Gateway Data Throttling with Priority Reallocation

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Solution Overview

Problem

The rapid increase in wireless device usage in networks has led to degraded quality of service and reduced coverage, with internet service providers imposing data limits and throttling due to increased data consumption, necessitating a solution for prioritized data sharing among client devices to guarantee bandwidth for high-priority clients.

Innovation Solution

A gateway device with a network controller that allocates and monitors data transfer amounts for client devices, allowing for throttling when limits are reached, reallocating bandwidth based on priority and administrator commands, and detecting guest devices to adjust data usage accordingly.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If data limits and throttling are imposed by ISPs due to increased data consumption, then network infrastructure is protected from overload, but quality of service degrades and coverage capabilities are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenetwork stabilityVSAvoiddata bandwidth
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the network into multiple zones with different priority levels, creating a hierarchical structure where high-priority traffic (real-time applications) is separated from low-priority traffic (bulk data transfers). This segmentation allows the system to protect critical services while managing overall data consumption, resolving the contradiction between network stability and data bandwidth availability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies local quality by assigning different quality of service parameters to different network segments and traffic types. High-priority traffic receives guaranteed bandwidth and lower latency treatment, while low-priority traffic is subject to throttling when data limits are approached. This localized differentiation maintains reliability for critical services while managing overall network capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Reliability

If data throttling is implemented when network congestion is high or data limits are reached, then network capacity is preserved, but client devices requiring constant data availability experience service degradation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenetwork capacity managementVSAvoidcontinuous data availability
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements preliminary action by pre-allocating data budgets and priority levels to different client devices before congestion occurs. High-priority devices are pre-configured with guaranteed bandwidth allocations and elevated priority markers, ensuring they maintain service quality even when overall network capacity is constrained. This proactive allocation prevents service degradation for critical applications.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs feedback mechanisms where the network controller continuously monitors data consumption, device priority levels, and available capacity. When data limits are approached, the system dynamically adjusts throttling policies based on real-time feedback, ensuring high-priority devices maintain access while lower-priority devices experience controlled limitations. This feedback loop balances capacity management with continuous availability needs.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Device complexity

If uniform data allocation is provided to all client devices, then simplicity is maintained, but high-priority applications cannot guarantee available bandwidth

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata allocation managementVSAvoidbandwidth guarantee
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic data allocation where priority levels and bandwidth guarantees are adjustable based on application requirements and network conditions. Rather than static uniform allocation, the system dynamically assigns priority markers to different devices and traffic types, allowing high-priority applications to automatically receive greater bandwidth shares when needed. This dynamic approach maintains reasonable complexity while ensuring reliability for critical services.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS11792692B2Personalized data throttling in a residential wireless network
Publication Date: 2023.10.17 ARRIS ENTERPRISES LLC
  • US11792692B2 patent drawing
  • US11792692B2 patent drawing
  • US11792692B2 patent drawing

AI summary

An apparatus, method, and computer-readable recording medium perform local client device data throttling in a wireless network. A network controller of a gateway device allocates a portion of a periodic allocation of data available from an ISP cycle to one or more client devices connected to the gateway device. The gateway device sets a threshold for each client device and monitors bandwidth data consumption for each of the client devices. When a particular client device reaches its assigned bandwidth data allotment, the gateway device throttles data to the client device until a new periodic allocation of data is available from the ISP. While a particular client device is throttled, when a guest device joins the network or a particular client device accesses a prestored URL address, the gateway device may reallocate allotted data from one client device to another as needed to maintain operation of the wireless network.