Extensible Business Support System for Unified Service Provisioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing business support systems (BSS) are inflexible and inefficient in managing multiple service offerings, requiring separate systems for each service and lacking a systematic approach to connect with multiple operational support systems, making it difficult to provision network assets and manage user requests across various service providers.
Innovation Solution
An extensible business support system that uses domain knowledge to attach processes (state machines, rules) to ontology nodes, allowing for the capture of workflows and relationships between resources and processes, enabling dynamic provisioning and management of multiple service offerings through a single portal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate BSS systems are used for each service offering, then each service can be managed independently, but the overall system complexity increases and scalability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple separate BSS systems into a single unified BSS that can manage multiple service offerings from different providers. The system uses a common framework with pluggable service modules, allowing independent service management while avoiding the complexity of multiple separate systems. The unified architecture shares common infrastructure for user management, provisioning, and billing across all services.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal BSS framework that can handle multiple service offerings through a single system. The framework uses abstract service definitions and standardized interfaces that allow different service types (telecom, IT, media, etc.) to be managed uniformly. This multi-functional approach maintains service independence while reducing overall system complexity.
2Device complexity
If a unified BSS is used for multiple service offerings, then system complexity is reduced and scalability improves, but the ability to handle service-specific requirements decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the unified BSS into modular service components that can be independently configured and managed. Each service offering is represented as a distinct service definition with its own parameters, provisioning processes, and management rules. This segmentation allows the system to handle service-specific requirements within the unified framework, maintaining adaptability while reducing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic service definitions that can be configured and modified without changing the core system architecture. The system uses parameterized service templates and configurable provisioning workflows that adapt to specific service requirements. This dynamic approach allows the unified BSS to accommodate diverse service offerings while maintaining a consistent underlying structure.
3Ease of manufacture
If traditional BSS approaches are used, then implementation is straightforward, but the system cannot easily accommodate new service offerings or process changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent establishes a pre-configured framework with standardized service definitions, provisioning templates, and management interfaces before specific services are deployed. The system includes pre-defined service models and relationships that can be instantiated for different service offerings. This preliminary setup simplifies implementation while enabling easy addition of new services through configuration rather than code changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses parameterized service definitions where service-specific characteristics are controlled through configurable parameters rather than hard-coded logic. The system allows service offerings to be differentiated and customized by setting specific parameters within the unified framework. This approach maintains implementation simplicity while providing flexibility to accommodate new services by adjusting parameters and configurations.
4Reliability
If multiple separate provisioning systems are used for different providers, then each provider's specific needs are met, but the provisioning process becomes inefficient and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a unified provisioning layer that acts as an intermediary between the BSS and multiple OSS systems from different providers. This intermediary layer standardizes communication and coordination, allowing efficient resource provisioning across multiple providers while maintaining provider-specific requirements. The system orchestrates provisioning requests through a common interface, improving efficiency without sacrificing accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal provisioning framework that can interact with multiple different OSS systems through standardized interfaces. The system uses abstract provider definitions and configurable provisioning workflows that work across different service providers. This multi-functional approach maintains provider-specific provisioning accuracy while significantly improving overall provisioning efficiency through centralized management.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are disclosed for integration, provisioning and management of entities and processes in a computing system such as, by way of example only, business entities and business processes. In particular, techniques are disclosed for implementing an extensible support system for multiple service offerings. For example, such a support system can be a business support system which may be employed in conjunction with a cloud computing environment.