Adaptive Traffic Manager for Mobile Data Rate Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mobile communication systems face network congestion and poor user experience due to limited bandwidth capacity being outpaced by increasing demand from high-bandwidth applications like streaming video, with users and operators lacking control over data usage and visibility into specific app data consumption.
Innovation Solution
Implementing adaptive rate control and traffic management on mobile devices to monitor and control application-level data usage by processing traffic within the device, using techniques such as bitrate control, pre-fetching stream chunks, and policy-based rules to optimize bandwidth usage and connection time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If adaptive video streaming automatically uses all available network capacity, then video quality is improved, but data consumption increases beyond user control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a traffic manager as an intermediary component that sits between the video streaming application and the network interface. This traffic manager monitors and controls the data rate of video streams, acting as a mediator that prevents uncontrolled data consumption while maintaining acceptable video quality. The traffic manager can throttle bandwidth usage and enforce data limits without requiring changes to the video player or network infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where the traffic manager continuously monitors data consumption patterns and adjusts video streaming rates accordingly. User preferences and network conditions are fed back into the system to dynamically control bandwidth allocation, ensuring that video quality adapts to both network capacity and user-defined data consumption limits.
2Loss of information
If mobile operators deploy monitoring tools in the network, then visibility into user data consumption is improved, but granularity of control over specific apps is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments network traffic control at the application level rather than treating all traffic uniformly. The traffic manager can identify and control data usage by specific applications, allowing granular control over which apps consume network resources. This segmentation enables operators and users to monitor and manage data consumption on an app-by-app basis, providing the missing granularity in traditional network monitoring tools.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service capabilities where the device itself performs monitoring and control of its own data consumption. Rather than relying solely on network-side tools, the traffic manager on the user device can autonomously enforce data limits, prioritize applications, and provide detailed visibility into data usage patterns without requiring complex operator intervention.
3Ease of operation
If end users have no controls to manage data consumption, then simplicity of device operation is maintained, but user experience and cost management deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The traffic manager provides self-service capabilities directly to users, enabling them to control their own data consumption without requiring complex network-side configurations. Users can set data limits, prioritize applications, and monitor usage through integrated device interfaces, maintaining operational simplicity while gaining fine-grained control over data consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The system allows users to dynamically change parameters related to data consumption control, such as setting limits on total data usage, application-specific limits, and priority levels for different apps. These parameter changes are enforced automatically by the traffic manager, allowing users to adapt their data consumption patterns to changing needs and network conditions without technical complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method of communication traffic management on a portable communication device having a computer processor and a network connection to a computer server for transmitting or receiving data with the processor over a network is provided. The method includes: identifying, by a traffic manager application running on the processor, a first application running on the processor and delivering first data to or from the server over the network; intercepting, by the traffic manager application, electronic traffic of the first data to or from the first application or to or from the server; and controlling, by the traffic manager application, a rate of delivery of the first data to or from the first application. The system includes the portable communication device and a nonvolatile storage device coupled to the processor and storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to execute the steps of the method.