High-Volume Blockchain Node Architecture Using Subtree Scaling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Blockchain networks face challenges in managing large volumes of transactions, particularly in systems like Bitcoin, where the block size constraint limits throughput to approximately 3.3 to 7 transactions per second, leading to bottlenecks and increased transaction fees as adoption grows.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a node architecture with a horizontal scaling approach that spreads workload across multiple machines, utilizing unbounded block sizes and employing subtrees of transaction identifiers for efficient data propagation and validation, allowing for scalable and secure blockchain networks capable of handling over one million transactions per second.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If block size constraint is maintained to ensure network security and validation simplicity, then node protocol stability is improved, but transaction throughput deteriorates to approximately 3.3 to 7 transactions per second
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the block data structure into two separate components: block headers and transaction data. Block headers contain only essential validation information (Merkle root, timestamp, previous block hash) and are propagated to all nodes for security and validation. Transaction data is stored separately in a distributed database, allowing high throughput without increasing block propagation size. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by enabling high productivity while maintaining reliability through preserved block header validation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts transaction data from the traditional block structure and stores it separately in a distributed database system. Only block headers are included in the blockchain chain for propagation and validation. This extraction allows the system to handle millions of transactions per second while maintaining block size constraints for network security, directly resolving the throughput-stability contradiction.
2Productivity
If block size is increased to accommodate more transactions per block, then transaction throughput is improved, but network propagation time and node storage requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting block data into headers and transactions, the patent enables high throughput without increasing propagation size. Block headers remain small (typically under 100 bytes) while transaction data is stored separately, resolving the contradiction between throughput and propagation size.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent moves transaction storage from the traditional single-dimension block structure to a multi-dimension architecture where transactions are stored in a separate distributed database dimension. This allows the system to scale throughput independently of block propagation size, resolving the contradiction by adding a new dimensional layer to data storage.
3Productivity
If distributed database is used to store transaction data separately from block headers, then transaction volume handling capability is improved to over one million transactions per second, but device complexity worsens due to additional database infrastructure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a distributed database system that serves multiple functions: storing transaction data, enabling high-speed queries for validation, and supporting horizontal scaling. This multi-functional database infrastructure resolves the contradiction by handling high transaction volumes while the same infrastructure can be scaled horizontally to manage complexity through distribution rather than centralization.
Solution Approach 2:
The distributed database acts as an intermediary layer between block headers and transaction validation. It mediates the complex operations of storing, retrieving, and validating transactions efficiently, reducing the overall system complexity by centralizing database operations in a specialized component rather than embedding validation logic throughout the entire node architecture.
4Productivity
If horizontal scaling across multiple machines is implemented to increase throughput, then transaction processing capacity is improved, but system complexity and coordination overhead worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the blockchain node into independent components that can be distributed across multiple machines: block header validation, transaction data storage, and transaction validation services. This segmentation enables horizontal scaling while managing complexity through modular, independently deployable services that can coordinate through standardized protocols.
Data Source
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Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
Methods, systems, and data structures for processing large volumes of transactions in blockchain nodes. The system may include a propagation service to receive and propagate blockchain transactions over a blockchain network; a transaction validation service to receive transactions from the propagation service and to verify that received transactions are compliant with blockchain protocol rules; a block assembly service to create a block template for mining by the computing system, including creating one or more subtrees of validated transactions; one or more miners to search for a proof of work with regard to the block template; a validator service to receive and validate incoming subtrees from other blockchain nodes on the blockchain network and to, following receipt of a block solution, verify validity of the new block based on previously validated subtrees; and a blockchain service to manage block headers and lists of subtrees in a block.