KR101231957B1 - Billing system and method in broadband convergence network according to service specification and user contract condition - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a technology that can reasonably calculate billing in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network.

To this end, the present invention includes a baseline cost calculation unit for calculating a baseline cost for each service using the allocated resources and the total cost for each service; A charge characteristic constant determiner configured to calculate a charge characteristic constant for each service by using the baseline cost and a user contract condition; A rate estimator for calculating a rate per billing unit for each service by using the baseline cost and the rate characteristic constant; And a subscriber price calculation unit configured to perform charging for the subscriber session on the basis of the charge per charge unit for each service when the subscriber session is started.

Description

BILLING SYSTEM AND METHOD IN BROADBAND CONVERGENCE NETWORK ACCORDING TO SERVICE SPECIFICATION AND USER CONTRACT CONDITION}

1 is a schematic structural diagram of a broadband integrated network.

2 is an overall configuration diagram of a charging system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 to 6 are flowcharts for explaining the operation of the charging system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a traffic ratio distribution for each time zone compared to the network busy time.

8 is a daily traffic distribution.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

A1: subscriber station A2: network termination device

10: DSLAM / FES 20: Primary Concentration

30: second aggregation 40: access edge equipment

50: broadband integrated network backbone 100: baseline cost calculator

200: Determination of property characteristics of charges 300: Departure of assets for charge estimator

400: rate calculation unit for each subscriber session

The present invention relates to a billing system and method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network.

Currently, the Internet billing method is based on a flat rate method that charges for each period regardless of usage, and a pay-as-you-go method that calculates billing based on the amount of usage. It is becoming.

Since these services do not distinguish services, they do not have a billing system for each service.

Meanwhile, a broadband convergence network (BcN), which has a staged commercialization plan until 2010, may provide various services having different characteristics. Broadband integrated network refers to a quality guaranteed integrated network that can securely provide broadband multimedia services integrating communication, broadcasting, and Internet. Broadband integrated networks, which can be referred to as NGN (Next Generation Network), are divided into service layer, control, transmission network and subscriber network, and are connected to each other by standard interface.

As described above, since various services having different characteristics can be provided through the broadband integrated network, a charging method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions is required.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a system and method for reasonably calculating billing in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network.

In order to achieve the above object, in the broadband integrated network according to the present invention, the billing system considering the service provision characteristics and the user contract conditions, the baseline cost for calculating the baseline cost for each service using the allocation resources and the total cost for each service A calculator; A charge characteristic constant determiner configured to calculate a charge characteristic constant for each service by using the baseline cost and a user contract condition; A rate estimator for calculating a rate per billing unit for each service by using the baseline cost and the rate characteristic constant; And a subscriber rate calculation unit configured to perform charging for the subscriber session on the basis of the charge per charge unit for each service when the subscriber session is started.

In the broadband integrated network according to the present invention, the charging method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions may include a first process of calculating a baseline cost for each service by using an allocated resource for each service and an overall cost; Calculating a fee characteristic constant for each service by using the baseline cost and a user contract condition; A third step of calculating a fee per billing unit for each service by using the baseline cost and the fee characteristic constant; And a fourth process of performing charging for the subscriber session on the basis of the charge per unit of charge for each service when the subscriber session is started.

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

1 is a schematic structural diagram of a broadband integrated network.

The subscriber station A1 may be configured in various forms such as PC based / Non PC based or wired based / wireless based on a service used by a subscriber through a broadband integrated network.

The subscriber station (A1) is connected to the subscriber network (A3, A4, A5) through the network termination device (A2), broadband access network through the access edge equipment 40, which is the access point of the subscriber network and the backbone network 50 Is connected to the backbone. Since the present invention is not clearly defined for the services to be provided through the broadband convergence network, the present invention exemplifies the services expected to be provided in the broadband convergence network through a call type, managed delivery, iCoD, multicast, and the Internet. do.

In a broadband integrated network, necessary resources are allocated according to the characteristics of the service.

The telephony traffic B1 is traffic based on a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) call control protocol and has a first priority and a quality of service (QoS) specified in a standard must be guaranteed.

Managed Delivery traffic (B2) is a traffic that a third content provider transmits content through a network, has a second priority, and requires bandwidth rate and QoS for each content.

iCOD traffic (B3) has a third priority and is a traffic for transmitting its own Contents on Demand (CoD) traffic, and an internal QoS specification should be guaranteed.

Multicast traffic (B4) is broadcast traffic such as IPTV, and a certain band must be guaranteed for each subscriber session.

Internet traffic B5 is the existing best effort traffic and does not guarantee QoS.

2 is a block diagram of a charging system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network according to the present invention.

As shown in the figure, in the broadband integrated network according to the present invention, the charging system in consideration of the service provision characteristics and the user contract conditions, the sharing cost calculated based on the ratio of resources allocated in the broadband integrated network according to the service provision policy ( Or a baseline cost calculator 100 that calculates a primary baseline cost for each service from the cost of sharing, and a charge characteristic constant determiner that calculates a charge characteristic constant through traffic / network / market scale analysis for each service. (200), the rate calculation factor (300) for defining and calculating the rate factor (factor) according to the service provision characteristics and the user contract conditions, and the subscriber session fee for performing the billing for the service used by the subscriber session The calculation unit 400 is provided.

The operation of the primary baseline cost calculator 100 shown in FIG. 2 will be described in more detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3.

After initializing the number of services (N) to be provided in the broadband integrated network, the allocated resource band (Bi) for each service, and the total cost (TC) on which the service fee is based (ie, broadband integrated network cost) (S102), the first service The baseline cost is calculated for (i = 1) (S104, S106).

The baseline cost is calculated based on Equation 1.

To explain Equation 1 more specifically, TC is the total cost concept invested in the entire network as the total cost of the future forecast / target. In other words, it is a concept that compensates for the opportunity cost of the project by combining the concept of proper cost, which is the inherent cost for the business, and the concept of investment fee. Bi is a resource band allocated to the service i (eg, call type, multicast, etc.), and is defined as a sharing standard of overall cost. That is, Σ Bi is the maximum resource band that can be allocated so as not to exceed the operating limit among the entire investment / equipped resource bands (eg, 10 Gbps of total investment facility, 80% operating limit, Σ Bi is 8 Gbps).

Subsequently, the baseline cost calculation unit 100 determines whether the baseline cost calculation is completed for the last service (S108), and if the baseline cost calculation is not completed for the last service (NO in S108), the number of services ( i) is increased by 1 (S110) and then the process proceeds to step S106 to calculate the baseline cost of the service i corresponding to the next order.

The baseline cost BCi is calculated for all services N through the processes of S106 to S110 described above.

An operation of the rate characteristic constant determiner 200 shown in FIG. 2 will be described in more detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 4.

As shown in [Table 1], user contract terms according to service characteristics are classified into Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3, and service characteristic values are classified into “Call-Based” and “Non Call-Based”. It is done.

User Agreement Terms Type 1 Type 2 Type 3 Service characteristics Call-based τ Tsec - Non Call-Based - Thour M

In the present invention, the rate estimator τ, Tsec, Thour, M are values calculated by the rate characteristic constant determining unit 200 and the rate estimating asset output unit 300 according to the service characteristic value and the user contract condition.

Depending on the service characteristics, call-based services may include call type services, managed delivery services, and iCOD services, and non-call-based services may include multicast services.

In the present invention, "type 1" of the user contract condition corresponds to a pay-as-you-go type of traffic unit, "type 2" corresponds to a pay-as-you-go type of use time unit, and "type 3" corresponds to a monthly fee type.

The rate characteristic constant determination unit 200 checks the user contract condition type (S202), analyzes the traffic data when the user contract condition type is "type 1" or "type 2" (S206), and analyzes the network data ( S208), the service market variable is predicted (S210), and a fee characteristic constant is determined (S212).

In step S206, by analyzing the traffic data of the 5-minute unit collected for more than 12 months to extract the network busy time (time of the most traffic 24 hours). Through this, the traffic pattern equation is found and the representative traffic pattern constant (ε) is determined. At this time, the traffic pattern constant (ε) serves to map the network busy time traffic to the total daily traffic, and serves as the basis for calculating the total daily traffic, which is the main criterion of the pay-as-you-go pricing factor.

For example, if the time distribution of the Internet traffic is shown in FIG. 7, the daily traffic distribution may be represented as shown in FIG. 8.

The traffic pattern equation extracted from FIG. 8 is the same as Equation 2.

In step S208, the resource allocation amount (B) and the number of acceptable subscribers (n) of the final aggregation section allocated for each service are calculated. At this time, the resource allocation (B) and the number of subscribers (n) is a value calculated based on the information of the services provided in the network and the network busy time traffic information analyzed in the traffic module.

Equation (2) more specifically, resource allocation (B) is the maximum resource band that can be provided so as not to exceed the operating limit of the total investment / installed resource bands, the same concept as ΣBi. At this time, the operating limit is set based on the traffic statistics by stock price as an internal standard of the network operator. The number of subscribers (n) is also calculated based on the subscriber aggregation cost and the resource band allocated to the aggregation interval, based on a certain level of bandwidth that should be guaranteed to the subscriber by service.

In step S210, the market penetration rate (p) and target market size (N) are determined based on when the service is provided and the break-even point is expected. Here, target market size is the total size of the service and market penetration rate is the market share of the service.

Subsequently, the rate characteristic constant determining unit 200 uses the traffic pattern constant (ε), resource allocation amount (B), number of subscribers (n), market penetration rate (p), and target market size (N). Β and δ, the charge characteristic constants of 1 "or" Type 2 ", are determined.

Here, β = 1 / (365 * p * N * X) and δ = bi / (365 * p * N * x). (X = (ε * Bi) / n)

As a result of the determination in step S204, if the user contract condition type is not "type 1" or "type 2", that is, "type 3" (NO in S204), the network data is analyzed (S214), and the service market variable is predicted ( S216) The rate characteristic constant is determined (S218).

In step S214, the resource allocation amount B of the final aggregation section allocated for each service is calculated.

In step S216, the market penetration rate (p) and target market size (N) are determined based on when the service is provided and the break-even point is expected.

Subsequently, the rate characteristic constant determining unit 200 determines a rate characteristic constant α of the monthly fee type (type 3) by using the resource allocation amount (B), the market penetration rate (p), and the target market size (N). .

Where α = 1 / (12 * p * N).

The operation of the rate estimator 300 shown in FIG. 2 will be described in more detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 5.

The rate estimator 300 may determine the baseline cost BCi received from the baseline cost calculator 100 and the charge characteristic constant β / δ or α received from the charge characteristic constant determiner 200, the service characteristic value CTi, and the user. Initialize the data of service i with the terms of the contract type.

The rate estimator calculating unit 300 determines whether the service characteristic value CTi is Call-Based (S504), and if the service characteristic value CTi is Call-Based (YES in S504) after determining whether the user contract condition is "Type 1". If the user contract condition is "type 1" (S506), the rate estimating factor τ (i) is calculated using the baseline cost BCi and the charge characteristic constant β. The rate estimator τ (i) corresponds to the rate per unit traffic, and its calculation is f (BCi, β) or BCi * β. Here, when X = (ε * Bi) / n, β = 1 / (365 * p * N * X).

In the above formula, TC is the total cost invested in the entire network, p is the target market penetration rate, N is the target market size, X is the total daily traffic volume, Bi is the resource allocation of service i in the final converged section, n Is the number of subscribers in the last aggregation section, and bi is the transmission band per frame of unit time (sec) of service i.

On the other hand, if the user contract condition is "type 1" (NO in S506) as a result of the determination in S506, the pricing factor Tsec (i) is calculated using the baseline cost BCi and the rate characteristic constant (δsec). The rate estimating factor Tsec (i) corresponds to the rate per unit time (seconds), and the formula is f (BCi, δsec), that is BCi * δsec. Here, when X = (ε * Bi) / n, δsec = bi / (365 * p * N * X).

If the service characteristic value CTi is not Call-Based (NO in S504), the rate calculation interest calculation unit 300 determines whether the user contract condition is "type 2" (S512), and "type 2". The rate calculation factor Thour (i) is calculated using the back surface (YES in S512), the baseline cost BCi and the charge characteristic constant δ hour. The rate estimator Thour (i) corresponds to the rate per unit time (hour), and the formula is f (BCi, δhour) or BCi * δhour. Herein, when X = (ε * Bi) / n, δhour = (c * bi) / (365 * p * N * X). c is a constant value.

On the other hand, if the service contract condition is "type 2" (NO in S512) as a result of the determination in S512, the rate estimating factor M (i) is calculated using the baseline cost BCi and the rate characteristic constant α. The valuation factor M (i) corresponds to the monthly flat fee, and the formula is f (BCi, α) or BCi * α. Where α = 1 / (12 * p * n).

Referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, the operation of the fee calculation unit 400 for each subscriber session shown in FIG. 2 will be described in more detail.

The subscriber session fee calculation unit 400 records the service type by using the service calculation fee calculation factors as basic data and classifying the service at the same time as the session of the subscriber (S602).

Subsequently, the subscriber session fee calculation unit 400 checks whether the service characteristic value CTi is Call-Based (S604), and if the service characteristic value CTi is Call-Based (YES in S604), the user contract condition is "Type 1". Check the authorization (S605).

As a result of checking in step S605, if the user contract condition is "type 1" (YES in S606), the traffic volume Traff (S_k) generated until the end of the session is recorded (S606).

When the subscriber session S_k is terminated, the fee calculation unit 400 for each subscriber session calculates billing for the session S_k using τ (i) and Traff (S_k) (S608).

Charging for Session S_k = τ (i) × Traff (S_k)

On the other hand, if the user contract condition is not "Type 1" as a result of checking in step S605, the use time Time_sec (S_k) until the end of the session is recorded (S610).

When the subscriber session S_k ends, the subscriber session-specific rate calculator 400 calculates the charging for the session S_k using Tsec (i) and Time_sec (S_k) (S612).

On the other hand, if the check result of step S604, if the service characteristic value CTi is not Call-Based (NO in S604), it is confirmed whether the user contract condition is "type 2" (S614), and if the user contract condition is "type 2" (S614) YES) the usage time Time_hour (S_k) until the end of the session is recorded (S616).

When the subscriber session S_k ends, the subscriber session fee calculation unit 400 calculates the charge for the session (S_k) using τ (i) and Traff (S_k) (S618).

Charging for Session S_k = Thour (i) × Time_hour (S_k)

On the contrary, if the user contract condition is not “Type 2” (NO in S 614), as a result of checking in step S 614, the predetermined monthly flat fee M (i) is required without a separate record of the session S_k for billing. To charge (S622).

The fee calculation unit 400 for each subscriber session stores the amount of traffic generated, the usage time, and the charge amount according to each session S_k in a separate record so that billing is performed for each subscriber. In particular, in the case of the use time for each session, it is possible to distinguish unit time such as seconds, minutes, and hours according to the service provision characteristics.

As described above, according to the charging system and method considering the service provision characteristics and the user contract conditions in the broadband integrated network according to the embodiment of the present invention, the concept of the sharing cost according to the network allocation resource ratio is applied in consideration of the respective service characteristics. It is effective that a reasonable rate structure can be suggested for each service.

On the other hand, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be modified and modified within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention, such modifications and changes should be regarded as belonging to the following claims. will be.

Claims (24)

A baseline cost calculator configured to calculate a baseline cost for each service by using the allocated resources and the total cost for each service; A charge characteristic constant determiner configured to calculate a charge characteristic constant for each service by using the baseline cost and a user contract condition; A rate estimator for calculating a rate per billing unit for each service by using the baseline cost and the rate characteristic constant; And A billing system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, comprising: a subscriber session fee calculation unit configured to perform billing for the subscriber session on the basis of a charge per charge unit for each service when a subscriber session is started; . The method of claim 1, wherein the baseline cost for each service

A billing system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network. here,

With TC

Is a constant calculated by TC, TC is the overall cost, and Bi is the resource allocation of service i in the final aggregation section. The method of claim 1, wherein the terms of the user agreement A billing system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, characterized by being divided into a pay-as-you-go type (type 1), a pay-as-you-go unit (type 2), and a monthly fee (type 3). The method of claim 3, wherein the charge characteristic constant determiner If the user contract condition is "Type 1" or "Type 2", the traffic data is analyzed to calculate a traffic pattern constant, Analyze the network data to calculate the resource allocation and the number of subscribers in the final aggregation section, After predicting service market variables to determine market penetration and target market size, By using the traffic pattern constant (ε), the resource allocation (Bi), the number of subscribers (n), the market penetration rate (p), and the target market size (N) and the first rate characteristic constant (β) A charging system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, characterized in that the second charge characteristic constant α is calculated. The method of claim 4, wherein the first charge characteristic constant β is A billing system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, wherein when X = (ε * Bi) / n, β = 1 / (365 * p * N * X). The method of claim 4, wherein the second charge characteristic constant (α) is A charging system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, wherein when X = (ε * Bi) / n, δ = bi / (365 * p * N * X). Wherein bi is a transmission band per unit time (1 second) frame of service i. The method of claim 3 or 4, wherein the rate characteristic constant determiner If the terms of the user agreement are not "Type 1" or "Type 2", the network data is analyzed to calculate the resource allocation amount of the final aggregation section, After predicting service market variables to determine market penetration and target market size, A service provisioning characteristic and a user contract in a broadband integrated network are calculated using the resource allocation Bi, the market penetration rate, and the target market size N. Charging system with consideration of conditions. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the third rate characteristic constant α is A billing system in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network characterized by α = 1 / (12 * p * N). The method of claim 3, wherein the charge factor extraction unit If the user contract condition is "type 1", a first rate calculation factor is calculated using the baseline rate and the first rate characteristic constant; If the user contract condition is "Type 2", a second fee calculation factor is calculated using the baseline fee and the second fee characteristic constant. In the broadband integrated network, if the user contract condition is "type 3", a third rate calculation factor is calculated using the baseline fee and the third fee characteristic constant. system. The method of claim 9, wherein the rate calculation factor extracting unit If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Call-Baesd, the second pricing factor is calculated in seconds. If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Non Call-Based, the billing system considering the service provision characteristic and the user contract condition in the broadband integrated network, characterized in that for calculating the second rate calculation factor in units of time. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the subscriber session fee calculation unit If the user contract condition is "Type 1", the first rate factor is applied to the amount of traffic generated while the session is maintained, and the billing for the session is performed. If the user contract condition is "type 2", the service provider characteristics and user contract conditions are considered in the broadband integrated network, wherein the second billing factor is applied at the time the session is maintained. Billing system. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the subscriber session fee calculation unit If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Call-Baesd, the second pricing factor is calculated in seconds. If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Non Call-Based, the billing system considering the service provision characteristic and the user contract condition in the broadband integrated network, characterized in that for calculating the second rate calculation factor in units of time. Calculating a baseline cost for each service by using the allocated resources and the total cost for each service; Calculating a fee characteristic constant for each service by using the baseline cost and a user contract condition; A third step of calculating a fee per billing unit for each service by using the baseline cost and the fee characteristic constant; And And a fourth process of performing charging for the subscriber session on the basis of the charge per charging unit for each service when the subscriber session is started. The method of claim 13, wherein the baseline cost for each service

A billing method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network characterized in that calculated by. here,

With TC

Is a constant calculated by TC, TC is the overall cost, and Bi is the resource allocation of service i in the final aggregation section. The method of claim 13, wherein the terms of the user agreement A billing method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a regional integrated network, characterized in that the traffic unit is divided into a pay-as-you-go type (type 1), a use-time unit (type 2), and a monthly fee (type 3). The method of claim 15, wherein the second process A step of analyzing the traffic data to calculate a traffic pattern constant when the user contract condition is "type 1" or "type 2"; Analyzing the network data to calculate the resource allocation and the number of subscribers in the final aggregation section; C process of predicting service market variables to determine market penetration and target market size; By using the traffic pattern constant (ε), the resource allocation (Bi), the number of subscribers (n), the market penetration rate (p), and the target market size (N) and the first rate characteristic constant (β) And d process of calculating a second rate characteristic constant (δ). 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first charge characteristic constant β is A billing method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network. The method of claim 16, wherein the second charge characteristic constant (δ) is A charging method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a wide area network, wherein δ = bi / (365 * p * N * X) when X = (ε * Bi) / n. Wherein bi is a transmission band per unit time (1 second) frame of service i. The method of claim 15 or 16, wherein the rate characteristic constant determiner An e process of calculating a resource allocation amount of a final aggregation section by analyzing network data when the user contract condition is not “type 1” or “type 2”; F process of predicting service market variables to determine market penetration and target market size; G process for calculating a third fee characteristic constant (α) using the resource allocation (Bi), the market penetration rate (p), and the target market size (N). Charging method taking into account the characteristics of the offer and the terms of the user agreement. 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the third rate characteristic constant α is A charging method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network characterized in that α = 1 / (12 * p * N). The method of claim 15, wherein the third process is Calculating a first rate estimating factor using the baseline rate and the first rate characteristic constant when the user contract condition is "type 1"; I process for calculating a second rate estimator using the baseline rate and the second rate characteristic constant if the user contract condition is "type 2"; And If the user contract condition is "type 3", a service providing characteristic and a user in a broadband integrated network comprising a process of calculating a third rate calculating factor using the baseline rate and the third rate characteristic constant. Charging method taking into account contract terms. The method of claim 21, wherein the third process is K process of calculating the second rate estimator in seconds if the user contract condition is "type 2" and the service characteristic is Call-Baesd; If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Non Call-Based, the service providing characteristic and the user contract condition in the broadband integrated network, characterized in that it comprises the step of calculating the second rate calculation factor in units of time. Accounting method. The method of claim 21, wherein the fourth process M if the user contract condition is “type 1”, charging the session by applying the first pricing factor to the amount of traffic generated while the session is maintained; If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service providing characteristics in the broadband integrated network, characterized in that the process of performing the billing for the session by applying the second pricing factor at the time the session is maintained; Charging method taking into account the terms of the user agreement. The method of claim 23, wherein the n process is If the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Call-Baesd, the second pricing factor is calculated in seconds, while if the user contract condition is "Type 2" and the service characteristic is Non Call-Based, the time is calculated. The charging method in consideration of service provision characteristics and user contract conditions in a broadband integrated network, characterized in that to calculate the second rate calculation factor in units.

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