JPH0662152A - Charging control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To omit charging even in the case of an unrecoverable error of two or more bits in cells of an information part with respect to the system which controls charging in the ATM communication system. CONSTITUTION:In the ATM network charging control system provided with a charging means 1 which controls retransmission of information of a specific medium and is provided with a counting means 2, which counts effective cells based on detection of abandoned cells due to bit error in cells of the header part, to perform totalization of charging, the charging control means 1 is provided with a bit error detecting means 3 to detect the bit error in cells of the information part, and the counting means 2 counts effective cells based on the sum of the number of abandoned cells and the number of cells where bit error is detected.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system for controlling charging in a communication system, and more particularly to an ATM (Asynchronous
Transfer Mode: Asynchronous Transfer Mode) The accounting control method.

[0002] In the ATM system, information is transmitted in units of cells having a certain size, and users are aggregated in units of valid cells to calculate charges.

At this time, even if there is an unrecoverable error of 2 bits or more in the information part, the cell is not discarded and the cell is treated as a valid cell, but in this case, it is required not to charge. It

[0004]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in data communication based on a media-based charging control system in the ATM system, retransmission control is performed and charging is performed only for valid cells. In this case, the charging method counts the cells between the beginning and the end of the data frame, and counts only the frames without cell discard by the cell discard presence / absence detection function to charge the valid cells. I am trying.

FIG. 6 shows a conventional charging control system (1), which exemplifies a system in which counting is performed for each frame and the number of cells is counted at the end of the frame.
Is a charging control unit that controls charging based on data for a user (terminal). Further, in the charging control unit 10, reference numeral 11 indicates user / data, audio / video cells and data.
A cell selection unit for selecting a cell, 12 is a first counter for counting audio / video cells, 13 is a frame detection unit for detecting frames, and 14 is a cell discard detection for detecting whether or not a cell is discarded in a data cell. Part, 15 is data
Second counter for counting cells, 16 for counter 1
It is a billing counting unit that counts billing from the count values of 2, 15.

The cell selection unit 11 selects, from user data, a communication cell for which retransmission control of voice, image and the like is not performed and a communication cell for which retransmission control of data and the like is controlled. The counter 12 counts the number of voice and image cells. The frame detector 13 detects the beginning and end of the frame of the data cell, and the cell discard detector 14 detects the presence or absence of cell discard. The counter 15 returns to the initial state for each frame and counts the number of cells in the data cell.

The billing counting unit 16 is provided with both counters 12 and 15.
The count value of is aggregated as billing information by the virtual path (VPI) and the virtual channel (VCI). At this time, the frame detection unit 13 has a memory unit, generates a trigger 1 by detecting the beginning of the frame, activates the cell discard detection unit 14, and generates a trigger 2 by the final detection of the frame to generate a cell. The operation of the discard detection unit 14 ends.

If cells are discarded during this period, the cell discard detection unit 14 outputs a reset signal to the memory unit of the frame detection unit 13 at the end of the frame to reset the memory unit. Not done On the other hand, when there is no cell discard, the counter 15 counts the cells in the memory unit and generates the count value of valid cells.

FIG. 7 shows a conventional charging control system (2), exemplifying a system in which counting is performed for each frame and a counter is reset when a cell is discarded.
The same parts as those in FIG. 6 are indicated by the same numbers. Figure 7
In the above example, the reset signal from the cell discard detector 14 becomes invalid by detecting the beginning of the frame by the frame detector 13 and outputting the trigger 1, so the counter 15 starts counting.

Next, if the cell discard is detected before the end of the frame is detected by the frame detection unit 13 and the trigger 2 is output, the reset signal becomes valid and the counter 15 is reset. The state is reset, and the number of invalid frame cells counted so far is reset.

If there is no cell discard by the time the trigger 2 is output, the value of the counter 15 is output to the billing aggregation unit 16. After that, the reset signal output becomes valid and returns to the initial state with an arbitrary time delay.

FIG. 8 shows a conventional charging control system (3), in which a total is calculated for each of a plurality of frames.
A method of subtracting the number of cells of an invalid frame is illustrated, and the same elements as those in FIG. 6 are indicated by the same numbers. Reference numeral 17 is a third counter for counting the number of invalid cells. 18 is a totaling function made up of software, and forms a billing totaling unit 16 together with a first counter 12 for counting audio / video cells and a second counter 15 for counting the total number of data cells.

In the example of FIG. 8, the billing aggregation unit 16 has a counter 12 and a counter 15, and counts the total number of cells in a plurality of frames. The counter 17 determines the number of cells in the frame in the case of cell discard between the detection of the beginning of the frame by the frame detection unit 13 and the output of trigger 1 and the output of the trigger 2 at the end of the frame. To count. Finally, the number of cells of the invalid frame counted in this way is output to the billing aggregation unit 16 as a subtraction value by the output of the trigger 3, and is subtracted from the cumulative total of the number of cells counted by the counter 15 to obtain a valid cell. The number can be calculated.

[0014]

In the ATM system, when an unrecoverable bit error of 2 bits or more occurs in the header part of a cell, the transfer destination is unknown and the cell is discarded. However, in the information part. When a bit error occurs, the cell is not discarded even if it is an unrecoverable error, and it is transferred to the user (terminal) as it is and counted in the billing counter. This is because in the ATM system, for high speed and high reliability transmission by the optical fiber,
This is because it is considered that there are few bit errors.

However, when there is an unrecoverable error such as a bit error of 2 bits or more in the information section, the user (terminal) retransmits the data by the retransmitting function. Therefore, the valid cells are counted twice for the same data, which results in improper charging.

In the case of the ATM system, considering the rate of cell discard due to an unrecoverable error of 2 bits or more divided into a header part and an information part, out of 53 octets forming one frame, the header part is 5 octets. Yes, the information section is 48
Since it is octed, the number of avoiding invalid cell counts when an unrecoverable error occurs according to the prior art is simply 1 compared to the above.
However, there is a problem that the remaining 90% is counted as valid cells.

The present invention is intended to solve such a problem of the prior art, and in the charging system in the ATM system, the charging is not performed when an unrecoverable error occurs in the information section. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a charging control method that prevents the generation of unreasonable charging due to retransmission.

[0018]

[Means for Solving the Problems] (1) The present invention is a counting means for performing retransmission control for information of a specific medium and counting valid cells based on detection of discarded cells due to bit errors in cells of a header section. In an accounting control system for an ATM network which is provided with a charging control means 1 for counting charges, the charging control means 1 is provided with a bit error detecting means 3 for detecting a bit error in a cell of an information section, and a counting means 2 In, the effective cells are counted based on the sum of the number of discarded cells and the number of cells in which a bit error is detected.

(2) In addition, the present invention controls the retransmission of the information of the specific medium, converts the information into cells, transmits the cells, decomposes the cells and extracts the information.
And counting means 2 for counting valid cells based on detection of discarded cells due to bit errors in cells of the header section
And a charging control means 1 for totaling the charging.
In the charging control system of the TM network, the cell assembling / disassembling means 4 includes a bit error detecting section 27 for detecting a bit error in a reception cell of the information section, and a retransmission request cell for generating and transmitting a retransmission request cell when a bit error is detected. Generation unit 28
A memory section 23 for storing the cell transmitted last time, a retransmission request cell detecting section 29 for retransmitting the stored cell when a retransmission request cell is detected, and an identifier adding section 24 for adding an identifier to this retransmission cell. In addition to the provision, the charging control means 1 is provided with an identifier recognition means for detecting an identifier, and when the identifier is detected, the charging control means 1 excludes the retransmitted cell from the charging target.

(3) Further, according to the present invention, the cell assembling / disassembling means 4 for controlling the retransmission of the information of the specific medium, converting the information into cells, transmitting the cells, and disassembling the cells to extract the information.
And counting means 2 for counting valid cells based on detection of discarded cells due to bit errors in cells of the header section
And a charging control means 1 for totaling the charging.
In the charging control method of the TM network, the cell assembling / disassembling means 4 has a comparing section 30 for comparing a frame transmitted last time and a frame to be transmitted next time, and an identifier to be sent by adding an identifier to the retransmitted cell at the time of comparison match. The charging control means 1 is provided with an identifier recognizing means for detecting an identifier, and when the identifier is detected, the charging control means 1 excludes the retransmitted cell from the charging target.

[0021]

(1) In the charging control method of the ATM network, the retransmission control is performed for the information of the specific medium, the charging control means 1 is provided, and it is effective based on the detection of the discarded cell due to the bit error in the cell of the header part. The counting means 2 for counting cells is provided to collect charges.

In this case, the charging control means 1 is provided with a bit error detecting means 3 for detecting a bit error in a cell of the information section.
And the number of discarded cells in the counting means 2,
The effective cells are counted based on the sum with the number of cells detected by the bit error detecting means 3.

Therefore, according to the present invention, even if an unrecoverable error of 2 bits or more occurs in the cell of the information section without discarding the cell, the charging control means 1 repeatedly counts valid cells. There will be no unreasonable charges.

(2) Further, the cell assembling / disassembling means 4 is provided with a bit error detecting section 27 to detect a bit error in a received cell of the information section, and a retransmission request cell generating section 28 is provided to detect a bit error. When a retransmission request cell is generated and transmitted, a memory unit 23 is provided to store the previously transmitted cell, and a retransmission request cell detection unit 29 is provided to retransmit the stored cell when the retransmission request cell is detected. Let

Further, the charging control means 1 is provided with an identifier recognizing means so as to detect this identifier, and when the identifier is detected, the charging control means 1 excludes the retransmission cell from the charging target.

Therefore, according to the present invention, even if an unrecoverable error of 2 bits or more occurs in the cell of the information section without discarding the cell, the charging control means 1 repeatedly counts valid cells. There will be no unreasonable charges.

(3) Further, the cell assembling / disassembling means 4 is provided with a comparing section 3
0 is provided to compare the previously transmitted frame with the frame to be transmitted next, and the identifier adding unit 24 is provided to add the identifier to the retransmitted cell at the time of comparison match and transmit the cell.

Further, the charging control means 1 is provided with an identifier recognizing means so as to detect this identifier, and when the identifier is detected, the charging control means 1 excludes the retransmitted cell from the charging target.

Therefore, according to the present invention, even if an unrecoverable error of 2 bits or more occurs in the cell of the information section without discarding the cell, the charging control means 1 repeatedly counts the valid cells. There will be no unreasonable charges.

[0030]

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment (1) of the present invention, showing a method of controlling the number of effective cells by the bit error detection function, and the same parts as those in FIG. There is. A bit error detector 19 detects the presence or absence of an unrecoverable bit error such as an error of 2 bits or more in a data cell. 20 is an OR circuit (O
R).

The cell selection unit 11 selects a communication cell for which retransmission control of voice, image and the like is not performed and a communication cell for which retransmission control of data and the like is performed. Voice on the counter 12,
The number of image cells is counted, and the number of data cells is counted by the counter 15.

The frame detector 13 detects the beginning and end of the frame, and the cell discard detector 14 detects the presence or absence of cell discard. The bit error detector 19 detects the presence or absence of unrecoverable bit errors of 2 bits or more. OR circuit 20
Calculates the logical sum of the cell discard detection signal of the cell discard detector 14 and the error signal of 2 bits or more of the bit error detector 19. The billing aggregation unit 16 compares the count value of the counter 12 and the count value of the counter 15 with a virtual path (VPI).
And the virtual channel (VCI) is used as the billing information to perform the aggregation process.

The bit error detector 19 detects the start of a frame and receives the trigger 1 generated by the frame detector 13 until the end of the frame is detected and the output trigger 2 is received. Detect unrecoverable bit errors of 2 bits or more.

During this period, when an error is detected, by outputting an error signal of 2 bits or more, as shown in (a), the memory of the frame detection unit 13 is output as in the prior art shown in FIG. The cell count value of the invalid frame is reset by resetting the unit or by resetting the counter 15 as shown in (b) as in the prior art shown in FIG. 7.

As a concrete method of bit error detection, for example, a cyclic code (CR
The error detection according to C) may be performed.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment (2) of the present invention and shows a charging control system by detecting a bit error in the cell assembling / disassembling unit. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a cell / cell interface in a user / network interface unit near a terminal or a terminal side.
It is assumed that the disassembling function unit, for example, the charging control unit as shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 is provided in the network.

Reference numeral 21 denotes a terminal interface section,
Perform physical or protocol matching with the terminal. 22
Is a cell conversion unit that converts the data from the terminal into ATM cells. A memory unit 23 holds cells for a certain period. Reference numeral 24 denotes an identifier adding unit that gives an identifier to the cell, which indicates whether the charging is or is not a target.

Reference numeral 25 denotes a cell receiving unit, in which the receiving cell is a virtual path (VPI) and a virtual channel (VCI) of its own device.
It receives the cell addressed to the own device.
Reference numeral 26 is a cell disassembling unit, which disassembles the received cell. A bit error detection unit 27 detects the occurrence of an unrecoverable error such as an error of 2 bits or more in the reception cell. A retransmission request cell generation unit 28 generates a retransmission request cell for requesting frame retransmission when an error occurs. A retransmission request cell detection unit 29 detects a retransmission request cell in the received data.

For example, when communication is performed between terminals at both ends of the network, when an unrecoverable error is detected by the destination bit error detection unit 27, an error detection signal is output,
Based on this, the retransmission request cell generation unit 28 generates a retransmission request cell and sends it to the transmission source.

When the retransmission request cell detecting unit 29 at the transmission source detects a retransmission request cell, it outputs a retransmission request signal and outputs a frame to be retransmitted from the memory unit 23, and the retransmission frame is already subjected to network charging control. Since it is counted by the unit, the identifier adding unit 24 adds an identifier having a value indicating that it is not subject to billing, and outputs the ATM cell. In the charging control unit, the cell selection unit and the like have an identifier recognition function, so that the cells that are not charged are not counted.

In the functional configuration shown in FIG. 3,
Even if the positions of the cell assembling unit 22 and the memory unit 23 are interchanged, the same function can be achieved. Further, if the retransmission request cell generation unit 28 adds the identifier to the retransmission request cell, the cell can be directly transmitted without going through the identifier addition unit 24.

The concrete means for bit error detection in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is the same as that in the embodiment (1) shown in FIG. If it is located, for example, if the data is HDLC data, error detection can be performed by a frame check sequence (FCS) at the end of the frame.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment (3) of the present invention, showing a charging control system by data comparison, which is applied to a terminal or a user / network interface part near the terminal side. is there. The same parts as those in FIG. 3 are indicated by the same numbers, and 30 is a comparison part, which compares the frame sent last time with the frame to be sent next.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, a terminal interface unit 21, a cell assembling unit 22, an identifier adding unit 24, a cell having functions equivalent to those of the embodiment shown in FIG. In addition to the receiving unit 25 and the cell disassembling unit 26, a memory unit 23 for storing the frame transmitted last time and a comparing unit 30 for comparing the previous frame with the frame to be transmitted next are added. There is.

When the terminal retransmits, the comparison result output from the comparison unit 30 becomes "match" because the data matches the previous data, so that the identifier addition unit 24 indicates that the cell is not a charging target. By adding the identifier, it is possible to prevent the charging control unit from counting the charging for the retransmission frame.

FIG. 5 is a network to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the B-ISDN.
Shows the network structure, 31_1,31₂Is the user's terminal,
32 _1,32₂ Is a user / network interface unit, 33_1,Three
Three₂ Is the network end, 34_1,34 _2,…_,34_nIs a node, 3
5 has shown B-ISDN, respectively.

The charging control system of the present invention can be applied to the node of the embodiment (1) in any of the nodes 34 _1, etc., and the user / network interface units 32 _1, 3
In 2 ₂ , the types of the embodiments (2) and (3) can be applied.

[0048]

As described above, according to the present invention, A
In the charging control system in the TM system, it is possible to solve the problem of the improper charging count of a retransmission frame when an unrecoverable error such as an error of 2 bits or more occurs.

In the prior art, only the error in the header part is controlled. Therefore, for example, assuming that the probability that an unrecoverable error occurs in a cell is 1, the header part is 5 octets and the information part is 48 octets, so 10% can be simply calculated and controlled. While the remaining 90% was charged unfairly, according to the present invention, error control can be performed in all cases and correct charging can be performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a principle configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment (1) of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment (2) of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an embodiment (3) of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a network to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a conventional charging control system (1).

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a conventional charging control system (2).

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a conventional charging control system (3).

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Charging control means 2 Counting means 3 Bit error detecting means 4 Cellizing / disassembling means 23 Memory section 24 Identifier adding section 27 Bit error detecting section 28 Retransmission request cell generating section 29 Retransmission request cell detecting section 30 Comparing section

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. Counting means (2) for performing retransmission control for information of a specific medium and counting valid cells based on detection of discarded cells due to bit errors in cells of the header section, for counting charges. In an ATM network charging control system provided with a charging control means (1), the charging control means (1) is provided with a bit error detection means (3) for detecting a bit error in a cell of an information section, and the counting means (2). ), The valid control cell is counted based on the sum of the number of discarded cells and the number of cells in which the bit error is detected. 2. A cellizing / disassembling means (4) for controlling retransmission of information of a specific medium, transmitting the information into cells, disassembling the cells and extracting the information, and bit error in cells of the header section. A charging control system for an ATM network, comprising: a counting means (2) for counting valid cells based on the detection of discarded cells; and a charging control means (1) for counting charges. In (4), a bit error detection unit (27) for detecting a bit error in the reception cell of the information unit
A retransmission request cell generation unit (28) that generates and sends a retransmission request cell when the bit error is detected, a memory unit (23) that stores the previously transmitted cell, and a memory that stores the retransmission request cell when the retransmission request cell is detected. A retransmission request cell detection unit (29) for retransmitting the retransmitted cell and an identifier addition unit (24) for adding an identifier to the retransmission cell, and an identifier recognition unit for detecting the identifier in the charging control unit (1). Is provided, and when the identifier is detected, the retransmitted cell is excluded from the charging target in the charging control means (1). 3. A cell assembling / disassembling means (4) for controlling the retransmission of information of a specific medium, transmitting the information into cells, disassembling the cells and extracting the information, and a bit error in the cells of the header section. A charging control system for an ATM network, comprising: a counting means (2) for counting valid cells based on the detection of discarded cells; and a charging control means (1) for counting charges. In (4), a comparison unit (30) that compares the previously transmitted frame with the frame to be transmitted next.
And an identifier adding unit (24) for adding an identifier to the retransmitted cell when the comparison matches and transmitting the identifier, and providing an identifier recognizing unit for detecting the identifier in the charging control unit (1). A charging control system, wherein the retransmitted cell is excluded from charging in the charging control means (1).