Cell Site Backhaul Alarm Correlation for Missing Diverse Paths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Communication network operators face challenges in identifying and addressing cell site backhaul link redundancy failures due to a lack of visibility into alternative access vendor networks, leading to unaddressed issues and potential network outages, despite contractual obligations for redundancy.
Innovation Solution
An incident management application and reporting system automatically identify patterns of alarms associated with cell sites to detect the lack of redundancy in alternative access vendor networks, generating incident reports to rectify failed paths and request compensation or credits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If alternative access vendor networks are used to provide backhaul connectivity to cell sites, then network coverage and capacity are improved, but visibility into network status and ability to detect redundancy failures deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary monitoring system that acts as a mediator between the alternative access vendor network and the network operator. This system receives alarms from network elements, analyzes alarm patterns to detect redundancy failures, and generates incident reports. The intermediary enables the operator to monitor the vendor network's status without direct access to the vendor's internal monitoring systems, thus resolving the visibility problem while maintaining the benefits of using alternative access vendors.
2Reliability
If contractual obligations for redundant paths are implemented, then network reliability is improved, but complexity of monitoring and detecting redundancy failures increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring system performs self-service by automatically analyzing alarm patterns and detecting redundancy failures without requiring manual intervention. The system autonomously receives alarms, identifies alarm patterns associated with cell sites, determines when diverse paths are down, generates incident reports, and tracks compensation. This automation reduces the complexity of monitoring while ensuring contractual reliability obligations are met.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system continuously monitors alarm patterns from network elements and adjusts its detection logic based on the received information. When alarm patterns indicate redundancy failures, the system generates feedback in the form of incident reports that trigger compensation processes. This closed-loop feedback ensures reliable detection and response to redundancy failures while maintaining manageable monitoring complexity.
3Measurement precision
If manual monitoring of alternative access vendor networks is performed, then detection accuracy is improved, but time required to identify and respond to failures increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring system operates continuously, automatically receiving and analyzing alarms from network elements without interruption. The system maintains continuous surveillance of alarm patterns, ensuring that redundancy failures are detected as soon as they occur. This continuous automated monitoring eliminates the delays associated with manual checking while maintaining high detection accuracy through systematic alarm pattern analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual monitoring processes with an automated electronic system that uses computer processing to analyze alarm patterns. Instead of human operators manually checking network status, the system uses automated algorithms to detect alarm patterns indicating redundancy failures. This substitution of mechanical manual processes with electronic automation significantly reduces response time while maintaining or improving detection accuracy through sophisticated pattern recognition.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of resolving cell site backhaul link redundancy failures in a communication system comprises receiving a plurality of alarms from a plurality of network elements (NEs) in the communication system, determining that the alarms include at least two alarms associated with a cell site, including a first alarm indicating that a path through an alternative access vendor network to the cell site is down and a second alarm indicating that the cell site is unreachable, generating a first incident report indicating a lack of diverse paths through the alternative access vendor network to the cell site, and obtaining, based on an LSE incident report for the alarms, a second incident report comprising a compensation or credit from the alternative access vendors for failing to provide contracted-for diverse paths through the alternative access vendor networks.