Hybrid Switching and Routing Device for Scalable Customer Aggregation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems face difficulties in efficiently connecting large numbers of customer devices to a single point due to unmanageable MAC address tables and poor scalability, especially when dealing with tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of devices, leading to ineffective aggregation.
Innovation Solution
A hybrid device that functions as a switch in one direction and a router in another, utilizing switch logic for layer 2 switching upstream and router logic for layer 3 switching downstream, facilitating the aggregation of large numbers of customer devices by managing connections effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single router manages all customer devices using MAC address tables, then all devices can be connected to a single point, but the MAC address table becomes unmanageable when dealing with tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of devices
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the single router into multiple routers distributed throughout the network. Each router manages a subset of customer devices, dividing the large MAC address table into smaller, manageable tables at each router. This segmentation allows the system to aggregate hundreds of thousands of devices while keeping individual router MAC address tables manageable in size.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a single-point aggregation model to a distributed multi-point aggregation model. By adding the spatial dimension of multiple routers across the network, the system can handle larger aggregation capacities without increasing the complexity at any single router, as each router only manages local devices rather than all devices centrally.
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional routers are used to connect large numbers of customer devices, then devices can be aggregated, but the system scalability becomes poor when dealing with tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of devices
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the customer device population into multiple groups, each served by a separate router. This segmentation allows linear scalability where adding more customers can be achieved by distributing them across additional routers rather than overloading a single router, enabling the system to scale effectively to hundreds of thousands of devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces intermediate routers between customer devices and the core network. These intermediate routers act as mediators that aggregate traffic from multiple customers before forwarding it to the core network, enabling scalable aggregation without requiring direct connection of all customers to a single core router.
3Device complexity
If a hybrid device performs both switching and routing functions, then device functionality is consolidated, but the device must handle complex bidirectional processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The hybrid device is segmented into separate switching and routing functional modules. The switching function handles upstream traffic (customer to network) while the routing function handles downstream traffic (network to customer). This functional segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently, reducing the operational complexity of handling bidirectional processing requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention inverts the traditional router behavior by having the hybrid device perform simple switching in the upstream direction and complex routing in the downstream direction. This inversion simplifies the upstream processing while maintaining necessary routing capabilities downstream, making the overall bidirectional operation more manageable.
Data Source
AI summary
A system aggregates connections to multiple customer devices. The system receives data, performs switching functions on the data when the data is to be transmitted in a first direction, performs routing functions on the data when the data is to be transmitted in a second direction, and transmits the data in the first or second direction.