JP2014138355A - Congestion control method and congestion control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress re-call of a subscriber upon occurrence of congestion, and to eliminate congestion in the early stage.SOLUTION: A congestion control system 1 includes congestion management means 12 for determining whether or not it is communication restriction state due to congestion when receiving a call from a terminal 2, and storing the caller information of the terminal 2 in storage means 11 when a determination is made that it is communication restriction state, guidance delivery means 13 for delivering a guidance to notify the terminal 2 at a timing of communicable state, and notification means 13 for notifying the caller of the terminal 2 of communication permission by using the caller information of the storage means 11 when the state of congestion is relieved.

Description

  The present invention relates to a congestion control method and a congestion control system for controlling congestion when congestion occurs due to a large number of calls.

  The following technologies have been studied as countermeasures when congestion occurs due to a large number of calls to a specific area (for example, safety confirmation when a large-scale disaster occurs).

  For example, in Non-Patent Document 1, if all communication lines are blocked by a call to a specific area, it will also hinder calls to other areas. Regulatory technology is described.

  Further, Non-Patent Document 2 describes a communication time limit technique for securing a call by more people by limiting the call time during congestion to a certain time and reducing the time during which the line is in use. ing. Non-Patent Document 3 describes a disaster message dial such as a voice mail that can be recorded and reproduced by storing information such as safety as voice information using a telephone number in a disaster area as a key.

“Information and Communication Glossary (Congestion and Regulation)”, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, [online], [October 31, 2012 search], <URL: http://www.ntt-review.jp/yougo/ word.php? word_id = 4700> “Approach to issues in the information and communication field based on the earthquake disaster”, [online], [October 31, 2012 search], <URL: http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/annai/ chousa / rippou_chousa / backnumber / 2012pdf / 20120601033.pdf> "Disaster Message Dial (171)", East Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, [online], [October 31, 2012 search], <URL: http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/saigai/ voice171 / index.html>

  By performing the call restriction of Non-Patent Document 1, the subscriber who is restricted from calling does not know when it becomes possible to connect to the destination, and repeats the call many times (recall). The recall further promotes congestion, and there is a problem that the congestion is difficult to be resolved.

  Further, in the case of the communication time limitation of Non-Patent Document 2, there is an effect in the case of congestion caused by transmission capacity, but it does not exert a great effect on call concentration.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a congestion control method and a congestion control system that suppress subscriber recall when congestion occurs and quickly eliminate congestion. is there.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a congestion control method performed by a computer system, and when receiving a call from a terminal, a determination step for determining whether or not a communication restriction state due to congestion is present; and a communication restriction state; If determined, the sender information of the terminal is stored in the storage unit, and a guidance sending step for sending a notification to notify the terminal when communication is possible, and the state of congestion is eased A notification step of notifying the caller of the terminal of communication permission using the caller information of the storage unit.

  In addition, the present invention is a congestion control system, and when a call from a terminal is accepted, it is determined whether or not the communication is restricted due to congestion, and when the communication is restricted, the caller information of the terminal is stored. The congestion management means stored in the means, and the guidance sending means for sending a notification to notify the terminal when communication is possible when it is determined that the communication is restricted, and the congestion state is alleviated And notification means for notifying communication permission to the caller of the terminal using the caller information of the storage means.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the congestion control method and congestion control system which suppress a subscriber's recall at the time of congestion generation, and eliminate congestion early can be provided.

It is a functional block block diagram of the congestion control system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the outline | summary of the congestion control processing of a congestion control system. It is a figure which shows the detail of the congestion control process of a congestion control system. It is a figure which shows the example of a congestion level.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the congestion control system 1 in the present embodiment. A plurality of terminals 2 are connected to the congestion control system 1 via a network.

  The illustrated congestion control system 1 includes a caller information management unit 11, a congestion management unit 12, a guidance transmission unit 13, and a call permission notification unit 14.

  When the congestion management unit 12 accepts a call from the terminal 2, the congestion management unit 12 determines whether or not the communication restriction state is caused by the congestion. Remember. Further, the congestion management unit 12 manages the congestion state at a plurality of levels. The caller information management unit 11 stores caller information of the terminal 2 whose call (communication) is restricted due to the occurrence of congestion.

  Guidance sending unit 13 accepts an instruction from congestion management unit 12 when congestion management unit 12 determines that it is in a communication restriction state, and notifies that it is in a state where communication is possible to terminal 2 that made the call. Is sent out. When the congestion state is alleviated, the call permission notification unit 14 notifies the caller of the terminal 2 that has made a call using the caller information of the caller information management unit 11 of the call permission (communication permission).

  The congestion control system 1 described above can use, for example, a general-purpose computer system that includes a CPU, a memory, an external storage device such as an HDD, an input device, and an output device. In this computer system, each function of the congestion control system 1 is realized by the CPU executing a program for the congestion control system 1 loaded on the memory. The program for the congestion control system 1 can be stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, a CD-ROM, an MO, a DVD-ROM, or can be distributed via a network.

  In addition, the congestion control system 1 of this embodiment may be comprised with one server, or may be comprised with the some server.

  Next, processing of the congestion control system 1 will be described.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of the congestion control process performed by the congestion control system 1 in the present embodiment. In the illustrated example, the transmission terminal 21 receives an instruction from the caller (subscriber) and transmits it to a desired terminal (S1). When congestion occurs, the congestion management unit 12 of the congestion control system 1 records the caller information (for example, the caller telephone number) of the caller terminal 21 in the caller information management unit 11. In addition, the guidance sending unit 13 sends a guidance to notify the sending terminal 21 that congestion has occurred and outgoing calls are restricted, and notification is made when communication is possible (S2).

  When the congestion state is alleviated, the congestion management unit 12 notifies the call permission notification unit 14 of the congestion state (S3). The transmission permission notifying unit 14 notifies the transmission permission to the caller (or the transmission terminal 21) whose communication is restricted in S1 and whose caller information is described in the caller information management unit 11 (S4). Note that it is conceivable to use SMS, e-mail, telephone, etc. for notification of outgoing permission. In addition, the notification of the transmission permission is not performed to all the transmission terminals 21 whose transmission is restricted, but is performed while being controlled little by little according to the state of congestion so that congestion does not occur again. .

  In addition, as a notification of the transmission permission in S4, the transmission permission notifying unit 14 calls the receiving terminal 22 that the calling terminal 21 has called (sought to communicate) in S1, and between the transmitting terminal 21 and the receiving terminal 22 It is also possible to make an automatic call to connect the call (S5). In this case, the congestion management unit 12 records the callee information (for example, the callee telephone number) in the caller information management unit 11 in addition to the caller information.

  Accordingly, in this embodiment, the caller using the call terminal 21 can know when the call can be made by notifying the call permission when the call is ready. There is an effect that it is not necessary to repeat (redial) many times in order to confirm whether or not the problem has been resolved. In addition, since the caller does not recall unnecessarily, the re-call is suppressed, the promotion of the congestion state can be avoided, and the congestion can be resolved early.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing details of the congestion control process shown in FIG.

  The sending terminal 21 receives the caller's instruction and makes a call to the desired receiving terminal 22 (S11). The congestion management unit 12 of the congestion control system 1 constantly monitors the congestion state and determines whether or not it is in a communication restriction state due to congestion. In the present embodiment, the congestion management unit 12 manages the congestion state at a plurality of levels.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the level of congestion. In the example shown in the figure, levels 4 to 6 are in a state where communication restriction is performed due to the occurrence of congestion, and levels 1 to 3 are in a normal state where no congestion occurs (state where communication restriction is not performed). In addition, it shows that the degree of congestion is so high that a level becomes large.

  The congestion management unit 12 constantly monitors the state of the network and manages (knows) which level is from 1 to 6. In the example shown in FIG. It is determined that the communication is restricted.

  In the case of a communication restriction state due to congestion, the congestion management unit 12 records caller information (for example, a caller telephone number) in the caller information management unit 11 (S12) and sends guidance to the guidance transmission unit 13. Instruct (S13). In the caller information management unit 11 shown in FIG. 3, a caller telephone number is described as caller information under communication restriction. In addition to the caller information, the time at which the call is accepted may be stored in the caller information management unit 11 in a short time.

  The guidance sending unit 13 sends a guidance such as “I am very busy now. I will notify you when the customer is ready to communicate. 21 (S14). By sending such guidance to the calling terminal 21, the caller may call back (redial) in order to know that the calling terminal 21 is notified when the call becomes ready. Thus, it is possible to avoid the congestion state being promoted by unnecessary recall.

  In a normal state where congestion does not occur (here, in the case of levels 1 to 3), the congestion management unit 12 (or call processing unit (not shown)) calls the destination terminal 22 of the other party. Connect to.

  As described above, the congestion management unit 12 monitors the network state and manages the congestion state at a plurality of levels. When the congestion management unit 12 detects that the level of congestion has transitioned from a high level to a low level (the congestion state has been relaxed), the congestion management unit 12 indicates the congestion level (state) after the transition. (S15).

  For example, in the case of the congestion level shown in FIG. 4, the congestion management is performed when the congestion level transitions from level 6 to level 5, transitions from level 5 to level 4, or transition from level 4 to level 3. The unit 12 notifies the call permission notification unit 14 of the congestion level after the transition. Note that the transition from the level 3 to the level 1 in the normal state is not notified to the call permission notification unit 14.

  Further, when the congestion level is set finely, the transmission permission notification is made at a predetermined timing (periodically) instead of the timing at which the level transition is detected so that the number of notifications to the transmission permission notification unit 14 is not increased excessively. It may be notified to the unit 14.

  The call permission notification unit 14 determines the caller (calling terminal 21) that notifies the call permission by using the caller information stored in the caller information management unit 11 whose call is restricted (S16). In this embodiment, not all callers who have been restricted are notified of call permission all at once, but the call permission is sequentially notified while controlling the number of notifications so that congestion does not occur again. . Here, in accordance with the congestion level notified from the congestion management unit 12, the caller permission is sequentially notified to the caller being regulated.

  Specifically, for example, the following method may be used.

a. It is assumed that notifications are made in order from the person whose time of transmission is early.

b. A small number of notifications are made every unit time so that congestion is not promoted by notification (for example, 10 people are notified per minute).

c. The number of transmission permission notifications is controlled according to the congestion level at that time (the upper limit of the number of notifications is changed). If the congestion level is high, a small number is notified, and the number of notifications is increased as the congestion level becomes low. For example, the following control is conceivable.

When the congestion level decreases from level 6 to level 5: n people / min When the congestion level decreases from level 5 to level 4: m people / min (m> n)
Note that the number of notifications is stored in a storage unit such as a memory (not shown). The number of notifications may be set as a percentage (%) of the sender information stored in the sender information management unit 11 in addition to being set as a fixed value for each congestion level.

  The call permission notification unit 14 determines a notifier who notifies the call permission by any one of a to c or a combination thereof.

  And the transmission permission notification part 14 notifies transmission permission to the determined caller (calling terminal 21) using the caller information memorize | stored in the caller information management part 11 (S17). Notification methods include, for example, notification by text message (SMS, mail, Twitter, etc.), notification by voice message (guidance transmission, etc.).

  In the case of SMS, the caller telephone number stored in the caller information management unit 11 is used to notify a text message such as “currently ready to send” to the caller terminal 21. In the case of guidance, a call is made to the calling terminal 21 using the caller telephone number, and the caller is notified by playing a guidance such as “now available for call”. In the case of email or Twitter, a text message such as “Now you can make calls” is sent to the pre-registered address and ID. In this case, the subscriber needs to register the address and ID in advance in the caller information management unit 11 in association with his / her telephone number.

  Further, as a notification of call permission, it is also conceivable to automatically call the other party (the party who was trying to talk) that the caller called in S11 (S17 '). That is, the call is made to the caller telephone number and the callee telephone number of the call of S11, and the call is connected between the caller terminal 21 and the callee terminal 22. In this case, when the caller information is registered in the caller information management unit 11 in S12, the callee information of the call destination is also registered in the caller information management unit 11 together.

  In addition, a sender | caller can select freely which notification method is used among these some notification methods. That is, an instruction to select a notification method for calling permission is received from the caller. For example, the guidance sending unit 13 uses a guidance (for example, “Press 1 for notification by SMS or 2 for notification by guidance”) which notification method to use when sending the guidance in S14. It is conceivable to guide the caller to select a notification method using a push button or the like, and store the caller information management unit 11 in association with the caller information. Alternatively, there is a method in which a notification method is registered in advance at a site of the congestion control system and stored in a storage unit (not shown). When the notification method is selected, the transmission permission notification unit 14 notifies the transmission permission by the notification method received from the caller.

  As described above, in this embodiment, when transmission is restricted due to the occurrence of congestion, the guidance notifies the caller that the transmission permission is notified when communication is possible. As a result, the caller can know the timing when communication is possible, so it is not necessary to repeat the call (redial) to check whether the congestion has been eliminated. Can reduce stress. In addition, since the caller does not recall unnecessarily, the re-call is suppressed, the promotion of the congestion state can be avoided, and the congestion can be resolved early.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the level of communication restriction is changed from a high level to a low level, the number of transmission permission notifications is controlled according to the level after the transition, and the transmission permission is sequentially notified. In this way, by controlling the notification of transmission permission and notifying sequentially little by little, it is possible to resolve congestion early.

  Further, in this embodiment, the convenience of the caller can be improved by preparing a plurality of call permission notification methods and notifying the call permission by the notification method selected by the caller.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Many deformation | transformation are possible within the range of the summary.

1: Congestion control system 11: Caller information management unit 12: Congestion management unit 13: Guidance transmission unit 14: Transmission permission notification unit 2: Terminal 21: Transmission terminal 22: Incoming terminal

Claims (5)

A congestion control method performed by a computer system,
When receiving a call from the terminal, a determination step of determining whether or not the communication is restricted due to congestion;
When it is determined that the communication restriction state, the guidance sending step of sending the guidance to the effect that the sender information of the terminal is stored in the storage unit and notified at the timing when the terminal becomes communicable,
And a notification step of notifying the caller of the terminal of communication permission using the caller information in the storage unit when the congestion state is alleviated. The congestion control method according to claim 1,
Further management steps to manage congestion status at multiple levels,
The notification step controls the number of notifications of communication permission according to the level after the transition when the congestion level transitions from a high level to a low level, and sequentially notifies the communication permission. Method. The congestion control method according to claim 1 or 2,
The notification of communication permission in the notification step is a notification by text message, a notification by voice message, or an automatic call to a callee terminal. The congestion control method according to claim 3,
Further performing an accepting step of accepting an instruction to select the communication permission notification method from a caller;
The congestion control method according to claim 1, wherein the notification step notifies the communication permission by the notification method received in the reception step. When accepting a call from the terminal, it is determined whether or not it is in a communication restriction state due to congestion, and if it is determined as a communication restriction state, a congestion management means for storing caller information of the terminal in a storage means;
When it is determined that the communication restriction state, guidance sending means for sending a notification to notify at the timing when the terminal becomes communicable,
A congestion control system comprising: notification means for notifying the caller of the terminal of communication permission using the caller information of the storage means when the congestion state is alleviated.

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