JP2006262268A - Ip telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To change connection media, when it is possible to avoid overloaded state by changing the connection media, such as a voice codec, a packet length or the like to be used for communication with the opposite side, if the overload state that exceeds the throughput of a CPU is predicted. <P>SOLUTION: An IP telephone set 100 comprises a negotiation processing means 210 for determining or changing connection media; a load calculation section 204 for calculating the processing load of a CPU constituting a control means; an operating function detection section 206 for detecting the function under the operation of the IP telephone set; and a connection media determining section 208 for determining connection media. In response to a connection media change request, received by the negotiation processing means 210, the load calculation section 204 calculates the processing load of the CPU; and if the calculated processing load does not exceed the throughput of the CPU, the connection media determination section 208 determines the change into the change requested connection media but if the calculated processing load exceeds the throughput of the CPU, the change request is refused. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an IP telephone that performs telephone communication via the Internet network, and in particular, IP telephone control means (CPU) that controls connection and communication control with the other party by a combination of execution functions of the IP telephone. When it is predicted that an overload state exceeding the processing capacity of the DSP or the DSP) will occur, the overload state can be avoided by changing the connection media such as the voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party The present invention relates to an IP telephone whose connection medium is changed.

  Conventionally, telephone communication has been carried out using a telephone line network exclusively for telephone communication and a telephone line network using a telephone exchange, so-called public telephone communication network. Recently, communication and information processing technologies have been used to utilize the Internet network. In addition to data communication, a system for performing voice, that is, telephone communication has been widely used.

  A general IP telephone system is a setting management server that performs various settings management with a plurality of IP telephones, or an administrator PC device (computer) that is used by a system administrator to manage IP telephones via a web setting screen. Device) via a network such as a LAN, and making a call with an IP telephone connected to another network via the Internet network, or making a call with a subscriber telephone via a public telephone network. It is configured.

  An IP telephone has a conversion function for converting analog voice into digital voice data, and can transmit and receive voice and video. With regard to the transmission and reception of these data, an Internet telephone server such as a SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) server, a setting management server, a gatekeeper, a call agent, or a management server such as a personal computer manages the operation of the IP telephone. Will never be connected to the Internet alone.

  The management server, which is a server for Internet telephones, is called differently depending on the protocol being used, but it basically manages the registration of IP phones that are terminals, resolution of connection destinations, and management of bandwidth and number of connections. It is. Specifically, the above server accesses the IP phone periodically or asynchronously, or periodically accesses the IP phone to transmit various setting values, and also provides network access control, call control, and inter-terminal Control, data transmission / reception control, etc.

  Such an IP telephone system is disclosed in, for example, the following Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-169163). The communication device disclosed in Patent Document 1 intends to realize a voice call on the Internet by effectively utilizing a depleted IP address. In this communication apparatus, the uplink side is connected to an IP (Internet Protocol) network (Internet network) via a local area network, and the downlink side is connected to a telephone and another communication terminal (PC). A communication device (VoIP device) for performing a voice call using the telephone on the IP network based on VoIP (Voice over IP) technology using an IP address common to a terminal.

That is, this communication apparatus transmits / receives signals between the first interface unit (first LAN interface unit) for transmitting / receiving signals to / from the local area network and other communication terminals. A second interface section (second LAN interface section) and a voice interface section for performing mutual conversion between incoming packet data and voice signals to transmit and receive voice signals to and from the telephone set ( The packet data coming from the IP network via the telephone interface unit), the local area network and the first interface unit matches the destination port number and VoIP predetermined for voice calls based on VoIP technology And the voice interface unit performs the conversion. A packet data distribution unit that transmits the packet data to the voice interface unit only when it corresponds to a predetermined voice codec used in the process, and otherwise transmits the packet data to the second interface unit (IP address / port number monitoring unit, VoIP protocol processing unit monitoring unit).
JP 2003-169163 A (FIG. 1, FIG. 2, paragraph [0011])

  In the IP phone system as described above, when a specific IP phone receives an incoming call, check the connection media such as voice codec and packet length between the other party (caller) IP phone and the called IP phone. After that, the connection and call are started. This process is generally called a negotiation process. The negotiation process is performed as follows.

  The negotiation process is performed as follows using, for example, a commercially available VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) system. As a typical call control protocol of this VoIP system, there is SIP (Session Initiation Protocol). This SIP call control includes a call control command called an INVITE message. The INVITE message is the first control message sent to the destination from the IP phone on the calling side. In this message, the destination address, caller address, communication capability information including codec related to voice and video, etc. are called for each IP phone. This information is used as ancillary information, and the negotiation process is performed using this command.

  This negotiation process is performed to match the communication environment between the calling and called IP phones before a connection or call is initiated, and the IP phone functions during the call. Even when an operation to change is performed, it is performed in order to match the calling side and the called side. For example, when an elderly user performs a function change, for example, an operation for slowing down the speech speed, after executing a negotiation process at the time of an incoming call and starting a call, a control unit is configured in the own IP phone by this function change. CPU processing load may become overloaded.

  Various controls of the IP telephone are performed by a CPU such as a microprocessor. The CPU processing capacity required for a call is the connection media (voice codec, packet length, etc.) determined with the other party and the functions (echo canceller, speech speed conversion, tone) executed by the own IP phone. Transmission, tone detection, three-party call, etc.) The processing speed of the CPU is determined depending on the CPU performance (clock frequency or the like), and is expressed using a MIPS (Million Instructions Per Second) value or the like. When designing a product, it is common to estimate the processing capacity required for each function in advance and perform a design that does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU even in the worst case where the processing load is maximum.

  For example, if the processing capacity of the CPU that constitutes the control unit is insufficient during a call in an IP phone and the voice packet transmission / reception processing cannot be performed normally, the sound may be interrupted or the sound quality may be degraded. A fatal failure occurs. In addition, when the sound processing load is extremely high and the CPU is occupied in the sound processing, for example, the drawing processing on the display unit LCD becomes extremely slow, and drawing breakage occurs. Problems such as deterioration of key response occur.

  Although it is rare that the CPU will have the worst processing load, in order to deal with the above-mentioned problems, it is required to avoid a situation where the CPU processing capacity is insufficient. The Generally, even in the worst case, improve the hardware processing capacity so as not to cause a shortage of processing capacity, or impose a function restriction on the product and reduce the specifications so as not to cause a shortage of processing capacity. It will be necessary. The former causes an increase in the cost of the product, and the latter decreases the product competitiveness, and none of them is a preferable method. The communication device disclosed in the above-mentioned patent document 1 does not mention the existence of such a problem and a solution method.

  The inventor of the present application has made various studies to eliminate such problems, and as a result, prior to the start of connection, call initiation, or during a call in an IP phone, between the caller IP phone and the callee IP phone. Paying attention to the point that the connection media is negotiated, it is predicted that the overload will exceed the processing capability of the control means (CPU or DSP) of the IP telephone that controls the connection and communication with the other party. If the connection media such as voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party can be changed to avoid an overload condition, the problem can be solved by changing the connection media. The present invention has been conceived and completed.

  That is, the present application aims to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is predicted that an overload state exceeding the processing capability of the control means (such as a CPU) of the IP telephone that controls connection with the other party and control of communication is predicted. If an overload condition can be avoided by changing the connection media such as the voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party, an IP phone that changes the connection media should be provided. Objective.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
Based on the connection media change request received from the one IP telephone by the negotiation processing means, the load calculation unit calculates the CPU processing load when the connection media is changed, and the calculated processing load determines the CPU processing capacity. If not, the connection medium determination unit determines a change to the connection medium for which the change is requested,
When the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the change request is rejected to the one of the IP telephones.

The invention according to claim 2 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When the IP phone has a function change operation performed by the load calculation unit of the one IP phone when a function change operation of the one IP phone is performed during a connection call with the other IP phone The CPU processing load is calculated, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the CPU processing capacity, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone transmits a connection media change request to the other IP telephone. It is characterized by comprising.

The invention according to claim 3 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When an incoming call is received at one IP telephone, the processing load on the CPU when connected by the connection medium specified by the information on the connection medium based on the information on the connection medium received from the other IP telephone by the negotiation processing means Is calculated by the load calculation unit, and if the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capability of the CPU, the connection medium determination unit determines the connection medium received from the other IP telephone as a connection medium for connection. ,
When the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means requests the other IP telephone to change the connection medium.

The invention according to claim 4 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
Connection between IP telephones is performed using the connection medium determined based on the connection medium change request received from one IP telephone by the negotiation processing means, and the load calculation unit calculates the CPU processing load after the connection medium is changed. If the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU, the connection is continued,
When the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the one IP telephone is requested to change the connection medium.

The invention according to claim 5 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When the IP phone has a function change operation performed on one IP phone during a connection call with the other IP phone, the load calculation unit of the one IP phone performs the function change. The processing load is calculated, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone transmits a connection media change request to the other IP telephone. It is characterized by that.

The invention according to claim 6 of the present application is
In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When an incoming call is received at one IP telephone, the load calculating unit uses the connection medium determined by the negotiation processing means based on the connection medium information received from the other IP telephone to connect to the other IP telephone. Calculate the CPU processing load after connecting using the connection medium. If the calculated processing load does not exceed the CPU processing capacity, continue the connection.
When the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the other IP telephone is requested to change the connection medium.

The invention according to claim 7 of the present application is the invention according to claim 3 or claim 6,
If the connection media change request by the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone is not established with the other IP telephone, the connection between the IP telephones is rejected.

  In the invention according to claim 1, based on the connection media change request received from one IP telephone by the negotiation processing means, the load calculation unit calculates the processing load of the CPU when the connection media is changed, and the calculated processing When the load does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU, the connection medium determination unit determines a change to the connection medium requested to change, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the change request To refuse.

  Therefore, when a load that exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU occurs, it is possible to avoid a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient by changing the connection medium to a medium with a low processing load, thereby increasing the product cost of the IP telephone. In addition, the product specifications of the IP telephone are not reduced.

  In the invention according to claim 2, when a function change operation of one IP phone is performed during a connection call with the other IP phone, the load calculation unit of the one IP phone performs the function change operation. If the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone sends a connection media change request to the other IP. Send to phone. Therefore, when the function is changed in the own IP telephone, it becomes possible to avoid a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient by changing the connection medium to a medium having a low processing load, thereby increasing the product cost of the IP telephone. In addition, the product specifications of the IP telephone are not reduced.

  In the invention according to claim 3, when an incoming call is made to one IP telephone, the connection medium specified by the information on the connection medium based on the information on the connection medium received from the other IP telephone by the negotiation processing means. The load calculation unit calculates the processing load of the CPU when connected, and if the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU, the connection media determination unit connects the connection media received from the other IP phone. If the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means requests the other IP telephone to change the connection medium.

  Therefore, when a load exceeding the CPU processing capacity of the IP phone occurs when connecting to the IP phone, a request is made to change the connection medium to a medium with a low processing load, and this change causes a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient. It will be possible to avoid.

  In the invention according to claim 4, the connection calculation unit performs connection between the IP telephones using the connection medium determined based on the connection medium change request received from the one IP telephone by the negotiation processing unit, and the load calculation unit changes the connection medium. When the processing load of the subsequent CPU is calculated and the calculated processing load does not exceed the CPU processing capacity, the connection is continued, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the CPU processing capacity, Requests the IP phone to change the connection media.

  Therefore, when a load that exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU occurs, it is possible to avoid a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient by changing the connection medium to a medium with a low processing load, thereby increasing the product cost of the IP telephone. In addition, the product specifications of the IP telephone are not reduced.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when an operation for changing a function of one IP telephone is performed during a connection call with the other IP telephone, the load of the one IP telephone is calculated after the function is changed. The CPU calculates the processing load of the CPU, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone transmits a connection media change request to the other IP telephone. . Therefore, when the function is changed in the own IP telephone, it becomes possible to avoid a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient by changing the connection medium to a medium with a low processing load, thereby increasing the product cost of the IP telephone. In addition, the product specifications of the IP telephone are not reduced.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, when an incoming call is received at one IP telephone, the other IP telephone using the connection medium determined based on the connection medium information received from the other IP telephone by the negotiation processing means. And the load calculation unit calculates the processing load of the CPU after connecting using the connection medium. If the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU, the connection is continued, When the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the other IP telephone is requested to change the connection medium.

  Therefore, when a load exceeding the CPU processing capacity of the IP phone occurs when connecting to the IP phone, a request is made to change the connection medium to a medium with a low processing load, and this change causes a situation where the processing capacity is insufficient. It will be possible to avoid.

  In the invention according to claim 7, in the IP telephone according to claim 3 or 6, when the connection media change request by the negotiation processing means is not established with the other IP telephone, the IP telephone Deny connection between phones. Therefore, it becomes possible to avoid a situation in which the CPU processing capacity is insufficient, so that the product cost of the IP telephone is not increased and the product specification of the IP telephone is not lowered.

  Hereinafter, specific examples of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples and drawings. FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing the configuration of an IP telephone system using an IP telephone according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the IP telephone according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the IP telephone for controlling the processing load of the CPU constituting the control means. FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a sequence of negotiation processing means for determining a connection medium. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing another processing procedure of the IP telephone for controlling the processing load of the CPU constituting the control means.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an IP telephone system 10 using IP telephones 12 a to 12 d according to an embodiment of the present invention is connected to a LAN 11 that is a local area network and IP telephones 12 a to 12 d that are connected to the LAN 11. And a SIP server 14 that is a management server connected to the LAN 11. The GW 13 is connected to a public line telephone switching network (hereinafter referred to as PSTN) 15. The LAN 11 is connected to an external network 16 such as a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or the Internet.

  Each of the IP telephones 12a to 12d has a unique telephone number and an IP address, and stores the IP addresses of the GW 13 and the SIP server 14. The IP telephones 12a to 12d have a plurality of voice codecs, and can communicate with each other by using connection media such as a voice codec and a packet length that are common to the communication partner. The process of confirming a common connection medium and matching the communication environments of the originating IP telephone and the terminating IP telephone is the negotiation process described above.

  The GW 13 is for connection to a central office switch (not shown) of the PSTN 15, and has a call control function and a voice encoding function. When one of the IP telephones 12a to 12d and a fixed telephone station (not shown) connected to the PSRTN 15 make a call, call control is performed via the SIP server 14, the GW 13, and the PSTN 15.

  The SIP server 14 performs number translation, which is a correspondence between a telephone number and an IP address, and when an incoming call is received, an IP telephone having a corresponding IP address is identified from the telephone number and an incoming call notification is made. When a call is made between any of the IP telephones 12a to 12d, or when connected to an IP telephone connected to an external LAN or the like via the network 16, the GW 13 is not passed but only the SIP server 14 is passed.

  The IP telephones 12a to 12d are configured as shown in FIG. This IP telephone is a calling-side terminal device that determines a connection medium by the above-described negotiation process and starts a call, and at the same time is a receiving-side terminal device, and has both functions.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 100 denotes an IP telephone, which is connected to a LAN of the network via a 110 LAN interface (LAN-I / F). The LAN is an IP network to which a predetermined communication protocol, for example, a TCP / IP protocol is applied, and a management server and an IP telephone are connected to form an Internet telephone network. In the IP telephone 100, 120 is an audio output speaker, 130 is an audio input microphone, 140 is an audio codec, and the audio codec 140 performs encoding and decoding of audio, that is, analog / digital conversion of audio. , It has a function to change the volume of incoming calls and microphone sensitivity. Reference numeral 150 denotes a display unit using a display panel of the IP telephone. Reference numeral 160 is an input unit, and 161 is a button or key. Reference numeral 200 denotes control means, which is configured around a CPU 201 such as a microprocessor.

  The CPU 201 controls the operation of each unit constituting the control unit 200 by a control program or application program stored in the ROM 202, RAM 203, or the like. The in-operation function detection unit 206 detects various functions in operation in the IP telephone, and the load calculation unit 204 determines the processing load of the CPU 201 based on the combination of the in-operation functions detected by the in-operation function detection unit 206. Is to be calculated. The negotiation processing unit 210 is a part that executes the above-described negotiation process for matching the communication environment between the originating IP phone and the terminating phone. The negotiation processing unit 210 includes a self-codec list 211 and a partner codec list 212. Based on the processing of the means 210, the connection medium determination unit 208 determines the connection medium, and the connection and call are performed.

  The own codec list 211 is stored in the buffer, and the own codec list is set at the time of initial setting. Generally, a single list provided by the system designer at the time of connection is provided, but the contents are not always constant. The self-codec list 211 is a calling-side codec list at the time of outgoing call, and serves as a counterpart codec list 212 at the time of incoming call.

  There are several types of codecs registered in the codec list, such as G.711, G.722, G.723, and G.729, each of which has the sound quality and compression rate of audio data, and the processing load. Different. Therefore, when performing communication giving priority to audio quality over compression rate, a codec suitable for the communication is selected.

  When there is an incoming call from another IP telephone, the IP telephone 100 determines the connection medium by the negotiation processing means 210 prior to the start of connection and telephone call. Also, as described above, the same processing is performed when media change is performed during a call.

  There are several types of codecs, as mentioned above, and the sound quality and compression rate of audio data are different, and the processing load is different. However, the higher the quality of the codec, the higher the processing load. Conversely, a codec having a high compression ratio (= in many cases with low sound quality) may have a higher processing load for encoding / decoding the voice packet. Therefore, when the connection medium is changed to a codec with a low processing load, the compression rate may be lowered and the sound quality may be improved.

  Regarding the packet length, generally, the processing load increases as the packet length decreases. For example, when a call is performed with a packet length of 10 msec, it is necessary to perform voice packet transmission / reception processing and encoding / decoding processing at an interval of 10 msec. If this is changed to a packet length of 20 msec, the interval is once every 20 msec. Thus, the same processing should be performed, and the load related to the processing of the voice data is halved by simple calculation.

  In the voice call of the IP telephone, the connection medium (codec and packet length) is determined by negotiation with the other party as described above. In addition, it is possible to change the connection medium during a call if necessary. In other words, there is a case where a request for changing the connection medium is made from the other party. Therefore, it is possible to change to a connection medium with a low load on the network in accordance with a change to a connection medium that reduces the processing load of the CPU, a communication state, or a change in traffic.

  At this time, the connection media negotiation at the start of the call and the connection media change during the call are automatically performed between the telephones and do not appear on the surface, so that a general user is not aware of this. Therefore, the user is unaware of what connection media the phone is currently connected to, and even if the connection media is changed during a call, the user will notice it except when the sound quality clearly changes. Is rare. Actually, if the packet length is slightly changed, it is a change that cannot be discriminated even by comparing the sound quality in the normal network state.

  In the present invention, the processing load of the CPU is determined by a combination of different elements such as connection media and other functions of the IP telephone, and connection media change during a call is allowed (from either the caller side or the callee side) The user pays attention to the characteristics unique to the IP telephone, such as the user is unaware of the contents of the connection media and the change of the connection media does not lead to the disadvantage of the user.

  The present invention is based on the above-mentioned attention, and when it is predicted that an overload state exceeding the processing capability of the control means (CPU or the like) of the IP telephone is expected, connection such as voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party When an overload state can be avoided by changing the medium to a level with a lower processing load, the connection medium is changed. This makes it possible to realize the function even if the function cannot be executed due to insufficient processing capacity, and the user can connect if there is no obvious change in sound quality. Even if the media change is not noticed, it is possible to talk on the surface so that there is no change from the normal function execution without changing the connection media. As a matter of course, the processing capacity of the CPU is remarkably insufficient, and if the shortage of processing capacity cannot be avoided even if the connection medium having the lowest processing load is changed, the change of the connection medium is rejected.

  That is, in this embodiment, when a function change is requested to the IP telephone 100 during a call, or prior to the start of connection or call, the processing load of the CPU 201 is calculated, and the processing capacity of the CPU 201 may be insufficient. If it is predicted, try changing the connection media such as the voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party, and if the change that can avoid insufficient processing capacity is possible, change the connected medium to avoid insufficient processing capacity. If not, it is configured to reject the change.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the IP telephone 100 for controlling the processing load of the CPU 201 constituting the control means 200, and shows the processing procedure when there is a function change operation of the IP telephone 100 during a call. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a sequence of negotiation processing means for determining a connection medium. The processing procedure of the IP telephone 100 according to the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. Since IP phone 100 serves as both a caller and a callee, in the following description, it is simply referred to as an IP phone without a reference sign, and when functioning as a caller, In the case of functioning as a receiving side, it is referred to as a receiving side IP telephone.

  When the incoming call to the IP telephone is detected in the process of step S10, the negotiation processing means 210 detects the connection medium such as the codec and the communication packet length notified from the other party IP telephone in the process of step S11, and Confirmation process whether or not has the corresponding connection media. When communication is possible using the corresponding connection medium, the connection medium is selected to match the communication environment, and the connection process is performed in the process of step S12.

The operation of the negotiation processing unit 210 in the process of step S11 is performed as shown in the sequence diagram of FIG. That is, the originating IP telephone first transmits an INVITE message (F1) by designating an identifier called SIP-URL of the terminating IP telephone in sequence SQ10. This INVITE message (F1) is appended with a description for determining a codec used for communication, a packet length, and the like. In the sequence SQ10 of FIG. 4, an example in which 10 msec is described as the packet length (Ptime) is shown, and the description regarding the codec is omitted. In the sequence diagram of FIG. 4, a management server that manages IP telephones is interposed on both the caller side and the callee side, but the management server is not shown. At 200, a 200 OK (F2) message indicating the response of the called IP phone is returned to the calling IP phone. This 200 OK (F2) message is added with a description of a codec and a packet length as connection media used by the called party for communication. In SQ11, an example in which 10 msec is described as a packet length (Ptime) is shown, and a description regarding a codec is omitted. Normally, the response on the called side is acceptable if the codec or packet length specified by the caller can be used, but the response is acceptable if the codec specified by the caller cannot be used on the callee. A process is taken to respond to the codec that can be used by the called party and to match it with the calling party. For this purpose, the self-codec list 211 and the partner codec list 212 provided in the negotiation processing unit 210 are referred to.

  When the connection media used for communication between the caller and the callee are matched in sequence SQ11, the caller IP phone returns a confirmation signal ACK (F3) to the callee IP phone in sequence SQ12 to determine the connection media. The connection medium is determined by the unit 208. In step S12, connection processing is performed between the originating IP phone and the terminating IP phone, and in step S13, a call is started. That is, the media session communication of sequence SQ13 in FIG. 4 shows this. Here, 10 msec determined by the negotiation process of sequence SQ10 to sequence SQ12 is used as the packet length (Ptime) of communication.

  During this call, a function change operation may be performed on the incoming IP phone. The presence / absence of such a change is determined in the determination process of step S14. An example of a case where there is a request to change the connection medium is a case where an elderly user performs a function change, for example, an operation to slow down the speech speed by operating a speech speed conversion button. Due to this function change, there is a possibility that the processing load of the CPU 201 constituting the control means 200 becomes overloaded in the own IP telephone. When this operation is performed, the terminating IP phone performs processing to delete the silent part of the other party's voice data received and to slow down the speech speed by extending the voiced part, thereby overloading the CPU 201. It may become a load.

  When it is predicted that such an overload condition will occur, the overload condition can be avoided by changing the connection media such as the voice codec and packet length used for communication with the other party to a level with a lower processing load. Change the connection media through the negotiation process. In this case, specifically, when a call is performed with a packet length of 10 msec, if this is changed to a packet length of 20 msec, the load on the CPU related to the processing of voice data is halved, and an overload can be avoided. there is a possibility. For this reason, the negotiation process is executed to request the other party's IP telephone to change the connection medium, and the function of slowing the speech speed by matching the communication packet length in both IP telephones is performed. If there is no function change operation, the process proceeds to step S18 to determine whether or not the call is terminated.

  If there is a function change operation as described above in the determination process of step S14, a negotiation process is entered. That is, in sequence SQ20 of FIG. 4, a re-INVITE message (F4) is transmitted from the called IP telephone. The re-INVITE message (F4) has a description of the packet length to be changed. The sequence SQ20 in FIG. 4 shows an example in which a packet length (Ptime) 20 msec to be changed from 10 msec is described.

  Upon receiving the connection media change request, the load-side IP phone calculates whether the processing load of the CPU 201 constituting the control unit 200 is overloaded by the requested change in the process of step S15. . As described above, the processing capability of the CPU 201 is that the connection media (voice codec, packet length, etc.) determined with the other party and the functions (echo canceller, speech rate conversion, tone transmission) executed by the own IP telephone set. , Tone detection, three-party call, etc.). Therefore, the load calculation unit 204 recognizes the function being executed of the own IP telephone set detected by the function being executed detection unit 206, and calculates the load on the CPU 201 due to the function being executed and the load on the CPU 201 due to the connection medium requested to be changed. To do.

  Based on the processing load of the CPU 201 calculated by the load calculation unit 204 in the process of step S15, the caller IP telephone determines whether or not the processing capacity of the CPU 201 is insufficient (overload) in the process of step S16. If the processing capability is not insufficient, the negotiation processing unit 210 of the originating IP telephone returns a 200 OK (F5) message to the terminating IP telephone in the sequence SQ21 of FIG. 4 in the process of step S17. A description of a codec and a packet length is added to the 200 OK (F5) message as a connection medium used by the caller for communication. In SQ21, the CPU 201 of the caller IP telephone is not in an overload state and can respond to the connection media change request of the callee IP telephone, so 20 msec specified by the callee IP telephone is described as the packet length (Ptime).

  Since the incoming IP phone that has received the 200 OK (F5) message is matched in packet length, a confirmation signal ACK (F6) is returned to the outgoing IP phone in sequence SQ22, and the connected media determining unit 208 connects the connected media. Is determined. If the packet length change (change from 10 msec to 20 msec) is established in the process of step S17 in FIG. 3, the call is continued. That is, this is shown in the media session communication of sequence SQ23 of FIG. 4, and the packet length (Ptime) of communication is 20 msec.

  When the call ends in the process of step S18, the connection between the originating IP telephone and the called IP telephone is disconnected in the process of step S19 and the process ends. If the call is not ended, the process returns to the process of step S13 and the call is made. Will continue.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S16 that the CPU 201 has insufficient processing capacity (overload), the originating IP telephone changes the packet length in place of the 200 OK (F5) message in sequence SQ21 of FIG. A message rejecting (function change) (maintaining the packet length of 10 msec) is returned to the called IP phone, and an acknowledgment signal ACK (F6) is returned from the called IP phone to the calling IP phone in sequence SQ22. In this case, since the function change is rejected, the packet length remains 10 msec. If the call has ended in the process of step S18, the connection between the caller IP telephone and the caller telephone is disconnected in the process of step S19, and the process ends. If the call has not ended, the process returns to step S13 to continue the call.

  In the above description, the case where the function change is performed in the receiving side IP telephone has been described as an example. However, when the function change operation is performed in the calling side IP telephone, the change of the connection medium is similarly negotiated. Can do.

  The operation of the above IP telephone is an operation when a change of the connection medium is requested during a call. However, before the caller IP telephone and the callee IP telephone are connected, the CPU of any of the IP telephones The processing of the present invention can also be performed when it is predicted that the processing load will be overloaded. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the IP telephone in this case. Note that the negotiation process by the negotiation processing unit 210 in the flowchart of FIG. 5 is a sequence similar to the sequence shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 5, when the incoming call to the destination IP telephone is detected in the process of step S20, the negotiation processing means 210 uses the connection medium such as the codec and communication packet length notified from the other party IP telephone in the process of step S21. To detect. Then, in the processing of step S22, the load calculation unit 204 calculates the processing load of the CPU 201 based on the operating function of the IP telephone detected by the operating function detection unit 206 and the connection medium detected in step S21. In this case, since the IP telephone is not yet connected to the caller IP telephone, the function during operation of the callee IP telephone is a function operating other than a call.

  Next, based on the processing load of the CPU 201 calculated by the load calculation unit 204 in the process of step S22, the called IP phone determines whether the processing capacity of the CPU 201 is insufficient (overload) in the process of step S23. . If the processing capacity of the CPU 201 is not insufficient, the process proceeds to step S26, and connection processing between the caller IP phone and the callee phone is performed.

  If the CPU 201 determines that the processing capacity of the CPU 201 is insufficient (overload) in the determination process of step S23, the incoming IP phone connects the negotiation processing means 210 to the outgoing IP phone using the negotiation process sequences SQ20 to SQ22 of FIG. Request media change. As a result of this negotiation process, if the connection medium is changed in step S25, connection processing between the caller IP phone and the callee phone is performed in step S26.

  Then, the call is started in the process of step S28. If the call is not ended in the process of step S29, the process returns to the process of step S28 and the call is continued. If the call is ended, the call between IP telephones is performed in the process of step S30. The connection is disconnected and the process ends.

  On the other hand, if the change of the connection medium is not established in the process of step S25 by the above-described negotiation process, the communication (connection) is rejected in the process of step S27, and the process is terminated.

  In the above description, the case where the processing load of the CPU 201 is predicted to be overloaded in the incoming IP phone prior to connection has been described as an example. However, when the processing load of the CPU 201 is overloaded in the incoming IP phone. If predicted, the originating IP telephone can negotiate with the other party IP telephone after changing the connection medium to a medium with a low load level.

  As described above in detail, when it is predicted that an overload state exceeding the processing capability of the control means (CPU or DSP) of the IP telephone that controls connection and communication with the other party is predicted, If the overload condition can be avoided by changing the connection media such as the voice codec and packet length used for communication with the device, the connection hardware is changed. There is no need to improve the system, and it is possible to eliminate the need to impose functional restrictions on the product and reduce specifications.

1 is a system configuration diagram showing a configuration of an IP telephone system using an IP telephone according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the IP telephone concerning the Example of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the IP telephone for controlling the processing load of CPU which comprises a control means. It is a sequence diagram which shows the sequence of the negotiation process means which determines a connection medium. It is a flowchart which shows the other process sequence of the IP telephone for controlling the processing load of CPU which comprises a control means.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 IP telephone 110 LAN interface 120 Speaker 130 Microphone 140 Voice codec 150 Display part 160 Input part 200 Control means 201 CPU
202 ROM
203 RAM
204 Load Calculation Unit 206 In-Function Function Detection Unit 210 Negotiation Processing Unit 211 Self Codec List 212 Partner Codec List 208 Connected Media Determination Unit

Claims (7)

In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
Based on the connection media change request received from the one IP telephone by the negotiation processing means, the load calculation unit calculates the CPU processing load when the connection media is changed, and the calculated processing load determines the CPU processing capacity. If not, the connection medium determination unit determines a change to the connection medium for which the change is requested,
An IP telephone configured to reject a change request to the one of the IP telephones when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU. In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When the IP phone has a function change operation performed by the load calculation unit of the one IP phone when a function change operation of the one IP phone is performed during a connection call with the other IP phone The CPU processing load is calculated, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the CPU processing capacity, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone transmits a connection media change request to the other IP telephone. An IP telephone characterized by comprising. In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When an incoming call is received at one IP telephone, the processing load on the CPU when connected by the connection medium specified by the information on the connection medium based on the information on the connection medium received from the other IP telephone by the negotiation processing means Is calculated by the load calculation unit, and if the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capability of the CPU, the connection medium determination unit determines the connection medium received from the other IP telephone as a connection medium for connection. ,
An IP telephone configured to request the other IP telephone to change a connection medium when the calculated processing load exceeds a processing capacity of a CPU. In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
Connection between IP telephones is performed using the connection medium determined based on the connection medium change request received from one IP telephone by the negotiation processing means, and the load calculation unit calculates the CPU processing load after the connection medium is changed. If the calculated processing load does not exceed the processing capacity of the CPU, the connection is continued,
An IP telephone configured to request connection change of the one IP telephone when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU. In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When the IP phone has a function change operation performed on one IP phone during a connection call with the other IP phone, the load calculation unit of the one IP phone performs the function change. The processing load is calculated, and when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU, the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone transmits a connection media change request to the other IP telephone. An IP telephone characterized by the above. In an IP telephone having negotiation processing means for executing a negotiation process for determining or changing a connection medium for communication between IP telephones to be connected,
The IP telephone includes a load calculation unit that calculates a processing load of a CPU that constitutes a control unit, an executing function detection unit that detects an operating function of the IP phone, a connection medium determination unit that determines the connection medium, With
When an incoming call is received at one IP telephone, the load calculating unit uses the connection medium determined by the negotiation processing means based on the connection medium information received from the other IP telephone to connect to the other IP telephone. Calculate the CPU processing load after connecting using the connection medium. If the calculated processing load does not exceed the CPU processing capacity, continue the connection.
An IP telephone configured to request the other IP telephone to change the connection medium when the calculated processing load exceeds the processing capacity of the CPU. The connection between the IP telephones is rejected when a connection media change request by the negotiation processing means of the one IP telephone is not established with the other IP telephone. Item 7. The IP telephone set according to item 3 or item 6.

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