Signaling Link Congestion Control via Restricted Route Thresholds
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Signaling link congestion occurs in telecommunications networks due to the rerouting of post-global title translated signaling message traffic after link failures, leading to potential loss of messages and network instability.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method that marks routes associated with a recovering linkset as restricted initially and allows them only when a sufficient number of signaling links become available, directing traffic through the lowest cost allowed or restricted routes to prevent overload on recovering links.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If routes are immediately marked as allowed when the first link in a recovering linkset becomes available, then routing flexibility and speed of recovery are improved, but link congestion and message loss increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by marking routes as 'restricted' rather than immediately marking them as 'allowed' when the first link recovers. This intermediate state prepares the routing system for gradual traffic restoration. The route remains in restricted status until a predetermined threshold of links (e.g., 8 out of 16) are available, preventing premature traffic redirection that would cause congestion while still enabling eventual recovery.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by introducing a dynamic route status mechanism that transitions from 'restricted' to 'allowed' based on real-time link availability. Rather than a static immediate-transition approach, the system dynamically adjusts route status based on the number of available links, allowing flexible control over traffic distribution as the network recovers.
2Productivity
If traffic is immediately redirected to a recovering linkset when a link becomes available, then network resource utilization is improved, but link overload and congestion occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by establishing a threshold condition (predetermined number of available links) that must be met before traffic redirection occurs. This prevents immediate traffic redirection to partially recovered linksets, avoiding overload while ensuring that when redirection does occur, sufficient capacity exists to handle the traffic load.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the critical parameter from binary route status (allowed/not allowed) to a threshold-based status (restricted vs. allowed) determined by the number of available links. This parameter change enables controlled traffic distribution, where the route status transitions based on the link availability threshold, preventing congestion while optimizing resource utilization.
3Productivity
If all available links are used for traffic handling from the moment of recovery, then capacity utilization is maximized, but congestion and message loss increase when links are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary action by pre-establishing a safety threshold (e.g., 8 links) that must be available before traffic is redirected. This ensures that capacity utilization is only maximized when sufficient capacity exists, preventing message loss and delivery failures that would occur if traffic were redirected to insufficiently recovered linksets.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback by continuously monitoring the number of available links and using this information to determine route status. The system receives feedback on link availability and adjusts route status accordingly - maintaining restricted status when links are insufficient and transitioning to allowed status when the threshold is met, ensuring reliable message delivery while optimizing utilization.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and computer program products for reducing the likelihood of signaling link congestion on a failing or recovering signaling linkset are disclosed. According to one aspect, a method for reducing or eliminating congestion on a recovered link in a previously failed linkset due to the routing of post-global title (GT) translated signaling message traffic is disclosed. When the first link in a previously failed linkset becomes available, routes associated with the recovering linkset are marked as restricted. GT translated messages are directed to the lowest cost route that is marked as allowed. If no routes are marked as allowed, messages are directed to the lowest cost route that is marked as restricted. When a predetermined number or percentage of the links in a linkset become available, routes associated with the recovering linkset are marked as allowed.