JP2009094874A - Media transfer method, its device, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To ensure a media distribution service in bulk which does not place burden on an edge router or the like. <P>SOLUTION: In a viewing/listening channel control part 61, when a viewing/listening request or viewing/listening stopping request specifying a channel is received, a viewing/listening channel management list for managing channel information of a media signal to be distributed for each terminal is renewed according to the request. In a distribution media signal channel selecting part 62 among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from an external NW side, a media signal of a channel with channel information described in the viewing/listening channel management list is transferred to an appropriate terminal. In a packet discard processing part 63, MLDv2 message to the external NW side is restrained by discarding the media signal of a channel with channel information not described in the viewing/listening channel list, thus reducing load on an edge router or the like in copying the media signal or processing the MLDv2 message. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technology for transferring information packets (hereinafter referred to as media or media signals) such as video information and audio information between a home network (in-house NW) and various servers, particularly a large amount of video / audio. The present invention relates to media transfer technology corresponding to media distribution.

  Conventionally, video / audio media distributed from a distribution server is transferred to a terminal device (media terminal) such as a video / audio receiving terminal installed in the home NW and accommodated in the home NW, and the media terminal 2. Description of the Related Art Media transfer devices that provide media distribution services that can be viewed on the Internet are known.

  2 and 3 show an example of a media distribution service system using a conventional media transfer device, in which 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4 are media transfer devices, 2- 1, 2-2, 2-3 and 2-4 are media terminals (terminals) that receive the media distribution service, 3-1, 3-2, 3-3 and 3-4 are ONUs, and 4 is a media distribution service. The edge routers 5 and 5 are distribution servers (see Patent Document 1).

  As shown in FIG. 2, the media transfer apparatuses 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4 are respectively connected to the ch1, ch2, and the like from the terminals 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, and 2-4. When the viewing request for ch3 and ch3 is received, the received viewing request is transferred to ONU 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 3-4, respectively, and further ONU 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 3 -4 transfers all transferred viewing requests to the edge router 4.

  The edge router 4 selects a necessary channel according to each viewing request from the media signals of all channels distributed from the distribution server 5, and transfers the selected channel to each ONU.

  That is, among the viewing requests transferred from the ONUs 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, and 3-4, for ch 1 that has a viewing request from only one terminal, the ch 1 distributed from the distribution server 5 The media signal is distributed to the ONU 3-1 that has transmitted the ch1 viewing request, and the ch2 media signal that is distributed from the distribution server 5 is also transmitted for the ch2 that is requested to be viewed from only one terminal. This is distributed to the ONU 3-2 that has transmitted the ch2 viewing request. For ch3 that is requested to be viewed from a plurality of terminals, the media signal of ch3 distributed from distribution server 5 is copied by the number of requested terminals (here, two), and the ch3 Distribute to the ONUs 3-3 and 3-4 that have transmitted the viewing request.

  The ONUs 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, and 3-4 respectively send the media signals of each channel sent from the edge router 4 to the media transfer devices 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4 Further, the media transfer devices 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4 transfer the media signals of the respective channels to the terminals 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, and 2-4, respectively. To do.

  Here, the case where the channel desired to be viewed on the terminal 2-1 is switched from ch1 to ch2 from the state of FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG.

  When the media transfer apparatus 2-1 receives the ch1 viewing stop request and the ch2 viewing request from the terminal 2-1 when the channel is switched at the terminal 2-1, the media transfer apparatus 2-1 sends the received viewing request / viewing stop request to the ONU 3. -1 and the ONU 3-1 forwards the transferred viewing request / viewing stop request to the edge router 4.

  In the edge router 4, in accordance with the viewing request / viewing stop request transferred from the ONU 3-1, among the media signals of all channels distributed from the distribution server 5, the media signal of ch1 that has no viewing request from the subordinate terminal is received. The distribution is stopped, and the media signals of ch2 and ch3 that are requested to be viewed from multiple terminals are copied by the number of requested terminals (here, two each), and the media signals of ch2 are viewed by ch2. The request is transmitted to the ONUs 3-1 and 3-2 that have transmitted the request, and the ch3 media signal is distributed to the ONUs 3-3 and 3-4 that have transmitted the ch3 viewing request.

As described above, in the conventional edge router, it is necessary to select a requested channel in accordance with a viewing request or a viewing stop request transferred from a subordinate, and when there are viewing requests for the same channel from a plurality of terminals. It was necessary to copy the distribution media signal. For this reason, when channel switching is concentrated, the load is concentrated on the edge router, which may deteriorate the performance of distribution.
JP 2007-124393 A

  Currently, the construction of next-generation networks is progressing, the broadband network environment is being prepared, and a large amount of media can be distributed in the media distribution service.

  However, in an edge router or the like, it is necessary to select a channel to be distributed in accordance with a viewing request from a subordinate terminal, and to copy media when there are viewing requests to the same channel from a plurality of terminals. When trying to distribute a large amount of media, the load increases when viewing requests and channel switching requests from the terminal are intensively generated, the quality of the distribution service decreases, or the response to the viewing request is delayed. There has been a first problem that there is a risk that it may occur and reliable delivery cannot be performed.

  In addition, there is a second problem that there is a possibility that the quality of other services being used at the same time may be reduced due to this load.

  Also, when considering the NW equipment from the edge router to the media transfer device for providing the distribution service, the conventional method distributes individual media for each user. Therefore, considering channel switching, 2 [ ch] needs to be secured (since it is necessary to transfer signals of two channels at the same time when switching channels), if the bandwidth required for 1ch is A [Mbps], A [Mbps] There is a third problem that it is necessary to secure a bandwidth of Mbps] × N [user] × 2 [ch] and a large-scale facility is required.

  The present invention provides a media transfer method, a media transfer apparatus, and a media transfer program that solve the above-described problems.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides a media transfer method for transferring a media signal distributed from an external NW side to an accommodated terminal using a computer, wherein the viewing request specifies a channel to the computer. Alternatively, when a viewing stop request is received from the terminal, a procedure for updating the viewing channel management list for managing the channel information of the media signal to be distributed for each terminal in response to the request, and a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side Among the media signals, a procedure for transferring a media signal of a channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list to a corresponding terminal, and among the media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side, the viewing channel And a procedure for discarding media signals for channels for which channel information is not listed in the management list. It proposes a media transfer method according to claim Rukoto.

  Also, in the present invention, in a media transfer apparatus that transfers a media signal distributed from the external NW side to the accommodated terminal, when a viewing request or viewing stop request specifying the channel is received from the terminal, the channel of the media signal to be distributed The viewing channel management list that manages information for each terminal, the viewing channel control unit that updates in response to the request, and the channel information in the viewing channel management list among the media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side Channel information is described in the viewing channel management list among the distribution media signal channel selection unit for transferring the media signal of the channel described in the channel to the corresponding terminal and the media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side. And a discard processing unit for discarding media signals of channels that are not in use. Suggest A transfer device.

  According to the present invention, there is provided a program for causing a computer to function as a media transfer device that transfers a media signal distributed from an external NW side to an accommodated terminal. When receiving a request from a terminal, a viewing channel management list that manages channel information of a media signal to be distributed for each terminal is updated in response to the request, and a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side Among the media signals, a distribution media signal channel selection unit for transferring the media signal of the channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list to the corresponding terminal, and a plurality of media signals distributed from the external NW side Of these channels, the channel information for which channel information is not described in the viewing channel management list. Suggest transfer program for causing a and breakfasts signal as discarding process unit to discard.

  In the present invention, when the media transfer apparatus receives an MLDv2 message such as a viewing request or a viewing stop request from a terminal under its control, only the media signal of the channel for which viewing is requested is forwarded to the corresponding terminal, and the media signal without viewing request ( (Information packet) is discarded, and MLDv2 messages such as a viewing request / viewing stop request to an external NW (WAN) side such as an edge router can be suppressed.

  Conventionally, since only media signals of channels for which viewing is requested have been distributed to the media transfer device, there is no function to discard unnecessary packets. However, by adding a discard function to the media transfer device, the media transfer device It is now possible to distribute media signals of all channels including channels that do not require viewing.

  As a result, the edge router or the like performs only the transfer processing of media signals of all channels, and it is no longer necessary to perform media signal copying and MLDv2 message processing, which has been conventionally performed, thereby reducing the load on the edge router. It became possible.

  This eliminates the need for media copying and MLDv2 message processing at edge routers, increasing the load when viewing requests and channel switching requests from terminals are concentrated, and lowering the quality of the distribution service. Or the first problem that there is a risk that a response to a viewing request is delayed and reliable delivery cannot be performed can be solved. As a result, (a) a series of malicious users To reduce the load when a large amount of messages are expected to be concentrated, such as by preventing program attacks from attacking the service edge, (b) hourly every hour (during program change), and restarting after a power failure (C) services that require reliable distribution (for example, “Disaster Countermeasure Distribution”). ) It has become possible to provide a.

  In addition, when viewing requests / channel switching requests from terminals, etc. occur intensively, the load on the edge router etc. increases, and there is a possibility that the quality of other services used at the same time may be reduced. The second problem can be solved, and even when a plurality of services are used, it is possible to prevent an adverse effect (for example, it becomes difficult to make a call) of other simultaneous use services.

  Further, when considering the NW equipment from the edge router to the media transfer device for providing the distribution service, the media required for 1ch is A [ Mbps] and the total number of channels is B [ch], the bandwidth to be secured is A [Mbps] × B [ch], which can be suppressed even when there are many users. We were able to solve the third problem of requiring large-scale facilities.

  According to the present invention, when a large amount of media is distributed in the media distribution service, a load of the edge router or the like is reduced by adding a packet discarding process in the media transfer device, and a large amount of media can be distributed. Thereby, in the next generation network, it becomes possible to enjoy the merit of becoming an environment in which a large amount of media can be distributed by services such as media distribution.

  FIG. 1 shows an example of an embodiment of a media transfer apparatus of the present invention. This media transfer apparatus 6 includes a viewing channel control unit 61, a distribution media signal channel selection unit 62, and a packet discard processing unit 63. Become.

  The viewing channel control unit 61 has a built-in viewing channel management list that manages channel information of media signals to be distributed for each terminal (port that accommodates it), and receives a viewing request or a viewing stop request designating a channel from the terminal. Then, the contents of the viewing channel management list are updated in response to the request.

  The distribution media signal channel selection unit 62 is a port that accommodates a terminal corresponding to a media signal of a channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side. ).

  The packet discard processing unit 63 discards a media signal (information packet) of a channel whose channel information is not described in the viewing channel management list among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side.

  In the media transfer device 6 described above, when a viewing request or viewing stop request specifying a channel is input from the terminal and the viewing channel control unit 61 receives this, the viewing channel control unit 61 displays the contents of the viewing channel management list as follows: The channel is updated according to a viewing request or a viewing stop request specifying the channel. Next, the viewing channel control unit 61 transfers the channel information of the media signal to be distributed for each terminal to the distribution media signal channel selection unit 62.

  The distribution media signal channel selection unit 62 determines the channel to be distributed from the media signals of all channels distributed from the WAN side according to the channel information of the media signal distributed from the viewing channel control unit 61 for each terminal. A media signal is selected and distributed to each terminal, and a media signal of a channel that is not distributed is transferred to the packet discard processing unit 63.

  The packet discard processing unit 63 discards the media signal (discard packet) transferred from the distribution media signal ch selecting unit 62.

  Hereinafter, the effect of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4 showing an example of a media distribution service system using the media transfer apparatus of the present invention. In the figure, the same components as those in FIGS. To express. That is, 2-1 to 2-4 are media terminals (terminals), 3-1 to 3-4 are ONUs, 4 is an edge router, 5 is a distribution server, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, 6-6. Reference numerals 4 denote media transfer apparatuses according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the distribution server 5 distributes the media signals of all channels, here ch1 to ch3, to the edge router 4, and the edge router 4 sends the media signals of all channels distributed from the distribution server 5 as they are to the ONU3. -1, 3-2, 3-3, and 3-4, and the ONUs 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, and 3-4 keep the media signals of all channels transferred from the edge router 4 as they are. Delivered to the media transfer devices 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.

  On the other hand, the media transfer devices 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, and 6-4 have viewing requests from the terminals 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, and 2-4, respectively, in the viewing channel control unit 61. Here, the viewing request for ch1, ch2, ch3, and ch3 is received, and the viewing channel management list is updated.

  The media transfer devices 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, and 6-4 respectively transmit ch1, ch1, and terminals 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, and 2-4 to the distribution media signal ch selection unit 62, respectively. The media signals of ch2, ch3, and ch3 are distributed, and the media signals of ch2, 3, ch1, 3, ch1, 2, ch1, and 2 are discarded in the packet discard processing unit 63, respectively.

  As described above, the edge router only needs to transfer the media signals (all channels) from the distribution server to the ONUs under its control as they are, and can distribute a large amount of media signals to the user without imposing a load on the edge router. it can.

  The present invention can also be realized by installing a program that realizes the functions shown in the configuration diagram of FIG. 1 via a medium or a communication line in a known computer.

The block diagram which shows an example of embodiment of the media transfer apparatus of this invention Explanatory drawing which shows an example of the media delivery service system using the conventional media transfer apparatus Explanatory drawing which shows an example of the media delivery service system using the conventional media transfer apparatus Explanatory drawing which shows an example of the media delivery service system using the media transfer apparatus of this invention

Explanation of symbols

  2-1 to 2-4: media terminal (terminal), 3-1 to 3-4: ONU, 4: edge router, 5: distribution server, 6, 6-1 to 6-4: media transfer device, 61: Viewing channel control unit, 62: distribution media signal channel selection unit, 63: packet discard processing unit.

Claims (3)

A media transfer method for transferring a media signal distributed from an external NW side to a accommodated terminal using a computer,
In the computer,
When receiving a viewing request or viewing stop request specifying a channel from a terminal, a procedure for updating a viewing channel management list for managing channel information of a media signal to be distributed for each terminal according to the request;
A procedure for transferring a media signal of a channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list to a corresponding terminal among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side;
A method of discarding a media signal of a channel whose channel information is not described in the viewing channel management list among a plurality of channels of media signals distributed from the external NW side. In a media transfer device that transfers a media signal distributed from the external NW side to the accommodated terminal,
When a viewing request or viewing stop request specifying a channel is received from a terminal, a viewing ch control unit that manages channel information of a media signal to be distributed for each terminal is updated in response to the request;
A distribution media signal channel selection unit for transferring a media signal of a channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list to a corresponding terminal among a plurality of channels of media signals distributed from the external NW side;
A media processing unit comprising: a discard processing unit configured to discard media signals of channels for which channel information is not described in the viewing channel management list among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from an external NW side apparatus. A program for causing a computer to function as a media transfer device that transfers a media signal distributed from an external NW side to a terminal accommodated therein,
The computer,
When a viewing request or viewing stop request specifying a channel is received from a terminal, a viewing ch control unit that manages channel information of a media signal to be distributed for each terminal is updated in response to the request;
A distribution media signal channel selection unit for transferring a media signal of a channel whose channel information is described in the viewing channel management list to a corresponding terminal among a plurality of channels of media signals distributed from the external NW side;
A transfer program for functioning as a discard processing unit that discards a media signal of a channel whose channel information is not described in the viewing channel management list among media signals of a plurality of channels distributed from the external NW side.

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