PACS Router Segregating Voice Traffic via Circuit Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current IP networks are inefficient in delivering high-quality voice over IP (VoIP) services due to latency, jitter, and packet loss, and the separate maintenance of voice telephony networks is costly and complex, while IP networks struggle to meet the reliability and latency requirements of high-quality traffic.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a Packet-switching and Circuit-switching System (PACS) router, which combines packet-switching and circuit-switching fabrics with channelized high-speed links, allowing for efficient routing of both best-effort and high-quality traffic, and utilizing signaling and routing protocols to manage channel inventory and traffic routing, enabling faster failure detection and restoration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If IP networks use best-effort packet switching for VoIP traffic, then network flexibility and scalability are improved, but service quality (latency, jitter, packet loss) deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments traffic into two distinct types: best-effort traffic and high-quality traffic. By separating these traffic streams and applying different handling mechanisms (packet switching for best-effort, circuit switching for high-quality), the system achieves both network flexibility and reliable service quality without the compromise inherent in uniform best-effort handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different quality levels of service handling to different traffic types. High-quality traffic receives dedicated circuit-switched paths with guaranteed bandwidth and low latency, while best-effort traffic uses standard packet switching. This local differentiation of service quality allows the network to optimize for both flexibility and reliability in appropriate contexts.
2Reliability
If separate voice telephony networks are maintained, then high-quality voice service is preserved, but operational cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the advantages of circuit-switched voice networks with packet-switched data networks into a single integrated network infrastructure. By co-locating circuit-switching and packet-switching fabrics within the same network nodes and using unified control mechanisms, the system preserves high-quality voice service while eliminating the need for separate parallel networks, thereby reducing operational cost and complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal network infrastructure that can handle both traditional circuit-switched voice traffic and modern packet-switched data traffic simultaneously. The network nodes are designed to perform multiple functions (circuit switching, packet switching, routing, switching) within a single system, eliminating the need for separate specialized networks and reducing overall system complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If packet switching is used for all traffic, then network scalability is improved, but latency and jitter for voice traffic worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments voice traffic from data traffic and routes them through different switching mechanisms. By extracting voice traffic from the packet-switched path and directing it through circuit-switched paths, the system maintains the scalability benefits of packet switching for data while eliminating the latency and jitter problems for voice traffic that result from packet switching.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces circuit-switching fabric as an intermediary path for high-quality voice traffic between packet-switched network nodes. This intermediary circuit-switched path provides guaranteed bandwidth and low-latency transmission for voice packets, mediating between the scalability of packet switching and the timing requirements of voice communication.
4Reliability
If circuit switching is used for high-quality traffic, then service reliability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines circuit-switching and packet-switching fabrics within the same network nodes, allowing high-quality voice traffic to use circuit-switched paths while data traffic uses packet-switched paths. By integrating both switching types in a unified infrastructure rather than maintaining separate networks, the system achieves high reliability for voice traffic without proportionally increasing overall device complexity and cost.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention provides a new type of router, called a PACS router, to build an improved IP network in which high-quality services such as voice and best-effort data services can be provided with higher reliability and lower cost. A PACS router includes a packet-switching fabric and a circuit-switching fabric interconnected by channelized high-speed links. A network built with PACS routers uses signaling and routing protocols to segregate traffic into different classes and route them using circuit-channels and packet-channels depending on quality of service requirements. Routing high-quality service over circuit-channels eliminates transit delay typically incurred in packet-switching fabrics, enhances reliability from software malfunction in the router and enhances network scalability by not having to terminate all traffic into packet-switching fabrics in every router. The circuit-switching fabrics in the PACS routers provide further immunity by fast rerouting of failed circuits via alternate routes when a network fault is detected.