Uplink Packet Marking for Service Differentiation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mobile networks cannot differentiate between different mobile services, leading to inadequate quality of service parameters and degraded Virtual Private Networking (VPN) services due to the inability of base stations to identify and indicate services to the transport network.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that establish a bearer for a terminal device, receive an uplink data packet with service information, query a networking controller for routing information, and mark the packet with this information before forwarding it to the transport network, enabling service differentiation and quality of service parameters to be applied.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If base stations use existing mobile network protocols without service identification, then network compatibility is maintained, but service differentiation capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent embeds service identification information within existing protocol structures. The information element indicating service type is nested within the uplink data packet header, and routing information is nested within the bearer setup request message, allowing service differentiation without creating separate protocol layers
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary information element that carries service identification between the terminal device and base station, and another intermediary element carrying routing information between base station and transport network. These intermediaries enable service differentiation while maintaining compatibility with existing network protocols
2Reliability
If base stations do not mark packets with routing information, then processing simplicity is maintained, but transport network service quality is degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs packet marking with routing information in advance, during the bearer establishment phase. The base station receives routing information from the transport network beforehand and pre-marks packets belonging to that bearer, eliminating the need for real-time service identification and marking during packet forwarding
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different quality treatments to different packets based on their service type. Packets are marked with specific routing information elements that indicate their service requirements, allowing the transport network to apply localized quality of service policies to specific traffic flows while maintaining simple processing for unmarked traffic
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus, method and non-transitory computer-readable medium for establishing a bearer for a terminal device of a cellular communication system, receiving, from the terminal device over the bearer, an uplink data packet including an information element indicating a service associated with the uplink data packet, sending a query including the information element to a networking controller, receiving, from the networking controller as a response to the query, routing information for the uplink data packet and marking the uplink data packet with the routing information and forwarding the uplink data packet to a transport network, and selecting transmission parameters to the uplink data packet based on the routing information.