JP5022088B2 - Application terminal device and route selection method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an application terminal device that provides a service from an application server device via a network, and in particular, can be connected to a network that can select a route to be used from a plurality of routes, and is used for providing a service from the application server device. The present invention relates to an application terminal device having a function for selecting a route and a route selection method thereof.

In recent years, by connecting a user network or user terminal to an open network such as the Internet via a plurality of links (interfaces) (generally called “multilink connection”, “multihome connection”, etc.), one link Even if a failure occurs in the route that passes through, the Internet connection is maintained by the route that passes through the remaining links, and the transmission data is distributed over multiple routes to avoid congestion, delay, packet loss, and improve communication quality The technique which performs is developed (for example, patent documents 1-2).
JP 2003-338843 A JP 2005-57487 A

  However, in the above-described technique, how to transfer data using a plurality of routes is determined by transferring a data packet to a route selected at the upstream branch point of the plurality of routes. The router having the function to perform the control by itself. In this specification, any device that is installed in a network and has a function of transferring the data packet to the next node specified according to the destination of the data packet operates according to the Internet protocol (IP). Regardless of whether or not it is a device, everything corresponds to a router. Further, not only a device that transfers data packets received from the outside, but also a device that transfers data packets passed from its own application layer corresponds to the router described here.

  Here, in an application terminal (user terminal) that provides a service from an application server, if communication quality deteriorates or a failure occurs in the middle of a route through which data related to the service is currently transferred, the service is received. If there is no route having sufficient communication quality when the service is requested, the service cannot be received. In addition, especially in open networks, communication channel quality degradation and failure, recovery, and the appearance of new communication channels tend to occur frequently. However, in the above-described technology, the user terminal cannot participate in the route selection performed by the router, and cannot know what state the selectable route is in the first place.

  In recent years, user terminals have come to be connected to a wide variety of communication networks such as wired networks such as optical fibers, wireless LANs, and cellular phone networks. A plurality of user terminals appear in such a ubiquitous network environment. In this route, the provided communication quality is greatly different for each route (communication network in this example). Then, it becomes important to select an appropriate communication quality route according to the type and nature of the service provided from the application server. However, it is difficult for a router that selects a route in the above-described technique to select a different route for each service provided from an application server.

  Furthermore, the communication conditions (loss, delay, fluctuation, line bandwidth, etc.) suitable for providing the service from the application server are, for example, whether the application is video transmission, voice call, game, or home appliance. Depending on whether it is financial, etc., even in the same video transmission application, it depends on the content of the video content, and whether the user terminal for viewing the content is a TV, a PC, a mobile phone, etc. Can also be different. Communication conditions suitable for providing services can be obtained from attributes for each service depending on the application (for example, for video transmission, content viewing conditions such as frame rate, screen size, effective bandwidth, etc.). desirable. Therefore, if a router that selects a route at a branching point of a plurality of routes tries to obtain communication conditions suitable for providing various services, it places a heavy load on the router. Or, it doesn't scale well when applications and services increase.

  If the router cannot select a route that satisfies the communication conditions suitable for providing the service from the application server, and the user terminal cannot participate in the route selection, the user is currently selected. Only services that can be provided in the communication environment of the existing route can be enjoyed, or services can be enjoyed on the route of the insufficient communication environment. If the route selected by the router can be changed according to the service specified from the user terminal, the user can also enjoy the service that can be provided in the communication environment of other routes among the plurality of routes. Should be able to.

  In the present invention, in consideration of the above circumstances, the application terminal apparatus determines which of a plurality of paths should be selected, and the data transfer apparatus at the branch point of the plurality of paths is the application terminal apparatus. An object of the present invention is to realize a mechanism capable of selecting a route in accordance with the determination.

  An application terminal apparatus according to the present invention is an application terminal apparatus that can be connected to a network in which at least one service is provided from at least one application server apparatus. Condition specifying means for obtaining communication conditions suitable for provision, storage means for storing information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of paths from the application server device to the application terminal device, and the condition specifying means Determining a route to be used for providing the designated service from the plurality of routes based on the condition obtained by the information and the information stored in the storage means, Select a route to the application terminal device Wherein the determined path by a device having a function of transferring data and a routing means for delivering an indication message to be selectively.

  According to this configuration, the application terminal apparatus determines which of the plurality of downlink paths from the application server apparatus should be selected, and the data transfer apparatus (for example, described later) according to the determination of the application terminal apparatus It is possible for the first router device to select a route. The information stored in the storage means may be pre-stored as static information about the communication environment of each route (downlink route), or the communication environment of each route that changes from moment to moment is observed. The resulting dynamic information may be stored each time. The designation of the service may be performed automatically by the application terminal device or based on an input by the user.

  An application terminal device according to the present invention is disposed between the application server device and the network, and has a function of selecting an instructed route from the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device Information acquisition means for receiving information on each route from the first router device may be further provided, and the information stored in the storage means is based on the information received by the information acquisition means, and the route indication The means may instruct the first router device to select a route. In this case, the first router device (server side router device) collects information on each route (downlink route) through, for example, message exchange with a second router device (terminal side router device) described later. The application terminal device can share this information. The first router device can select the route determined by the application terminal device and perform data transfer.

  An application terminal device according to the present invention is disposed between the network and the application terminal device, and has a function of transferring data received on a route selected from the plurality of routes to the application terminal device. And information acquisition means for receiving information on each route from the router device, wherein the information stored in the storage means is based on the information received by the information acquisition means, and the route instruction means Requests the second router device to select a designated route from the plurality of routes and instruct the device having a function of transferring data to the application terminal device to select the route. It is good also as what to do. In this case, the second router device (terminal-side router device) collects information on each route (downlink route), for example, through measurement of traffic received from each route, and the application terminal device This information can be shared. When the second router device has a function of instructing the data transfer device (for example, the first router device) the route to be selected, the application device passes the route through the second router device. The selection can also be controlled.

  An application terminal device according to the present invention is disposed between the application server device and the network, and has a function of selecting an instructed route from the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device Communication with the first router device, and a function of being arranged between the network and the application terminal device and passing data received on a route selected from the plurality of routes to the application terminal device The communication unit may further include a communication unit capable of executing communication with each of the second router devices, and the information stored in the storage unit is based on information on each route received by the communication unit, The route instruction means may transmit the instruction message using the communication means. There. In this case, the application terminal device can share at least one of the information collected by the first router device and the information collected by the second router device, either directly to the first router device or The route to be selected can be transmitted via the second router device.

  In the application terminal device according to the present invention, the storage unit may also store information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of reverse paths from the application terminal device to the application server device, Determining a route to be used for providing the designated service from the plurality of reverse routes based on the condition obtained by the condition specifying unit and the information stored in the storage unit; A reverse path indicating means for instructing the selection of the determined path to an apparatus having a function of selecting the specified path from among the reverse paths and transferring the data to the application server apparatus. May be.

  According to this configuration, the application terminal device determines which route of the plurality of uplink routes to the application server device should be selected, and the data transfer device (for example, the first transfer device) according to the determination of the application terminal device 2 router device) can select the route. Note that the information stored in the storage means may be pre-stored static information about the communication environment of each route (upstream route), or the communication environment of each route that changes from moment to moment is observed. The resulting dynamic information may be stored each time.

  In the application terminal device, a first function is provided between the network and the application server device, and has a function of passing data received on a route selected from the plurality of reverse routes to the application server device. A router device, and a function that is arranged between the application terminal device and the network and has a function of selecting a designated route from the plurality of reverse routes and transferring data to the application server device Information acquisition means for receiving information on each reverse path from at least one of the two router devices, and the information stored in the storage means is based on the information received by the information acquisition means It may be a thing. In this case, the application terminal device can share information on each route (upstream route) collected by at least one of the first router device and the second router device, and the second router device (terminal side) Router device) can select the determined route.

  The first router device described above may be a separate device connected to the application server device or may be incorporated in the application server device. The second router device described above may be a separate device connected to the application terminal device, or may be incorporated in the application terminal device.

  The application terminal device according to the present invention includes an information acquisition unit that receives information about a route in response to a change in the communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of routes from the application server device to the application terminal device. The information stored in the storage means may be updated to information after the change based on the information received by the information acquisition means, and the route instruction means may Based on the information, the route to be used for providing the specified service is re-determined, and the instruction message is sent so that the route selected before the change is switched to the re-determined route. Also good. Thereby, for example, even during service provision, it becomes possible to dynamically switch routes and continue service provision.

  The application terminal device according to the present invention determines, based on information stored in the storage unit, of the at least one service, that a communication condition suitable for providing the service obtained by the condition specifying unit is satisfied. The route to be executed may further include means for identifying a service existing in the plurality of routes as an executable service, and the route instruction unit may select a service selected from the executable services, As the specified service, a route to be used for providing the service may be determined. As a result, it is possible to specify an executable service including a route that is not currently selected from among a plurality of routes. Among these executable services, a currently selected route that cannot be executed is selected. When a service that can be executed according to a route that has not been selected is selected, the application terminal device takes the lead and realizes the selection of a new route, thereby providing the selected service. In other words, the application device itself can actively change the application operation (rather than waiting for another device to select a route different from the current one), and select a service that cannot be selected with the current route. To be able to).

  The application terminal device further includes presentation means (for example, a graphic user interface) for presenting the executable service to a user, wherein the route instruction means is selected from among the executable services presented by the presentation means. The service selected by the user may be determined as the designated service to determine a route to be used for providing the service. This makes it possible to select a route in the middle of the network according to the user's intention.

  The application terminal apparatus according to the present invention may further comprise means for receiving a notification regarding the attribute of each of the at least one service from the application server apparatus, wherein the condition specifying means includes a service having the attribute indicated by the notification. In order to provide, it is good also as what calculates | requires the communication environment which should be able to provide the path | route used as communication conditions suitable for provision of the said service. This makes it possible to obtain communication conditions suitable for providing services from the attributes of each service depending on the application, and to select a route so as to satisfy the attributes of each service. When there are two or more routes that are determined to satisfy the above communication conditions, for example, an evaluation criterion indicating which of the parameters representing the communication environment has priority among these routes (this May be one of the attributes of each service depending on the application), and the route having the communication environment determined to be the best may be determined as the route to be used for providing the service, or there may be two or more All or any part of the route to be performed may be determined as the route to be used for providing the service.

  In the application terminal device according to the present invention, when a new type of service can be provided from the application server device, the condition specifying unit obtains a communication condition suitable for providing the new type of service. A function is added so that the route instruction means can determine a route to be used for provision of the new type of service based on information stored in the storage means. Is possible. In other words, each application terminal device has a function for obtaining communication conditions for each service depending on the application, and various application terminal devices share information on each route collected by the same router device. By making it available, it is possible to ensure scalability when a wide variety of applications appear. Further, even within the application terminal device, by providing the condition specifying means with an application-dependent function, it is possible to use a common route instruction means for each application. However, in the case where an application-dependent one is used as the evaluation criterion described above, the route instruction means also has an application-dependent function.

  In the application terminal device according to the present invention, the condition specifying unit obtains the communication condition for each of the plurality of specified services, and the route instruction unit includes the plurality of the specified services. A device having a function of determining a route to be used for providing each and transferring data to the application terminal device selects a first route for data of a first designated service, For the data of the specified service, the second route may be selected and transferred. Thereby, for example, two or more services can be simultaneously provided to one application terminal device using two or more routes at the same time. Two or more services in this case may be provided from one application server device, or may be provided from two or more application server devices connected to the same data transfer device.

  Note that any of the above-described aspects of the present invention is an invention of a method for selecting a path used for providing a service from an application server apparatus by an application terminal apparatus, or for causing a computer to function as the above-described application terminal apparatus. Of course, the invention of the program and the invention of the recording medium on which such a program is recorded are established.

  For example, the route selection method according to the present invention is a route selection method in a system in which at least one service is provided from at least one application server device to at least one application terminal device via a network. Obtaining communication conditions suitable for providing a specified service among the at least one service, and information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of routes from the application server device to the application terminal device, The application terminal device determines a route to be used for providing the designated service from the plurality of routes based on the communication condition and the information on the communication environment. , The application terminal device sends an instruction message so that the determined route is selected by a device having a function of selecting the designated route from among the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device. It is characterized by doing.

  The program according to the present invention is a program installed for route selection in a system in which at least one service is provided from at least one application server device to at least one application terminal device via a network. A communication environment that allows an application terminal device to obtain communication conditions suitable for providing a specified service among the at least one service, and can be provided by each of a plurality of routes from the application server device to the application terminal device The application terminal device obtains information on the provision of the designated service from the plurality of routes based on the communication condition and the information on the communication environment. The route to be used is determined, and the determined route is selected by a device having a function of selecting a designated route among the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device. The application terminal device is caused to send an instruction message.

  In this specification, the description mainly focuses on the case where the downlink path from the application server device to the application terminal device is selected. However, depending on the type of service, the communication conditions to be provided for the provision of the route may be There may be an example in which the route is present but not the downstream route (the downstream route may be in any communication environment). The present invention also includes such an example, and in this case, for example, an application terminal device that can be connected to a network that provides at least one service from at least one application server device. The condition specifying means for obtaining a communication condition suitable for providing a specified service among the at least one service and each of a plurality of routes from the application terminal device to the application server device For providing the specified service from among the plurality of routes based on storage means for storing information about the communication environment, conditions determined by the condition specifying means, and information stored in the storage means The route to be used for the route is determined, and the indicated route is selected from the plurality of routes. Relative-option to apparatus having a function of transferring data to the application terminal apparatus, characterized by comprising a routing means for instructing selection of the determined path.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the application terminal device determines which route of the plurality of routes should be selected, and the data transfer device at the branch point of the plurality of routes follows the determination of the application terminal device. A route can be selected.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the communication method according to an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of routes exist in the network, and a process of selecting a route to be used for providing an application service from among the routes is performed by an application terminal drive. FIG. 1 shows an example of a system configuration to which the present communication system is applied. In the example of FIG. 1, an application terminal 200 that can receive provision of services from the application server 100 is connected to a network 300 via a terminal-side router 500. The network 300 can be an open network such as the Internet, an arbitrary network such as a dedicated network or a closed network using cable television, or a combination thereof.

  The application server 100 is connected to the network 300 via the server side router 400, but a plurality of paths A, B, and C exist between the server side router 400 and the terminal side router 500. . In this example, these paths are physically different paths and pass through different physical links. For example, the route A may pass through an Internet service provider (ISP) -A communication network, the route B may pass through an ISP-B communication network, and the route C may pass through an ISP-B communication network. Route A is a wired communication network using optical fibers, Route B is a wireless LAN communication network, Route C is a mobile phone communication network, Route D (not shown) is a cable network using cable television, etc. Also good. In these examples, the server-side router 400 and the terminal-side router 500 each have a link (interface) A corresponding to the route A, a link B corresponding to the route B, and a link C corresponding to the route C. , (With link D to path D).

  When a service is provided, either or both of a downlink route from the application server 100 to the application terminal 200 and an uplink route from the application terminal 200 to the application server 100 are used, but a plurality of routes A to C are used. There may be a configuration example in which only a part of the traffic passes only downstream traffic or only upstream traffic passes. In addition, there may be an example in which the route selection described in detail below is performed only for the downlink route or only for the uplink route. Furthermore, in the example of selecting a route for both downlink and uplink, the downlink route and the uplink route may be different.

  The application terminal 200 includes a service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 and an instruction module 230 in addition to the application service execution unit 210 that is normally provided for receiving service provision from the application server 100. The application terminal 200 further presents a processing result of the instruction module 230 to the user and reflects an input by the user to the instruction module 230 in order to reflect the user's intention in the route selection (not shown). ) May be provided.

  The application terminal 200 also receives data related to the provided service from the terminal-side router 500 and passes it to the application service execution unit 210, or data related to the provided service that should be transmitted to the application server 100 Is received from the application service execution unit 210 and transmitted to the terminal-side router 500. The data transmission / reception unit (not shown) is provided.

  The instruction module 230 performs message exchange (including information acquisition), which will be described later, with the instruction API (application programming interface) 530 of the terminal router and the instruction API 430 of the server side router. Transmission / reception can be performed via the transmission / reception unit. In the figure, the instruction module 230 and the instruction APIs 430 and 530 exchange messages in the same upper layer (in contrast, data transfer in the routers 400 and 500 is performed in a network layer or the like closer to the physical layer). To illustrate this, arrows are drawn at different locations from the data transfer path, but physically, message exchange and data transfer can occur via the same network interface. That is, the message exchange between the instruction module 230 and the instruction APIs 430 and 530 is performed by either the data transmission / reception unit of the application terminal 200 or the links A to C of the routers 400 and 500 (however, selected for data transfer) A different route than the route may be used).

  The service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 of the application terminal 200 obtains a communication condition suitable for provision of the service from the attribute of each service depending on the application, and the instruction module 230 sets the determined communication condition. The route to be selected is determined accordingly, and a route selection instruction message is transmitted to the server side router 400 or the terminal side router 500 via the instruction APIs 430 and 530. As a result, the instructed route is selected, and data related to the service executed by the application service execution unit 200 can be transmitted and received, and the user can enjoy the service in a communication environment suitable for the service. Will be able to.

  The route selection instruction message transmitted by the instruction module 230 instructs the server side router 400 to select a downstream route and instructs the terminal side router 500 to select an upstream route. However, for example, when the terminal-side router 500 has a function of instructing the server-side router 400 to select a route to be selected, the instruction module 230 instructs the server-side router 400 to select a downstream route. Instead of the instruction message, a route selection instruction message requesting the terminal router 500 to select a route to the server router 400 may be sent.

  Any device that has a computer function and a network interface, such as a personal computer, a telephone, a home appliance, and a game machine, can be the application terminal 200. That is, for example, it is possible to configure the application service execution unit 210 by installing an application program in the above-described apparatus, and by installing the program according to an embodiment of the present invention, service attributes / communication The condition conversion module 220 and the instruction module 230 can be configured. In addition, when a new application program is added to the same device, information for service attribute / communication condition conversion for the application to be added (if necessary, it is 1 when there are a plurality of routes that satisfy the communication condition. As long as the information indicating the evaluation criteria for narrowing down is added, terminal-driven route selection can be performed even for a new application. On the other hand, the application terminal 200 does not have to be a general-purpose device, but may be a terminal dedicated to a certain application, and a part of the function of the application terminal 200 described above is implemented as dedicated hardware. May be.

  On the other hand, the server-side router 400 and the terminal-side router 500 include route selection modules 420 and 520 and instruction APIs 430 and 530, respectively, in addition to the data transfer units 410 and 510 normally provided to function as routers. Prepare. The instruction APIs 430 and 530 are provided for receiving a route selection instruction message from the outside of the router and transmitting the received route selection instruction to the route selection modules 420 and 520 inside the router. The router device can be installed by installing a program according to an embodiment of the present invention. The route selection modules 420 and 520 are provided as long as they are routers having a function of selecting a route corresponding to multilink (multihome) connection. For example, the present inventors previously proposed When using the technology, it can be mounted as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 2004-274702 and 2004-274703 (hereinafter referred to as the present inventors).

  If it is considered that the instruction APIs 430 and 530 allow an operation that may affect the entire network user, such as route selection, to be performed in accordance with an instruction from the outside of the router, the application terminal 200 that has transmitted the instruction message or A function to authenticate other routers (terminal-side routers for server-side routers, etc.) and to follow the instructions only when it is confirmed that the route selection instruction is permitted in advance. It is safer if it is provided.

  The route selection modules 420 and 520 can select a route for the data transfer units 410 and 510 to transfer data for each application service. Now, taking the case of selecting a downlink route as an example, if the application terminal 200 executes only one service of one application at the same time, the route selection module 420, for example, the network layer of the data packet to be transferred The route for inputting the packet may be selected by referring to the address (information that can distinguish one application terminal from another application terminal).

  If the application terminal 200 is capable of simultaneously executing a plurality of services (for example, a video broadcast application service and a voice call application service), the route selection module 420 is, for example, in a higher layer than the network layer of the data packet to be transferred. The route for inputting the packet may be selected by referring to the port and the protocol ID (information that can distinguish a plurality of services in the same application terminal). When the route selection module 420 performs routing with reference to detailed information in this way, for example, a plurality of routes can be simultaneously transmitted between the same application server 100 and the same application terminal 200 (one for a certain service). , The other will be available for another service).

  The instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 determines a route to be selected in accordance with the communication condition obtained by the service attribute / communication condition conversion module. In order to check which route meets the communication condition. Information indicating the communication environment of each route is stored. This information may be static such as line type, line bandwidth, maximum bandwidth allocated to each route, etc. However, in order to provide better service, the current communication environment of each route It is desirable that the information is dynamic information (loss, delay, fluctuation, effective bandwidth, etc.). Whether the connection of each route is alive or disconnected can be dynamic information on the communication environment.

  In the latter case, the instruction module 230 obtains information on the current communication environment of each route in the network from the router (server side router 400 or terminal side router 500) corresponding to a branch point or junction point of a plurality of routes. Via 530. In the server side router 400 and the terminal side router 500, the route selection modules 420 and 520 collect information on the current communication environment of each route via the data transfer units 410 and 510, respectively. This collected information is sent to the instruction module 230 via the instruction APIs 430 and 530. Note that the observation method differs depending on the parameters of the communication environment, and some of the data transfer units 410 and 510 can be obtained by measuring the traffic of the route, and others can be obtained by exchanging messages with other routers or terminals. is there. An example of the collection of the communication environment information is also shown in the gazettes of the present inventors.

  In FIG. 1, only one application server 100 connected to the server-side router 400 and one application terminal 200 connected to the terminal-side router 500 are illustrated. However, there may be a plurality of each. Even when there are a plurality of application servers, a plurality of services may be executed simultaneously in one application terminal 200 as described above. When there are a plurality of application servers and each server provides a service of one application, the route selection module 420 of the server side router 400 that selects the downlink route, for example, the network layer address ( By referring to the network layer address of the transmission source (address of the application server) in addition to the address of the application terminal 200, a route for inputting the packet can be selected. Also in this case, in the same application terminal 200, a plurality of paths can be used simultaneously (one for a service from one application server and the other for a service from another application server).

  FIG. 2 shows another example of a system configuration to which this communication method is applied. In FIG. 2, unlike the case described with reference to FIG. 1, a plurality of application servers 100 and 101 are connected to the network 300 via corresponding server side routers 400 and 401, respectively. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same component. In FIG. 2, the links between the terminal side router 500 and the network 300 are links A, B, and C as in FIG. 1, but the paths between the server side router 400 are routes 1, 2, 3. Thus, the paths to the server side router 401 are paths 11 and 12. In this example, when the application terminal 200 executes the service from the application server 100 and the service from the application server 101 at the same time, the route selected from the routes 1 to 3 and the route selected from the routes 11 to 12 are selected. The route selection module of the router in this case can select the route for inputting the data packet by referring to the destination network layer address.

  Here, an example of the usage image of this communication method when there are a plurality of application terminals 200 connected to the terminal-side router 500 will be described. For example, it is assumed that an in-house system application terminal X, a voice communication / phone application terminal Y, and a broadcast / IPTV application terminal Z are connected to the network 300 via the terminal-side router 500. In this case, the application server 100 that provides a service to each application terminal may be a plurality of servers provided separately, or may be integrated into one server.

  Each application terminal 200 sends, for example, a service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 and an instruction module 230 to a communication condition conversion table and evaluation criteria (terminal X) that emphasizes confidentiality, and communication conditions that emphasize response. Conversion table and evaluation criteria (terminal Y), and a conversion table to communication conditions with an emphasis on resolution and evaluation criteria (terminal Z). Then, for example, the conversion module 220 of the terminal Y provides information on the communication environment that can realize the attributes such as call delay and voice deterioration that are allowed in the designated service (voice call with a certain other party) and realize the service of the attribute. (Communication conditions) is converted and passed to the instruction module 230. The instruction module 230 identifies a path in the communication environment that satisfies the passed communication condition, and if there are a plurality of such paths, the delay is less from among them. One route (based on the evaluation criterion of terminal Y) is determined.

  Here, as an example, if the route A is an encrypted line, the route B is a low-delay line, and the route C is a broadband line, the instruction module 230 of the terminal Y selects the route B. . Then, the instruction module 230 of the terminal Y sends an instruction message to the instruction APIs 430 and 530 of the server side router 400 and the terminal side router 500 so as to select the route B (both downlink / uplink). Then, the route selection module 420 controls the data transfer unit 410 so that the data packet to the terminal Y is input to the route B, and the route selection module 520 sends the data packet from the terminal Y to the voice communication / telephone application server. Is transferred to the path B. The data transfer unit 510 is controlled.

  On the other hand, the conversion module 220 of the terminal Z includes attributes such as a screen size, a frame rate, and an effective bandwidth of a specified service (viewing of a certain video content) and information on communication environment (communication conditions) that can realize the service of the attribute The instruction module 230 identifies a communication environment route that satisfies the passed communication condition, and if there are a plurality of such routes, the instruction module 230 has a wider bandwidth (of the terminal Z). Determine one route (based on evaluation criteria). In the above example, the instruction module 230 of the terminal Y selects the route C. Then, the instruction module 230 of the terminal Y sends an instruction message to the instruction API 430 of the server side router 400 to select the path C (downward), and the path selection module 420 sends the data packet to the terminal Z to the path C. The data transfer unit 410 is controlled so as to be input.

  In addition, the conversion module 220 of the terminal X passes, for example, a communication condition indicating that encryption is performed to the instruction module 230, and the instruction module 230 specifies a path of the communication environment that satisfies the passed communication condition, and so on. If there are multiple routes, one route is determined according to the route selection algorithm by the route control system performed by a normal router (there may be an evaluation criterion that does not depend on the application). In the above example, the instruction module 230 of the terminal X selects the route A. Then, the instruction module 230 of the terminal X sends an instruction message to the instruction APIs 430 and 530 of the server side router 400 and the terminal side router 500 so as to select the route A (both downlink and uplink). Then, the route selection module 420 controls the data transfer unit 410 so that the data packet to the terminal X is input to the route A, and the route selection module 520 routes the data packet from the terminal X to the in-house system application server. The data transfer unit 510 is controlled to be input to A.

  The server side router 400 and the terminal side router 500 send information indicating the current communication environment of each route to each terminal via the instruction APIs 420 and 520 so that the terminals X to Z can perform the above-described processing. The route selection modules 420 and 520 control the data transfer units 410 and 510 as instructed via the instruction APIs 420 and 520. These processes in the routers 400 and 500 do not change depending on what application is executed in each terminal. Therefore, in this system, when the number of application types increases, only the terminal that adopts the new type of application needs to be updated.

  The content of the route selection instruction message sent from each terminal to the server-side router 400 or the terminal-side router 500 is such that the data transfer units 410 and 510 can identify which route the received data packet should be input into. do it. For example, when the terminal Y does not execute another application simultaneously with the voice communication / telephone application and the corresponding voice call / telephone application server is dedicated to the application, the server side for instructing the selection of the downlink route The route selection instruction message to the router 400 is [address of terminal Y, identification information of route B], and the route selection instruction message to the terminal side router 500 for instructing the selection of the uplink route is [voice call / phone. Application server address, path B identification information].

  When the terminal Y also executes an application other than the voice communication / telephone application at the same time, a route selection instruction message to the server side router 400 for instructing selection of the downlink route is, for example, [the address of the terminal Y, voice communication / If the corresponding voice call / telephone application server is dedicated to the application, [terminal Y address, voice communication / telephone application server address, path B Identification information] may be used. When the corresponding server also provides an application other than the voice communication / telephone application at the same time, a route selection instruction message to the terminal-side router 500 for instructing the selection of the uplink route is, for example, [voice call / telephone application Server address, voice communication / telephone application port or protocol ID, and route B identification information].

  In the above usage image example, in addition to the conversion from the service attribute to the communication condition, the evaluation criteria for narrowing down to one from a plurality of routes satisfying the communication condition can also be made application-dependent so that the evaluation criteria of the application terminal 200 Since the instruction module 230 has an evaluation criterion, only one route is included in the route selection instruction message, but this communication method is not limited to this. For example, the process of narrowing down a plurality of routes satisfying the communication condition to one may be performed by the route selection modules 420 and 520 of the routers 400 and 500. In this case, the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 sets the communication conditions. A plurality of satisfying routes may be included in the route selection instruction message.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the application terminal 200 will be described in detail by taking the case of FIG. 2 as an example.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of information representing the communication environment of each route stored in the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200. FIG. 3A shows a communication environment of a downstream route, and includes routes 1, 2, and 3 from the server side router 400 and a route 11 (generally indicated as N in the figure) from the server side router 401 in FIG. Information (the presence / absence of encryption, loss, delay, effective bandwidth, etc.) is stored. FIG. 3B shows an uplink communication environment. Information on the paths 1 and 3 to the server-side router 400 and the path 12 (generally indicated as M in the figure) to the server-side router 401 in FIG. Encryption presence / absence, loss, delay, effective bandwidth, etc.) are stored.

  The information in FIG. 3 is collected by the server side routers 400 and 401 and the terminal side router 500. For example, the server-side router 400 stores information on the downstream paths 1 to 3 in FIG. 3A, and the server-side router 401 stores information on the downstream paths 11 to 12 in FIG. The terminal-side router 500 stores the information on the upstream route in FIG. 3B, and the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 acquires the information stored in these routers. If the network 300 is provided with a center that collects and stores the communication environments of all routes in the network and stores them together, the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 displays the center of FIG. Information may be acquired.

  3, the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 transmits an information request to the server side routers 400 and 401 and the terminal side router 500 (or the center), and information sent in response to the request is transmitted. It may be acquired by receiving, or information periodically sent from these routers (or centers) may be acquired. The changed information may be acquired by receiving a notification from the corresponding router (or center) when the communication environment changes and requesting information in response to the notification.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of a search table held by the route selection module 420 of the server side router 400 for selection of a downlink route or by the route selection module 520 of the terminal side router 500 for selection of an uplink route. Indicates. This search table is referred to when the data transfer units 410 and 510 transfer data packets.

  In the example of FIG. 4, a destination address, a destination port, a source address, a source port, and a protocol ID can be used as a search key in the header of the data packet. Can be specified. When a packet is put into a route, the relay device group in the network can actually specify the exit of the route (link A for route 1, link B for route 2, etc.). In order to perform the process of processing and sending the packet, the search table in FIG. 4 can obtain the exit of the route (the tunnel destination if the tunnel from the entrance to the exit of the route in the network is considered). Yes.

  For example, if a route selection instruction message “[address of terminal Y, identification information of route B]” for instructing selection of a downlink route is sent from the application terminal 200 to the server side router 400, the server side router 400 4 has the address of the terminal Y written in the destination address column and the exit of the route B written in the tunnel destination column. Also, suppose that a route selection instruction message [address of voice call / telephone application server, identification information of route B] for instructing selection of an uplink route is sent from the application terminal 200 to the terminal-side router 500. The search table of FIG. 4 possessed by the terminal-side router 500 is in a state in which the address of the voice call / telephone application server is written in the destination address column and the route B exit is written in the tunnel destination column.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of a conversion table stored in the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 of the application terminal 200. Each service provided by an application has a type assigned from the viewpoint of a communication environment necessary for providing the service. In some cases, a plurality of services provided by a single application are all of different types, and in other cases, the services are classified into several types. In the former case, the service name notified from the application server may represent the type as it is. In the latter case, since the service name and the service type are notified from the application server, the application terminal 200 may search the conversion table in FIG. 5 based on the notified type.

  Since the correspondence between the service type and the communication environment (communication condition) required for the service is determined by the application, the conversion table in FIG. 5 is prepared for each application. For example, in the case of video transmission, there are content viewing conditions such as frame rate, screen size, effective bandwidth, etc., and in the case of voice communication, there are call conditions such as allowable call delay and audio degradation. The service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 is configured to calculate each parameter of communication environment (necessity of encryption, loss, delay, effective bandwidth, etc.) required to satisfy the condition directly from the condition. It is also possible to do. On the other hand, as in this example, each service is classified into several types according to viewing conditions and call conditions, and service attributes are converted into communication conditions by referring to the conversion table based on the types, so that it can be more easily implemented. It is also possible. Further, when the communication condition is obtained based on the service attribute, the communication condition matching the specification of the application terminal that receives the service may be obtained.

  Examples of parameters of communication conditions obtained from the conversion table of FIG. 5 include encryption necessity (takes a value of YES or NO), loss (takes a value of 0 to 100%), delay (unit is ms), It is an effective bandwidth (unit is Mbps), and a condition value or UNDEF (indicating that the parameter is not a condition) is set as each parameter. Even in the same service type, appropriate communication conditions differ between downlink traffic and uplink traffic, and therefore the downlink and uplink traffic are individually set in the conversion table of FIG. Note that, for example, the communication environment of the downstream path is asked, but if the application environment does not matter what the upstream communication environment is, there may be a conversion table for downstream traffic.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of a procedure performed by the application terminal 200 until an appropriate route is selected and a desired service can be received. When receiving information related to a service that can be provided from the application server 100 or 101 (S1010), the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 refers to the conversion table of FIG. 5 for the application. If there is a downlink traffic conversion table, each communication condition is obtained based on the type of each service that can be provided (S1020).

  Then, the instruction module 230 identifies the corresponding server-side router 400 or 401 from the address of the application server 100 or 101, and among the stored information of FIG. The communication environment of each downstream path is referred to (S1030). The instruction module 230 further determines, for each service that can be provided, whether or not there is a downlink path in a communication environment that satisfies the communication condition obtained by the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 from the referenced information ( S1040). Note that the instruction module 230 is previously informed of the correspondence between the application server and the server side router from the terminal side router 500 and stored as a server side router resolution table (not shown).

  If there is an upstream traffic conversion table, the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 determines each communication condition based on the type of each service that can be provided (S1050), and the instruction module 230 stores the information. Among the information shown in FIG. 3B, the communication environment of each upstream route for the server side router specified as described above is referred to (S1060). Then, the instruction module 230 determines, for each service that can be provided, whether or not there is an uplink path in the communication environment that satisfies the communication condition obtained by the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 (refer to the information referred to). S1070).

  Among the services that can be provided, a service determined to have a communication environment satisfying the communication condition for both the downlink and the uplink is selectable by a user interface (not shown) of the application terminal 200. Presented as a service (S1090). A service determined to have no communication environment satisfying the communication condition for either the downlink or the uplink is presented as a service that cannot be selected (S1080). In these presentations, for example, a list of services that can be provided is displayed on the display screen of the user interface, and in the list, selectable services are displayed darkly, and when clicked, the services are specified. Services that cannot be selected should be displayed in a thin color so that they cannot be specified by clicking.

  Here, among the presented services that can be selected, for example, a service P that can be provided in an appropriate communication environment if the downlink route A is selected, and a service Q that can be provided in an appropriate communication environment if the downlink route B is selected. Can be mixed. That is, when the route A is currently selected as the route to the application terminal 200 in the server side router, in the conventional communication method, only the service P can be presented as a selectable service. Q can also be presented as a selectable service. Actually, if the user specifies the service Q, the route selection at the server side router is switched by driving the application terminal, and the route B is selected to provide the service Q. The As described above, since the user can actively select a route in the middle of the network, convenience in using the application is improved.

  When the user designates a desired service from among the services presented as selectable services, the application service execution unit 210 accepts this designation and transmits it to the application server 100 or 101 (S1100). On the other hand, the application service execution unit 210 also notifies the designation of the service to the instruction module 230, and the instruction module 230 evaluates the evaluation criteria of the instruction module 230 from among the downlink / uplink paths that satisfy the communication conditions of the designated service. In accordance with (which may be application-dependent or independent), the best communication environment is determined (S1110).

  Then, the instruction module 230 sends an instruction message via the instruction APIs 430 and 530 to the server side router 400 or 401 for the downstream path and to the terminal side router 500 for the upstream path so as to select the determined path. Send (S1120, S1130). Even if a plurality of routes (candidates) are sent as the determined routes and one of them is selected by the route selection modules 420 and 520 of the router, the application terminal 200 can enjoy the specified service in an appropriate communication environment. It does n’t matter. Thereafter, communication between the application server 100 or 101 and the application terminal 200 is performed on the selected route.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of a procedure performed for the application terminal 200 to acquire and update information on the communication environment of each route as shown in FIG. First, the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 registers, for example, a default router of a network (user network) to which the application terminal 200 itself belongs as the terminal-side router 500 at the time of activation (S2010). Then, the instruction module 230 sends an initialization message to the registered terminal side router 500 and requests to register the application terminal 200 in the terminal list stored in the terminal side router 500 (S2020).

  The terminal-side router 500 that has received the initialization message sends the address of the server-side router 400, 401 with which it is communicating to the application terminal 400 (S2030). The terminal-side router 500 has information that the server-side router 400 is connected to the application server 100, and the server-side router 401 is connected to the application server 101. If the address of the application server that may receive the service is included in the initialization message, the terminal-side router 500 sets the address of the server-side router corresponding to the application server included in the initialization message, Return it so that the correspondence can be understood. Then, the instruction module 230 can write the returned information in the server side router resolution table (not shown).

  In response to the initialization message, the terminal-side router 500 also sends a list of uplink routes existing between itself and the respective server-side routers and information on the communication environment relating to each route to the application terminal 200 (S2030). . Then, the instruction module 230 can store information as shown in FIG.

  The instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 further sends an initialization message to the notified server side router 400 and requests to register the application terminal 200 in the terminal list stored in the server side router 400 ( S2040). The server-side router 400 that has received the initialization message sends to the application terminal 200 a list of downlink routes that can be used between itself and the terminal-side router, and information on the communication environment related to each route (S2050).

  If there are other server-side routers taught by the terminal-side router 500 (S2060 Yes), an initialization message is also sent to the server-side router 401 (S2040), a list of downstream routes, and communication related to each route The process of receiving environment information (S2050) is repeated. When the processing is completed for all of the server side routers taught from the terminal side router 500 (No in S2060), the instruction module 230 combines the information received from each of the server side routers 400 and 401, and FIG. Information as shown will be stored.

  Keep alive messages are periodically exchanged between the terminal-side router 500, the server-side routers 400 and 401 that have registered the application terminal 200 in the terminal list, and the application terminal 200 (S2070), and the terminal list is updated. Further, between the terminal side router 500 and each of the server side routers 400 and 401, keep alive messages and communication environment measurement packets are periodically transmitted and received for each route existing between the terminal side router 500 and the server side routers 400 and 401. Is updated in real time on the communication environment information of each route.

  The terminal-side router 500 and the server-side routers 400 and 401 are related to the route in which the communication environment has changed among the application terminals registered in the terminal list when the communication environment information of the terminal-side router 500 and the server-side routers 400 and 401 change. A communication environment change notification message is transmitted to the application terminal 200. When receiving the change notification message (Yes in S2080), the instruction module 230 of the application terminal 200 requests the information on the changed communication environment from the router that has transmitted the change notification message, and is stored in the returned information. The information shown in FIG. 3 is updated (S2090).

  The procedure shown in FIG. 7 is merely an example. In another example, the change notification message sent from the router includes information on the changed communication environment without requesting the application terminal 200 again. As long as the update of the terminal list does not cause the communication with the application terminal 200 to be cut off without periodically exchanging keep alive messages with the application terminal 200, It may be performed by a method of maintaining registration of the terminal list.

  FIG. 8 shows another example of a procedure performed by the application terminal 200 until an appropriate route is selected and the designated service can be enjoyed, and an example of a procedure performed by the application terminal 200 when a route change occurs. Show. Note that the route switching procedure (S3090, S3100) shown in FIG. 8 can also be applied to the route selection procedure shown in FIG.

  First, the application service execution unit 210 receives a service designation (S3010). The designation of the service here may be performed by the user or automatically by the system. For example, when the application terminal 200 is a dedicated terminal for a specific application, or when the application to be used is an application in which one service is determined in advance, the service can be automatically specified. In the procedure of FIG. 6, even if an executable service and an inexecutable service are identified (S1080, S1090), an application that automatically determines the optimum service among the executable services can be used. For example, it is possible to omit the presentation to the user and accept the service automatically designated by the system (S1100).

  The designation of the accepted service is transmitted to the service attribute / communication condition conversion table 220, and the conversion table of FIG. 5 is referred to using the type of service as a search key, and the communication condition of the uplink / downlink traffic is obtained (S3020). ). Then, the instruction module 230 refers to the server side router resolution table, identifies the corresponding server side router from the address of the application server that provides the specified service (S3035), and stores the stored information of FIG. Among them, the communication environment of the downlink / uplink path for the specified server side router is referred to (S3035).

  If there is no downlink / uplink path in the communication environment that satisfies the communication conditions (No in S3040), the user is notified that the service cannot be provided (S3050). When there are downlink / uplink paths in the communication environment that satisfy the communication conditions (S3040 Yes), the best communication environment is determined from these paths according to the evaluation criteria of the instruction module 230 (S3060). ). Then, the instruction module sends a route selection instruction message to the server side router for the downlink route and to the terminal router for the uplink route so as to select the determined route (S3070, S3080). As a result, the application terminal 200 receives data related to the specified service through the selected route (S3090).

  Here, when the application terminal 200 receives the communication environment change notification message in the procedure shown in FIG. 7 (S3100 Yes), since the information in FIG. 3 should be updated, data related to the designated service is transferred. The communication environment of the downstream / upstream path for the server side router is referred again (S3035). If there is no route that satisfies the communication condition due to a change in the communication environment (No in S3040), the user is notified that the service cannot be provided in an appropriate communication environment (S3050).

  As a result of determining the best communication environment among the routes satisfying the communication conditions based on the changed communication environment (S3060), if the route does not differ from the previously selected route, the data on the selected route as it is Although the service enjoyment by the transfer is continued (S3090), if a route different from the previously selected route is determined, the server side router for the downstream route and the terminal side router for the upstream route so as to reselect the route. A route selection instruction message is sent to each (S3070, S3080). At this time, the user may be notified that the route is to be selected again, if necessary, and a route selection instruction message may be sent in response to the user accepting the route selection. Thereafter, the application terminal 200 receives data related to the designated service via the switched route (S3090).

  The procedure shown in FIG. 8 is only an example. In another example, when the user is notified that the specified service cannot be provided (S3050), when the communication environment change notification message is received (S3100 Yes), Referring to the updated communication environment (S3035), if the specified service can be provided (S3040 Yes), the user is notified that the service can be provided, and then the route selection instruction message May be sent (S3070, S3080) to start enjoying the service.

  Further, when checking whether there is a downlink / uplink path in the communication environment that satisfies the communication condition (S1040 and S1070 in FIG. 6 and S3040 in FIG. 8), a list of the downlink / uplink path in the communication environment that satisfies the communication condition When the best one is determined (S1100 in FIG. 6 and S3060 in FIG. 8), it may be determined with reference to the list of generated routes. If such a list is created, a communication environment change notification message is received (S3100 Yes in FIG. 8), and the change notification is updated when the communication environment of the currently selected route indicates deterioration. It is also possible to send a route selection instruction message so as to switch to another route on the list without referring to the communication environment.

  FIG. 9 shows a configuration example when the terminal-side router 500 is incorporated into the application terminal 200 to become an integrated terminal 600. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 9, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same component. A data transmitting / receiving unit 250 not shown in FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. The instruction module 630 can directly instruct the route selection module 640 in the same terminal 600 regarding the selection of the uplink route, and the route selection module 640 instructs the data transmission unit 252 to select the indicated uplink route. Control. The route selection module 640 stores information on the communication environment of each route acquired via the data receiving unit 251, and the instruction module 630 directly stores information stored in the route selection module 640 in the same terminal 600. You can refer to it.

  Although not shown in FIG. 9, it is of course possible to construct an integrated server by incorporating the server-side router 400 into the application server 100.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of an application that can operate in a system to which this communication method can be applied, where there is a network that can select a route to be used from a plurality of routes between an application server and an application terminal. It is.

  First, an example in which the application is a network game will be described. Assume that the types of services that the network game server can provide include, for example, shooting games, high-quality CG games, normal-quality CG games, trading games, and the like. The network game server includes a net game title 1 and its type (shooting game), a net game title 2 and its type (high quality CG game), a net game title 3 and its type (normal quality CG game), a net game title 4 and The type (trading game) is converted into a menu and provided to the application terminal (game terminal).

  In the service attribute / communication condition conversion table for a network game, for example, a communication condition of a loss of 1% or less and a delay of 12.5 ms or less is classified into a type of high-quality CG game for both types of shooting games. On the other hand, the communication condition that the downlink is within a loss of 0.1% and the effective bandwidth is 6 Mbps or more is the communication condition that the downlink is within the loss of 0.1% and the effective band is 4 Mbps or more for the type of the normal image quality CG game. For the type of trading game, a communication condition of encryption required and loss of 0% is stored for both upstream and downstream.

  As evaluation criteria for network games, priority is given to speed of response (small delay) for shooting games, priority to cleanliness (bandwidth) for CG games, and data integrity (loss of loss) for trading games. (Smallness) priority may be stored. In addition, as a viewing condition of the game, for example, in the case of a shooting game, there may be the number of actions that can be transmitted / received per second. Can do.

  As the communication environment of each path (common to all applications), for example, the path A [no encryption, loss 0.01%, delay 10 ms, bandwidth 1 Mbps], path B [no encryption, It is assumed that information of loss 0.01%, delay 30 ms, bandwidth 5 Mbps], and path C [with encryption, loss 0%, delay 50 ms, bandwidth 128 kbps] is stored.

  Then, title 1 (shooting game) can be executed if route A is selected, title 2 (high quality CG game) cannot be executed in any route, and title 3 (normal quality CG game) is It can be seen that if the route B is selected, it can be executed, and the title 4 (trading game) can be executed if the route C is selected.

  Assuming that the currently selected route is route A, in the prior art, the user can select only title 1 (shooting game), but according to this communication method, the user can select title 1 (shooting game), A desired game can be selected from title 3 (normal image quality CG game) and title 4 (trading game). For example, when the user selects title 4 (trading game), the route C is selected and the net game is started.

  Next, an example in which the application is a video broadcast (for example, video on demand (VOD)) will be described. In the case of video broadcasting, the downstream route may be evaluated. It is assumed that the types of services that the VOD server can provide include, for example, high vision quality, DVD quality, streaming quality, and the like. The VOD server menus the video title 1 and its type (high definition quality), the video title 2 and its type (DVD quality), the video title 3 and its type (streaming quality), and provides them to the application terminal (receiving terminal). .

  In the service attribute / communication condition conversion table (downlink traffic) for video broadcasting, for example, the communication condition of less than 1% loss and effective bandwidth of 30 Mbps or more is defined for the type of DVD quality. The communication condition that the loss is less than 0.1% and the effective band is 6 Mbps or more stores the communication condition that the loss is less than 0.1% and the effective band is 512 Kbps or more for the type of streaming quality.

  Note that the viewing conditions of the video title (video content) can include an encoding method, a frame rate, a resolution, the number of colors, and the like. From the viewing conditions of the frame rate (F), resolution (H × V), and number of colors (C), the expected usage band F × H × V × log 2 (C) can be obtained as the communication conditions. Uses the lowest effective bandwidth based on the type of encoding method (high-vision, MPEG2, streaming) as a communication condition. The type and viewing condition information may be sent from the server to the terminal in the same format as the metadata of the content to be broadcast (for example, XML).

  As the communication environment of each route (common to all applications), for example, the downstream route A [loss 0.5%, bandwidth 30 Mbps], route B [loss 0.05%, bandwidth 10 Mbps], route C [loss] It is assumed that the information “0.05%, bandwidth 512 Kbps” is stored.

  Then, title 1 (high-definition quality) can be viewed if route A is selected, title 2 (DVD quality) can be viewed if route B is selected, and title 3 (streaming quality) is route B. Or, if C is selected, it can be seen that viewing is possible.

  Assuming that the currently selected route is route B, in the prior art, the user can only select from title 2 (DVD quality) and title 3 (streaming quality). The desired game can be selected from all of title 1 (high-definition quality), title 2 (DVD quality), and title 3 (streaming quality). For example, when the user selects title 1 (high-definition quality), route A is selected and video broadcasting of title 1 is started.

  The application may be broadcast by multicast, broadcast, or the like, and the application server in that case may be a broadcast station, for example, a terrestrial broadcast wave may be a route.

  Further, the application server may prepare contents that can be provided with the same contents but different types. In that case, in the above example, the title 1-1 (high definition quality), title 1-2 (DVD quality), title 1-3 (streaming quality), title 2-1 (high definition quality), title 2 are stored in the VOD server. -2 (DVD quality) ..

  For example, after the video broadcast of the title 1-1 is started, when the user moves with the receiving terminal and the communication environment of each route changes, it is optimal for viewing the content of the content at the destination. It is also possible to reselect the appropriate route and content type and continue to view the content of the switched type (for example, title 1-3) using the switched route.

  Next, an example in which the application is a voice call (for example, voice over IP (VOIP)) will be described. It is assumed that the types of services that can be provided by the VOIP server include, for example, high quality, normal quality, and low quality. The VOIP server menus the call partner 1 and its type (high quality), the call partner 2 and its type (normal quality), and the call partner 3 and its type (low quality), and provides them to the application terminal (VOIP terminal). .

  In the service attribute / communication condition conversion table for voice call, for example, the communication condition of 50 ms or less for both uplink and downlink for the type of high quality, and the delay of 200 ms for both the uplink and downlink for the type of normal quality. The communication condition of within is stored.

  Even if only the other party 2 (normal quality) or the other party 3 (low quality) can be selected from the currently selected route, there is a route that satisfies the communication condition corresponding to the high quality according to this communication method. It is possible to newly select the route and start a call with the call partner 1 (high quality). Further, it is assumed that the user selects an actual callee from the callees who are determined to be able to call from the menu provided by VOIP (displays the callee and their type). After confirming the voice quality, the call can be started.

  Finally, an example in which the application is an in-house system (for example, in-house OA and extension VOIP) will be described. Assume that the types of services that can be provided by the application server include, for example, voice calls that are classified as confidential, sharing of files that are classified as confidential, guidance for public information, and the like. Then, in the service attribute / communication condition conversion table for the in-house system, for example, for the type of confidential voice call, the communication condition that encryption is required and the delay is within 50 ms is required for the type of confidential file sharing. Thus, the communication condition that the encryption is required for the downlink and the communication condition of the bandwidth of 5 Mbps is the type of the public information guide, and the communication condition of the bandwidth of 1 Mbps is stored for the downlink. According to this communication method, the user can use a desired service after confirming a type of service that can be selected and executed at present.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but it is needless to say that the above-described embodiment can be variously modified and applied by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present invention.

1 is a diagram showing an example of a system configuration to which a communication method according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. The figure which shows the other example of the system configuration | structure to which the communication system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention is applied. The figure which shows an example of the information showing the communication environment of each path | route which the instruction | indication module 230 of the application terminal 200 has memorize | stored. The figure which shows an example of the search table which the route selection module 420 of the server side router 400 and the route selection module 520 of the terminal side router 500 hold | maintain for route selection. The figure which shows an example of the conversion table which the service attribute / communication condition conversion module 220 of the application terminal 200 has memorize | stored. The figure which shows an example of the procedure which the application terminal 200 performs until it becomes possible to enjoy a desired service by selecting an appropriate route. The figure which shows an example of the procedure performed in order for the application terminal 200 to acquire and update the information of the communication environment of each path | route. The figure which shows an example of the procedure (including the case where path | route switching occurs) which the application terminal 200 performs until it becomes possible to enjoy a designated service by selecting an appropriate path | route. The figure which shows the structural example when the terminal side router 500 is integrated in the application terminal 200 and it becomes the integrated terminal 600. FIG. The figure for demonstrating the specific example of the application which can operate | move in the system which can apply the communication system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

100, 101 Application server 200, 600 Application terminal 210 Application service execution unit 220 Service attribute / communication condition conversion module 230, 630 Instruction module 250 Data transmission / reception unit 300 Network 400, 401 Server side router 500 Terminal side router 410, 510 Data transfer unit 420, 520, 640 Route selection module 430, 530 Instruction API

Claims (14)

An application terminal device capable of connecting to a network provided with at least one service from at least one application server device,
A transfer device having a function of transferring data received from the application server device to a selected route among a plurality of routes to the application terminal device between the application server device and the application terminal device. Arranged,
The application terminal device
Condition specifying means for obtaining a communication condition suitable for providing a specified service among the at least one service;
Storage means for storing information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of downlink paths from the application server device;
Determining means for determining a downlink path to be used for providing the specified service from among the plurality of downlink paths based on the condition obtained by the condition specifying means and the information stored in the storage means;
Identifying the transfer device according to the selection of the downlink path determined by said determining means, Ru and a routing means for delivering an indication message to select the downlink path is specified the transfer device is determined An application terminal device.   The condition specifying means has information that makes it possible to obtain communication conditions suitable for providing each service for a plurality of services, and refers to the information about the designated service among the information, The application terminal apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a communication condition suitable for providing the designated service is obtained.   Information that makes it possible to obtain a communication condition suitable for provision of the new service in response to the provision of a new service other than the at least one service. The application terminal apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for giving to the means. Each route from the first router device disposed between the application server device and the network and having a function of selecting a designated route from the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device An information acquisition means for receiving information on
The information stored in the storage means is based on the information received by the information acquisition means,
2. The application terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the route instruction unit instructs the first router device to select a route. From a second router device arranged between the network and the application terminal device and having a function of transferring data received on a route selected from the plurality of routes to the application terminal device, each route An information acquisition means for receiving information;
The information stored in the storage means is based on the information received by the information acquisition means,
2. The application terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the route instruction unit requests the second router device to instruct the specified transfer device to select a route. . Communication with a first router device arranged between the application server device and the network and having a function of selecting an instructed route from the plurality of routes and transferring data to the application terminal device; And communication with a second router device arranged between the network and the application terminal device and having a function of passing data received on a route selected from the plurality of routes to the application terminal device. Further comprising a communication means capable of executing each,
The information stored in the storage means is based on information about each route received by the communication means,
The application terminal apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the route instruction unit sends the instruction message using the communication unit. The storage means also stores information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of uplink routes from the application terminal device to the application server device,
Determining a route to be used for providing the specified service from the plurality of uplink routes based on the condition obtained by the condition specifying unit and the information stored in the storage unit; Further comprising a reverse route instruction means for instructing the selection of the determined route to a device having a function of selecting the designated route from among the uplink routes of and transferring the data to the application server device The application terminal device according to claim 1. In response to a change in the communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of downlink routes from the application server device to the application terminal device, the information acquisition unit further receives information on the route,
The information stored in the storage means is updated to the information after the change based on the information received by the information acquisition means,
The determining means re-determines a downlink route to be used for providing the designated service based on the information after the change, and switches the route selected before the change to the re-determined route. The application terminal apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the route instruction means sends an instruction message. Out of the at least one service, a plurality of downlink routes are determined to satisfy a communication condition suitable for providing the service obtained by the condition specifying unit based on information stored in the storage unit Further comprising means for identifying a service existing in the server as an executable service,
The said determination means determines the downstream route which should be used for the service selected from the said executable service as the said designated service, It is characterized by the above-mentioned. Application terminal device. Means for receiving a notification regarding each attribute of the at least one service from the application server device;
The condition specifying means obtains a communication environment that should be provided by a downlink path to be used in order to provide a service having the attribute indicated by the notification as a communication condition suitable for providing the service. The application terminal device according to claim 1. The condition specifying means obtains the communication condition for each of the specified services.
The determining means determines a route to be used for providing each of the plurality of specified services, and a device having a function of transferring data to the application terminal device has a first specified service. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a first route is selected for data, a second route is selected for data of the second designated service, and transfer is performed. Application terminal device. Means for receiving the instruction message from the application terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 11;
On the basis of the instruction message to select one of a plurality of paths, the transfer device characterized by comprising a means for transferring data from the application server apparatus to the selected path to the application terminal apparatus. A route selection method in a system in which at least one service is provided via a network from at least one application server device to at least one application terminal device,
A transfer device having a function of transferring data received from the application server device to a selected route among a plurality of routes to the application terminal device between the application server device and the application terminal device. Arranged,
In the application terminal device, a communication condition suitable for providing the specified service among the at least one service is obtained,
Information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of downlink paths from the application server device to the application terminal device is transmitted to the application terminal device,
The application terminal apparatus determines a downlink path to be used for providing the designated service from the plurality of downlink paths based on the communication conditions and information about the communication environment,
The application terminal apparatus identifies the transfer device according to the selection of the determined downlink path, characterized that you sending an indication message to select the downlink path is specified the transfer device is determined Route selection method. A program installed for route selection in a system in which at least one service is provided via a network from at least one application server device to at least one application terminal device,
A transfer device having a function of transferring data received from the application server device to a selected route among a plurality of routes to the application terminal device between the application server device and the application terminal device. Arranged,
Causing the application terminal device to obtain a communication condition suitable for providing the specified service among the at least one service;
Information about a communication environment that can be provided by each of a plurality of downlink paths from the application server device to the application terminal device is acquired by the application terminal device,
Causing the application terminal device to determine a downlink route to be used for providing the designated service from among the plurality of downlink routes based on the communication condition and information on the communication environment;
Wherein the application terminal apparatus to identify the transfer device according to the selection of the downlink path the determined, Ru is sent an indication message to select the downlink path is specified the transfer device is determined Program.

Images