Tunnel Binding Switching for High-Bandwidth Reliability

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Solution Overview

Problem

In hybrid access networks, when a tunnel in a binding tunnel is faulty or its transmission quality degrades, existing technologies cannot maintain high-bandwidth services, leading to service interruptions and reduced bandwidth.

Innovation Solution

A tunnel binding based communication method that switches to a backup tunnel when the primary tunnel fails, ensuring continuous high-bandwidth service by setting up a backup tunnel with a same session ID and using Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) protocols for tunnel setup and switching, allowing seamless transition between tunnels.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a tunnel switching mechanism is enabled to switch from binding tunnel mode to single-tunnel mode when a tunnel is faulty, then the system can maintain basic connectivity, but high-bandwidth services are interrupted and bandwidth is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconnectivity reliabilityVSAvoidbandwidth
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent pre-establishes backup tunnels in advance before they are needed. When a primary tunnel becomes faulty, the system can immediately switch to the pre-configured backup tunnel without delay, maintaining both connectivity and high-bandwidth service continuity. This resolves the contradiction by having readiness actions prepared beforehand.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically changes the operational status parameter of tunnels (active/standby) based on real-time quality monitoring. When tunnel quality degrades below a threshold, the system transitions from using the primary tunnel to the backup tunnel, maintaining service continuity and bandwidth while ensuring reliability through adaptive parameter adjustment.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If a backup tunnel is pre-established with the same session ID, then service continuity is maintained during tunnel failure, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice continuityVSAvoidtunnel management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The backup tunnel uses the same session ID as the primary tunnel, allowing it to universally assume the primary tunnel's role when needed. This multi-functionality approach enables the backup tunnel to seamlessly replace the primary tunnel without requiring separate session management, reducing the expected complexity increase while maintaining service continuity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a copy of the primary tunnel configuration (including session ID, routing parameters, and quality thresholds) for the backup tunnel. This copying approach simplifies management by ensuring the backup tunnel is an exact replica that can immediately assume the primary tunnel's functions, minimizing the complexity overhead of maintaining redundant tunnels.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If tunnel quality monitoring and automatic switching is implemented, then communication reliability is improved, but the system requires more complex control mechanisms

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecommunication reliabilityVSAvoidcontrol mechanism complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements continuous monitoring of tunnel quality parameters (delay, packet loss, jitter) and uses this feedback to automatically trigger switching between primary and backup tunnels. When quality metrics fall below predefined thresholds, the feedback loop initiates a seamless switch, improving communication reliability through automated responsive control without requiring complex manual intervention mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP3425955B1Tunnel bonding-based communications method and network device
Publication Date: 2020.10.21 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD
  • EP3425955B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3425955B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3425955B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Embodiments of this application provide a tunnel binding based communication method and a network device. The method includes: transmitting, by a first network device, a service packet to a second network device using a first binding tunnel, where the first binding tunnel includes a first tunnel and a second tunnel; and when the first tunnel is faulty or transmission quality of the first tunnel does not meet a preset condition, transmitting, by the first network device, a service packet to the second network device using a second binding tunnel, where the second binding tunnel includes a backup tunnel of the first tunnel and the second tunnel. Therefore, if a tunnel in an original binding tunnel is faulty, a tunnel binding based high-bandwidth service continues to be provided using another binding tunnel constituted by a backup tunnel of the faulty tunnel and a fault-free tunnel. Therefore, compared with the prior art, this application can improve high-bandwidth communication reliability and user satisfaction.