Cloud Service Broker Segmentation for Multi-Cloud Cost Arbitrage

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current cloud service broker systems are limited in their ability to optimize profit and user satisfaction by only allowing deployment of a single cloud service in a single cloud, failing to effectively utilize geographically distributed clouds with different service price distributions.

Innovation Solution

A cloud service broker apparatus that divides a single cloud service into multiple segments based on service prices and distributes them across available clouds, ensuring the lowest price at each time interval, while providing a unified access point for the user and supporting seamless service migration between clouds.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If a single cloud service is deployed in a single cloud, then service simplicity is maintained, but cost optimization and broker profit are limited

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice deployment simplicityVSAvoidbroker profit

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The cloud service is divided into multiple segments that can be independently deployed across different clouds. Each segment corresponds to a specific time interval, allowing the service to be distributed rather than concentrated in a single cloud environment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically selects which cloud to deploy service segments to based on real-time pricing conditions. The broker continuously monitors service prices across multiple clouds and adjusts segment distribution to optimize costs while maintaining service continuity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

2Loss of energy

If cloud service segments are distributed across multiple clouds based on price, then cost optimization is achieved, but service management complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice costVSAvoidservice management complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of energyVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The cloud service broker acts as an intermediary between the user and multiple cloud providers. It manages the complexity of multi-cloud segment distribution, pricing monitoring, and service coordination, while presenting a simplified interface to the user through a single access address.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The broker system performs multiple functions: it monitors pricing across clouds, segments the service, allocates segments to appropriate clouds, manages service migration, and handles user access. This multi-functional approach consolidates management complexity in a single system rather than requiring user-side complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Loss of energy

If cloud service segments are time-divided and distributed to different clouds, then service price is minimized, but service migration and consistency become challenging

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveservice priceVSAvoidservice consistency

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of energyVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The broker continuously monitors service prices across multiple clouds and uses this feedback to make real-time decisions about segment allocation and migration. When price conditions change, the system automatically adjusts segment distribution while maintaining service consistency through coordinated migration.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The service is pre-segmented into time-based units before deployment. This preliminary segmentation allows the broker to pre-plan migrations and allocations, reducing the complexity of real-time service consistency management when switching between clouds.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

4Loss of energy

If multiple clouds are utilized for service segmentation, then broker profit through arbitrage increases, but user access management becomes more complex

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebroker arbitrage profitVSAvoiduser access management

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of energyVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The broker combines multiple cloud service segments into a unified service delivery mechanism. Users interact with a single access address that aggregates the functionality of segments distributed across multiple clouds, hiding the complexity of multi-cloud access from the user.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS10673935B2Cloud service broker apparatus and method thereof

Publication Date: 2020.06.02 ELECTRONICS & TELECOMM RES INST

AI summary

A cloud service broker apparatus and method thereof are provided. The cloud service broker apparatus includes a controller configured to provide a brokerage service between a plurality of cloud service providers and a cloud service user by dividing a cloud service requested by the cloud service user into a plurality of cloud service segments and distributing each of the cloud service segments to each of the clouds.