JP2012034279A - Distribution system and distribution method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To distribute contents corresponding to the reproduction capability of a terminal while evading the congestion of a network.SOLUTION: A distribution system includes: a plurality of transcoders which are each connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer devices for transferring packets received from a distribution server, and tentatively hold contents; and a distribution controller which stores a content map indicating the contents held by each of the plurality of transcoders, and when receiving a request of the contents from a terminal, extracts the transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders on the basis of the in-zone information of the terminal, and instructs the extracted transcoder to transmit the contents requested from the terminal. The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal on the basis of information included in the request, converts the contents requested from the terminal corresponding to the capability, and transmits them to the terminal.

Description

  The present invention relates to a distribution system and a distribution method, and in particular, contents such as moving images, still images, audio, software, applications, and the like to various terminals (for example, mobile phones, PCs, game machines, etc.) via a mobile network. The present invention relates to a distribution system and a distribution method for distributing a message.

  With the progress of high-speed and large-capacity mobile networks, content distribution that distributes content to mobile terminals via mobile networks is becoming widespread.

  The mobile network is expected to further increase in speed and capacity due to LTE (Long Term Evolution) and EPC (Evolved Packet Core) technologies.

  In Patent Document 1, a plurality of transcoder devices that perform various changes are arranged on a network, and stream distribution that performs format conversion of content in accordance with the playback capability of a receiving terminal device by cooperation between these transcoder devices The system is described.

  Patent Document 2 describes a server device that converts and distributes content to be distributed to a terminal in accordance with the capability of the terminal.

International Publication No. 2006/126260 JP 2009-260818 A

  The following analysis was made by the present inventors.

  The amount of traffic in the data system in 2013 will increase from the current 8 times to 10 times, and it is predicted that video content will occupy most of the traffic. In addition, video content is becoming larger and larger due to the development of terminal capabilities. Therefore, in the near future, it is expected that a large amount of content with high-definition resolution will be distributed in the mobile network.

  On the other hand, in the present situation, when distributing on a mobile network, all content requests from all terminals are transmitted to the content distribution server via the packet transfer device, and the content distribution server passes all the requests via the packet transfer device. Distributing content to the terminal. However, this method causes the following problems.

  As a first problem, since the distance between the terminal and the content distribution server is long, it takes a long time for the content to arrive at the terminal, and the delay time from when the terminal sends a request for the content to when the content is played back Becomes longer and QoE (Quality of Experience) felt by the end user decreases.

  As a second problem, since there are a plurality of types of terminals and the capabilities such as codec and screen resolution of the content that can be received by the terminals differ, it is necessary to create in advance a content converted from the original content according to the capability of the terminal There must be.

  As a third problem, when the number of terminals increases, the content becomes large, and the traffic volume increases, the distribution capability of the content distribution server and the transfer capability of the packet transfer apparatus become bottlenecks, and as a result There is a risk that traffic in the network will be congested, delays and packet losses will occur, images will freeze on the terminal side, and audio will be interrupted.

  As a fourth problem, in order to eliminate these bottlenecks, it is necessary to continuously increase these facilities in anticipation of an increase in the number of terminals and an increase in traffic volume.

  According to the techniques described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, it is difficult to solve problems other than the second problem. This is because according to these technologies, the content to be distributed to the terminal is merely converted according to the reproduction capability of the terminal.

  Therefore, it becomes a problem to be able to distribute content according to the playback capability of the terminal while avoiding network congestion. The objective of this invention is providing the delivery system and delivery method which solve this subject.

The distribution system according to the first aspect of the present invention is:
A plurality of transcoders that are respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer devices that transfer packets received from the content distribution server and temporarily hold the content;
A content map representing the content held by each of the plurality of transcoders is accumulated, and when a content request is received from the terminal, the transformer closest to the terminal is selected from the plurality of transcoders based on the location information of the terminal. A coder, and a distribution control device that instructs the extracted transcoder to transmit the content requested by the terminal;
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on the information included in the request, converts the content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal.

The distribution system according to the second aspect of the present invention is:
A plurality of packet transfer devices;
A plurality of transcoders that temporarily hold content and convert content,
A distribution control device for controlling a plurality of transcoders is provided on a mobile network,
The plurality of transcoders are connected to each other and to at least one of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses,
Upon receiving the content request from the terminal, the distribution control apparatus acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses, extracts the transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders, To the extracted transcoder, or a location management unit for notifying the terminal of the extracted transcoder address;
A content map representing content held by each of a plurality of transcoders;
If the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested by the terminal, the extracted transcoder is instructed to acquire the content from another transcoder, and a transformer other than the extracted transcoder is instructed. A content acquisition instructing unit for instructing the extracted transcoder to acquire the content from the content distribution server when the coder does not hold the content requested from the terminal;
Each of the plurality of transcoders identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information included in the request, and at least one of the codec, resolution, bit rate, and file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability. The conversion part which converts is provided.

The delivery method according to the third aspect of the present invention is:
A plurality of transcoders respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses that transfer packets received from the content distribution server temporarily hold the content;
A step of storing a content map representing content held by each of the plurality of transcoders;
When the distribution control device receives a content request from a terminal, the distribution control device extracts a transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders based on the location information of the terminal, and extracts the transcoder to the extracted transcoder. Instructing the terminal to transmit the requested content;
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on information included in the request, converts the content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal. Including.

  According to the distribution system and distribution method of the present invention, it is possible to distribute content according to the playback capability of the terminal while avoiding network congestion.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the delivery system which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the delivery system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the transcoder in the delivery system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the delivery control apparatus in the delivery system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the delivery system which concerns on 3rd Embodiment.

  According to the 1st expansion | deployment form, the delivery system which concerns on the said 1st viewpoint is provided. According to such a distribution system and distribution method, it is possible to distribute content according to the playback capability of the terminal while avoiding network congestion.

  According to the second development mode, a distribution system is provided in which the extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information of the terminal included in the request.

  According to the third development form, the extracted transcoder converts at least one of the codec, the resolution, the bit rate, and the file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability of the terminal. Provided.

  According to the fourth development form, when the distribution control apparatus receives a request for content from the terminal, a distribution system is provided that acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses. According to this distribution system, the distribution control device can extract the transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders based on the location information of the terminal.

  According to the fifth development mode, the distribution control apparatus, when the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, extracts the extracted transcoder so as to acquire the content from another transcoder. A distribution system is provided that directs the coder. According to such a distribution system, even when the transcoder closest to the terminal does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the content is acquired from another transcoder, and the transcoder closest to the terminal transmits the content to the terminal. Content can be distributed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a decrease in QoE felt by the end user.

  According to the sixth development mode, the distribution control apparatus extracts the content from the content distribution server when the transcoder other than the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal. A distribution system is provided for instructing the designated transcoder. According to such a distribution system, the transcoder accesses the content distribution server only when none of the transcoders holds the content requested from the terminal. Therefore, the load on the content distribution server can be reduced.

  According to the seventh development mode, a distribution system is provided in which the distribution control device redirects the terminal to the extracted transcoder or notifies the terminal of the extracted transcoder address.

  According to the 8th expansion | deployment form, the delivery system which concerns on the said 2nd viewpoint is provided.

  According to the ninth development form, the packet forwarding device is an SGSN (Serving General packet radio service Support Node) device, a GGSN (Gateway General packet radio service G / S device) or a GGSN (Gateway General packet radio service G / S device). Provided by a distribution system which is a Support Node (SNode) device, or an S-GW (Serving Gateway) device or a PTGW (Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway) device of a mobile EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network It is.

  According to the tenth development mode, a delivery method according to the third viewpoint is provided.

  In the distribution system and distribution method according to the present invention, content is distributed not from the distribution server but from a transcoder located at a distance close to the terminal, so that the content distribution distance can be shortened compared to the conventional case. Therefore, the time until the content arrives at the terminal can be shortened, the delay time from when the request is made at the terminal until the content is reproduced can be greatly shortened, and the QoE (Quality of Experience) of the end user is greatly increased. Can be improved.

  Further, according to the distribution system and the distribution method according to the present invention, the transcoder determines the capability of the terminal using the model information of the portable terminal, and if necessary, the content codec, bit rate, After converting at least one of the resolution and the file format, it can be delivered to the mobile terminal via the packet transfer device.

  Furthermore, according to the distribution system and distribution method of the present invention, even if the number of terminals increases and the content becomes large, even if the amount of packet traffic flowing through the network increases significantly, the traffic congestion in the network Does not occur. Therefore, there is no delay or packet loss, and there is no problem that the image is frozen on the terminal side or the sound is interrupted.

(Embodiment 1)
The configuration and operation of the distribution system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a distribution system according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 1, the distribution system 10 includes a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses 50_1 to 50_N, a plurality of transcoders 20_1 to 20_N, and a distribution control apparatus 30.

  Each of the plurality of transcoders 20_1 to 20_N is connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses that transfer a packet received from the content distribution server, and temporarily holds the content.

  The distribution control device 30 accumulates a content map representing the content held by each of the plurality of transcoders 20_1 to 20_N. Further, when receiving a content request from the terminal 70, the distribution control device 30 extracts a transcoder closest to the terminal 70 from the plurality of transcoders 20_1 to 20_N based on the location information of the terminal 70.

  Hereinafter, a case where the transcoder 20_2 is extracted will be described as an example. The distribution control device 30 instructs the extracted transcoder 20_2 to transmit the content requested from the terminal 70.

  The transcoder 20_2 identifies the capability of the terminal 70 based on the information included in the request, converts the content requested from the terminal 70 according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal 70. Here, the transcoder 20_2 may identify the capability of the terminal 70 based on the model information of the terminal 70 included in the request, for example. The transcoder 20_2 may convert at least one of the codec, resolution, bit rate, and file format of the content requested from the terminal 70 according to the capability of the terminal 70.

  When receiving a content request from the terminal 70, the distribution control device 30 may acquire the location information of the terminal 70 from any of the plurality of packet transfer devices 50_1 to 50_N. The distribution control device 30 can extract the transcoder 20_2 closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders 20_1 to 20_N based on the location information of the terminal 70.

  When the transcoder 20_2 does not hold the content requested from the terminal 70, the distribution control device 30 instructs the transcoder 20_2 to acquire the content from another transcoder (for example, the transcoder 20_1). You may make it do. Then, even if the transcoder 20_2 closest to the terminal 70 does not hold the content requested from the terminal 70, the content is acquired from another transcoder, and the terminal from the transcoder 20_2 closest to the terminal 70 The content can be distributed to 70.

  Also, the distribution control device 30 instructs the transcoder 20_2 to acquire the content from the content distribution server 120 when no transcoder other than the transcoder 20_2 holds the content requested from the terminal 70. It is preferable. Only when none of the transcoders holds the content requested from the terminal 70, the transcoder accesses the content distribution server 120, whereby the processing load on the content distribution server 120 can be reduced.

  The distribution control apparatus 30 preferably redirects the terminal 70 to the transcoder 20_2 or notifies the terminal 70 of the address of the transcoder 20_2.

  When content including video and audio, content including software, applications, etc. is received and decoded and displayed by a mobile phone or the like, when the content is encoded and the capability information in the terminal does not match , It becomes difficult to decode the moving image stream at the terminal, and the moving image cannot be displayed or the image is distorted. If the bit rate, resolution, codec, file format, protocol, etc. do not match, even the terminal cannot perform decoding. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to convert and process content in advance for each terminal, and to create content suitable for the terminal. However, these operations are required every time the content increases or the number of types of terminals increases, which requires enormous work time and labor.

  In addition, when there are a large number of terminals to be distributed, if a large number of requests from popular terminals rush to popular content, the waiting time until distribution (TAT: Turn Around Time) may increase, The QoS (Quality of Service) of the mobile network with the terminal cannot be acquired, the traffic is congested, packet loss occurs, and the QoS experienced by the user decreases.

  Furthermore, since the network packet transfer device and the bearer QoS cannot be linked, the content bit rate exceeds the maximum bearer bit rate or the guaranteed bit rate set by the bearer QoS, and a packet loss occurs in the bearer. The video freezes on the terminal side, and it takes time to update the video, the sound is interrupted, and the quality of the service is greatly impaired.

  However, according to the distribution system according to the present embodiment, these problems are solved, and it is possible to distribute content according to the playback capability of the terminal while avoiding network congestion.

(Embodiment 2)
The configuration and operation of a distribution system according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In the following embodiments, the case where the content is a moving image will be described as an example. However, even when the content is a still image, audio, audio, software, application, or the like, the same configuration may be adopted. it can.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the distribution system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a configuration when a 3G mobile packet network is used as a network and an xGSN (serving / gateway general packet radio service support node) device is used as a packet transfer device. Here, the xGSN device refers to a device in which an SGSN (Serving GPRS Support Node) device and a GGSN (Gateway GPRS Support Node) device are installed at the same place.

  In FIG. 2, the content distribution server 120 uses, as content 100 in advance, a compression-encoded bitstream or a file storing a compression-encoded bitstream of content including at least one of moving images, still images, audio, and audio. Accumulated.

  On the mobile packet network 150, N (N ≧ 2) xGSN devices 190_1 to 190_N are provided. Radio network controller (RNC) devices 195_1 to 195_L (L ≧ 2) are connected to the xGSN device 190_1. The RNC devices 197_1 to 197_L are connected to the xGSN device 190_N.

  Note that L RNC devices are also connected to the xGSN device 190_2, but the description is omitted in FIG. Furthermore, M base stations (M ≧ 2) are connected to one RNC device. For example, M base station apparatuses 180_1 to 180_M are connected to the RNC apparatus 195_1.

  One transcoder is connected to each xGSN device. For example, the transcoder 110_1 is connected to the xGSN device 190_1.

  Further, the N transcoders 110_1 to 110_N are connected to each other. In addition, one distribution control device 160 is connected to N transcoders.

  When the mobile terminal 170 transmits a distribution connection request message describing the IP address of the content distribution server 120, the base station in the area receives the connection request message and transmits it to the RNC device that manages the base station. To do. In the case illustrated in FIG. 2, any of the base stations 181_1 to 181_M receives the connection request message and transmits it to the RNC device 195_L.

  The RNC device that has received the connection request message from the base station stores the connection request message, the IP address of the content distribution server 120, the IP address of the portable terminal 170, etc. in the payload portion of the GTP-U protocol, and collects the RNC devices. Forward the GTP-U packet to the existing xGSN device. In the case illustrated in FIG. 2, the RNC device that has received the connection request message from the base station transfers the GTP-U packet to the xGSN device 190_1 that collects the RNC devices 195_1 to 195_L.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the transcoder 110_1. The configuration of the transcoder 110_1 connected to the xGSN device 190_1 will be described with reference to FIG. Here, since the other transcoders 110_2 to 110_N have the same configuration as that of the transcoder 110_1, description thereof will be omitted.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the transcoder 110_1 includes a control signal transmission / reception unit 111, an analysis unit 115, a content temporary storage unit 113, a content list creation unit 116, a content acquisition unit 112, and a conversion unit 117.

  The control signal transmission / reception unit 111 receives the GTP-U packet storing the connection request message and the IP address from the mobile terminal 170 and the location information of the mobile terminal 170 from the xGSN device 190_1, and outputs them to the analysis unit 115.

  The analysis unit 115 reads the content of the connection request message stored in the payload portion of the GTP-U packet, and distributes the information such as the received IP address of the mobile terminal 170 and the requested content via the control signal transmission / reception unit 111. Output to the control device 160. In addition, the analysis unit 115 transmits the location information of the mobile terminal 170 to the distribution control device 160. Further, the analysis unit 115 reads out the model information of the mobile terminal 170 included in the connection request message and outputs it to the conversion unit 117.

  The content temporary storage unit 113 temporarily stores content acquired from another transcoder or the content distribution server 120.

  The content list creation unit 116 creates a content list for all content stored in the temporary content storage unit 113 at predetermined time intervals. Also, the content list creation unit 116 transmits the content list to the distribution control device 160 via the control signal transmission / reception unit 111 at predetermined time intervals.

  The content acquisition unit 112 reads the designated content from another transcoder or the content distribution server 120 according to the content acquisition notification transmitted from the distribution control device 160 and received via the control signal transmission / reception unit 111, and temporarily stores the content. Output to the unit 113 and stored in the content temporary storage unit 113.

  The conversion unit 117 receives the model information of the mobile terminal 170 included in the content request message from the analysis unit 115, and grasps capability information of the mobile terminal from the model information. Here, capability information refers to information indicating at least one of a codec, a maximum bit rate, a screen resolution, and a file format that can be received by a mobile terminal. Further, the conversion unit 117 reads out the requested content from the content temporary storage unit 113, and at least one of the codec, the maximum bit rate, the screen resolution, and the file format for the content so as to conform to the capability information as necessary. Is transmitted to the xGSN device 190_1.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the distribution control device 160. With reference to FIG. 4, the configuration of distribution control apparatus 160 will be described. Referring to FIG. 4, the distribution control device 160 includes a control signal transmission / reception unit 161, a content acquisition instruction unit 168, a content map creation / storage unit 167, and a location management unit 162.

  In FIG. 4, the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 is connected to each of the transcoders 110_1 to 110_N and exchanges with these. Here, the exchange between the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 and the transcoder 110_1 will be described as a representative example. Note that the exchange between the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 and the transcoders 110_2 to 110_N is the same as the exchange between the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 and the transcoder 110_1, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  The control signal transmission / reception unit 161 receives the received IP address of the portable terminal 170, the IP address of the content distribution server 120, the requested content information, and the like from the transcoder 110_1 and outputs them to the content acquisition instruction unit 168. In addition, the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 receives location information of the mobile terminal 170 and outputs the location information to the location management unit 162. Furthermore, the control signal transmission / reception unit 161 receives the content list from the transcoder 110_1 at predetermined time intervals and outputs the content list to the content map creation / accumulation unit 167.

  The content map creating / accumulating unit 167 receives a content list from each of the transcoders 110_1 to 110_N at predetermined time intervals, and indicates which content is temporarily stored in which transcoder. Create and accumulate.

  The location management unit 162 extracts which transcoder is physically close as viewed from the mobile terminal from the location information of the mobile terminal 170, and outputs it to the content acquisition instruction unit 168.

  The content acquisition instruction unit 168 receives the received IP address of the mobile terminal 170 and the requested content information, and also receives the location of the transcoder physically close to the mobile terminal from the location management unit 162, and transmits and receives control signals. The mobile terminal 170 is instructed to redirect to a physically close transcoder via the unit 161 and the transcoder and the xGSN device.

  Further, the content acquisition instruction unit 168 reads the content map from the content map creation / accumulation unit 167 and determines whether the extracted transcoder temporarily accumulates the content requested by the mobile terminal 170. If the extracted transcoder stores the content requested by the portable terminal 170, the content acquisition instruction unit 168 does not notify the extracted transcoder.

  On the other hand, if the extracted transcoder does not store the content requested by the mobile terminal 170, the content acquisition instructing unit 168 selects any of the transcoders other than the extracted transcoder. However, after determining from the content map whether or not the content requested by the mobile terminal 170 is accumulated, a content acquisition notification is output to the extracted transcoder via the control signal transmission / reception unit 161.

  The content acquisition notification includes the following first and second notifications. The first notification is a notification of the IP address of the transcoder storing the requested content. The second notification is a notification of an instruction to acquire content. If the requested content is not stored in any other transcoder, the IP address of the content distribution server 120 is notified as the first notification instead of notifying the transcoder IP address.

  FIG. 2 shows a configuration in the case where one transcoder is connected to one xGSN device. A configuration in which one transcoder is connected to a plurality of xGSN devices can also be employed.

  Moreover, in FIG. 2, it was set as the structure using the xGSN apparatus which integrated the SGSN apparatus and the GGSN apparatus. However, the structure which isolate | separated the SGSN apparatus and the GGSN apparatus is also employable. In the case of such a configuration, a configuration in which a transcoder is connected to either the SGSN device or the GGSN device can be employed.

  The mobile terminal 170 may be a mobile phone, a smartphone, or a PC equipped with a data communication card. Moreover, the portable terminal 170 should just be a terminal which can communicate with a mobile 3G network or a mobile 3.9G network.

(Embodiment 3)
A distribution system according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the distribution system according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 5, the operation of the component denoted by the same reference numeral as in FIG. 2 is the same as the operation of the component denoted by the same reference numeral in FIG.

  In FIG. 5, a mobile LTE (Long Term Evolution) / EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network 250, which is a 3.9 generation mobile network, is used as a mobile network, not a 3G mobile network, and an S The structure which uses a / P-GW apparatus is shown. In LTE, the function of the base station device and the function of the RNC device are degenerated, and only the eNodeB device is configured.

  In EPC, an S / P-GW (Serving / Packet Data-Gateway) device is connected to the eNodeB device. Here, the S / P-GW (Serving / PDN Gateway) device means that the S-GW (Serving Gateway) device and the P-GW (Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway) device are integrated. To do. FIG. 5 illustrates a configuration in which M eNodeB devices are connected to one S / P-GW device. For example, eNodeB devices 260_1 to 260_M are connected to the S / P-GW device 290_1.

  One transcoder is connected to each S / P-GW apparatus. For example, the transcoder 110_1 is connected to the S / P-GW apparatus 290_1.

  When the portable terminal 170 transmits a distribution connection request message describing the IP address of the content distribution server 120, the eNodeB device that is in the area receives the connection request message. In the case illustrated in FIG. 2, any of the eNodeB devices 261_1 to 261_M receives the connection request message. Any of the eNodeB devices 261_1 to 261M stores the connection request message, the IP address of the content distribution server 120, the IP address of the portable terminal, and the like in the payload portion of the GTP-U protocol, and the S / P-GW device 290_2 To transfer the GTP-U packet.

  The transcoder 110_1 has the configuration shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the connection destination of the control signal transmission / reception unit 111 is the S / P-GW apparatus 290_1. Therefore, the control signal transmission / reception unit 111 receives the connection request message from the mobile terminal 170, the GTP-U packet storing the IP address, and the location information of the mobile terminal 170 from the S / P-GW apparatus 290_1. The other transcoders 110_2 to 110_N also perform the above-described exchanges with the S / P-GW apparatuses connected thereto.

  In the present embodiment, the content distribution server 120 is connected to the S / P-GW apparatuses 290_1 to 290_N.

  FIG. 5 shows a configuration in which one transcoder is connected to one S / P-GW apparatus. However, a configuration in which one transcoder is connected to a plurality of S / P-GW apparatuses may be employed.

  Furthermore, in FIG. 5, it was set as the structure using the S / P-GW apparatus which integrated the S-GW apparatus and the P-GW apparatus. However, a configuration in which the S-GW apparatus and the P-GW apparatus are separated can be employed. In the case of such a configuration, a configuration in which a transcoder is connected to either the S-GW device or the P-GW device can be employed.

  Furthermore, the mobile terminal 170 may be a mobile phone, a smartphone, or a PC equipped with a data communication card. Moreover, the portable terminal 170 should just be a terminal which can communicate with a mobile 3G network or a mobile 3.9G network.

  According to the first to third embodiments, a plurality of transcoders are arranged adjacent to a packet transfer device on a mobile network, the content is temporarily held in the transcoder, and the transcoders are connected. In addition, a distribution control device that controls a plurality of transcoders is provided, and the distribution control device connects the terminal to a transcoder that is close in distance from the terminal using the location information of the terminal, and distributes content from the transcoder to the terminal. . If the requested content is not stored in a transcoder that is close to the terminal, the content is acquired from a neighboring transcoder in accordance with an instruction from the distribution control device. Further, when the content is not stored in the neighboring transcoder, the content is acquired from the content distribution server for the first time, and the content is distributed to the terminal. Also, the transcoder uses the terminal model information to convert the content so as to match the terminal capability. This brings about the following first to fourth effects.

  First, since the content is distributed not from the distribution server but from the transcoder located at a distance close to the terminal, the content distribution distance can be shortened as compared with the conventional case. Therefore, the time until the content arrives at the terminal can be shortened, the delay time from when the request is made at the terminal until the content is reproduced can be greatly shortened, and the QoE (Quality of Experience) of the end user is greatly increased. Can be improved.

  Secondly, the transcoder uses the model information of the mobile terminal to determine the capability of the terminal, and if necessary, converts at least one of the content codec, bit rate, resolution, and file format to match the capability. In addition, it can be distributed to the mobile terminal via the packet transfer device.

  Third, since the number of terminals increases and the content becomes large, traffic congestion within the network does not occur even if the amount of packet traffic flowing through the network increases significantly. Therefore, there is no delay or packet loss, and there is no problem that the image is frozen on the terminal side or the sound is interrupted.

  Fourth, in anticipation of an increase in the number of terminals and traffic, it is not necessary to constantly increase the content distribution server, the packet transfer device, etc., and it is not necessary to modify the terminals.

  It should be noted that the disclosures of the above patent documents are incorporated herein by reference. Within the scope of the entire disclosure (including claims) of the present invention, the embodiment can be changed and adjusted based on the basic technical concept. Various combinations and selections of various disclosed elements are possible within the scope of the claims of the present invention. That is, the present invention of course includes various variations and modifications that could be made by those skilled in the art according to the entire disclosure including the claims and the technical idea.

  In addition, although a part or all of the said embodiment can be described as the following additional remarks, it is not limited to these.

(Supplementary Note 1) A plurality of transcoders that are respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses that transfer packets received from the content distribution server, and temporarily hold content,
A content map representing the content held by each of the plurality of transcoders is accumulated, and when a content request is received from a terminal, the terminal is selected from the plurality of transcoders based on location information of the terminal. And a distribution control device that instructs the extracted transcoder to transmit the content requested from the terminal,
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on information included in the request, converts content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal. Delivery system.

  (Supplementary note 2) The distribution system according to supplementary note 1, wherein the extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information of the terminal included in the request.

  (Supplementary note 3) The extracted transcoder converts at least one of a codec, a resolution, a bit rate, and a file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability of the terminal. The delivery system according to Supplementary Note 1 or 2.

  (Supplementary note 4) When the distribution control device receives a content request from a terminal, the distribution control device acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer devices. The distribution system according to one.

  (Supplementary Note 5) When the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the distribution control device is configured to acquire the extracted transcoder so as to obtain the content from another transcoder. The distribution system according to any one of appendices 1 to 4, wherein the coder is instructed.

  (Supplementary note 6) When the transcoder other than the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the delivery control device acquires the content from the content delivery server. The distribution system according to appendix 5, characterized in that the extracted transcoder is instructed.

  (Supplementary note 7) The distribution system according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 6, wherein the distribution control device redirects the terminal to the extracted transcoder.

  (Supplementary note 8) The distribution system according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 6, wherein the distribution control device notifies the terminal of the address of the extracted transcoder.

  (Supplementary note 9) The distribution control device is at least one of the plurality of transcoders, or is provided separately from the plurality of transcoders. 9. The distribution system according to any one of 1 to 8.

  (Supplementary note 10) Any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 9, wherein at least one of the plurality of transcoders is connected to a plurality of devices among the plurality of packet transfer devices. The delivery system described in.

  (Supplementary note 11) The distribution system according to any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 10, wherein each of the plurality of transcoders notifies the distribution control device of a list of contents to be held at a predetermined time interval. .

  (Supplementary note 12) The distribution system according to any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 11, wherein the plurality of transcoders are connected to each other.

(Supplementary note 13) a plurality of packet transfer devices;
A plurality of transcoders that temporarily hold content and convert content,
A distribution control device for controlling the plurality of transcoders on a mobile network;
The plurality of transcoders are connected to each other and connected to at least one of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses,
Upon receiving a content request from a terminal, the distribution control apparatus acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses, and the transcoder closest to the terminal among the plurality of transcoders And a location management unit that redirects the terminal to the extracted transcoder, or notifies the terminal of the address of the extracted transcoder,
A content map representing content held by each of the plurality of transcoders;
If the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the extracted transcoder is instructed to acquire the content from another transcoder, and the extracted transcoder A content acquisition instructing unit for instructing the extracted transcoder to acquire content from the content distribution server when a transcoder other than the coder does not hold the content requested from the terminal; ,
Each of the plurality of transcoders identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information included in the request, and the codec, resolution, bit rate, and file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability A distribution system comprising a conversion unit that converts at least one of the above.

  (Supplementary Note 14) The packet forwarding device may be an SGSN (Serving General Packet Radio Service Support Node Node) device, a GGSN (Gateway General Packet Radio Transport Node Group) or a GGSN (Gateway General Packet Radio Service Node Group). APPENDIX 1 characterized by being a device, or a mobile EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network S-GW (Serving Gateway) device or PTGW (Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway) device 13 distribution system according to any one of.

  (Supplementary note 15) The distribution system according to any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 14, wherein the content includes at least one of a moving image, a still image, audio, audio, software, and an application.

  (Supplementary note 16) The distribution system according to any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 15, wherein the terminal includes at least one of a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PC on which a communication card is mounted, and a game machine.

(Supplementary note 17) a step in which a plurality of transcoders respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses that transfer packets received from a content distribution server temporarily hold content;
A step of storing a content map representing content held by each of the plurality of transcoders;
When the distribution control device receives a content request from a terminal, the distribution control device extracts a transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders based on the location information of the terminal, and extracts the transcoder to the extracted transcoder. Instructing the terminal to transmit the requested content;
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on information included in the request, converts the content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal. A delivery method comprising:

  (Supplementary note 18) The distribution method according to supplementary note 17, wherein the extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information of the terminal included in the request.

  (Supplementary note 19) The extracted transcoder converts at least one of a codec, a resolution, a bit rate, and a file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability of the terminal. The delivery method according to appendix 17 or 18.

  (Supplementary note 20) Any one of Supplementary notes 17 to 19, wherein when the distribution control device receives a request for content from a terminal, the distribution control device acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer devices. The delivery method as described in kaichi.

  (Supplementary Note 21) When the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the distribution control device is configured to acquire the content from another transcoder. 21. The distribution method according to any one of appendices 17 to 20, further comprising a step of instructing a coder.

  (Supplementary Note 22) When the distribution control device does not hold the content requested from the terminal by a transcoder other than the extracted transcoder, the content control device acquires the content from the content distribution server. The distribution method according to appendix 21, characterized by including a step of instructing the extracted transcoder.

  (Supplementary note 23) The distribution method according to any one of supplementary notes 17 to 22, wherein the distribution control device includes a step of redirecting the terminal to the extracted transcoder.

  (Supplementary note 24) The distribution method according to any one of supplementary notes 17 to 22, wherein the distribution control apparatus notifies the terminal of the extracted transcoder address.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Distribution system 20_1-20_N, 110_1-110_N Transcoder 30, 160 Distribution control apparatus 50_1-50_N Packet transfer apparatus 70 Terminal 100 Content 111 Control signal transmission / reception part 112 Content acquisition part 113 Content temporary storage part 115 Analysis part 116 Content list creation part 117 Conversion unit 120 Content distribution server 150 Mobile packet network 160 Distribution control device 161 Control signal transmission / reception unit 162 Location management unit 167 Content map creation / accumulation unit 168 Content acquisition instruction unit 170 Mobile terminals 180_1 to 180_M, 181_1 to 181_M, 182_1 to 182_M 183_1 to 183_M Base station apparatuses 190_1 to 190_N xGSN apparatuses 195_1 to 195_L, 197_1 to 19 7_L RNC device 250 Mobile LTE / EPC network 260_1-260_M, 261_1-261_M, 262_1-262_M eNodeB device

Claims (10)

A plurality of transcoders that are respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer devices that transfer packets received from the content distribution server and temporarily hold the content;
A content map representing the content held by each of the plurality of transcoders is accumulated, and when a content request is received from a terminal, the terminal is selected from the plurality of transcoders based on location information of the terminal. And a distribution control device that instructs the extracted transcoder to transmit the content requested from the terminal,
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on information included in the request, converts content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal. Delivery system.   The distribution system according to claim 1, wherein the extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on model information of the terminal included in the request.   The extracted transcoder converts at least one of a codec, a resolution, a bit rate, and a file format of content requested from the terminal according to the capability of the terminal. Or the delivery system of 2.   4. The distribution control device according to claim 1, wherein upon receiving a content request from a terminal, the distribution control device acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer devices. The delivery system described in.   The distribution control apparatus instructs the extracted transcoder to acquire content from another transcoder when the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal. The distribution system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the distribution system is characterized in that:   When the transcoder other than the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the distribution control device is configured to acquire the content from the content distribution server. 6. The distribution system according to claim 5, wherein the coder is instructed.   The distribution control device redirects the terminal to the extracted transcoder or notifies the terminal of the address of the extracted transcoder. The delivery system according to item 1. A plurality of packet transfer devices;
A plurality of transcoders that temporarily hold content and convert content,
A distribution control device for controlling the plurality of transcoders on a mobile network;
The plurality of transcoders are connected to each other and connected to at least one of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses,
Upon receiving a content request from a terminal, the distribution control apparatus acquires the location information of the terminal from any of the plurality of packet transfer apparatuses, and the transcoder closest to the terminal among the plurality of transcoders And a location management unit that redirects the terminal to the extracted transcoder, or notifies the terminal of the address of the extracted transcoder,
A content map representing content held by each of the plurality of transcoders;
If the extracted transcoder does not hold the content requested from the terminal, the extracted transcoder is instructed to acquire the content from another transcoder, and the extracted transcoder A content acquisition instructing unit for instructing the extracted transcoder to acquire content from the content distribution server when a transcoder other than the coder does not hold the content requested from the terminal; ,
Each of the plurality of transcoders identifies the capability of the terminal based on the model information included in the request, and the codec, resolution, bit rate, and file format of the content requested from the terminal according to the capability A distribution system comprising a conversion unit that converts at least one of the above.   The packet forwarding device is an SGSN (Serving General packet radio service Support Node) device, a GGSN (Gateway General packet radio service base node), or an XGSN (Serial General Support Node) device. 9. Any one of claims 1 to 8, which is an S-GW (Serving Gateway) device or a PTGW (Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway) device of a mobile EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network. Distribution system according to item 1 or. A plurality of transcoders respectively connected to at least one of a plurality of packet transfer apparatuses that transfer packets received from the content distribution server temporarily hold the content;
A step of storing a content map representing content held by each of the plurality of transcoders;
When the distribution control device receives a content request from a terminal, the distribution control device extracts a transcoder closest to the terminal from the plurality of transcoders based on the location information of the terminal, and extracts the transcoder to the extracted transcoder. Instructing the terminal to transmit the requested content;
The extracted transcoder identifies the capability of the terminal based on information included in the request, converts the content requested from the terminal according to the capability, and transmits the content to the terminal. A delivery method comprising:

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