Methods and systems for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method and a system for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network In one example, the method comprises transmitting, by a first processor [302], an event request to a second processor [404], and then receiving an acknowledgement of the event request from the second processor [404]. The acknowledgement comprises a resource availability information for available resources. The method further comprises selecting, by the first processor [302], at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information, and then transmitting a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor [404]. The method further comprises receiving, by the first processor [302], a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor [404].

Description

METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ALLOCATION OF ONE OR MORE NETWORK RESOURCES IN A TELECOMMUNICATION NETWORKFIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to network resource allocation. More particularly, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to methods and systems for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network.BACKGROUND

[0002] The following description of the related art is intended to provide background information pertaining to the field of the disclosure. This section may include certain aspects of the art that may be related to various features of the present disclosure. However, it should be appreciated that this section is used only to enhance the understanding of the reader with respect to the present disclosure, and not as admissions of the prior art.

[0003] Wireless communication technology has rapidly evolved over the past few decades, with each generation bringing significant improvements and advancements. The first-generation of wireless communication technology was based on analog technology and offered only voice services. However, with the advent of the second-generation (2G) technology, digital communication and data services became possible, and text messaging was introduced. The third- generation (3G) technology marked the introduction of high-speed internet access, mobile video calling, and location-based services. The fourth-generation (4G) technology revolutionized wireless communication with faster data speeds, better network coverage, and improved security. Currently, the fifth-generation (5G) technology is being deployed, promising even faster data speeds, low latency, and the ability to connect multiple devices simultaneously. With each generation, wireless communication technology has become more advanced, sophisticated, and capable of delivering more services to its users.

[0004] In recent years, the telecommunications industry has undergone a significant transformation with the advent of Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN). These technologies have revolutionized the way network services are provisioned, managed, and orchestrated, allowing for greater flexibility, agility, and efficiency in network operations.

[0005] In this evolving landscape, an NFV SDN platform acts as a critical infrastructure component, providing the foundation for deploying and managing virtualized network functions (VNF), VNF components (VNFC), cloud network functions (CNF), and cloud network function components (CNFC). However, as the complexity and scale of virtualized networks have grown, new challenges have emerged in resource management, network service orchestration, and ensuring the dynamic allocation of resources to meet changing service demands.

[0006] In a virtualized network environment supporting VNF, VNFC, CNF, and CNFC, it is essential to efficiently allocate resources to meet the instantiation, scaling, and healing requirements of these network functions.

[0007] Further, over the period of time various solutions have been developed to address resource allocation and resource reservation tasks. However, there are certain challenges with the existing solutions. For example, the existing solutions do not provide accurate information about the available resources. In addition, the existing solutions do not enable resource allocation in advance.

[0008] Thus, there exists an imperative need in the art to provide a method and system to address the challenges associated with resource management, which the present disclosure aims to address.SUMMARY

[0009] This section is provided to introduce certain aspects of the present disclosure in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify the key features or the scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0010] An aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a method for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network. The method comprises transmitting, by the first processor, an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor. The method further comprises receiving, by the first processor, an acknowledgement of the event request, wherein the acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor. The method further comprises selecting, by the first processor, at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. The method further comprises transmitting, by the first processor, a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the secondprocessor. The method further comprises receiving, by the first processor, a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor.

[0011] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the method further comprises selecting, by the first processor, a set of hosts or servers from an available host information received in the acknowledgement.

[0012] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the event request associated with resource requirements is transmitted during an instantiation of a network function.

[0013] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the first processor resides at a policy execution engine (PEEGN).

[0014] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the second processor resides at a physical and virtual inventory management (PVIM).

[0015] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the resource availability information comprises information of the one or more available resources for scaling and the instantiation of the network function.

[0016] In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the reservation response is at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response. The positive reservation response is received by the first processor in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is successfully reserved. Further, the negative reservation response is received by the first processor in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is unsuccessfully reserved.

[0017] Another aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a system for allocation of one or more network resources in the telecommunication network. The system includes a first processor. The first processor is configured to transmit an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor. The first processor is further configured to receive an acknowledgement of the event request from the second processor. The acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources. The first processor is further configured to select at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. The first processor is further configured to transmit a resource reservationrequest for the selected at least one resource to the second processor. The first processor is further configured to receive a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor.

[0018] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for allocation of one or more network resources in the telecommunication network. The instructions include executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system, causes a first processor of the system to transmit an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor to receive an acknowledgement of the event request from the second processor. The acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor to select at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor to transmit a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor to receive a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor.OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0019] Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment disclosed herein satisfies are listed herein below.

[0020] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system and a method for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network.

[0021] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system and a method to provide accurate resource information for instantiation or scaling purposes.

[0022] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a system and a method to reserve the available resources for instantiation or scaling purposes.

[0023] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a solution which moves unreserved and allocated resources to a free pool of resources thereby freeing up the resources from allocated resources.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and constitute a part of this disclosure, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the disclosed methods and systems in which like reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the different drawings. Components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. Also, the embodiments shown in the figures are not to be construed as limiting the disclosure, but the possible variants of the method and system according to the disclosure are illustrated herein to highlight the advantages of the disclosure. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that disclosure of such drawings includes disclosure of electrical components or circuitry commonly used to implement such components.

[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary block diagram representation of a management and orchestration (MANO) architecture / platform, in accordance with exemplary implementation of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a computing device upon which the features of the present disclosure may be implemented in accordance with exemplary implementation of the present disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a system for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0028] FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary environment for implementing the present disclosure is shown, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0029] FIG. 5 illustrates a method flow diagram for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0030] FIG. 6 illustrates another exemplary method flow diagram for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0031] The foregoing shall be more apparent from the following more detailed description of the disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, various specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described hereafter may each be used independently of one another or with any combination of other features. An individual feature may not address any of the problems discussed above or might address only some of the problems discussed above.

[0033] The ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the disclosure. Rather, the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing an exemplary embodiment. It should be understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure as set forth.

[0034] Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, circuits, systems, processes, and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail.

[0035] It should be noted that the terms "first", "second", "primary", "secondary", "target" and the like, herein do not denote any order, ranking, quantity, or importance, but rather are used to distinguish one element from another.

[0036] Also, it is noted that individual embodiments may be described as a process which is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a data flow diagram, a structure diagram, or a blockdiagram. Although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations may be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be re-arranged. A process is terminated when its operations are completed but could have additional steps not included in a figure.

[0037] The word “exemplary” and / or “demonstrative” is used herein to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. For the avoidance of doubt, the subject matter disclosed herein is not limited by such examples. In addition, any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” and / or “demonstrative” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs, nor is it meant to preclude equivalent exemplary structures and techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “includes,” “has,” “contains,” and other similar words are used in either the detailed description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive — in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as an open transition word — without precluding any additional or other elements.

[0038] As used herein, a “processing unit” or “processor” or “operating processor” includes one or more processors, wherein processor refers to any logic circuitry for processing instructions. A processor may be a general-purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a Digital Signal Processing (DSP) core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits, Field Programmable Gate Array circuits, any other type of integrated circuits, etc. The processor may perform signal coding data processing, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the working of the system according to the present disclosure. More specifically, the processor or processing unit is a hardware processor.

[0039] As used herein, “a user equipment”, “a user device”, “a smart-user-device”, “a smartdevice”, “an electronic device”, “a mobile device”, “a handheld device”, “a wireless communication device”, “a mobile communication device”, “a communication device” may be any electrical, electronic and / or computing device or equipment, capable of implementing the features of the present disclosure. The user equipment / device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, smart phone, laptop, a general-purpose computer, desktop, personal digital assistant, tablet computer, wearable device or any other computing device which is capable of implementing the features of the present disclosure. Also, the user device may contain at least one input means configured to receive an input from unit(s) which are required to implement the features of the present disclosure.

[0040] As used herein, “storage unit” or “memory unit” refers to a machine or computer-readable medium including any mechanism for storing information in a form readable by a computer or similar machine. For example, a computer-readable medium includes read-only memory (“ROM”), random access memory (“RAM”), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices or other types of machine-accessible storage media. The storage unit stores at least the data that may be required by one or more units of the system to perform their respective functions.

[0041] As used herein “interface” or “user interface refers to a shared boundary across which two or more separate components of a system exchange information or data. The interface may also be referred to a set of rules or protocols that define communication or interaction of one or more modules or one or more units with each other, which also includes the methods, functions, or procedures that may be called.

[0042] All modules, units, components used herein, unless explicitly excluded herein, may be software modules or hardware processors, the processors being a general-purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), Field Programmable Gate Array circuits (FPGA), any other type of integrated circuits, etc.

[0043] As used herein the transceiver unit include at least one receiver and at least one transmitter configured respectively for receiving and transmitting data, signals, information or a combination thereof between units / components within the system and / or connected with the system.

[0044] As discussed in the background section, the current known solutions have several shortcomings. The present disclosure aims to overcome the above-mentioned and other existing problems in this field of technology by providing a method and a system of managing allocation of network resources in a telecommunication network.

[0045] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary block diagram representation of. The MANO architecture

[0100] may be developed for managing telecom cloud infrastructure automatically, managing design or deployment design, managing instantiation of a network node(s) etc / service(s). The MANO architecture

[0100] deploys the network node(s) in the form of Virtual Network Function(VNF) and Cloud-native / Container Network Function (CNF). The system as provided by the present disclosure may comprise one or more components of the MANO architecture

[0100] , The MANO architecture

[0100] may be used to automatically instantiate the VNFs into the corresponding environment of the present disclosure so that it could help in onboarding other vendor(s) CNFs and VNFs to the platform. In an implementation, the system may comprise aNFV Platform Decision Analytics (NPDA)

[1096] component.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 1, the MANO architecture

[0100] comprises a user interface layer

[0102] , a network function virtualization (NFV) and software defined network (SDN) design function module

[0104] , a platform foundation services module

[0106] , a platform core services module

[0108] and a platform resource adapters and utilities module

[0112] All the components may be assumed to be connected to each other in a manner as obvious to the person skilled in the art for implementing features of the present disclosure.

[0047] The NFV and SDN design function module

[0104] comprises a network manager

[1042] , a VNF catalogue

[1044] , a network services catalogue

[1046] , a network slicing and service chaining manager

[1048] , a physical and virtual resource manager

[1050] and a CNF lifecycle manager

[1052] , The network manager

[1042] may be responsible for deciding on which server of the communication network the microservice may be instantiated. The network manager

[1042] may manage the overall flow of incoming / outgoing requests during interaction with the user. The network manager may have a VNF lifecycle manager and the CNF lifecycle manager in case the network is working utilising the VNF and CNF. The network manager

[1042] may be responsible for determining which sequence to be followed for executing the process. For e.g. in an AMF network function of the communication network (such as a 5G network), sequence for execution of processes Pl and P2 etc. The VNF catalogue

[1044] stores the metadata of all the VNFs (also CNFs in some cases). The network services catalogue

[1046] stores the information of the services that need to be run. The network slicing and service chaining manager

[1048] manages the slicing (an ordered and connected sequence of network service / network functions (NFs)) that must be applied to a specific networked data packet. The physical and virtual resource manager

[1050] stores the logical and physical inventory of the VNFs. Just like the network manager

[1042] , the CNF lifecycle manager

[1052] may be similarly used for the CNFs lifecycle management.

[0048] The platforms foundation services module

[0106] comprises a microservices elastic load balancer

[1062] , an identity & access manager

[1064] , a command line interface (CLI)

[1066] , a central logging manager

[1068] , and an event routing manager

[1070] , The microservices elasticload balancer

[1062] may be used for maintaining the load balancing of the request for the services. The identity & access manager

[1064] may be used for logging purposes. The command line interface (CLI)

[1066] may be used to provide commands to execute certain processes which requires changes during the run time. The central logging manager

[1068] may be responsible for keeping the logs of every service. These logs are generated by the MANO platform

[0100] , These logs may be used for debugging purposes. The event routing manager

[1070] may be responsible for routing the events i.e., the application programming interface (API) hits to the corresponding services.

[0049] The platforms core services module

[0108] comprises NFV infrastructure monitoring manager

[1082] , an assure manager

[1084] , a performance manager

[1086] , a policy execution engine

[1088] , a capacity monitoring manager

[1090] , a release management (mgmt.) repository

[1092] , a configuration manager & golden configuration template (GCT)

[1094] , an NFV platform decision analytics

[1096] , a platform NoSQL DB

[1098] , a platform schedulers and cron jobs

[1100] , a VNF backup & upgrade manager

[1102] , a micro service auditor

[1104] , and a platform operations, administration and maintenance manager

[1106] , The NFV infrastructure monitoring manager

[1082] may monitor the infrastructure part of the NFs. For e.g., any metrics such as CPU utilization by the VNF. The assure manager

[1084] may be responsible for supervising the alarms the vendor may be generating. The performance manager

[1086] may be responsible for managing the performance counters. The policy execution engine (PEGN)

[1088] may be responsible for managing all the policies. The capacity monitoring manager (CMM)

[1090] may be responsible for sending the request to the PEGN

[1088] , The release management repository (RMR)

[1092] may be responsible for managing the releases and the images of all of the vendor’s network nodes. The configuration manager & GCT

[1094] manages the configuration and GCT of all the vendors. The NFV platform decision analytics (NPDA)

[1096] helps in deciding the priority of using the network resources. It is further noted that the policy execution engine (PEGN)

[1088] , the configuration manager & (GCT)

[1094] and the (NPDA)

[1096] work together. The platform NoSQL DB

[1098] may be a platform database for storing all the inventory (both physical and logical) as well as the metadata of the VNFs and CNF. It may be noted that the platform NoSQL DB

[1098] may be just a narrower implementation of the present disclosure, and any other kind of structure for the database may be implemented for the platform database such as relational or non-relational database. The platform schedulers and cron jobs

[1100] may schedule the task such as but not limited to triggering of an event, traverse the network graph etc. The VNF backup & upgrade manager

[1102] takes backup of the images, binaries of the VNFs and the CNFs and produces those backups on demand in case of server failure. Themicroservice auditor

[1104] audits the microservices. For e.g., in a hypothetical case, instances not being instantiated by the MANO architecture

[0100] may be using the network resources. In such case, the microservice auditor

[1104] audits and informs the same so that resources can be released for services running in the MANO architecture

[0100] , The audit assures that the services only run on the MANO platform

[0100] , The platform operations, administration and maintenance manager

[1106] may be used for newer instances that are spawning.

[0050] The platform resource adapters and utilities module

[0112] further comprises a platform external API adaptor and gateway

[1122] , a generic decoder and indexer (XML, CSV, JSON)

[1124] , a docker service adaptor

[1126] , an API adapter

[1128] , and a NFV gateway

[1130] , The platform external API adaptor and gateway

[1122] may be responsible for handling the external services (to the MANO platform

[0100] ) that requires the network resources. The generic decoder and indexer (XML, CSV, JSON)

[1124] may get directly the data of the vendor system in the XML, CSV, JSON format. The docker service adaptor

[1126] may be the interface provided between the telecom cloud and the MANO architecture

[0100] for communication. The API adapter

[1128] may be used to connect with the virtual machines (VMs). The NFV gateway

[1130] may be responsible for providing the path to each services going to / incoming from the MANO architecture

[0100] ,

[0051] The Docker Service Adapter (DSA)

[1126] may be a microservices-based component that may be designed to deploy and manage Container Network Functions (CNFs) and their components (CNFCs) across Docker nodes. The DSA

[1126] may offer REST endpoints for key operations, such as uploading container images to a Docker registry, terminating CNFC instances, and creating Docker volumes and networks. The CNFs, that may be network functions packaged as containers, may consist of multiple CNFCs. The DSA

[1126] facilitates the deployment, configuration, and management of these components by interacting with Docker's API, ensuring proper setup and scalability within a containerized environment. The DSA provides a modular and flexible framework for handling network functions in a virtualized network setup.

[0052] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a computing device

[0200] upon which the features of the present disclosure may be implemented in accordance with exemplary implementation of the present disclosure. In an implementation, the computing device

[0200] may also implement a method for managing allocation of network resources in the telecommunication network utilising the system

[0300] , In another implementation, the computing device

[0200] itself implements the method for managing allocation of network resources in the telecommunicationnetwork using one or more units configured within the computing device

[0200] , wherein said one or more units are capable of implementing the features as disclosed in the present disclosure.

[0053] The computing device

[0200] may include a bus

[0202] or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a hardware processor

[0204] coupled with the bus

[0202] for processing information. The hardware processor

[0204] may be, for example, a general-purpose microprocessor. The computing device

[0200] may also include a main memory

[0206] , such as a random-access memory (RAM), or other dynamic storage device, coupled to the bus

[0202] for storing information and instructions to be executed by the processor

[0204] , The main memory

[0206] also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of the instructions to be executed by the processor

[0204] , Such instructions, when stored in non-transitory storage media accessible to the processor

[0204] , render the computing device

[0200] into a special-purpose machine that is customized to perform the operations specified in the instructions. The computing device

[0200] further includes a read only memory (ROM)

[0208] or other static storage device coupled to the bus

[0202] for storing static information and instructions for the processor

[0204] ,

[0054] A storage device

[0210] , such as a magnetic disk, optical disk, or solid-state drive is provided and coupled to the bus

[0202] for storing information and instructions. The computing device

[0200] may be coupled via the bus

[0202] to a display

[0212] , such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), Liquid crystal Display (LCD), Light Emitting Diode (LED) display, Organic LED (OLED) display, etc. for displaying information to a computer user. An input device

[0214] , including alphanumeric and other keys, touch screen input means, etc. may be coupled to the bus

[0202] for communicating information and command selections to the processor

[0204] , Another type of user input device may be a cursor controller

[0216] , such as a mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys, for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor

[0204] , and for controlling cursor movement on the display

[0212] , The input device typically has two degrees of freedom in two axes, a first axis (e.g., x) and a second axis (e.g., y), that allow the device to specify positions in a plane.

[0055] The computing device

[0200] may implement the techniques described herein using customized hard-wired logic, one or more ASICs or FPGAs, firmware and / or program logic which in combination with the computing device

[0200] causes or programs the computing device

[0200] to be a special-purpose machine. According to one implementation, the techniques herein are performed by the computing device

[0200] in response to the processor

[0204] executing one or moresequences of one or more instructions contained in the main memory

[0206] , Such instructions may be read into the main memory

[0206] from another storage medium, such as the storage device

[0210] , Execution of the sequences of instructions contained in the main memory

[0206] causes the processor

[0204] to perform the process steps described herein. In alternative implementations of the present disclosure, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or in combination with software instructions.

[0056] The computing device

[0200] also may include a communication interface

[0218] coupled to the bus

[0202] , The communication interface

[0218] provides a two-way data communication coupling to a network link

[0220] that is connected to a local network

[0222] , For example, the communication interface

[0218] may be an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card, cable modem, satellite modem, or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a corresponding type of telephone line. As another example, the communication interface

[0218] may be a local area network (LAN) card to provide a data communication connection to a compatible LAN. Wireless links may also be implemented. In any such implementation, the communication interface

[0218] sends and receives electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types of information.

[0057] The computing device

[0200] can send messages and receive data, including program code, through the network(s), the network link

[0220] and the communication interface

[0218] , In the Internet example, a server

[0230] might transmit a requested code for an application program through the Internet

[0228] , the ISP

[0226] , the local network

[0222] , a host

[0224] and the communication interface

[0218] , The received code may be executed by the processor

[0204] as it is received, and / or stored in the storage device

[0210] , or other non-volatile storage for later execution.

[0058] Referring to FIG. 3, an exemplary block diagram of a system

[0300] for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, is shown, in accordance with the exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0059] In an example, the system

[0300] may be implemented as or within a PEEGN. Such PEEGN may be understood as the PEEGN

[1088] as explained in conjunction with FIG. 1. The explanation for the same has not been provided here again for the sake of brevity.

[0060] The system

[0300] may include at least one first processor

[0302] , In cases where the system

[0300] may be implemented as the PEEGN

[1088] , the first processor

[0302] may reside at the policy execution engine (PEEGN)

[1088] ,

[0061] Also, all of the components / units of the system

[0300] are assumed to be connected to each other unless otherwise indicated below. As shown in FIG. 3, all units shown within the system

[0300] should also be assumed to be connected to each other. Also, in FIG. 3 only a few units are shown, however, the system

[0300] may comprise multiple such units or the system

[0300] may comprise any such numbers of said units, as required to implement the features of the present disclosure. Further, in an implementation, the system

[0300] may be present in a user device / user equipment to implement the features of the present disclosure. The system

[0300] may be a part of the user device / or may be independent of but in communication with the user device (may also referred herein as a UE). In another implementation, the system

[0300] may reside in a server or a network entity. In yet another implementation, the system

[0300] may reside partly in the server / network entity and partly in the user device.

[0062] The system

[0300] is configured for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, with the help of the interconnection between the components / units of the system

[0300] ,

[0063] Referring to FIG. 4, an exemplary environment

[0400] for implementing the present disclosure is shown, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0064] It may be noted that the FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are explained in conjunction in the foregoing description for explanation / description of the present disclosure.

[0065] In another example, the system

[0300] may be configured for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network with the help of interconnection between the components / unit of the environment

[0400] and in another example, the components / units of the system architecture

[0100] ,

[0066] As depicted in FIG. 4, the exemplary environment

[0400] provides a physical and virtual inventory manager (PVIM)

[0402] and a Policy Execution Engine (PEEGN) Cluster

[0406] , The PVIM

[0402] and the PEEGN Cluster

[0406] may be connected to each other with the PE IM interface

[0410] , which enables communication by exchanging information among each entity.

[0067] The PVIM

[0402] may be considered to be similar to the Physical and Virtual Resource Manager as already provided in the above system architecture

[0100] , and may perform similar functions.

[0068] The interface PE IM

[0410] between the PEEGN

[1088] and the PVIM

[0402] may be the interface provided within the HTTP Protocols and other protocols which may be well known in the art.

[0069] The PEEGN cluster

[0406] may refer to a cluster of multiple PEEGN instances, and may also comprise a database

[0408] , The PEEGN instance, as depicted in FIG. 4, may be understood and referred to as the system

[0300] , The database

[0408] may refer to a relational or non-relational database used for storing and fetching various information.

[0070] In one example, the system

[0300] may be in communication with other network entities / components as well, which have not been depicted in FIG. 4. Such network entities / components may be well understood to a person skilled in the art, and have not been explained here for the sake of brevity.

[0071] Continuing further, the PVIM

[0402] may include a second processor

[0404] , In an example, the first processor

[0302] and the second processor

[0404] may be directly in communication with each other via the PE IM interface

[0410] for implementation of the present disclosure.

[0072] In operation, for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, the first processor

[0302] transmits an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor

[0404] , The event request may refer to a request for resource allocation which may be sent to the second processor

[0404] based on an event during which the PEEGN

[1088] may request the PVIM

[0402] for allocation of the resources. As would be understood, resource allocation may refer to allocation of one or more network resources such as compute resource, memory, bandwidth, etc. The PVIM

[0402] manages the inventory and resources present within the network and hence would be able to allocate the network resources to the PEEGN

[1088] when requested. In an example, the event request may be transmitted using the HTTP based events.

[0073] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the event request associated with resource requirements may be received during an instantiation of a network function. In an example, theinstantiation of the network function may refer to an event during which the network function has been initialized.

[0074] Then, after the transmission of the request, the first processor

[0302] receives an acknowledgement of the event request. The acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor

[0404] , The resource availability information may comprise information associated with availability and nonavailability of the network resource. In case the network resources are available, then the information associated with the network resource that are available (i.e. the one or more available resources) may be transmitted by the second processor

[0404] of the PVIM

[0402] or the PVIM

[0402] itself. It may be noted that the information associated with the one or more available resources may be sent along with the acknowledgement or within the acknowledgement.

[0075] In another exemplary implementations of the present disclosure, the resource availability information comprises information of the one or more available resources for scaling and instantiation of the network function. The information of the one or more available resources may be then used for scaling and instantiation of the network function. As would be understood, scaling may refer to altering the resources allocated to a virtualized network function, or a containerized network function. Such scaling may result in increase or decrease of the network resources allocated to a particular network function. The PEEGN

[1088] may utilize the network resources requested that would be received by the PVIM

[0402] for increasing the network resources allocated to a particular network function.

[0076] In an exemplary implementation, the availability information may be stored in a memory or a database

[0408] , which may be based on relational or non-relational database structures such as a NoSQL database or the platform NoSQL Database

[1098] ,

[0077] Continuing further, the first processor

[0302] selects at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. After, the information associated with the one or more available resources is received, then from the information associated with the one or more available resource, one or more resources are selected based on the requirements of the PEEGN

[1088] which may be based on the requirements of a particular network function for which the resources are allocated.

[0078] In an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure, the first processor

[0302] may select a set of hosts or servers from an available host information received in the acknowledgement. In such implementations of the present disclosure, the acknowledgment may comprise information associated with the one or more available resources, which may comprise network resources in the form of available hosts or servers within the network. As would be understood, the hosts or servers may refer to the one or more network resources having the capability of performing compute actions, store information in the memory, allocate bandwidth, etc. Further, the available host information in such case may refer to the information associated with the hosts or servers present within the acknowledgement in form of the information associated with the one or more available resources.

[0079] After the at least one resource is selected, the first processor

[0302] transmits a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor

[0404] , The resource reservation request may refer to a request or a command which may be sent by the PEEGN

[1088] or the first processor of the PEEGN

[1088] for reserving the at least one resource that is selected. The resource reservation request may be based on the requirements of the network resources which may be requested by the network function from the PEEGN

[1088] ,

[0080] Based on the resource reservation request, the first processor

[0302] receives a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor

[0404] , The reservation response may refer to a response which may be received from the PVIM

[0402] after the selected at least one resource may be reserved or not reserved based on the resource reservation request.

[0081] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the reservation response may be at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response. As would be understood, the positive reservation response may be a response indicating a success of the reservation of the one or more available resources, and the negative reservation response may be a response indicating a failure of the reservation of the one or more available resources. The positive reservation response may be received by the first

[0302] processor in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is successfully reserved. The negative reservation response may be received by the first processor

[0302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is unsuccessfully reserved. In such implementations, the positive reservation response or the negative reservation response may be received in the case of successful or unsuccessful reservation of the one or more available resources.

[0082] Referring to FIG. 5, an exemplary method flow diagram

[0500] for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure is shown. In an implementation the method

[0500] is performed by the system

[0300] , In another implementation, the method

[0500] may be performed by the environment

[0400] , Further, in an implementation, the system

[0300] may be present in a server device to implement the features of the present disclosure. Also, as shown in FIG. 5, the method

[0500] starts at step

[0502] ,

[0083] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the first processor

[0302] may reside at a policy execution engine (PEEGN)

[1088] , In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the second processor

[0404] may reside at a physical and virtual inventory management (PVIM)

[0402] , In such implementations, the first processor

[0302] of the PEEGN

[1088] may be connected with the second processor

[0404] of the PVIM

[0402] , The PVIM

[0402] may be considered to be similar to the Physical and Virtual Resource Manage

[1050] as already provided in the above system architecture

[0100] , and may perform similar functions. Further, in such implementations, the PEEGN

[1088] and the PVIM

[0402] may be connected to each other via an interface which enables communication by exchanging information among each entity. The interface between the PEEGN

[1088] and the PVIM

[0402] may be the interface provided within the HTTP Protocols and other protocols which may be well known in the art. Such interfaces, may be called as the PE IM interface

[0410] ,

[0084] For allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, the method

[0500] at step

[0504] , comprises transmitting, by the first processor

[0302] , an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor

[0404] , The event request may refer to a request for resource allocation which may be sent to the second processor

[0404] based on an event during which the PEEGN

[1088] may request the PVIM

[0402] for allocation of the resources. As would be understood, resource allocation may refer to allocation of one or more network resources such as compute resource, memory, bandwidth, etc. The PVIM

[0402] manages the inventory and resources present within the network and hence would be able to allocate the network resources to the PEEGN

[1088] when requested. In an example, the event request may be transmitted using the HTTP based events.

[0085] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the event request associated with resource requirements may be received during an instantiation of a network function. In an example, theinstantiation of the network function may refer to an event during which the network function has been initialized.

[0086] Then, after the transmission of the request, at step

[0506] , the method

[0500] involves receiving, by the first processor

[0302] , an acknowledgement of the event request. The acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor

[0404] , The resource availability information may comprise information associated with availability and non-availability of the network resource. In case the network resources are available, then the information associated with the network resource that are available (i.e. the one or more available resources) may be transmitted by the second processor

[0404] of the PVIM

[0402] or the PVIM

[0402] itself. It may be noted that the information associated with the one or more available resources may be sent along with the acknowledgement or within the acknowledgement.

[0087] In another exemplary implementations of the present disclosure, the resource availability information comprises information of the one or more available resources for scaling and instantiation of the network function. The information of the one or more available resources may be then used for scaling and instantiation of the network function. As would be understood, scaling may refer to altering the resources allocated to a virtualized network function, or a containerized network function. Such scaling may result in increase or decrease of the network resources allocated to a particular network function. The PEEGN

[1088] may utilize the network resources requested that would be received by the PVIM

[0402] for increasing the network resources allocated to a particular network function.

[0088] In an exemplary implementation, the availability information may be stored in a memory or a database, which may be based on relational or non-relational database structures such as a NoSQL database or the platform NoSQL Database

[1098] ,

[0089] Continuing further, at step

[0508] , the method

[0500] leads to selecting, by the first processor

[0302] , at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. After, the information associated with the one or more available resources is received, then from the information associated with the one or more available resource, one or more resources are selected based on the requirements of the PEEGN

[1088] which may be based on the requirements of a particular network function for which the resources are allocated.

[0090] In an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure, the first processor

[0302] may select a set of hosts or servers from an available host information received in the acknowledgement. In such implementations of the present disclosure, the acknowledgment may comprise information associated with the one or more available resources, which may comprise network resources in the form of available hosts or servers within the network. As would be understood, the hosts or servers may refer to the one or more network resources having the capability of performing compute actions, store information in the memory, allocate bandwidth, etc. Further, the available host information in such case may refer to the information associated with the hosts or servers present within the acknowledgement in form of the information associated with the one or more available resources.

[0091] After the at least one resource is selected, then at step

[0510] , the method [5] involves transmitting, by the first processor

[0302] , a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor

[0404] , The resource reservation request may refer to a request or a command which may be sent by the PEEGN

[1088] or the first processor of the PEEGN

[1088] for reserving the at least one resource that is selected, the resource reservation request may be based on the requirements of the network resources which may be requested by the network function from the PEEGN

[1088] ,

[0092] Based on the resource reservation request, then at step

[0512] , the method

[0500] involves receiving, by the first processor

[0302] , a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor

[0404] , The reservation response may refer to a response which may be received from the PVIM

[0402] after the selected at least one resource may be reserved or not reserved based on the resource reservation request.

[0093] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the reservation response may be at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response. As would be understood, the positive reservation response may be a response indicating a success of the reservation of the one or more available resources, and the negative reservation response may be a response indicating a failure of the reservation of the one or more available resources. The positive reservation response may be received by the first

[0302] processor in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is successfully reserved. The negative reservation response may be received by the first processor

[0302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is unsuccessfully reserved. In suchimplementations, the positive reservation response or the negative reservation response may be received in the case of successful or unsuccessful reservation of the one or more available resources.

[0094] Thereafter, at step

[0514] , the method

[0500] is terminated.

[0095] Referring to FIG. 6, an exemplary method flow diagram

[0600] for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure is shown. In an implementation the method

[0600] is performed by the system

[0300] , In another implementation, the method

[0600] may be performed by the environment

[0400] , Further, in an implementation, the system

[0300] may be present in a server device to implement the features of the present disclosure. Also, as shown in FIG. 6, the method

[0600] starts at step

[0602] .

[0096] For allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network, the method

[0600] at step

[0604] involves receiving a request for resource allocation from any network function or a microservice associated with network functions within the telecommunication networks.

[0097] Then at step

[0606] , the method

[0600] involves handling events based on the event request. The event handling may be that multiple requests for resource allocation may be received which needs to be handled. Accordingly, event handling handles all the requests and accordingly proceed with the next steps based on the event handling. In an example, at step

[0608] , the requests for resource allocation may be stored in the database for storing the resource allocation request, if such requests are not processed yet. In another example, the event handling may proceed to the next step

[0610] after handling the multiple requests.

[0098] At step

[0610] , the PEEGN

[1088] may send the request to PVIM

[0402] for resource allocation that may be transmitted in form of the event request, which may be received during an instantiation of a network function or microservice.

[0099] Then, after the transmission of the request, at step

[0612] , the method

[0600] involves receiving the acknowledgement of the event request at the PEEGN

[1088] , The acknowledgement may comprise the resource availability information for the one or more available resources. In case the network resources are available, then the information associated with the network resource thatare available (i.e. the one or more available resources) may be transmitted by the second processor

[0404] of the PVIM

[0402] or the PVIM

[0402] itself. It may be noted that the information associated with the one or more available resources may be sent along with the acknowledgement or within the acknowledgement.

[0100] Continuing further, at step

[0614] , the method

[0600] leads to selecting at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. After, the information associated with the one or more available resources is received, then from the information associated with the one or more available resource, one or more resources are selected based on the requirements of the PEEGN

[1088] which may be based on the requirements of a particular network function or the microservice from which the request for resource allocation was received. It may be noted that at step

[0614] , the event for selecting the at least one resource may be handled and then accordingly after the selection of the one or more resources, the event may accordingly move to the next step.

[0101] At step

[0616] , the method

[0600] may lead to forming a loop by moving to step

[0606] until all of the request for resource allocation received by the PEEGN

[1088] are handled. This ensures that all of the events and requests resource allocation has been served. It may be noted that in an example, the PEEGN

[1088] may transmit a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource.

[0102] At step

[0618] , the method

[0600] may involve storing the availability information in a memory or a database

[0408] , which may be based on relational or non-relational database structures such as a NoSQL database or the platform NoSQL Database

[1098] ,

[0103] Based on the resource reservation request, then at step

[0620] , the method

[0600] involves receiving a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the PVIM

[0402] which may be then sent to the respective microservice / network function by the PEEGN

[1088] , The reservation response may be at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response for allocation of the network resources. In an implementation, the acknowledgement may be transmitted to the network function or the microservice which requested the resource allocation, and such acknowledgement may comprise the resource availability information of the one or more available resources.

[0104] Thereafter, at step

[0622] , the method

[0600] may be stopped and terminated.

[0105] The present disclosure further discloses a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for allocation of one or more network resources in the telecommunication network. The instructions include executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system

[0300] , causes a first processor

[0302] of the system

[0300] to transmit an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor

[0404] , Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor

[0302] to receive an acknowledgement of the event request from the second processor

[0404] , The acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor

[0302] to select at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information. Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor

[0302] to transmit a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor

[0404] , Further, the instructions include executable code which, when executed, causes the first processor

[0302] to receive a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor

[0404] ,

[0106] As is evident from the above, the present disclosure provides a technically advanced solution for allocation of the one or more network resources in the telecommunication network. The present solution provides an async event-based implementation to utilize the interface efficiently. In addition, the present invention provides fault tolerance for any event failure. The interface provided by the present disclosure works in a high availability mode and if one inventory instance went down during request processing, then next available instance takes care of the request.

[0107] While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the disclosed implementations, it will be appreciated that many implementations can be made and that many changes can be made to the implementations without departing from the principles of the present disclosure. These and other changes in the implementations of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, whereby it is to be understood that the foregoing descriptive matter to be implemented is illustrative and non-limiting.

[0108] Further, in accordance with the present disclosure, it is to be acknowledged that the functionality described for the various components / units can be implemented interchangeably. While specific embodiments may disclose a particular functionality of these units for clarity, it isrecognized that various configurations and combinations thereof are within the scope of the disclosure. The functionality of specific units as disclosed in the disclosure should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Consequently, alternative arrangements and substitutions of units, provided they achieve the intended functionality described herein, are considered to be encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

We Claim:

1. A method for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network, the method comprising: transmitting, by a first processor [302], an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor [404]; receiving, by the first processor [302], an acknowledgement of the event request, wherein the acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor [404]; selecting, by the first processor [302], at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information; transmitting, by the first processor [302], a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor [404]; and receiving, by the first processor [302], a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor [404],2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: selecting, by the first processor [302], a set of hosts or servers from an available host information received in the acknowledgement.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the event request associated with resource requirements is transmitted during an instantiation of a network function.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first processor [302] resides at a policy execution engine (PEEGN) [1088],5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second processor [404] resides at a Physical and Virtual Inventory Management (PVIM) [402],6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resource availability information comprises information of the one or more available resources for scaling and the instantiation of the network function.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reservation response is at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response,wherein the positive reservation response is received by the first processor [302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is successfully reserved; and wherein the negative reservation response is received by the first processor [302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is unsuccessfully reserved.

8. A system [300] for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network, the system [300] comprising: a first processor [302] configured to: o transmit an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor [404]; o receive an acknowledgement of the event request, wherein the acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor [404]; o select at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information; o transmit a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor [404]; and o receive a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor [404],9. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the first processor [302] is further configured to: select a set of hosts or servers from an available host information received in the acknowledgement.

10. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the event request associated with resource requirements is transmitted during an instantiation of a network function.

11. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the first processor [302] resides at a policy execution engine (PEEGN) [1088],12. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the second processor [404] resides at a Physical and Virtual Inventory Management (PVIM) [402],13. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the resource availability information comprises information of the one or more available resources for scaling and instantiation of the network function.

14. The system [300] as claimed in claim 8, wherein the reservation response is at least one of a positive reservation response and a negative reservation response, wherein the positive reservation response is received by the first processor [302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is successfully reserved; and wherein the negative reservation response is received by the first processor [302] in an event the selected at least one resource from the one or more available resources is unsuccessfully reserved.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions for allocation of one or more network resources in a telecommunication network, the instructions comprising executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system [300], causes: a first processor [302] to: o transmit an event request for a resource allocation to a second processor [404]; o receive an acknowledgement of the event request, wherein the acknowledgement comprises at least a resource availability information for one or more available resources from the second processor [404]; o select at least one resource from the one or more available resources based on an analysis of the resource availability information; o transmit a resource reservation request for the selected at least one resource to the second processor [404]; and o receive a reservation response for the selected at least one resource from the second processor [404],

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