Service Plan Provisioning for Dynamic Access Network Policies
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing service plans for access networks are rigid, time-consuming to configure, and prone to errors, limiting users to selecting only one plan from mutually exclusive categories and making it difficult to customize data services.
Innovation Solution
A network service plan provisioning system that includes a service design engine, datastores, and engines to manage and translate service plan data into network provisioning instructions, allowing for flexible and efficient creation and management of service plans across different networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If employees manually configure service plans by entering policies into network devices, then service plans can be created and deployed, but the process becomes rigid, time-consuming, and prone to errors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of employees entering policies into network devices with an automated electronic system. The service plan configuration is automated through a system that electronically provisions service plans, policies, and rate plans across multiple network devices without manual intervention, eliminating errors and reducing configuration time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service automation where the service plan provisioning system automatically performs configuration tasks without requiring employee intervention. The system self-manages the entire workflow from service plan creation to deployment across network devices, reducing both time and error rates.
2Adaptability or versatility
If users are limited to selecting one service plan from mutually exclusive categories, then service plan management is simplified, but user flexibility and customization options are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments service plans into distinct components including data services, voice services, text messaging services, and rate plans. Users can independently select and combine these segmented service components to create customized service packages, increasing adaptability while the system manages the complexity through modular architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The service plan provisioning system provides universal management capabilities that handle multiple service types (data, voice, text) and multiple network devices through a single unified platform. This allows users to access diverse service options while the system maintains simplified management through its multi-functional design.
3Reliability
If multiple network devices require individual policy configuration for each service plan, then precise policy control is achieved, but the configuration process becomes cumbersome and error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the configuration process for multiple network devices into a single unified service plan provisioning operation. The system simultaneously provisions service plans and policies across multiple network devices through one automated process, maintaining precise policy control while eliminating the cumbersome step-by-step manual configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
The service plan provisioning system acts as an intermediary between service plan definitions and network devices. It manages the complex task of distributing policies to multiple network devices, ensuring precise policy control is maintained while shielding users from the complexity of individual device configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided a policy implementation method for a communications device using an access network. The method includes obtaining network state information of the access network, determining a plurality of state values of the access network based on the network state information, accessing a policy database using the plurality of state values, retrieving, from the policy database including a plurality of policies, a first policy of the plurality of policies that corresponds to the plurality of state values, receiving one or more packets of data traffic associated with the communications device, and applying the first policy to the one or more packets of the data traffic.