MCPTT Floor Control via Separated Planes
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Solution Overview
Problem
The integration of control and media planes in existing PoC services hinders technology evolution and flexible service implementation, and lacks a detailed floor control procedure after separation.
Innovation Solution
A floor control method and apparatus for a mission-critical push-to-talk MCPTT server over a Long Term Evolution network, which separates the control and media planes, using messages to manage floor requests, grants, releases, and notifications through a multicast channel, enabling flexible service configuration and extension.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If control plane and media plane are integrated in PoC server, then service implementation is simplified, but technology evolution and system extension are hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the integrated PoC server into separate control plane entities and media plane entities. The control plane handles signaling and floor control functions, while the media plane handles voice traffic and media distribution. This separation allows each plane to evolve independently and facilitates system extension without compromising service implementation simplicity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If control plane and media plane are separated, then technology evolution and service flexibility are enhanced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism through standardized interfaces and protocols that connect the control plane and media plane entities. The control plane entities use standardized signaling protocols to interact with media plane entities, which simplifies the overall system architecture despite the separation. This intermediary layer manages the complexity by providing clear boundaries and interaction rules between planes.
3Measurement precision
If unicast connection is used for floor control, then individual user control is precise, but notification delay to multiple users increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges unicast and multicast approaches by using unicast for individual floor control requests and acknowledgments while employing multicast for broadcasting floor status notifications to multiple users simultaneously. This combination maintains precise individual control through unicast interactions while reducing notification delays through efficient multicast distribution of floor status information to all group members.
Data Source
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AI summary
Embodiments of the present invention provide a floor control method and apparatus, so as to resolve a prior-art problem: a control plane and a media plane of a POC service are not separated, and this causes difficulty in subsequent technology evolution and is not conducive to either flexible implementation of services or system extension; and there is no detailed floor control procedure after the control plane and the media plane are separated. The method includes: receiving, by a mission-critical push-to-talk MCPTT server over Long Term Evolution network, a first message that is sent by user equipment UE, where the first message includes an identifier of a group to which a talker corresponding to the UE belongs and a parameter indicating that an event type is a floor request; generating, by the MCPTT server, a second message according to the floor control policy and the first message, where the second message includes the identifier of the group to which the talker corresponding to the UE belongs and the parameter indicating that an event type is a floor request, and the second message is used to instruct the UE to notify the talker to whom the UE belongs that a floor is granted; sending, by the MCPTT server, the second message to the UE; receiving, by the MCPTT server, a response message that is of the second message and that is sent by the UE; generating, by the MCPTT server, a first instruction message according to the response message of the second message, where the first instruction message is used to instruct a media resource function entity to perform uplink voice switching on a media plane; and sending, by the MCPTT server, the first instruction message to the media resource function entity.