Central Brokerage Device for Inter-Enterprise Telephony
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing packet-based telephony solutions face difficulties in establishing secure and reliable communications between enterprise networks, particularly in establishing secure, packet-based communications sessions and supporting rich media streams and conferencing services.
Innovation Solution
A central brokerage device identifies enterprise networks using telephone numbers, provides connectivity data for secure packet-based communications, and offers fallback connections through circuit-switched networks, reducing the need for individual enterprise networks to store connectivity data and maintaining trust boundaries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If packet-based telephony is used for inter-enterprise communications, then communication efficiency and scalability are improved, but security and reliability deteriorate due to difficulties in establishing secure communications sessions
Solution Approach 1:
A brokerage device is introduced as an intermediary between enterprise networks to establish secure packet-based communications. The brokerage device receives telephone identifiers, resolves them to network addresses, and facilitates the establishment of encrypted communication sessions, thereby maintaining security while enabling efficient packet-based inter-enterprise telephony.
2Reliability
If individual enterprise networks store connectivity data for all other enterprises, then communication reliability is improved, but system complexity and storage requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates connectivity data storage at the brokerage device rather than requiring each enterprise network to store connectivity information for all other enterprises. This centralization reduces individual network complexity while maintaining reliable communication through the brokerage device's coordinated address resolution and session establishment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If packet-based protocols are used for rich media streams and conferencing, then service versatility is improved, but security and trust boundary maintenance worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The brokerage device acts as a trusted intermediary that enables versatile rich media streams and conferencing services while maintaining security. It resolves telephone identifiers to network addresses for packet-based media transmission and provides fallback circuit-switched connections, allowing enterprises to enjoy service versatility without compromising trust boundaries.
4Reliability
If fallback circuit-switched connections are implemented, then communication reliability is improved through redundancy, but system complexity worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically selects between packet-based and circuit-switched networks based on availability and requirements. The brokerage device coordinates fallback to circuit-switched connections when packet-based communication is unavailable, providing reliable redundancy while managing complexity through centralized control rather than requiring each enterprise to maintain both networks independently.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for inter-enterprise telephony communications includes a central brokerage device that can receive a packet encoding a dialed telephone identifier generated by a first telephony device located in the first enterprise network, where the dialed telephone identifier is associated with a second telephony device located in a second enterprise network. The central brokerage device can also identify a network address of the second enterprise network using connectivity information if the dialed telephone identifier matches resolution information. The system also includes the first enterprise network, which can establish an encrypted communication link with the second enterprise network through a packet-based network using the identified network address if the dialed telephone identifier matches the resolution information. The first enterprise network can also establish a second communication link between the first enterprise network and the second enterprise network through a circuit-switched network using the dialed telephone identifier if the dialed telephone identifier does not match the resolution information.