Residential Gateway Broadband Controller Recovery via Modem User Plane
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fixed wireless access (FWA) technologies require manual and local intervention to restore functionality when malfunctions occur, such as a broken control plane link with the residential gateway, which cannot be remotely resolved.
Innovation Solution
A method for automatically restoring the functionality of a broadband controller in a residential gateway using a modem to receive an alert message via the user plane of a mobile network, apply a restoration strategy, and confirm the strategy's application without human intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual and local intervention is used to restore residential gateway functionality, then the gateway can be restored, but human intervention is required and service is interrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The residential gateway autonomously restores its own functionality by detecting control plane link failures and automatically executing restoration commands (reboot, factory reset, or software update) without requiring human intervention. The gateway serves itself by monitoring its own operational status and initiating recovery procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
Restoration commands and strategies are pre-configured and stored in the gateway's memory. When a failure is detected, the gateway immediately executes these pre-prepared restoration actions without waiting for external instructions, thereby reducing service interruption time.
2Ease of repair
If remote command injection is used to restore gateway functionality, then restoration can be achieved without local technician visit, but it is not possible when control plane link is broken
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway is divided into functionally independent components: the broadband controller handling control plane communications and the modem handling user plane communications. When the control plane link fails, the modem remains operational and can independently receive and execute restoration commands through the user plane, ensuring restoration capability is not completely lost.
Solution Approach 2:
The modem acts as an intermediary between the external network and the broadband controller. When the control plane link is broken, the modem serves as an alternative communication path, receiving restoration commands via the user plane and executing them locally to restore gateway functionality without requiring direct control plane connectivity.
3Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If technician visit is required for gateway restoration, then comprehensive diagnostics can be performed, but service time is extended and customer satisfaction decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway performs self-diagnosis by monitoring control plane link status and automatically identifying failures. This eliminates the need for technician diagnostics in common failure scenarios, reducing service time while maintaining adequate diagnostic capability for automated restoration.
Solution Approach 2:
The gateway pre-configures multiple restoration strategies (reboot, factory reset, software update) and stores them in memory. When a failure is detected, the gateway automatically selects and executes the appropriate pre-prepared strategy without requiring technician analysis, significantly reducing restoration time.
Data Source
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AI summary
A residential gateway includes a modem for connecting to a mobile network through which a broadband network is accessible, and a broadband controller for connecting to the broadband network. To address a malfunction of the broadband controller, the residential gateway is configured to: receive (501), via the modem, through a user plan from the mobile network, an alert message instructing the application of a recovery policy to restore the functionality of the broadband controller; and apply (503), via the modem, the recovery policy with respect to the broadband controller.