Central Address Pool Management for Telecommunications

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Solution Overview

Problem

In telecommunications networks, decentralized address pools often face challenges in predicting future utilization, leading to bottlenecks in some pools while others remain underutilized, making it difficult to ensure all subscribers can connect due to the need for complex calculations to optimize pool sizes.

Innovation Solution

A telecommunications system that integrates a central address pool management system to provide additional addresses when decentralized pools are exhausted, ensuring continuous connectivity by temporarily drawing from a central pool, thereby optimizing address usage without constant adjustments.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If decentralized address pools are used for IP address allocation, then service providers can manage addresses locally and maintain operational independence, but address pool exhaustion occurs in some regions while other pools remain underutilized

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvelocal address managementVSAvoidaddress availability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

A centralized address pool management system is introduced as an intermediary between service providers and the IP address space. This mediator allocates addresses to service providers based on actual demand, preventing both pool exhaustion and underutilization. The central system monitors address usage across all providers and dynamically redistributes addresses from underutilized pools to regions experiencing shortages, ensuring continuous address availability while maintaining local operational independence.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If the size of decentralized address pools is increased to prevent exhaustion, then address availability improves, but the complexity of managing and adjusting pool sizes increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaddress availabilityVSAvoidpool size management
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The centralized address pool management system implements self-service automation where address allocation and redistribution occur automatically based on monitored usage patterns. The system continuously tracks address consumption across service providers and autonomously reallocates addresses from underutilized pools to those experiencing shortages, eliminating the need for manual intervention or complex adjustment calculations. This automated self-balancing mechanism maintains address availability while significantly reducing management complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Productivity

If complex calculations are performed to optimize address pool sizes, then address distribution efficiency improves, but the time and resources required for forecasting and adjustment increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaddress distribution efficiencyVSAvoidforecasting and adjustment time
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements continuous feedback monitoring of address pool utilization across all service providers. Address allocation decisions are based on real-time usage data rather than complex predictive forecasting. The centralized system receives ongoing reports on address consumption patterns and automatically adjusts allocations in response to actual demand fluctuations. This feedback-driven approach eliminates the need for time-consuming future utilization calculations while maintaining high distribution efficiency through data-responsive allocation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP2525557B1Telecommunications system and method for providing services in a telecommunications system
Publication Date: 2018.10.24 DEUTSCHE TELEKOM AG
  • EP2525557B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2525557B1 patent drawingFigure 2

AI summary

The system (1) has a service provider unit (3) integrated into a telecommunication network (2), and network subscriber units (4, 40) coupled with the service provider unit. A peripheral address pool managing unit (5) is attached to the service provider unit that allocates address provided by the managing unit to one of the subscriber units. A central address pool managing unit (6) is connected to the service provider unit and another service provider unit (13), where the former service provider unit allocates address provided by the central unit to another subscriber unit. Independent claims are also included for the following: (1) a method for providing services in a telecommunication network (2) a computer program with program code units for executing a method for providing services in a telecommunication network (3) a computer program product with a computer-readable medium and a computer program for executing a method for providing services in a telecommunication network.