JP5127062B2 - Network failure detection device, data relay device, network failure detection method, network failure detection system, and network failure detection program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a network failure detection device, a data relay device, a network failure detection method, a network failure detection system, and a network failure detection program for measuring a network quality value and identifying a location and cause of a failure.

  In recent years, a system that distributes video content on an IP (Internet protocol) network represented by the Internet and that can be viewed on a home personal computer or network-compatible home appliances is becoming widespread.

  However, when streaming video content packets over an IP network as compared with the case of receiving and viewing radio waves with an antenna as in the case of conventional terrestrial broadcast television, device settings are more complicated. There is a problem. In addition, even if the device settings are appropriate, there may be a situation in which viewing cannot be performed correctly due to a cause such as a failure on the network. In this case, it is difficult to specify the cause, and it is often difficult for general users to handle.

  In order to solve such a problem, a technology is known that can identify the cause of audio / video quality degradation during a failure and notify the user of this without interrupting service viewing and listening. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1). When the terminal enters the audio / video communication, the network quality management apparatus selects the communication address of the apparatus to be investigated for the cause of failure from the communication address of the terminal and the communication address of the other party and notifies the terminal. In response to this, when the quality of the audio / video deteriorates, the terminal collects a network quality value by transmitting a quality measurement packet toward the notified communication address, and the network quality management device collects the network quality value. Notify In response to this, the network quality management device calculates the difference between the collected quality values, compares it with a predetermined threshold, identifies the cause of the failure, and sends it to the terminal to cause the failure to the terminal. Is output.

JP 2002-51041 A

  However, in the method according to Patent Document 1, as a cause investigation method, a ping command (for issuing an IP packet to a host device whose network communication is to be confirmed, and confirming whether the packet arrives correctly and a response is made) Command), a router or server on the route is set not to respond to the ping command, or if it does not have a function to respond to the ping command, an alternative server is required, If the priority is set according to the type of packet, there is a problem that measurement cannot be performed correctly. In addition, even if it is detected that there is a failure in a route to a broadband router (BBR) installed in the home, there is a problem that no more information can be provided. For this reason, an appropriate judgment cannot be made, and the cause of the problem will not be clear. There is a problem that it leads to a decrease in the degree.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances. A network failure detection device, a data relay device, and a network failure detection capable of measuring the quality value of a network and identifying the location and cause of the failure. It is an object to provide a method, a network failure detection system, and a network failure detection program.

  The present invention is a network failure detection apparatus that performs data communication with a server on the global network or a server on the local network via a data relay apparatus that is connected to both the global network and the local network and relays communication data. A data acquisition unit for acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device; a first quality specifying unit for monitoring the communication data acquired by the data acquisition unit and specifying a first network quality; The first data deterioration detecting means for detecting the first network quality deterioration, and the relay data network quality information transmitted as a result of monitoring the communication data relayed in the data relay device are sent from the data relay device. Identify second network quality by receiving From the second quality specifying means, the first network quality and the second network quality, a third quality specifying means for specifying the third network quality, and a decrease in the first network quality are detected. And a notification means for notifying failure cause information in which the third network quality information and the detected first network quality degradation information are associated with each other.

  The present invention is characterized in that the second quality specifying means treats the relay data network quality as being transmitted based on data determined to be a cause of quality degradation by the data relay device.

  The present invention further comprises determination means for determining whether or not the degree of failure of the third network quality meets a preset condition, and the notification means determines the failure degree determined by the determination means. Based on this, the notification of the failure cause information is suspended, canceled, or the notification form is changed.

  The present invention is characterized in that the notification means displays a code combining the cause of the failure and the item value of the failure content.

  In the present invention, the first network quality includes a network address of the network failure detection device, the second network quality includes a network address on the global network side of the data relay device, and the third network quality. Includes information on whether or not port mapping can be set in the data relay device.

  The present invention is a data relay device connected to the network failure detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the data monitoring means for monitoring the communication data to be relayed, and the network among the communication data to be monitored Data identifying means for identifying the type of data whose quality is to be identified, and quality for identifying relay data network quality by monitoring the communication data whose network quality is identified by the data identifying means by the data monitoring means It is characterized by comprising specifying means and quality information transmitting means for transmitting the specified relay data network quality information to the network failure detecting device.

  The present invention further comprises a quality deterioration cause determination means for determining a cause of the deterioration of the relay data network quality, wherein the quality specifying means specifies the relay data network quality based on the cause of the quality deterioration. And

  The present invention is characterized in that the relay data network quality information is transmitted to a network failure detection device determined to be the cause of the quality degradation among the plurality of network failure detection devices connected in a local network. And

  In order to perform data communication with the server on the global network or the server on the local network via a data relay device connected to both the global network and the local network and relaying communication data, the present invention A network failure detection method in a network failure detection device comprising data acquisition means for acquiring communication data via the data relay device, wherein the communication data acquired in the data acquisition means is monitored and the first network quality is specified A first quality identifying step, a first quality degradation detecting step for detecting a degradation in the first network quality, and a relay data network quality transmitted as a result of monitoring communication data relayed in the data relay device Information to the data relay device A second quality specifying step for specifying the second network quality by receiving the data, and a third quality specifying step for specifying the third network quality from the first network quality and the second network quality. When the first network quality degradation is detected, failure cause information that associates the third network quality information with the detected first network quality degradation information is notified. And a notification step.

  The present invention includes a network failure detection device that performs data communication with a server on the global network or a server on the local network via a data relay device that is connected to both the global network and the local network and relays communication data. A network failure detection system, wherein the network failure detection device monitors communication data acquired by the data acquisition unit, data acquisition means for acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device, and first data Sent as a result of monitoring the communication data relayed in the data relay device, the first quality specifying means for specifying the first network quality, the first quality deterioration detecting means for detecting the first network quality drop. Relay data network quality information A second quality specifying means for specifying a second network quality by receiving from the data relay device; and a third quality for specifying a third network quality from the first network quality and the second network quality. Failure cause information associating the third network quality information with the detected first network quality degradation information when the quality specifying means and the first network quality degradation are detected A data monitoring unit for monitoring communication data to be relayed, and a data identification unit for identifying the type of data whose network quality should be specified among the communication data to be monitored And the communication data to be specified for the network quality identified by the data identification means is monitored by the data monitoring means. Quality specifying means for specifying the relay data network quality by Rukoto, characterized in that it comprises a quality information transmitting means for transmitting the information of the relay data network quality in which the identified on the network failure detection apparatus.

  The present invention includes a network failure detection device that performs data communication with a server on the global network or a server on the local network via a data relay device that is connected to both the global network and the local network and relays communication data. A network failure detection program that operates on the network failure detection device in a network failure detection system, the data acquisition step for acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device, and the communication acquired in the data acquisition step A first quality specifying step for monitoring data and specifying a first network quality, a first quality deterioration detecting step for detecting a first network quality deterioration, and a communication relayed in the data relay device Day The second quality specifying step of specifying the second network quality by receiving the relay data network quality information transmitted as a result of the monitoring from the data relay device, the first network quality and the second network quality From a network quality, a third quality specifying step for specifying a third network quality, and when a decrease in the first network quality is detected, the information on the third network quality, and the detected first And a notification step of notifying the failure cause information associated with the network quality degradation information of 1.

  The present invention includes a network failure detection device that performs data communication with a server on the global network or a server on the local network via a data relay device that is connected to both the global network and the local network and relays communication data. A network failure detection program operating on the data relay device in a network failure detection system, the data monitoring step for monitoring communication data to be relayed, and the type of data for which network quality should be specified among the monitored communication data A data identification step for identifying the relay data network quality by monitoring, by the data monitoring step, communication data for identifying the network quality identified by the data identification step. And-up, characterized in that to perform a quality information transmitting step to the computer to send the information of the relay data network quality in which the identified on the network failure detection apparatus.

  According to the present invention, when audio information or video information is transmitted by a packet via a network, the network quality value of the audio video communication is measured when the audio video quality is deteriorated, and the location where the failure has occurred Since the cause and the cause are specified and the contents thereof are displayed, there is an effect that the location and the cause causing the failure can be easily specified. In addition, this makes it possible to determine an appropriate cause for failure resolution, and as a result, it is possible to achieve cost reduction and customer satisfaction improvement of devices connected to the network.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the whole network system in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of each apparatus connected to LAN in a typical house. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of the BBR 3 and the receiver 4 illustrated in FIG. 2. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement of a content reproduction process. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of a SETUP request. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing data observed by the BBR 3 shown in FIG. 2 and data observed by the receiver 4. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement when some trouble generate | occur | produces in a network etc. and the viewing-and-listening screen in the receiver 4 is disturbed. It is a figure which shows an example of the request | requirement containing the information and port number which identify UDP / TCP in order to specify the measuring object transmitted with respect to BBR3 shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the response with respect to the request shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display of a reproduction failure cause. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the knowledge rule database referred when displaying a reproduction failure cause. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display of a reproduction failure cause. It is a flowchart which shows the display operation | movement of a reproduction failure cause. It is a state transition diagram of the NW quality control part 45 which performs control. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the whole network system in 2nd Embodiment. 16 is a flowchart showing an IP telephone call start operation in the telephone set 5 shown in FIG. 15. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the observation data in BBR302 and receiver 402-a shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows a network failure detection processing operation. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the data which receiver 402-a transmits as network quality data including the information regarding a priority. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display of a reproduction failure cause. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the event which notifies a receiving condition with respect to each apparatus since the several apparatus in a local network is related and has received the influence of a receiving condition. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the request | requirement containing the upper limit and lower limit information transmitted from the receiver 402-a or the telephone set 5 in order to preset the upper limit and lower limit of a bit rate. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the whole network system in 3rd Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the observation data in BBR303 and receiver 403-a shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement which starts content reproduction. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of a registration request. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the response from BBR303. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display of a reproduction failure cause. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the whole network system in 4th Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement when the reproduction | regeneration of content performs and a failure generate | occur | produces. FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a response acquired from the BBR 304 illustrated in FIG. 29. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of an error display screen. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the knowledge rule database referred when displaying a reproduction failure cause.

<First Embodiment>
A network failure detection system according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the entire network system in the embodiment. In this figure, reference numeral 1 is a distribution server for distributing information generally called a VoD (Video on Demand) server or an IP (Internet Protocol) multicast server, and a service for distributing audio data and video data over an IP network. I do. In the case of a VoD service, one of HTTP (Hypertext Transport Protocol), RTSP (Real-time Streaming Protocol), and RTP (Real-time Transport Protocol) is often used as a protocol. In the case of an IP multicast server, distribution control of program information and contents is performed using a multicast Join / Leave message using IGMP (Internet Group Management Protocol) or MLD (Multicast Listener Discovery). Since the distribution server is known as described above, a detailed description of the distribution server 1 is omitted.

  Reference numeral 2 denotes a global network. Here, the global network means a network that is not closed in one house (building) but can be in a state where data communication is possible between a plurality of houses or users, and the Internet is generally used for this role. Fulfill. Recently, a quality-controlled network called NGN (Next Generation Network) has also appeared.

  Reference numeral 3 denotes a broadband router (hereinafter referred to as BBR), which is connected to the global network 2 through a single line so as to constitute a local area network (hereinafter referred to as LAN) in the house. It is used for. A plurality of host devices are connected to the LAN side of the BBR 3, and resources on the global network 2 can be used from any host device. The BBR 3 has a network quality collection and transmission function.

  Reference numeral 4 (4-a, 4-b) is a receiver connected to the BBR 3, and receives and reproduces distribution data composed of audio content and video content distributed from the distribution server 1. A plurality of receivers 4 can be connected to the LAN side of the BBR 3, and each receiver 4 can enjoy services provided by the distribution server 1 individually. Reference numeral 5 denotes a telephone using the global network 2. The telephone 5 is a telephone that realizes a so-called IP telephone function. Reference numeral 6 is a personal computer similarly connected to the LAN side of the BBR 3.

  Reference numeral 7 denotes a BBR installed in another house, which is connected to the global network 2 and has the same basic functions as the BBR 3. Reference numeral 8 denotes a telephone that realizes an IP telephone function, and is similar to the telephone 5.

  Reference numeral 9 denotes an exchange server for establishing a communication line for an IP telephone, which is a server for causing the telephone 5 and the telephone 8 to function as IP telephones. In recent Internet always-on connection situations, many Internet provider providers provide this function. The exchange server 9 is a server that is normally operated by a provider that provides the IP telephone service, and the protocol used may be either SIP (Session Initiate Protocol) or RTP.

  Next, the configuration of each device connected to a LAN in a typical house will be described with reference to FIG. The BBR 3 generally includes a plurality of network terminals for connecting to the global network 2 and a LAN installed in a house, and includes a lamp (not shown) indicating a data communication status for each line. . The receivers 4-a and 4-b are generally provided with a panel for content display (or a video output terminal) such as a liquid crystal panel, a speaker for audio output, or a terminal for audio output. Content playback is possible. For example, a television is provided with a network function. The receivers 4-a and 4-b are attached with a remote controller 4 r as operation means for channel switching and setting change. The remote controller 4r is equipped with a cross key, an enter key, a cancel key, etc. in addition to a power key and numeric keys, and can perform general-purpose operations.

  The telephone 5 is a telephone equivalent to a telephone using a normal telephone line. Even if there is a facsimile function, it is usually possible to receive the service as it is on the IP network. However, a conventional telephone may be used, and protocol conversion with the IP network may be realized in the BBR 3 or as a dedicated device. Similarly, the personal computers 6-a and 6-b are connected to the LAN side of the BBR3.

  Reference numeral 10 denotes a line terminal attached to the wall of each house. A telephone line that modulates radio waves using the VDSL (Very High-bit-rate Digital Subscriber Line) method to communicate digital data, an optical cable attached, or an Ethernet (registered trademark) LAN jack is directly attached. It is what has been.

  Next, a detailed configuration of the device shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the BBR 3 and the receiver 4 shown in FIG. The BBR 3 includes a WAN (Wide Area Network) interface unit 31, an NW quality measurement unit 32, an NW quality control unit 33, and a LAN interface unit 34. The WAN interface unit 31 is an interface for connecting to the global network 2 and is mounted as an Ethernet (registered trademark) cable terminal such as “RJ45”. There are different types such as optical cables and VDSL systems, but they are substantially the same.

  The NW quality measurement unit 32 measures network quality when relaying from the global network 2 to the WAN interface unit 31 and the LAN interface unit 34 (or reverse path). A clock such as a crystal oscillator is used for time measurement, and various digital data measurements are performed by a CPU (central processing unit), a memory, a measurement program, and the like. The measured quality data may be stored in an external storage device such as a flash ROM (Read only memory) or HDD (hard disk drive). Here, the network quality includes bit rate, jitter, delay, packet loss, address, and the like.

  The NW quality control unit 33 aggregates the network quality collected by the NW quality measurement unit 32, performs control such as data transmission based on a request from the receiver 4, and interprets the protocol format and analyzes the packet format. Etc. Implementation is realized by a CPU, a memory, a program, and the like.

  The LAN interface unit 34 is an interface for connecting to the receiver 4 via a local network, and is usually mounted as an Ethernet (registered trademark) cable terminal such as an RJ45 like the WAN interface unit 31. In addition, there are cases of a wireless LAN system represented by IEEE802.11a / b / g and a PLC (Power Line Communications) system, which are essentially the same.

  In addition, the part that operates as software in each part of BBR3 is configured to operate on a system constituted by a single CPU, a memory, an external storage device and the like together with other software control parts of BBR3 (not shown). Also good.

  The receiver 4 (4-a or 4-b) includes an NW interface unit 41, a content control unit 42, a content playback unit 43, an NW quality measurement unit 44, an NW quality control unit 45, an information display unit 46, and an operation unit 47. Include as a configuration. The NW interface unit 41 is an interface for connecting to the BBR 3 via a local network. The implementation is the same as that of the LAN interface unit 34.

  In response to an instruction from the operation unit 47, the content control unit 42 performs processing control for requesting content reproduction when content reproduction is performed in response to the service of the distribution server 1. For example, in the case of a VoD service, a content list is acquired by HTTP, and RTSP DESCRIBE method and SETUP method are issued to the distribution server 1 for the content specified by the user's selection to start streaming.

  On the other hand, in the case of an IP multicast service, a multicast message is transmitted by a router (including a relay device; including BBR3) existing on a route to a distribution server by transferring a Join message to a preset multicast address. Since the transfer is set, the receiver 4 can receive the program information and broadcast content transmitted to the multicast address. Various other methods are conceivable. In the present invention, the content reproduction start method is not important, and any method can be used as long as the content reproduction can be started by the IP method. You may let them.

  The content playback unit 43 converts the received content data into audio and video signals by a decoder (demultiplexer, audio decoder, video decoder, demodulator, etc.), and outputs them directly to a speaker or a liquid crystal panel. Definition Multimedia Interface) Outputs signals from output terminals, video output terminals, and audio output terminals. These hardware use LSI (Large Scale Integration), a liquid crystal panel, a speaker, and the like.

  Video and audio encoding methods include MPEG2 (Motion Picture Expert Group) and H.264. There are various systems such as the MPEG-TS system QuickTime system as the H.264 system, PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) system, AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) system, Dolby system, and multiplexing system, and any system may be used.

  The NW quality measurement unit 44 performs the same processing as the NW quality measurement unit 32, but can exchange information with the content control unit 42, the content reproduction unit 43, and the operation unit 47, and can also perform special processing. The hardware implementation includes a CPU, a memory, a control program, an external storage device, and the like.

  The NW quality control unit 45 detects quality deterioration based on the network quality measured by the NW quality measurement unit 44, requests the NW quality control unit 33 of the BBR 3 to transmit quality data, and based on the plurality of quality data The cause of the quality deterioration is specified, and the information display unit 46 is instructed to display information for the user. The hardware implementation includes a CPU, a memory, a control program, an external storage device, and the like.

  The information display unit 46 outputs information instructed from the NW quality control unit 45 to a liquid crystal panel, a speaker, and the like. The hardware configuration includes a CPU, memory, control program, liquid crystal panel, speaker (or output signal terminal), and the like.

  The operation unit 47 is used by the user to instruct content selection, setting change, and the like, and is, for example, a remote controller using infrared rays. Of course, the present invention is not limited to this, and a Bluetooth (registered trademark) system or a system integrated with a panel may be used.

  In addition, the part which operate | moves as software in each part of the receiver 4 operate | moves on the system comprised with single CPU, memory, and an external storage device with the other software control part of the receiver 4 which is not shown in figure. You may do it. Reference numeral 6 (6-a, 6-b) denotes a personal computer connected to the LAN side of the BBR 3 in the same manner.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 4, the operation of content reproduction processing in the apparatus shown in FIG. 3 will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of content reproduction processing. First, the user instructs the reproduction of the content to be viewed from the content list by operating the remote controller of the operation unit 47 (step S101). For example, in the VoD service, a content list distributed by a service provider is displayed on a Web browser, and a URL link is set for each content, and the URL link set by selecting the content is traced (“rtsp” format) In this case, it means content reproduction by the RTSP protocol). In addition, in the IP multicast service, pressing a channel selection button on the operation unit 47 selects a corresponding channel and executes reception of a preset multicast address.

  Next, in order to view the selected content, the content control unit 42 creates a request (request) for viewing the corresponding content, and sends the request to the NW interface unit 41, BBR3 (LAN interface unit 34, The data is transmitted to the distribution server 1 via the WAN interface unit 31) (step S102). For example, in the VoD service, an RTSP request message (DESCRIBE method, SETUP method) defined by RFC2326 is generated. FIG. 5 shows an example of the SETUP request. In the case of IP broadcasting, a Join request packet is transmitted to the BBR 3 to a preset multicast address (for example, port number 20001 of 225.0.0.1).

  Next, when the BBR 3 relays the request and transmits it to the distribution server 1 (via the global network 2), the NW quality control unit 33 sets the packet type, IP address, port number, etc. for receiving the video etc. Obtain (step S103). In the example shown in FIG. 5, it is understood that an RTP packet containing AV (Audio / Visual) data will be transmitted to port number 10554. In the Join message example, it can be seen that the packet addressed to 225.0.0.1 (port number 20001) may be monitored. Then, the NW quality control unit 33 notifies the NW quality measurement unit 32 of an object to be measured.

  Next, the distribution server 1 receives the request (step S104), processes to distribute the target content, and starts content distribution (step S105). In the case of VoD, this means that the transmission of content packets is started. In the IP multicast service, the router settings are switched so that the content currently being transmitted by normal multicast is also multicast transmitted to the host device of the receiver 4. Means.

  Next, the BBR 3 relays the packet and transfers it to the receiver 4 (step S106). At this time, the NW quality measurement unit 32 measures various network quality data and accumulates them inside (step S107). For example, in the case of the VoD distribution shown in FIG. 5, since it is known that the RTP packet arrives at the 10554 port of the receiver 4, the RTP packet header for the destination address is analyzed, and the RTP SEQ (sequence) ) Check whether the packet loss has occurred by monitoring the number.

  At this time, for example, assuming that the SEQ number has advanced by 1000 per second, if there are 20 missing numbers, the packet loss is 2%. Since the IP multicast service does not clearly indicate that the packet is an RTP packet, it is difficult to detect the packet loss because there is no sequence number only by handling the UDP packet, but if you can guess that it is an RTP packet, look at the SEQ number. Packet loss can be detected. For that purpose, for example, assuming that the packet is an RTP packet, it conforms to the RTP header format (if it is different, it is determined that it is not RTP), and the data corresponding to the SEQ number shows 50% or more. It is possible to infer that the packet is an RTP packet by determining whether the SEQ number is set and the SEQ number is set.

  Even if it is not RTP, a packet loss can be detected by estimating in the same way for a format defined to include a predetermined sequence number. In addition, since TCP sequence numbers are set in the case of TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) instead of UDP (User Datagram Protocol), the same calculation can be performed. In this case, the number of retransmissions may be referred to. The reference for these calculations may be in units of 1 second, in units of 5 seconds, or in units of 200 packets. In the case of time unit, data suitable for the user's intuition can be obtained without depending on the bit rate, and in the case of packet unit, data on a specific operation on the network can be obtained.

  In addition to packet loss, jitter and delay may be obtained by calculation with reference to a clock (not shown) that can be referenced from the NW quality measurement unit 32. This calculation criterion may also be performed in units of time or in units of packets. Here, by storing the data as statistical data, it is possible to eliminate the need for a large-scale memory in the NW quality measurement unit 32. Further, the memory capacity can be saved by measuring only the target to be measured notified from the NW quality control unit 33. Alternatively, all received data may be measured, and only the necessary data may be filtered by the NW quality control unit 33.

  Next, the receiver 4 receives the transmitted packet at the NW interface unit 41, and reproduces the content received by the content reproduction unit 43 by the same VoD reproduction mechanism as the conventional one (step S108). At this time, the NW quality measurement unit 44 measures and stores various network quality data in the same manner as in step S107 (step S109). With this operation, the content is distributed and the distributed content is reproduced.

  In step S103 shown in FIG. 4, the data type received by monitoring the request to the distribution server 1 at the time of relaying is specified, and other special processing is not performed. Not limited to this, a special process for specifying the data type may be implemented in both the receiver 4 and the BBR 3. For example, a session for constructing a predetermined protocol based on UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) and processing a predetermined request and response between the receiver 4 and the BBR 3 (for example, UPnP IGD is one type of such a session. In the session, from the receiver 4 to the BBR 3, “the packet received at the UDP port 30000 is the target of quality measurement, and the 2nd byte from the 4th offset is handled as the sequence number”. The meaning request “SetTarget (“ UDP ”, 30000, 4, 2)” (actually, it is transmitted as a SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) message) can be requested. This method is more accurate and scalable.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, an operation when a failure occurs in the network or the like and the viewing screen on the receiver 4 is disturbed will be described. 6A shows data observed by the BBR 3, and FIG. 6B shows data observed by the receiver 4. Suppose that the viewing screen is disturbed at 10004 at the time of BBR3 and 20004 at the time of the corresponding receiver 4 (the clocks of BBR3 and receiver 4 may not be synchronized, so they have different values. ).

  First, the content reproduction unit 43 or the NW quality measurement unit 44 detects a content reproduction failure in the receiver 4 (step S110). When a phenomenon such as the viewing screen being disturbed or the sound being interrupted appears, the decoder of the content playback unit 43 uses H.264. H.264 (compression encoding method for moving image data) or a format that does not conform to MPEG, etc. appears, buffer underflow (the minimum required data is insufficient in the buffer area), buffer overflow (when writing data to the buffer area) It often happens that it protrudes).

  Therefore, the content reproduction unit 43 can notify the NW quality control unit 45 of the occurrence of the failure at the timing. Alternatively, the NW quality measurement unit 44 can detect the packet loss. For example, if the packet loss is 2%, the NW quality measurement unit 44 determines that the screen is likely to be disturbed (the packet loss rate when the screen is disturbed is the format NW quality control unit 45 may also be notified. Alternatively, if a state where a packet does not arrive for a preset time (for example, 1 second) occurs, it may be determined that a network failure has occurred.

  Next, the NW quality control unit 45 requests network quality data in the BBR3 from the NW quality control unit 33 in the BBR3 (step S111). For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a request including information identifying a UDP / TCP and a port number for specifying a measurement target and a port number is transmitted to the BBR 3, and the NW quality control unit 33 sends a packet of the 10554 port of UDP. For example, a response shown in FIG. 9 is transmitted to the receiver 4 as the corresponding information (step S112). Here, since the time when the request is received is 10004, it is assumed that a response is transmitted regarding the situation at that time.

  Although the packet types are explicitly shown in FIG. 8, this is useful for distinguishing each of the plurality of packet types when the quality is measured by the BBR 3. If there is only one type of measurement data measured by BBR3, or if it can be distinguished by the address of the receiver 4 (determined by examining the source of the request), it is not necessary to specify the packet type. Absent. In FIG. 9, as an example, the target packet sequence has a bit rate of 8 Mbps, a jitter of 1 ms, a delay of 0, a packet loss of 0, and a device different from the receiver 4. This indicates that communication between (Other) (especially communication within the LAN) is 90 Mbps, and the CPU load (cpu) of the BBR 3 is 90%.

  Next, the NW quality control unit 45 of the receiver 4 receives the quality information from the BBR 3 (step S113), and the network quality as a whole and its estimation are estimated from both the observation data of the BBR 3 and the observation data of the receiver 4. The cause is derived (step S114). In the state where the data at times 10004 and 20004 in FIG. 6 can be obtained, the packet loss on the global network 2 side is 0%, but the packet loss at the receiver 4 is 50%.

  As a cause of this, although jitter is a little worse, it cannot be said that it is a cause of failure (or is considered to be caused as a result of packet loss), there is no particular problem with delay, but the CPU load is 90%. Packet transmission within the local network (home network) due to the fact that the transfer is within the LAN (specifically, it can be estimated that the transfer between the personal computers 6-a and 6-b is 90 Mbps). You can see that it is stagnant. For this determination, for example, in the case of the rule “BBR3 side packet loss 1% or less, receiver side packet loss 5% or more, BBR3 side CPU load 80% or more, BBR3 side LAN transmission 50Mbps or more Judgment is made by checking that “the packet loss is occurring at the receiver because the transmission load is high”.

  Next, the result of the determination is recognized as the final network quality, and the NW quality control unit 45 notifies the information display unit 46 to that effect and displays the cause of the reproduction failure (step S115). The cause of this playback failure is, for example, to the user: “The communication quality of the home NW has deteriorated. The amount of communication in the home NW is large and the router load is high. (Packet loss in the home NW 50%: Code E011-90-90-50) ”(see FIG. 10).

  As for other causes, the cause of the reproduction failure can be displayed by converting the knowledge rule shown in FIG. 11 into an internal database and applying an expert system for executing data analysis or device control based on the database. In FIG. 11 and FIG. 6, the fault contents are shown for the situation at times 10006 and 20006 in the code E012, the situation at times 10008 and 20008 in the code E013, and the situation at times 10009 and 20009 in the code E014, respectively. Determine and display information. In particular, E013 is an example in which there is no quality degradation in the global network 2 and it is determined that there is a cause of quality degradation on the local network side on the receiver 4 side.

  In this way, in various situations, it is possible to notify information that gives the user a sense of security by identifying the cause. In particular, if the cause of the failure is due to another device in the local network, it is possible to take action such as stopping the operation of the device. If there is a cause in the local network, check the wiring etc. or contact a detailed friend You can consult, and if there is a cause in the global network, you can take measures such as contacting a service provider. In addition, by displaying a code such as E011-90-90-50, the person in charge of the call center can immediately tell the difference between the inquiries, the contents of the failure, the 90 Mbps bandwidth in the LAN, the CPU load 90%, and the packet loss 50%. It is easy to grasp that and can answer accurately.

  In step S111, the network quality information is acquired at the timing when the content reproduction failure is detected so as not to consume the bandwidth of the content data as much as possible. Alternatively, it may be performed while viewing content. For example, the RTP header has an area for storing option data, and various quality data may be embedded in this area as long as it can operate in cooperation with the receiver 4. By doing in this way, the receiver 4 can acquire a plurality of quality data in time series, and at the timing of failure occurrence, by appropriately building a knowledge rule database, more diverse data can be obtained. Analyze and make decisions.

  Even if it is not regular, it is possible to efficiently transmit without wasting bandwidth by embedding only when the bit rate is lowered. In addition, the network quality information acquisition request is made from the receiver 4, and the BBR 3 returns the global network quality in response. However, the invention is not limited to this, and the BBR 3 periodically or at the timing when the bit rate is lowered. You may send it. Further, the BBR 3 may be provided with means for detecting a decrease in network quality such as occurrence of a packet loss or stop of a data stream, and transmission may be performed based on a timing for detecting that the network quality has deteriorated.

  As for the information display method, for example, instead of displaying the information on the entire screen, as shown in FIG. 12, the information display window is displayed on a part of the screen without stopping the playback of the content. Information can also be displayed concisely inside. The part of the screen may be the upper left, the lower side, or the left and right one-eighth (margin portion when 4: 3 content is displayed on a 16: 9 screen). Alternatively, a semi-transparent window may be used.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the display operation of the cause of the reproduction failure that the NW quality control unit 45 performs condition determination processing and the information display unit 46 displays a message will be described. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the display operation of the cause of the reproduction failure. FIG. 14 is a state transition diagram of the NW quality control unit 45 that performs control. In FIG. 14, symbols ST0, ST1, ST2, ST3, and ST4 respectively indicate a start state (transition to the IDLE state promptly when the power is turned on; ST0), an IDLE state (not in a content playback state; ST1), and a RUNNING state (playing back; ST2), STOPPED state (receiving is stopped; ST3), and NOSYSY state (packet loss; ST4).

  When it is time to display the failure cause information, it is first determined whether or not it is immediately after the start of viewing (channel selection or selection of playback of VoD content) (step S130). Here, “immediately after” is, for example, 0.5 to 3 seconds later. In the case of immediately after the start, there is a possibility that the arrival of the packet may be unstable due to the start processing at the server, each setting change of the router on the route, etc. is there. Further, it can be inferred that it may be unstable for the user immediately after the start of viewing. In this case, there is no particular problem even if the information display is not performed specially, so the process is completed without performing the information display. At this time, the state transition in FIG. 14 is also not performed.

  On the other hand, if it is not immediately after the start, it is determined whether it is immediately before the end (step S131). In the case of VoD, it is notified by the RTSP (Real-time Streaming Protocol) ANNOUNCE message from the distribution server 1 that it is immediately before termination. At this time, the reception of the content data is stopped at the end, but is completed because it is not a failure just before the end. If it is not immediately before the end, the process proceeds to step S132. In step S132, for example, if the packet loss is less than 1%, the processing is completed without doing anything because the degree of failure is minor. If it has been stopped for more than 1 second, it is a serious failure and “network transmission is stopped” is displayed (step S135), and a transition is made to the STOPPED state. If a packet loss of 1% or more has occurred, “99% during network quality degradation” is displayed (step S133), and a transition is made to the NOISY state. If it is determined in step S133 or step S135 that the abnormal state has been resolved, the process returns to the RUNNING state (step S134), and the information display window is deleted.

  Although not shown in FIG. 13, there is a possibility of transition from the NOISY state (step S133) to the STOPPED state (step S135). If the content reproduction has ended, it is determined in step S134 that the normal state has been restored. Further, in step S132 and the like, it is set to 1 second or more, 1% or more, but is not limited to this value, an appropriate value may be set in advance, and knowledge rules for these condition determination processes are set. It is possible to cope with various conditions by creating a database. At that time, it is desirable to set the order of determination according to the importance of the failure content, such as setting “stop for 1 second or more” to a higher priority than “loss of 1% or more”.

  Note that the processing in steps S131 to S135 shown in FIG. 13 can be implemented in combination with the embodiments described later, but the description thereof is omitted in the embodiments described later.

<Second Embodiment>
Next, a network failure detection system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the first embodiment, the priority is not set to the packet transferred by the BBR 3, but in this embodiment, a case where the priority is set to the packet will be described. Specifically, a case will be described in which the IP telephone service packet from the exchange server 9 has a higher priority than the VoD service packet from the distribution server 1. The packet priority setting is realized by setting an IP packet type in a TOS (Type of service) field defined by IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6).

  FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the entire network system in the second embodiment. In this figure, the same parts as those in the embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. The NW quality measurement unit 322 illustrated in FIG. 15 is different from the NW quality measurement unit 32 illustrated in FIG. 3 in that it can handle packets with priority and measure various network quality data for each priority. Further, the NW quality control unit 332 can handle and process data measured for each priority by the NW quality measurement unit 322, as compared to the NW quality control unit 33 shown in FIG. The point is different. The receiver 402-a is different from the receiver 4 shown in FIG. 3 in that an NW quality control unit 452 is provided. The NW quality control unit 452 is different from the NW quality measurement unit 45 shown in FIG. 3 in that it can process network quality data related to packets with priority from the NW quality control unit 332 of the BBR 302. The telephone 5 exchanges packets with high priority, but since it is the same as a publicly known IP telephone, detailed description is omitted. Since each of the exchange server 9, the BBR 7, and the telephone 8 has already spread in the market, detailed description thereof is omitted. In the second embodiment, the operation of the receiver 402-a for starting the content reproduction is the same as the operation of the receiver 4 shown in FIG.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 16, the call start operation of the telephone 5 in the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an IP telephone call start operation in telephone 5 shown in FIG. The signaling of the telephone 5 basically operates in accordance with the specifications defined by SIP (RFC3261). When the telephone 5 is operated to start a call (step S201), the BBR 302 relays the call request (step S202). In response to this, the exchange server 9 performs a signaling process (step S203). Then, the other telephone 8 responds (step S204), and when the session is established, the BBR 302 recognizes the establishment of the call session (step S205).

  Further, the receiver 402-a recognizes the establishment of a call session (step S208). When the BBR 302 recognizes the establishment of the call session (step S205), it identifies the relevant voice packet, measures the network quality during call data relay, and accumulates or aggregates the measurement results (step S206). Since the accumulated data can be recognized as having a high priority in the TOS field or the like, the network quality measurement is started for each priority (step S207). At this time, the session start time and the like are recorded.

  FIGS. 17A and 17B are examples of observation data in the BBR 302 and the receiver 402-a, respectively. VoD distribution in the receiver 402-a is started at time 10001 (20001), and time 10003 (20003). ), The telephone 5 starts talking, and at time 10005 (20005), the specification band of the telephone 5 is increasing to 90 Mbps. Here, a description will be given on the assumption that the failure detection processing in the receiver 402-a is performed at the time of 10006 (20006). Although this time is in minutes, in reality, failure detection processing is often performed within a few seconds at most, and there is no problem even if it is read as seconds.

  Next, the network failure detection processing operation will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the network failure detection processing operation. First, the content reproduction unit 43 or the NW quality measurement unit 44 of the receiver 402-a detects a content reproduction failure (step S250). Subsequently, the NW quality control unit 452 requests network quality data in the BBR 302 from the NW quality control unit 332 of the BBR 302 (step S251). In response to this, the NW quality control unit 332 reads the data stored in the NW quality measurement unit 322, and transmits the data to the receiver 402-a as network quality data including information on the priority (step S252).

  FIG. 19 shows an example of data transmitted at this time. In the example illustrated in FIG. 19, a device represented by “5” (<Terminal> 5)) uses a 90 Mbps bandwidth (<High Priority> 90 Mbps) for a packet with a high priority set one minute ago. The session is started (<SessionTime> -1 min), and as a result, 10% packet loss (<Loss>) occurs in the global network. Here, since the clocks of the BBR 302 and the receiver 402-a are not always synchronized, the time is indicated not by absolute time but by relative time. Moreover, what is necessary is just to notify now also when displaying by absolute time.

  According to FIG. 17, it is information about an event in which the bit rate has increased at time 10005 (20005) one minute before time 10006 (20006), and at any session start time of the telephone 5 or the receiver 402-a. This is because the NW quality control unit 332 determines that the event causing the failure is an increase in the bit rate. This is based on the occurrence of a packet loss of 10%. In this way, it is effective to determine an event that may cause a failure and transmit data focused on the event to the receiver 402-a. Regarding this determination method, a plurality of knowledge rules may be stored in a database and incorporated in the NW quality control unit 332. An example of the knowledge rule used for the determination in step S252 is “if the difference between the timing when the packet loss is 1% or more and the timing when the bit rate of the specific device exceeds 80 Mbps is within 1 second, the predetermined information ( For example, “information shown in FIG. 19” is notified ”.

  Next, the NW quality control unit 452 receives the network quality information transmitted from the BBR 302 via the NW interface unit 41 (step S253), and is measured by the network quality information from the BBR 302 and the NW quality measurement unit 44. The cause of the reproduction failure is specified from both of the information (step S254). For example, it is specified that a packet loss has occurred because broadband communication with high priority is performed in another device in the local network. Then, the NW quality control unit 452 displays the specified cause of failure (step S255). FIG. 20 shows a display example displaying the specified cause of failure.

  An example of the knowledge rule used for the determination in step S254 is “If a packet loss notification of 1% or more and high-priority packet communication is performed in a bandwidth of 80 Mbps or more, the high-priority of a specific device is used. The reception status deteriorates due to communication. " At this time, since a plurality of devices in the local network are related and have an influence on the reception status, an event for notifying the reception status may be transmitted to each device. For example, as shown in FIG. 21, a device having an address of “192.168.0.105” (Address> 192.168.0.105) can communicate at a bit rate of 90 Mbps using a UDP 20000 port. The priority is 1 (<Priority> 1), and a device having an address of “192.168.0.101” (Address> 192.168.0.101) is assigned a UDP 10554 port. Communication is performed at a bit rate of 10 Mbps, and a message with a priority of 2 (<Priority> 2) may be transmitted to each device in the local network by multicast or broadcast. Further, it may be transmitted by a plurality of unicasts, or may be transmitted only to a device that is considered to be the cause of the failure.

  In this way, when it is found that each device has an influence on other devices, it is possible to perform a process of voluntarily suppressing the bit rate so as not to affect the other devices. . For example, since the telephone 5 receives this message and there is another low-priority service that uses 10 Mbps (the remaining bandwidth of 100 Mbps), the receiver 402-a can change by itself from 90 Mbps to 50 Mbps. It is also possible to eliminate the influence on.

  Further, since the upper limit and the lower limit of the bit rate are set in advance, it is also possible to transmit a request including upper limit and lower limit information from the receiver 402-a or the telephone 5 as shown in FIG. is there. In this way, since the upper and lower limit data can be notified to each device in FIG. 21, it becomes easier to change the bit rate more spontaneously. Further, the name of the device can be stored in the BBR 302 in association with the IP address (source address) by adding a User-Agent header or a new tag, etc., so that more detailed network quality data is obtained. be able to.

<Third Embodiment>
Next, a network failure detection system according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the second embodiment, the influence of other devices in the local network has been described when performing communication with high priority. However, in the third embodiment, there is a case where there are terminals using the same service with the same priority. Processing will be described. FIG. 23 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the entire network system in the third embodiment. In this figure, the same parts as those in the embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. 23 differs from the BBR 302 shown in FIG. 15 in that it includes an NW quality measurement unit 323 and an NW quality control unit 333. The BBR 303 shown in FIG. The NW quality measurement unit 323 is different from the NW quality measurement unit 322 shown in FIG. 15 in that each network quality data is acquired for each service identifier and accumulated or aggregated. The NW quality control unit 333 differs from the NW quality control unit 332 shown in FIG. 15 in that it processes a service identifier registration request and transmits network quality data that recognizes the service identifier.

  The receivers 403-a and 403-b are different from the receiver 402-a illustrated in FIG. 15 in that they include a content control unit 423a (423b) and an NW quality control unit 453a (453b). The content control unit 423a (423b) is different from the content control unit 42 shown in FIG. 15 in that the NW quality control unit 453a (453b) instructs a service identifier registration request. The NW quality control unit 453a (453b) differs from the NW quality control unit 452 shown in FIG. 15 in that it makes a service identifier registration request and that it recognizes a service identifier and handles NW quality information.

  FIG. 24 is an example of observation data in the BBR 303 and the receiver 403-a in this embodiment. VoD distribution in the receiver 403-a is started at time 10001 (20001), and at time 10004 (20004). This shows a situation where the VoD distribution of the receiver 403-b is started. Here, the description will be made on the assumption that the failure detection processing in the receiver 403-a is performed at the time of 10005 (20005).

  Next, an operation for starting content reproduction will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing an operation for starting content reproduction. 25 differs from the operation shown in FIG. 4 in that steps 302 and S303 are added. Step S301 is the same as Step S101, and Steps S312 to S319 are the same as Step S102 to Step S109, respectively. Therefore, detailed description will be omitted, and Steps 302 and S303 will be described.

  In step S302, since the receiver 403-a (403-b) registers the service identifier in advance before using the service, the content control unit 423a (423b) sends the service identifier to the NW quality control unit 453a (453b). The NW quality control unit 453a (453b) transmits a service identifier registration request to the BBR 303. FIG. 26 shows an example of a registration request. Here, the service identifier is unique within at least the local network, that is, when the service provider is the same, when both the receiver 403-a and the receiver 403-b use the service, the service identifier is registered in the BBR 303. The service identifiers are required to be recognizable as being the same.

  As such an identifier, for example, if the service is fixed at the time of manufacture of the receiver 403-a (403-b), a predetermined service identifier can be set in advance, and if not, Can use the domain of the server address for identifier construction. For example, if “http://vod1.vodservice.co.jp”, co. By using something other than a common one such as jp, “vodservice.co.jp” may be “urn: service: //vodservice.co.jp”. In FIG. 26, “urn: service: // vod1 /” is used for simplicity. In step S303, the NW quality control unit 333 interprets the request from the NW quality control unit 453a (453b), and stores the port number and protocol pair in the memory in association with the service identifier.

  Next, an operation when some kind of failure is detected will be described. The operation when a failure is detected is in accordance with the operation shown in FIG. An example of the response from the BBR 303 returned from step S112 shown in FIG. 7 is shown in FIG. FIG. 27 shows that a packet loss of 20% and a jitter of 10% have been introduced to the global network from one minute ago due to the communication between the two receivers 403-a and 403-b related to the service “urn: service: // vod1 /”. It shows that it came to occur. Also in this case, the quality control unit 333 generates response data by paying attention to a part related to the occurrence of the failure cause (in this case, packet loss 20%, etc.).

  Then, in step S114 and step S115, information is displayed as shown in FIG. 28 in light of the data accumulated and totaled by the NW quality control unit 453a (453b) and the NW quality measurement unit 44a. At this time, if knowledge rules are stored in a database, various conditions can be handled as described above.

  If the local network bandwidth is insufficient, the content data may be compressed in the BBR 303. For example, the BBR 303 is provided with a video data transcoder, and an MPEG video of 15 Mbps is converted to an H.264 video of 5 Mbps. If it can be converted to H.264 video, the lack of bandwidth can be resolved without causing a drop in image quality. Further, only the bit rate may be lowered without changing the video format. In this case, it is not necessary to perform a process related to a change in the video format, although the image quality is deteriorated.

  The content data distributed from the distribution server 1 may include a packet including an error correction code called FEC (Forward Error Correction). As this correction code system, there are a Reed-Solomon code, a turbo code, a parity code, and the like, and an extra band of about 20% is used in addition to the content data itself depending on the error correction capability. If the bandwidth shortage can be resolved by reducing this 20%, the FEC packet can be prevented from being transferred to the local network. Specifically, the BBR 303 includes an FEC calculation unit, and when there is a correctable packet loss in the content data, the FEC packet is used to recover the packet. Then, the FEC packet is not distributed to the receiver 403-a (403-b). It should be noted that the distinction between content data itself and FEC packets can usually be made by port numbers. For example, if the data of the content itself is a port number 10,000, the FEC packet is number 10002.

  In the first to third embodiments, the configuration in which the distribution server 1 exists on the global network 2 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the BBR 3 (or BBR 302, BBR 303) exists on the route. It should be in a place like this. For example, the distribution server 1 may be a distribution server device such as DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) DMS (digital media server) connected to the LAN side such as BBR3. In this case, in the IP layer, the receiver 4 (or the receivers 402 and 403) and the distribution server 1 exist in the same network, but since the packet always passes through the BBR3, the BBR3 and the distribution server are in BBR3. 1 can be obtained by the operation described above. If the “global network” part is read as “route between BBR3 and DLNA DMS” and “10 Mbps @ gw” is read as “10 Mbps @ dlna-dms”, the receiver 4 performs the same processing as described above. Processing can be performed to notify the user of information.

<Fourth Embodiment>
Next, a network failure detection system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Up to the third embodiment, it has mainly been related to network quality such as packet loss and jitter. However, in this embodiment, the NAT (Network Address Translation) overshooting problem which is a problem in IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) is solved. A port mapping setting function represented by UPnP IGD (Universal Plug & Play Internet Gateway Device; hereinafter simply referred to as IGD) for solving the problem will be described.

  FIG. 29 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the entire network system in the fourth embodiment. In this figure, the same parts as those in the embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. In this figure, since the receiver 404-b is the same as the receiver 404-a, a detailed configuration is omitted. The BBR 304 shown in FIG. 29 is different from the BBR 3 shown in FIG. 3 in that an NW quality control unit 334 and an address conversion unit 354 are provided. The NW quality control unit 334 is different from the NW quality control unit 33 illustrated in FIG. 3 in that the NW quality control unit 334 refers to the setting contents of the address conversion unit 354 and handles IGD setting item information.

  In response to the setting request for the IGD function from the content control unit 424, the address conversion unit 354 performs address conversion setting, and for the set port, forwards the packet from the global network to the local network according to the setting content. . This is also called port mapping, port forwarding, or static NAT. This function is necessary in the VoD service for transmitting RTP packets by unicast because the local network is operated with a so-called private address in IPv4 and packets cannot be transmitted directly from the global network to the host device in the local network. .

  The IP multicast service is unnecessary because it is realized by Join / Leave regardless of the address system. The IGD function is a well-known technology, and broadband routers with the IGD function implemented are already on the market, and are standard as functions for residential routers (often indicated as UPnP functions). The address conversion unit 354 includes a CPU, a memory, and a control program, and can share components with the NW quality measurement unit 32, the NW quality control unit 334, and the like.

  The receiver 404-a is different from the receiver 4 shown in FIG. 3 in that it includes a content control unit 424 and an NW quality control unit 454. Prior to content reproduction, the content control unit 424 transmits an address conversion request to the address conversion unit 354 by a method determined by IGD as a standard in order to perform address conversion setting for the BBR 304. For example, a request for setting to transfer a UDP packet arriving at the external port 10554 of the BBR 304 to the 10554 port of the address associated with the NW interface unit 41 of the receiver 404-a is transmitted.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 30, an operation when content is reproduced and a failure occurs will be described. FIG. 30 is a flowchart showing an operation when a content is reproduced and a failure occurs. Description of parts that are the same as those in FIG. 4 is omitted, and “execute step S102 and subsequent steps” is indicated. First, when the user instructs content playback with a remote controller (operation unit 47) or the like, the content control unit 424 is instructed to play back content (step S401). The content control unit 424 checks an address system related to content reproduction (step S402). For example, since the content identifier is often specified by a URL (Universal Resource Locator), when the host device unit is converted to an IP address by DNS (Domain Name Service), the IPv4 system or the IPv6 system is used. Can be determined.

  In RTSP, since it is necessary to establish a TCP connection in order to transmit a DESCRIBE message, the address on the receiver side can be obtained by calling the getsockname () system call for the established TCP connection. Judgment can be made by the machine side address. Further, the address system on the server side may be checked with the system call getpeername (). Alternatively, an IPv4 system flag or an IPv6 system flag may be provided in advance by setting or the like. Since the IGD is not necessary at the V6 address as a result of the examination, step S102 and subsequent steps are executed.

  On the other hand, in the case of the V4 address, the process proceeds to step S403. The content control unit 424 checks the V4 address system (class) of the receiver (step S403). As a result, if it is a global address, it can be determined that the local network does not require NAT, so step S102 and subsequent steps are executed. If it is a private address (local address), the process proceeds to step S404.

  Next, the content control unit 424 checks whether the BBR 304 has an IGD function (step S404). Since UPnP has a device discovery function as a common function, it is possible to check whether or not there is an IGD function by this mechanism. The BBR304 is equipped with an IGD function, but if it is not installed or disabled due to settings, the NAT cannot be executed even though it is necessary. To do. On the other hand, if there is an IGD function, the process proceeds to step S405. The content control unit 424 makes an acquisition request for the external address of the BBR 304 from the BBR 304 (step S405). In IGD, an API (Application Program Interface) called GetExternalIPAddress () is defined and used as an interface. An example of the response acquired from the BBR 304 at this time is shown in FIG.

  Next, the content control unit 424 checks the address system (class) of the acquired external address (step S406). As a result, if it is a global address, the process proceeds to step S407. On the other hand, if it is a local address, it means that there is a router that further requires NAT in order to connect to the global network. Therefore, even if port mapping is performed on the BBR 304, the distribution server 1 existing in the global network The RTP packet reception cannot be achieved, an instruction is given to the information display unit 46, an error is displayed in step S410, and the process ends in error. In the example shown in FIG. 31, “192.168.0.60” is a private address of class C, so an error is displayed as shown in FIG. C0A8003C represents each element of “192.168.0.60” in hexadecimal. However, if the address of the distribution server 1 acquired by the system call getpeername () is also a private address, it may be connectable, so such a condition may be taken into consideration.

  Next, the content control unit 424 generates an address conversion setting request and transmits it to the BBR 304 (step S407). In the IGD, an API called AddPortMapping () is defined, and this is used. The address conversion unit 354 of the BBR 304 that has received the request interprets the request, performs port mapping setting, and returns a status code. At this time, in general, if the specified external port number does not have the same setting, or the request is from the same client (referred to as a control point in the UPnP context) even if there is the same setting, the setting is successful. In many cases, it is implemented so as to fail if it is the same setting from another client (referred to as “collision”).

  Next, the content control unit 424 determines success or failure of the setting request (step S408). As a result, if successful, the port mapping setting has been completed, so step S102 and subsequent steps are executed. On the other hand, if it fails, the process proceeds to step S409. The content control unit 424 examines the content of the status code (step S409), distinguishes between the case where the “collision” has occurred and the case where it does not, and displays the error content by the information display unit 46 (step S410).

  In step S410, the display of the error content at the transition from other than “collision” in steps S404 and S409 and “collision” in step S409 may be determined with reference to the knowledge rule database shown in FIG.

  As described above, the failure related to the NAT traversal setting is also considered to be a general failure in which the RTP packet cannot be received indefinitely, although it has been successfully played back by RTSP without cooperation with a broadband router having an IGD function. However, it is possible to accurately notify the user of the root cause by cooperation.

  Each embodiment has been described as an individual embodiment, but is described by extracting individual characteristic functions, and the first to fourth embodiments may be combined with each other. Good.

  As described above, when audio / video information is transmitted by packet via a network, the network quality value of audio / video communication is measured when the audio / video quality deteriorates, and the location where the failure has occurred Since the cause and the cause are specified and the contents are displayed, the location and the cause causing the failure can be easily specified. In addition, this makes it possible to determine an appropriate cause for failure resolution, and as a result, it is possible to achieve cost reduction and customer satisfaction improvement of devices connected to the network.

  Note that the program for realizing the functions of the broadband router and receiver shown in FIGS. 3, 15, 23 and 29 is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium is recorded on the computer. The network failure detection processing may be performed by causing the system to read and execute. Here, the “computer system” includes an OS and hardware such as peripheral devices. The “computer system” includes a WWW system having a homepage providing environment (or display environment). The “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a storage device such as a flexible medium, a magneto-optical disk, a portable medium such as a ROM and a CD-ROM, and a hard disk incorporated in a computer system. Further, the “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a volatile memory (RAM) in a computer system that becomes a server or a client when a program is transmitted via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. In addition, those holding programs for a certain period of time are also included.

  The program may be transmitted from a computer system storing the program in a storage device or the like to another computer system via a transmission medium or by a transmission wave in the transmission medium. Here, the “transmission medium” for transmitting the program refers to a medium having a function of transmitting information, such as a network (communication network) such as the Internet or a communication line (communication line) such as a telephone line. The program may be for realizing a part of the functions described above. Furthermore, what can implement | achieve the function mentioned above in combination with the program already recorded on the computer system, what is called a difference file (difference program) may be sufficient.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Distribution server, 2 ... Global network, 3, 7, 302, 303, 304 ... Broadband router (BBR), 4 (-a, -b), 402 (-a), 403 (- a, -b), 404 (-a, -b) ... receiver, 5, 8 ... telephone, 6 ... personal computer, 9 ... exchange server, 31 ... WAN interface unit, 32 322, 323 ... NW quality measurement unit, 33, 332, 333, 334 ... NW quality control unit, 34 ... LAN interface unit, 354 ... address conversion unit, 41 ... NW interface unit 42, 423 (a, b), 424 ... content control unit, 43 ... content reproduction unit, 44 ... NW quality measurement unit, 45, 452, 453a, 454 ... NW quality control unit, 46 ... Broadcast display unit, 47 ... operation unit

Claims (9)

Network failure detection device for detecting a network failure when data is communicated with the server on the global network or the local network via a data relay device connected to both the global network and the local network to relay communication data Because
Data acquisition means for acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device;
A first quality specifying means for the communication data monitoring acquired, specifying the communication data bit rate, jitter, delay and packet loss as the first network quality information in said data acquisition means,
Failure detection means for detecting a network failure based on the first network quality information ;
From the bit rate, jitter, delay and packet loss obtained as a result of monitoring the communication data relayed in the data relay device to the data relay device when the failure is detected by the failure detection means comprising requesting the transmission of relay data network quality information, in response to said request, said receiving the relay data network quality information sent from the data relay apparatus, received the relay data network quality information of the second network quality A second quality specifying means for specifying as information ,
The bit rate, jitter, with reference to the failure cause determination rule information related to the status and fault cause delays and packet loss, from the said first network quality information a second network quality information, the network failure Cause identification means for identifying the cause of
A notification means for notifying the failure cause information in which the information on the cause of the network failure specified by the failure cause specifying means and the information on the network failure are associated when the network failure is detected; A characteristic network failure detection apparatus. A determination means for determining whether or not the degree of network failure meets a preset condition;
2. The network failure detection apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the notification unit holds, cancels, or changes a notification form of the failure cause information based on the failure degree determined by the determination unit. . 3. The network failure detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit displays a code combining the cause of the network failure and an item value of the failure content. 4. The first network quality information includes network address information of the network failure detection device, and the second network quality information includes network address information on the global network side of the data relay device, and the cause of the network failure information network failure detection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises the information about whether or not the port mapping setting is successful by the data relaying device. A data relay device connected to the network failure detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
Data monitoring means for monitoring communication data to be relayed;
Among the communication data to be monitored, data identifying means for identifying the type of data for which relay data network quality information should be specified;
Quality specifying means for specifying relay data network quality information by monitoring the communication data for specifying the relay data network quality information identified by the data identification means by the data monitoring means;
Data relaying apparatus comprising: a quality information transmitting means for transmitting the identified relay data network products Shitsujo report to the network failure detection apparatus. Network failure detection device for detecting a network failure when data is communicated with the server on the global network or the local network via a data relay device connected to both the global network and the local network to relay communication data A network failure detection method performed by
A data acquisition step of acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device;
Monitoring the communication data acquired in the data acquiring step, the communication data bit rate, jitter, a first quality specifying step of specifying a delay and packet loss as the first network quality information,
A failure detection step of detecting a network failure based on the first network quality information ;
From the bit rate, jitter, delay, and packet loss obtained as a result of monitoring communication data relayed in the data relay device with respect to the data relay device when the network failure is detected by the failure detection step. comprising requesting the transmission of relay data network quality information, in response to the request, the receiving the relay data network quality information transmitted from the data relay apparatus, received the relay data network quality information of the second network quality A second quality identification step identified as information ;
The bit rate, jitter, with reference to the failure cause determination rule information related to the status and fault cause delays and packet loss, from the said first network quality information a second network quality information, the network failure Failure cause identification step to identify the cause of
A notification step of notifying the failure cause information in which the information on the cause of the network failure specified by the failure cause specifying means is associated with the information on the network failure when the network failure is detected; A characteristic network failure detection method. Network failure detection device for detecting a network failure when data is communicated with the server on the global network or the local network via a data relay device connected to both the global network and the local network to relay communication data A network failure detection system comprising:
The network failure detection device includes:
Data acquisition means for acquiring communication data from the server via the data relay device;
A first quality specifying means for the communication data monitoring acquired, specifying the communication data bit rate, jitter, delay and packet loss as the first network quality information in said data acquisition means,
Failure detection means for detecting a network failure based on the first network quality information ;
From the bit rate, jitter, delay and packet loss obtained as a result of monitoring the communication data relayed in the data relay device to the data relay device when the failure is detected by the failure detection means comprising requesting the transmission of relay data network quality information, in response to the request, the receiving the relay data network quality information sent from the data relay apparatus, received the relay data network quality information of the second network quality A second quality specifying means for specifying as information ,
The bit rate, jitter, with reference to the failure cause determination rule information related to the status and fault cause delays and packet loss, from the said first network quality information a second network quality information, the network failure Cause identification means for identifying the cause of
A notification means for notifying fault cause information in which the information on the cause of the network fault specified by the fault cause specifying means and the information on the network fault are associated when the network fault is detected;
The data relay device
Data monitoring means for monitoring communication data to be relayed;
Among the communication data to be monitored, data identifying means for identifying the type of data for which relay data network quality information should be specified;
Quality specifying means for specifying relay data network quality information by monitoring the communication data for specifying the relay data network quality information identified by the data identification means by the data monitoring means;
Network failure detection system comprising: a quality information transmitting means for transmitting the identified relay data network products Shitsujo report to the network failure detection apparatus. A network failure detection program for causing a computer to function as the network failure detection apparatus according to claim 1 . A network failure detection program for causing a computer to function as the data relay device according to claim 5 .

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