AIS Management Table for MPLS-TP AIS Frame Aggregation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing MPLS-TP communication systems face increased processing loads and resource limitations due to the generation and transmission of AIS frames across multiple paths, making it difficult to maintain compliance with standards and efficiently utilize network resources as the number of paths increases.
Innovation Solution
The system employs an AIS management table to generate and transmit a single AIS frame per output port, rather than per LSP, reducing processing load and traffic volume by using the AIS management table to determine LSP IDs and output ports, and replicating frames only as necessary for transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If AIS frames are generated and transmitted for each LSP when a failure is detected, then the AIS function can notify all affected upper layer MEPs, but the processing load and traffic volume increase significantly with the number of paths
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple AIS frames into a single aggregated AIS frame by combining the LSP ID lists from multiple LSPs. Instead of generating separate AIS frames for each LSP, the system consolidates them into one frame that carries information about all affected LSPs, thereby reducing processing load and traffic volume while maintaining complete notification coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the AIS frame universal by enabling it to carry multiple LSP ID lists simultaneously. The aggregated AIS frame serves multiple functions: it notifies about failures in multiple LSPs, maintains compatibility with existing AIS processing mechanisms, and reduces the number of frames required. This multi-functionality allows a single frame to replace multiple individual AIS frames.
2Reliability
If AIS frames are generated for each LSP, then complete failure notification is achieved, but network traffic volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple AIS frames into one aggregated frame that contains consolidated LSP ID lists. This merging reduces the total number of frames transmitted across the network, thereby decreasing traffic volume while ensuring that all affected LSPs are still notified of the failure condition.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the number of paths increases, then network capacity and service coverage improve, but processing load on communication apparatuses becomes unsustainable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges AIS frame generation tasks by consolidating LSP ID lists from multiple LSPs into a single aggregated frame. This approach allows the system to handle a larger number of paths without proportionally increasing processing load, as the aggregation process reduces the total number of frames that need to be generated, processed, and transmitted.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of AIS frame structure by introducing aggregated LSP ID lists that can contain multiple LSP identifiers. This parameter change allows the system to scale to handle more paths efficiently, as the modified frame structure carries more information per frame, reducing the overall processing burden.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3D
AI summary
An AIS management table 14 is storing entries having, as fields, an input port connected to a section, a section endpoint serving as an input destination, a path over which an AIS frame is to be output, and an output port connected to a section. When a failure is detected in a section, an AIS processing unit 19 searches an AIS management table 14 using, as a key, an input port or section endpoint involved in the location of the failure, inserts retrieved path information into an AIS frame for failure detection, and determines that a retrieved output port is the output destination of the AIS frame. A frame transfer unit 12 receives the AIS frame and information about the output port from the AIS processing unit 19 and transmits the AIS frame from the output port to an adjacent section.