Adaptive Quota Determination for Shared Network Resources
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for managing shared data quotas across mobile devices in a communications system often lead to service interruptions and high signaling traffic due to disparities in data usage, where high-usage devices are interrupted because the remaining quota is reserved by low-usage devices, causing inefficiencies in quota allocation.
Innovation Solution
The system employs an adaptive quota determination method within the charging server, which dynamically allocates and adjusts quotas based on current usage patterns, ensuring that all devices can continue their sessions without interruption by calculating available resources and staggering quota exhaustion times across sessions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If quotas are allocated statically to multiple devices sharing a data pool, then the allocation is simple to manage, but high-usage devices are repeatedly interrupted when they exhaust their quota while low-usage devices still have reserved quota
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic quota adjustment by continuously monitoring actual data usage patterns of multiple devices and modifying their allocated quotas in real-time. The charging server receives usage reports, compares actual usage against allocated quotas, and adjusts quotas dynamically to prevent interruptions. This resolves the contradiction by transitioning from static to dynamic allocation, ensuring service continuity while maintaining manageable operation through automated adjustments.
2Reliability
If quotas are adjusted dynamically to prevent interruptions, then service continuity is improved, but signaling traffic increases due to frequent quota updates and usage reports
Solution Approach 1:
The patent establishes a feedback mechanism where devices report their data usage to the charging server, which then adjusts quotas based on actual consumption patterns. The feedback loop includes usage reporting, quota calculation, adjustment decision, and notification to devices. This controlled feedback system resolves the contradiction by enabling dynamic quota optimization while managing signaling traffic through structured, periodic updates rather than continuous communication.
3Productivity
If the system monitors and adjusts quotas based on actual usage patterns, then resource allocation efficiency is improved, but system complexity increases due to continuous monitoring and calculation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service mechanisms where devices autonomously report their own usage data to the charging server, and the server automatically calculates and applies quota adjustments without manual intervention. The system self-regulates by monitoring usage patterns, comparing them against allocated quotas, and making adjustments based on predefined policies. This resolves the contradiction by enabling efficient resource allocation through automated self-service operations while containing system complexity within manageable boundaries through standardized procedures.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of adapting quotas for a shared resource in a network includes: retrieving, at a charging server, a usage level and a time period for each of a plurality of communication sessions associated with the shared resource, the communication sessions corresponding to respective client devices connected to the network; determining, at the charging server, whether the shared resource can support each of the communication sessions for the corresponding retrieved usage level and time period; when the determination is negative, determining a common reduced time period for each of the communication sessions at the charging server; and at the charging server, when the reduced time period exceeds a predefined threshold, allocating quotas to each of the communication sessions from the shared resource based on the usage levels and the reduced time period.