end system.
In the preferred construction, the attribute detecting means identifies the layer information, from the received datagram, as well as the state of a connection from the connection identifying information of a datagram, so to supply the result to the communication quality deciding means as connection information, and decides a transfer path of the datagram, so to supply the transfer path to the communication quality deciding means as destination path information: and the communication quality deciding means decides quality information of a connection corresponding to the attribute information and decides communication quality for sending a datagram according to the connection information, the quality information of the connection, and the destination path information, and takes out attribute information of communication according to the layer information and one or all of the datagram when it is judged that attributes of the layer
4
and upper need to be detected from the identified state of a connection.
In another preferred construction, the attribute detecting means identifies the layer information, from the received datagram, as well as the state of a connection from the connection identifying information of a datagram, so to supply the result to the communication quality deciding means as connection information,
Arutaki Akira
Sera Takafumi
Yamada Kenshin
Etienne Ario
Foley & Lardner
NEC Corporation
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