KR20040051359A - Access Gateway System Using Multimedia Service - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An access gateway system for a multimedia service is provided to realize a VoP IP network without inflow of Internet data traffic by providing a multimedia service integrating a VoIP voice service and an Internet connection service of analog subscribers with one integrated management telephone number. CONSTITUTION: A plurality of voice cards(50-1 - 50-n) contain local loops for a VoIP(Voice over IP) voice service to make voices of subscribers into IP packets. A plurality of data cards(60-1 - 60-n) provide Internet connection to subscribers for a data service. A control and switch module(70) controls a system service and exchanges data. A plurality of packet cards(80-1,80-2) connect to a VoP IP(Voice over Packet IP) network for transmitting and receiving VoIP packets, or connect to the Internet for transmitting and receiving Internet IP packets. The plurality of packet cards route or forward the VoIP packets and the Internet IP packets to the voice cards or data cards corresponding to target IP addresses.

Description

Access Gateway System Using Multimedia Service

The present invention relates to an access gateway system that constitutes a next-generation communication network. In particular, the present invention relates to an xDSL (x Digital Subscriber Line), cable modem, Ethernet, etc., while guaranteeing call quality by serving subscriber voice through a voice over packet (VoP) IP network. The present invention relates to an access gateway system for a multimedia service capable of simultaneously providing an internet access service.

Recently, due to the spread of the Internet, multimedia services that have failed in the existing Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) network or B-ISDN (Broadband ISDN) network have been realized, and due to the spread of the global network and interoperability, Internet based Internet Protocol (IP) technology has been defined as a standard for packet communication technology, and technologies such as ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) and FrameRelay (FrameRelay) are only used as a transmission network for transmitting IP data of the Internet.

In addition, Internet users use a unique IP address or e-mail address for data or multimedia communication, and communicate with a remote party without using a general telephone through a public switched telephone network (PSTN) network. As an example, voice over IP (Voice over IP) services, such as voice over the Internet at a low price, are being actively performed mainly by separate carriers.

Although VoIP service over the Internet does not guarantee perfect call quality, it is widely used as an effective means of communication at an affordable price. As a result, Internet traffic exceeds voice traffic in the recently saturated PSTN subscriber market. In terms of developing network equipment for accommodating the rapidly increasing Internet traffic, technology development for the IP-based Next Generation Network that can provide integrated voice and data services is in progress.

Meanwhile, the core functions of the next-generation communication network, which are currently being developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), are the fixed-line telephone subscribers or the Internet-based SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) and H.323-based VoIP subscriber terminals. Network devices such as VoIP terminal for VoIP service, Gate Keeper / SIP server / Media Gateway Controller, Media Gateway / TrunkGateway, etc. to enable voice communication with mobile subscribers. Control functions and communication standards.

In addition, subscribers connected to the Internet according to these standards use the Internet-based VoIP service in the PSTN and the Internet, as shown in FIG. 1, which is performed through the following procedure.

First, when an xDSL subscriber (x Digital Subscriber Line) wants to talk to a PSTN subscriber by using a VoIP terminal such as a personal computer (PC), an Internet phone, or a SIP / H.323 voice terminal, the VoIP call of the corresponding subscriber terminal The call origination message is sent to the SIP server or gatekeeper controlling it.

At this time, the SIP server or the gatekeeper analyzes the VoIP call origination message received from the subscriber station, selects a trunk gateway for interworking with the PSTN where the called subscriber is located, and transmits the corresponding outgoing message to the selected trunk gateway.

Then, the trunk gateway delivers the call message to the PSTN and calls the corresponding called subscriber. Thus, the VoIP voice packet is transferred through the Internet between the VoIP terminal used by the calling subscriber and the trunk gateway, and the called subscriber uses the called gateway. A voice call is made through a general telephone line between the PSTN terminals.

However, in the above-described VoIP service, the Internet through which VoIP voice packets are delivered between the VoIP terminal and the trunk gateway is the best effort network in which the call quality for the corresponding voice packet delivery is not guaranteed. Since packets are accumulated in a queue of a router that performs a relay function and then transmitted, transmission may be delayed. In addition, VoIP voice packets may be dropped when the queue is overloaded. There was a problem that can not provide the call quality (Toll Quality) provided by the PSTN.

Due to these problems, the PSTN communication service provider does not place a great emphasis on VoIP service over the Internet as shown in FIG. 1, but according to the recent changes in the communication environment, the PSTN voice communication service uses IP-based softswitch and media. The evolution to the next generation communication network consisting of gateways is inevitable, and it must be implemented as a communication protocol for VoIP services such as IETF and ITU's MEGACO / H.248.

Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2, a next-generation communication network capable of guaranteeing the quality of service (QoS) of voice packets with respect to call quality by distinguishing a voice over packet (VoP) IP network from the general Internet, as shown in FIG. It is pushing ahead with the deployment of a switch, which provides a typical analog telephone service, with an IP-based access gateway and softswitch.

Here, the access gateway converts the subscriber's analog voice signal into an IP packet and delivers it to the VoP IP network, and also collects and transmits the subscriber's dial signal to the soft switch, and the soft switch receives the dial received from the access gateway. By analyzing the signal to control the subscriber's call access and to control the additional service, the transmission efficiency and economic efficiency and proportional reduction of network equipment implemented by the Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP / IP) communication technology. By providing scalability, operators can reduce operating and investment costs.

Meanwhile, the access gateway and the trunk gateway implemented for the VoIP service in the next-generation communication network illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 described above are provided with a plurality of voice cards 31-1 through 31-as illustrated in FIG. 3. n) and the control and switch module 32, each voice card 31-1 to 31-n connects a general telephone line to packetize voice signals for transmission to a VoP IP network or the Internet. A Fast Ethernet (FE) for general telephone line and Internet connection is provided, and the control and switch module 32 controls each voice card 31-1 to 31-n, and transmits and receives voice guidance signals. It has a structure for connecting the internal data and control bus (Internal data & Control Bus).

Then, a soft switch or hub, which is a L2 / L3 (Layer 2 / Layer 3) IP switch 33 for Fast Ethernet, which connects a fast Ethernet link connected to each voice card 31-1 to 31-n, is used. Link to VoP IP network or Internet.

The access gateway having the above-described configuration is connected to the analog subscriber telephones and voice cards 31-1 to 31-n connected by a 2-way loop as in the next-generation communication network of FIG. It performs the same analog telephone service as the existing exchange, but packetizes the analog voice signal to the VoP IP network or the Internet and transmits it through the high-speed Ethernet link. The signal control method for this is linked with the soft switch Megaco / H. 248 protocol is used.

For example, a call processing procedure when the telephone subscriber connected to the first access gateway calls a subscriber connected to the second access gateway in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 as follows.

First, when the calling party connected to the first access gateway picks up the handset and calls the called party connected to the second access gateway, the voice card 31-1 to 31-n of the first access gateway, which is the calling access gateway. In response to the off-hook detected by the calling subscriber, a predetermined dial tone is transmitted to enable the calling subscriber to dial the called telephone number, and then dial pulse dialed from the corresponding calling subscriber. It detects (Dial Pulse) or Dual Tone Multi Frequency (DTMF) tones, collects incoming phone numbers, and transmits them to the control and switch module 32 through internal data and control buses.

Then, the control and switch module 32 transmits the incoming call message from the soft switch to the destination access gateway by delivering the soft switch to the incoming phone numbers collected from the voice cards 31-1 to 31-n.

Accordingly, the second gateway, the called party's access gateway, transmits a ring tone to the called subscriber through voice cards 31-1 through 31-n corresponding to the called phone number included in the incoming call message. A path for transmitting / receiving voice packets with the voice cards 31-1 to 31-n of the first gateway is generated, so that voice packets between the calling subscriber and the called subscriber connect the first access gateway and the second access gateway. VoIP service is executed in next-generation communication network transmitted and received through IP network.

In the aforementioned call processing procedure, the VoP IP network connecting the first access gateway and the second access gateway is an IP network in the same manner as the Internet, but is a network connecting the access gateways, the soft switch, and the trunk gateway. Unlike the Internet, since only VoIP packets are delivered, it is possible to guarantee QoS related to call quality.

In other words, because it knows exactly the number of circuits of the access gateway and knows the maximum bandwidth required when a VoIP call occurs, traffic engineering is possible and the connection of the VoIP call can be controlled according to the traffic conditions. The call quality can be maintained similar to that in the PSTN.

However, in the case of the next-generation communication network composed of the access gateway and the soft switch, as described above, the VoIP service may be provided to the subscriber. However, the access gateway performs only a function of packetizing the voice signal to the IP network. The VoIP service in the next-generation communication network described above is not differentiated from the existing PSTN communication service from the subscriber's point of view.

Therefore, in the case of telecommunications operators, there is a benefit in the efficient operation of circuits and networks and the economics of open products, but in the case of subscribers using actual services, there is no additional benefit, especially as shown in FIG. As the Digital Subscriber Line Access Module (DSLAM) and the Access Gateway exist independently, subscribers must separately subscribe to voice service and data service. There was a difficulty in providing it.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide a voice card that IP packetizes a subscriber's voice to a VoP IP network in a next-generation communication network, and an Internet such as xDSL, cable modem, Ethernet, etc. The present invention provides a multimedia access gateway system that simultaneously accommodates data cards that provide access services.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a multimedia service as an integrated management telephone number by integrating a VoIP voice service and an Internet access service of an existing analog subscriber by implementing a multimedia access gateway system.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a separate packet card which is divided into a link connected to a core network for VoIP voice transmission and a link connected to the Internet, and provides packet routing and forwarding functions, respectively, thereby providing VoIP within an access gateway system. The purpose of the present invention is to enable the introduction of next-generation communication networks that support QoS for voice packets, best Internet packets, and multimedia packets.

In addition, the present invention provides a packet link for accessing the packet core network irrespective of the subscriber's access line so that the access gateway can easily accommodate the service by simply adding a packet card even when an IPv6 network and a VOD network are established in the future. The purpose is to make it possible.

1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a conventional VoIP service communication network through a PSTN and the Internet.

2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a next-generation communication network in which a VoIP service communication network and a VoP IP network are conventionally divided through the Internet.

3 is a diagram showing the internal configuration of an access gateway and a trunk gateway in FIGS. 1 and 2;

4 is a schematic illustration of a next generation communication network including an access gateway for multimedia services in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of an access gateway for a multimedia service in FIG. 4; FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of each card and module in FIG. 5; FIG.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

50-1 to 50-n: sound card 51: POTS line

52: DSP 53: controller

54: packet routing / forwarding engine 60-1 to 60-n: data card

61: xDSL / cable modem 62, 65: controller

63: packet routing / forwarding engine 64: Ethernet interface and L2 switch

70: control and switch module 80-1 to 80-2: packet card

81: L2 link interface 82: controller

83: packet routing / forwarding engine

In order to achieve the above object, a feature of the present invention is to provide a subscriber line for the VoIP voice service in a next-generation communication network in which a VoP IP network for VoIP voice service and the Internet for data service are physically or logically separated. At least one voice card that accepts and delivers the subscriber voice by IP packetization; At least one data card for providing an Internet connection to a subscriber side for said data service; A control and switch module for controlling system services and exchanging data; At least a VoIP packet connected to the VoP IP network to transmit / receive VoIP packets or an Internet IP packet connected to the Internet, and routed / forwarded to a voice card or a data card corresponding to a destination IP address of the VoIP packet and the Internet IP packet. An access gateway system for a multimedia service including a packet card is provided.

In this case, the voice card, the data card, the packet card, and the control and switch module are interoperable with each other via a system bus which is an internal data and control bus. And a packet forwarding processing unit having a packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table for routing and forwarding an IP packet by L3 packet routing when transmitting a packet received from a plurality of channels in the card to a destination card in the system. It features.

The voice card encodes an analog voice or a PCM voice signal of a subscriber terminal connected through a two-wire loop or DS0 and converts the voice signal into an IP packet and transmits it to a called party through a VoP IP network, or, conversely, converts an IP packet through a VoP IP network into And converting the received encoded voice PCM voice signal or the analog voice into a subscriber station and transmitting the reverse signal to the subscriber station. The POTS line interface unit accommodates at least one analog subscriber station through the POTS line and provides a POT service. ; A DSP for converting / inverting a speech signal into an encoded packet and removing echo; A packet routing / forwarding processor including an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table to forward an IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network through an internal system bus, and receive and deliver an IP packet from the packet card; Converts the encoded voice packet received from the DSP to an IP packet and delivers the encoded voice packet to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or extracts and transmits the encoded voice packet from the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor to the DSP. It characterized in that it comprises a controller to.

The data card may also include an xDSL / cable modem data card that transmits packet data to a VoP IP network and the Internet by interworking with an xDSL / cable modem in a subscriber's home through a 2-wire loop POTS line or an HFC line; And an Ethernet data card that transmits packet data to the VoP IP network and the Internet by interworking with an Ethernet terminal in the subscriber's home via an Ethernet line, wherein the xDSL / cable modem data card is a subscriber xDSL. An xDSL / cable modem interface unit for decoding / encoding a modem signal received through the cable modem; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided to forward the IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network or a packet card connected to the Internet through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, and received from a corresponding packet card. A packet routing / forwarding processor for transmitting an IP packet; A controller which forwards the IP packet received from the modem interface unit to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or forwards, distributes, and controls the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor to the individual subscriber modem of the modem interface unit. The Ethernet data card may include: an Ethernet interface and an L2 switch for converging Ethernet on a subscriber side and exchanging MAC packets; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided to forward the IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network or a packet card connected to the Internet through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, and received from a corresponding packet card. A packet routing / forwarding processor for transmitting an IP packet; Extract the IP packet from the Ethernet MAC frame received from the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch and deliver the IP packet to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or wrap the Ethernet MAC address of an individual subscriber line in the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor. And a controller for transmitting, distributing and controlling the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch.

Furthermore, the packet card may include: an L2 link interface unit for transmitting and receiving an IP packet by connecting a Gigabit Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, POS, and ATM link connected to a VoP IP network or the Internet; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided for routing / forwarding IP packets to a voice card or data card through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, or forwarding IP packets received from the voice card or data card. A packet routing / forwarding processor; And a controller configured to transfer the IP packet received from the L2 link interface unit to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or to transfer and control the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor to the L2 link interface unit. .

On the other hand, the control and switch module, performs a call control function for VoIP services, routers and packet routing signaling with the IP network, and controls the packet routing / forwarding process of the voice card, data card and packet card, And a switch function for exchanging IP packets between a voice card, a data card, and a packet card, and the packets present in the voice card, the data card, and the packet card when the system is started or the routing information of the network is changed. The routing / forwarding table may be updated.

In addition, the above-mentioned access gateway system for multimedia services is characterized in that it further comprises a subscriber information DB, which is connected to the voice card and the data card and stores the subscriber's telephone number and the fixed or dynamic IP address separately.

On the other hand, the data card, when transmitting and receiving a plurality of bursted Internet packets of the PC through the link and physical channel shared by the VoIP voice packet and the Internet packet, the VoIP card is established to ensure the call quality of the VoIP voice packet It is characterized in that it comprises a controller that performs a QoS management function to guarantee the bandwidth for the VoIP packet, while at the same time, to ensure the packet delivery by giving priority to the VoIP packet.

The control and switch module includes a controller for fixedly assigning and managing one IP address included in an IP subnetwork provided by a QoS guaranteed VoP IP network for each voice card, and managing the IP address in association with a telephone number. The data card may include an IP subnetwork address including a plurality of IP addresses to configure, in a corresponding data card, one IP subnetwork that terminates an IP network for a plurality of subscriber lines connected to the data card. It is fixed and assigned to each management, characterized in that it comprises a controller for assigning and managing the IP sub-network address used for the Internet and the IP sub-network address used for the VoP IP network.

In this case, the controller allocates individual IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address space allocated to the data card to a plurality of subscribers connected to the data card, and the number of IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address. Is less than the number of subscriber lines connected to the data card, the IP server performs the function of a DHCP server to assign and release an IP address only when the subscriber's Internet terminal activates the connection. If the number of IP addresses included in the address is larger than the number of subscriber lines connected to the data card, the IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address space of the VoP IP network and IP subnetwork address space of the Internet for each subscriber line. Allocate and manage the included IP address, the IP of the VoP IP network That is included in the network address space probe IP address is characterized in that administration in association with the phone number for POTS service.

Furthermore, the above-described access gateway system for a multimedia service includes a number of VoIP sessions activated with other access gateway systems for each packet card connected to a VoP IP network to guarantee QoS for VoIP packets transmitted and received through the VoPIP network. When the number of active sessions set in the packet card is exceeded, the call setup is rejected for the VoIP new call setup of the subscriber.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a QoS-guaranteed network for guaranteeing communication quality and the Internet are physically or logically separated in a generation-generation communication network. The present invention provides an access gateway system for a multimedia service for routing / forwarding the received data.

At this time, the type of the received data is characterized in that separated according to the required QoS.

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

In the next-generation communication network according to the present invention, a subscriber and a voice and various additional services and the Internet's multimedia service are provided as a single integrated phone number. A configuration of the next-generation communication network for this purpose is shown in FIG. The VoP IP network, which is the core network to guarantee QoS related to call quality, and the existing best-in-class network are physically or logically separated, and the access gateway provides VoIP service to analog subscribers while simultaneously providing xDSL and cable methods. Internet access services, such as VoIP services and IP multimedia services through the Internet terminal of the subscriber connected to the Internet and voice and the Internet additional services to provide a service for the integrated control of the soft switch.

That is, the access gateway provides VoIP services for analog phones, multimedia services through Internet phones and PCs, and VoIP services through a single integrated soft switch, and performs VoIP routing functions.

In more detail, such an access gateway for multimedia services, as shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of voice cards 50-1 to 50-n for accommodating subscriber lines for VoIP voice services, and data services A plurality of data cards (60-1 to 60-n) for accommodating Internet access, a control and switch module (70) for controlling system services and exchanging data, and a VoP IP network are connected to transmit and receive VoIP packets. Or packet cards 80-1 and 80-2 for transmitting and receiving Internet IP datagrams by accessing the Internet, which is the best network, wherein each card and module interwork with each other through an internal data and control bus, which is a system bus. Has a configuration.

Each of the cards 50, 60, and 80 has an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table therein to transmit L3 packet routing when transmitting packets received from multiple channels in the card to a destination card in the system. And a packet routing / forwarding engine for routing and forwarding IP packets by the controller. The controller of the control and switch module 70 manages and updates a packet routing / forwarding table included in each card 50, 60, and 80. The packet routing / forwarding table of an individual card may have a fixed routing / forwarding table according to the card use, or a route may be set according to the QoS type.

Referring to Figure 6 attached to the internal configuration of each card and module of the access gateway described above, each voice card (50-1 ~ 50-n) is a POTS of the subscriber side connected by a 2-wire loop or DS0 It converts analog voice or PCM voice signal of the terminal into IP packet and transmits it to the called party through VoP IP network, which is a VoIP packet network, or to the encoded voice PCM voice signal or analog voice received as IP packet through VoP IP network. Inversely converts and performs a function of transmitting to the POTS terminal of the subscriber, POTS for providing a plain old telephony (POT) service by accepting a plurality of analog subscribers over the POTS line as shown in Figure 6 (a) And a DSP 52 for performing the function of converting / inversely converting an audio signal into an encoded packet and removing echo, and from the DSP 52. Converts the encoded speech packet into an IP packet of RTP / UDP / IP and transmits the encoded speech packet to the packet routing / forwarding engine 54, or extracts the encoded speech packet from the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding engine 54. A first packet having an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table, and a first packet connected to the VoP IP network through an internal system bus, including an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table. A packet routing / forwarding engine 54 for routing / forwarding to the card 80-1 and delivering the IP packet received from the first packet card 80-1 to the controller 53. Include.

Each data card 60-1 to 60-n is connected to the subscriber's home xDSL / cable through a 2-wire loop POTS line or HFC (Hybrid Fiber Optic) line as shown in Figs. 6B and 6C. Data card for xDSL / cable modem which transmits high speed packet data to VoP IP network and Internet by interworking with modem and high speed packet data is transmitted to VoP IP network and Internet by interworking with Ethernet terminal of subscriber's house through Ethernet line. Can be divided into Ethernet data card.

At this time, the data card for the xDSL / cable modem is an xDSL / cable modem interface unit 61 for decoding / encoding the modem signal transmitted through the subscriber xDSL / cable modem as shown in (b) of FIG. The IP packet received from the xDSL / cable modem interface unit 61 is transmitted to the packet routing / forwarding engine 63, or the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding engine 63 is transmitted to the xDSL / cable modem interface 61. Controller 62 for forwarding, distributing, and controlling the respective subscriber modems of the subscriber station, and having an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table for receiving IP packets received from the controller 62 via the internal system bus based on the packet routing table. Forwarding to the first packet card (80-1) connected to the VoP IP network, or forwarded to the second packet card (80-2) connected to the Internet, received from the corresponding packet card (80-1, 80-2) IP packets Include packet routing / forwarding engine 63 for transmission to the controller 62.

Then, as shown in Fig. 6C, the Ethernet data card is configured from the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch 64, which aggregate the Ethernet on the subscriber side and exchange MAC packets, and the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch 64. Extracts the IP packet from the received Ethernet MAC frame and forwards it to the packet routing / forwarding engine 63. Alternatively, the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding engine 63 is packaged with the MAC address of Ethernet, which is a separate subscriber line. And a controller 65 for forwarding, distributing, and controlling the L2 switch 64, and an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table to transfer an IP packet received from the controller 65 based on the packet routing table. Forward to the first packet card (80-1) connected to the VoP IP network through, or to the second packet card (80-2) connected to the Internet, the corresponding packet card (80-1) A packet routing / forwarding engine 63 which forwards the IP packet received from 80-2 to the controller 65.

Each packet card 80-1 or 80-2 is connected to a QoS-guaranteed VoP IP network or the Internet to transmit subscriber's VoIP packets and Internet packets to the corresponding network, or destination IPs of VoIP packets and Internet packets received from the network. It performs the function of routing / forwarding to the corresponding voice card 50-1 to 50-n or data card 60-1 to 60-n according to the address. L2 link interface for transmitting and receiving IP packets by connecting Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) / High Speed Ethernet / POS (Packet Over SONET) / ATM, etc. according to the link layer connection technology connected to the VoP IP network or the Internet. The unit 81 and the IP packet received from the L2 link interface unit 81 are transferred to the packet routing / forwarding engine 83, or the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding engine 83 is transferred to the L2 link interface unit ( Control to transmit and control And an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table, to receive IP packets received from the controller 82 through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table. B. Routing / forwarding to data cards 60-1 to 60-n, or receiving IP packets received from voice cards 50-1 to 50-n or data cards 60-1 to 60-n. Packet routing / forwarding engine (83).

On the other hand, the control and switch module 70 performs call control function for VoIP service, packet routing signaling with router of IP network, voice card 50-1 to 50-n and data card 60-1. 60-n) and the packet routing / forwarding engines 54, 63, and 83 of the packet cards 80-1 to 80-2, and also the sound cards 50-1 to 50-n. And the data card (60-1 to 60-n) and the packet card (80-1 to 80-2) to perform a switch function, which switches all IP packets exchanged in the system Has sufficient switching capacity to be exchanged without delay or loss.

The control and switch module 70 described above is a controller (not shown in the figure) that manages IP addresses assigned to the sound cards 50-1 to 50-n and the data cards 60-1 to 60-n. In the case of the IP address assigned to the voice card 50-1 to 50-n, the IP address included in the IP sub-network provided by the QoS guaranteed VoP IP network is provided. 50-1 ~ 50-n) to be fixed and managed one by one, but managed by connecting to the subscriber's telephone number.

In addition, in the case of the IP address assigned to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n by the controller of the control and switch module 70 described above, a plurality of subscriber lines connected to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n. An IP subnetwork address including a plurality of IP addresses is configured to configure one IP subnetwork that terminates the IP network in the corresponding data card 60-1 to 60-n. n) Fixed and managed by each, but the IP subnetwork address fixedly assigned to each data card (60-1 ~ 60-n) is the IP subnetwork address used in the Internet and the IP subnetwork address used in the VoP IP network. Assign it together.

At this time, the controller of the control and switch module 70 is the IP sub-assigned to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n corresponding to the plurality of subscribers connected to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n. It allocates individual IP addresses included in the network address space. If the number of IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address is less than the number of subscriber lines connected to the data card 60-1 to 60-n, the subscriber DHCP server assigns and releases an IP address only when the Internet terminal activates a connection, and the number of IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address is stored in the data card 60-1 to 60-n. If there is more than enough subscriber lines connected, assign each IP address contained in the IP subnetwork address space of the VoP IP network and IP address included in the IP subnetwork address space of the Internet. In this case, the IP address included in the IP subnetwork address space of the corresponding VoP IP network is managed in correspondence with the POTS service telephone number.

Referring to the operation of the multimedia service access gateway according to the present invention having such a configuration as follows.

First, in the control and switch module 70, when the routing information of the network is changed by a system startup or real time routing information update such as the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP), the voice card 50-1 to 50-n and data The packet routing / forwarding tables of the packet routing / forwarding engines 54, 63, and 83 present in the cards 60-1 to 60-n and the packet cards 80-1 to 80-2 are updated to exchange information between system internal cards. It ensures that packet routing is performed normally. Also, the subscriber information DB (DataBase) connected to the voice card (50-1 to 50-n) and the data card (60-1 to 60-n) is converted into the telephone number and the assigned IP address. If you assign a fixed IP address, assign it to each subscriber of the data card (60-1 to 60-n) at start-up, and if you assign a dynamic IP address, the subscriber's Internet terminal will activate the connection. IP address only, such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) And it stores the update an existing IP address, using the allocation method.

The multimedia service processing operation in the access gateway is performed in the case of POTS origination and incoming service of analog telephone subscriber, QoS-guaranteed VoIP service through Internet telephone of xDSL / cable modem / Ethernet subscriber, and the best through PC of internet subscriber. The following describes the Internet service.

First, the operation of the POTS origination and incoming service of the analog telephone subscriber is described. First, when the analog telephone subscriber attempts to make a POTS origination call, the voice card 50-1 to 50-n of the calling access gateway is provided. The POTS line interface unit 51 detects the off-hook of the calling subscriber and transmits a predetermined dial tone, and collects the called telephone number dialed from the corresponding calling subscriber.

Then, the controller 53 of the voice card 50-1 to 50-n transfers the collected incoming telephone number to the control and switch module 70 having the independent IP address through the internal data and control bus. .

The control and switch module 70 transmits an outgoing message to a soft switch that controls the call and service of an access gateway located in a VoP IP network. The outgoing message is transmitted to the called party soft switch in charge of controlling the trunk gateway, and the called party soft switch transmits the called information to the called party access gateway.

Accordingly, the voice card 50-1 to 50-n of the called party's access gateway analyzes the called information and transmits a ring tone to the corresponding called subscriber. In this case, a VoIP packet session via the calling access gateway and the VoP IP network is performed. Will be set.

Subsequently, when the called subscriber responds, the packet routing / forwarding engine 54 from the DSP 52 / controller 53 provided in the voice cards 50-1 to 50-n of the called access gateway and the calling access gateway. ) And through the corresponding VoP IP network through the first packet card 80-1 connected to the VoP IP network, the VoIP packet session is activated, and the VoIP packet is transmitted and received.

And, when converting VoIP packet into IP packet in voice card 50-1 ~ 50-n, record different service code in IP header or distinguish IP address of VoP IP network from best Internet address. By doing so, the packet for the VoIP service is always forwarded to the first packet card 80-1 connected to the VoP IP network. In this way, the VoIP packet for the POTS service is transmitted and received through the VoP IP network, which is guaranteed QoS.

In addition, in order to guarantee QoS for VoIP packets transmitted and received by accessing the VoP IP network, the access gateway has a preset number of VoIP sessions activated with other access gateways for each packet card 80-1 to 80-2. If the number of active sessions is exceeded, the call setup is rejected for the VoIP new call setup of the subscriber.

Secondly, the operation of the QoS guaranteed VoIP service of the Internet telephone subscriber is described. First, if the Internet telephone subscriber wants to attempt a QoS guaranteed VoIP outgoing call, the SIP / H.323 VoIP software of the Internet telephone should be set to SIP / H. The soft switch that controls the H.323 call is assigned to the soft switch located in the VoP IP network to send outgoing messages.

Then, the packet routing / forwarding engine 63 provided in the data cards 60-1 to 60-n of the calling access gateway checks the destination IP address, which is the incoming packet address included in the outgoing message, and is connected with the VoP IP network. By forwarding the IP packet for the outgoing message to the first packet card 80-1, the soft switch in the VoP IP network analyzes the IP packet for the outgoing message and controls the called party's soft switch controlling the access gateway or trunk gateway where the called party is located. It will relay the outgoing message.

Accordingly, the called party soft switch transmits a call message to the called party access gateway, so that the called party accesses the called subscriber. When the called subscriber uses an Internet phone, the data card 60-1 to 60-n is used. VoIP packet session through the route of the corresponding data card (60-1 to 60-n) between the internet phone connected through) and the internet phone connected through the data card (60-1 to 60-n) of the calling access gateway. If the called subscriber uses an analog POTS phone, the analog POTS phone connected through the voice card (50-1 to 50-n) and the data card (60-1 to 60-n) of the calling access gateway are established. A VoIP packet session is established between connected Internet phones to establish a voice call path.

In the VoIP voice call of the above-mentioned Internet telephone, the data link between the Internet telephone in the subscriber area and the data card 60-1 to 60-n of the access gateway transmits and receives the IP packet for VoIP of the internet telephone. When the PC or data terminal in the subscriber area accesses the Internet, the VoIP packet and the Internet packet share the same link and physical channel, and the controllers 62 and 65 of the data cards 60-1 to 60-n are connected to the VoIP packet and the Internet. Since packets are processed at the same time, a large amount of Internet packets are transmitted and received by the PC. As a method for guaranteeing the call quality of VoIP voice packets, an Internet telephone and data card (60) of a subscriber is established when a VoIP session is established. QoS management function is performed between the controllers 62 and 65 of -1 to 60-n) to ensure bandwidth for VoIP packets, so that VoIP packets are not delayed or lost. The controllers 62 and 65 of the data card 60-1 to 60-n of the access gateway give priority to VoIP packets to guarantee packet delivery, and burst burst best-in-class Internet packet traffic of subscriber's premises PC Do not affect.

At this time, the IP address system and IP network of VoP IP network are completely separated from the Internet because the IP packet traffic for VoIP service is mixed with the best network of the Internet which has burst traffic characteristics. Therefore, the voice card 50-1 to 50-n is assigned an IP address provided by the VoP IP network, and the high speed Internet subscriber data card 60-1 to 60-n is used globally. IP address or private IP address for intranet operated by ISP is assigned to enable internet access.

However, in the case of VoP IP network, if a packet with an Internet IP address is introduced, the corresponding IP packet cannot be delivered to the destination IP address. Therefore, the high speed Internet is accessed through the Internet and the data card 60-1 to 60-n. If the subscriber is assigned a global router IP address or a private IP address for interworking with the Internet, the Internet phone attempts SIP / H.323 VoIP service using the corresponding IP address. It is not a problem to transmit the IP address to the address assigned in the VoP IP network, but it is impossible to determine and forward the Internet IP address assigned to the Internet phone from the other party of the VoP IP network. You will use the same two methods.

That is, in the present invention, the access gateway for the multimedia service allocates the IP address of the VoP IP network and the global IP address for the Internet to the high-speed Internet subscriber line connected to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n, thereby providing a corresponding VoP. The IP address used by the internet phone linked with the soft switch of the IP network should use the IP address of the VoP IP network. When connecting to the Internet, the IP address available from the Internet should be used. In case of wanting VoIP communication through VoIP, VoIP communication is performed using IP address assigned in VoP IP network.

In another method, the IP address provided by the VoP IP network can be transmitted between the terminal of the subscriber and the access gateway through an Internet telephone by the management function of the access gateway. Since it arrives effectively at the voice card 50-1 to 50-n and the control and switch module 70 via, the control and switch module 70 is a SIP proxy corresponding to the SIP / H.323 client of the Internet telephone. It acts as a server / H.323 gatekeeper, and the voice card (50-1 to 50-n) acts as a media gateway corresponding to the VoIP session of the subscriber's Internet phone. By performing the IP address translation function, the VoIP session route of the Internet phone can be transferred from the data phone (60-1 to 60-n), the voice card (50-1 to 50-n), and the packet card (80-1, 80) from the Internet phone. -2) will be connected.

Lastly, the operation in the case of using the application service on the Internet by accessing the Internet through the Internet subscriber's PC will be described. The IP data transmitted by the corresponding PC is the data card 60-1 to 60-n of the access gateway. Routing / forwarding to the second packet card 80-2 for accessing the Internet.

The IP packet received from the server on the Internet through the access gateway is routed / forwarded from the second packet card 80-2 to the data cards 60-1 to 60-n serving the subscriber. The second packet card 80-2 and the data cards 60-1 to 60-n automatically transmit IP packets to the subscriber PC as processing of the forwarding engine.

As described above, according to the present invention, as the access gateway has a structure for performing the IP packet routing and forwarding function of Layer 3, the packet path setting for the VoIP packet may be set to the DSCP (Differentiated Services CodePoint) of the IP packet. By transmitting to QoS-guaranteed VoP IP network and the Internet by using TOS (Type of Service) or IP address, even if the packet card is expanded according to the increase of traffic capacity, only routing information is updated without affecting other functions of the system. VoIP packets of voice card and data card are transmitted only to VoP IP network which guarantees QoS, and Internet packets are transmitted only to Internet to guarantee VoIP traffic technology and QoS of VoP IP network.

That is, the access gateway for the multimedia service according to the present invention does not have a separate DSLAM and equipment, but has a voice card and a data card, thereby guaranteeing QoS for both VoIP service for analog POTS subscriber and VoIP service based on an Internet phone. In addition, it is possible to provide service while Internet subscribers can set video call packets to QoS-guaranteed VoP IP networks to guarantee video call quality. By providing the voice and Internet data services can be provided at the same time, it is possible to integrate management.

In addition, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to the above, and various alternatives, modifications and changes can be made within the scope apparent to those skilled in the art in connection with the present invention, for example QoS-guaranteed network for guaranteeing communication quality and Internet are separated into the QoS-guaranteed network or the Internet according to the type of data received from subscriber network, preferably according to the required QoS in physically or logically separated generation network. It may be possible to implement an access gateway system for multimedia services that routes / forwards the data.

As described above, the present invention simultaneously accommodates a voice card for IP packetization of a subscriber's voice to a VoP IP network in a next-generation communication network and a data card for providing Internet access services such as xDSL, cable modem, and Ethernet to the subscriber. By implementing a multimedia access gateway system, it is possible to provide a multimedia service that integrates VoIP voice service and Internet access service of an existing analog subscriber as one integrated management phone number, thereby providing VoP IP without inflow of Internet data traffic. Network construction is possible.

In addition, the present invention includes a separate packet card which is divided into a link connected to a core network for VoIP voice transmission and a link connected to the Internet, and provides a packet routing and forwarding function, thereby providing VoIP voice packets, By effectively routing / forwarding the best Internet packet and multimedia packet, it is possible to activate the introduction of the next-generation communication network supporting QoS for each packet.

In addition, the present invention provides a packet link for accessing the packet core network through the addition of a packet card irrespective of the subscriber's access line, thereby easily accommodating it even when an IPv6 network and a VOD network are established in the future. You can service it.

Claims (20)

In the next-generation communication network in which the VoP IP network for VoIP voice service and the Internet for data service are physically or logically separated, At least one voice card which receives a subscriber line for the VoIP voice service and delivers the subscriber voice by IP packetization; At least one data card for providing an Internet connection to a subscriber side for said data service; A control and switch module for controlling system services and exchanging data; At least a VoIP packet connected to the VoP IP network to transmit / receive VoIP packets or an Internet IP packet connected to the Internet, and routed / forwarded to a voice card or a data card corresponding to a destination IP address of the VoIP packet and the Internet IP packet. An access gateway system for a multimedia service, characterized in that it comprises one packet card. The method of claim 1, And the voice card, data card, packet card, and control and switch module interoperate with each other via a system bus which is an internal data and control bus. The method of claim 1, The voice card, the data card, and the packet card have an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table therein to transmit packets received from multiple channels in the card to the destination card in the system by L3 packet routing. And a packet forwarding processing unit for routing and forwarding IP packets. The method of claim 1, The voice card encodes an analog voice or a PCM voice signal of a subscriber station connected by a 2-wire loop or DS0 and converts the voice signal into an IP packet and transmits it to the called party through the VoP IP network, or, conversely, receives the IP packet through the VoP IP network And an inverse conversion into an encoded voice PCM voice signal or an analog voice and transmitting the same to a subscriber station. The method according to claim 1 or 4, The voice card includes: a POTS line interface unit for accommodating at least one analog subscriber over a POTS line and providing a POT service; A DSP for converting / inverting a speech signal into an encoded packet and removing echo; A packet routing / forwarding processor including an IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table to forward an IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network through an internal system bus, and receive and deliver an IP packet from the packet card; Converts the encoded voice packet received from the DSP to an IP packet and delivers the encoded voice packet to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or extracts and transmits the encoded voice packet from the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor to the DSP. An access gateway system for a multimedia service, characterized in that it comprises a controller. The method of claim 1, The data card includes: a data card for an xDSL / cable modem for delivering packet data to a VoP IP network and the Internet by interworking with an xDSL / cable modem in a subscriber's home through a 2-wire loop POTS line or an HFC line; An access gateway system for a multimedia service, comprising: an Ethernet data card for interworking with an Ethernet terminal in a subscriber's home via an Ethernet line and delivering packet data to a VoP IP network and the Internet. The method of claim 6, The xDSL / cable modem data card includes: an xDSL / cable modem interface unit for decoding / encoding a modem signal received through an xDSL / cable modem at a subscriber side; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided to forward the IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network or a packet card connected to the Internet through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, and received from a corresponding packet card. A packet routing / forwarding processor for transmitting an IP packet; A controller which forwards the IP packet received from the modem interface unit to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or forwards, distributes, and controls the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor to the individual subscriber modem of the modem interface unit. Access gateway system for a multimedia service, characterized in that. The method of claim 6, The data card for Ethernet includes: an Ethernet interface and an L2 switch for converging Ethernet on a subscriber side and exchanging MAC packets; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided to forward the IP packet to a packet card connected to a VoP IP network or a packet card connected to the Internet through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, and received from a corresponding packet card. A packet routing / forwarding processor for transmitting an IP packet; Extract the IP packet from the Ethernet MAC frame received from the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch and deliver the IP packet to the packet routing / forwarding processor, or wrap the Ethernet MAC address of an individual subscriber line in the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding processor. And a controller for transmitting, distributing, and controlling the Ethernet interface and the L2 switch. The method of claim 1, The packet card may include an L2 link interface unit for transmitting and receiving an IP packet by connecting a Gigabit Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, POS, and ATM link connected to a VoP IP network or the Internet; An IP packet buffer and a packet routing / forwarding table are provided for routing / forwarding IP packets to a voice card or data card through an internal system bus based on the packet routing table, or forwarding IP packets received from the voice card or data card. A packet routing / forwarding processor; And a controller configured to transfer the IP packet received from the L2 link interface unit to the packet routing / forwarding unit, or to transfer and control the IP packet received from the packet routing / forwarding unit to the L2 link interface unit. Access gateway system for multimedia services. The method of claim 1, The control and switch module performs a call control function for VoIP service, performs packet routing signaling with a router of an IP network, controls packet routing / forwarding processing of a voice card, a data card, and a packet card, and And a switch function for exchanging IP packets between a data card and a packet card. The method of claim 1, And the control and switch module updates a packet routing / forwarding table present in the voice card, the data card, and the packet card when the system is started or the routing information of the network is changed. The method of claim 1, And a subscriber information DB connected to the voice card and the data card, and storing subscriber phone numbers and fixed or dynamic IP addresses separately. According to claim 1, When the data card transmits / receives a plurality of bursted Internet packets of a PC through a link and a physical channel shared by the VoIP voice packet and the Internet packet, a VoIP session is established to guarantee the call quality of the VoIP voice packet. And a controller which performs a QoS management function to guarantee bandwidth for the packet, but prioritizes the VoIP packet to ensure packet delivery. The method of claim 1, The control and switch module may include a controller for fixedly assigning and managing one IP address included in an IP subnetwork provided by a QoS guaranteed VoP IP network for each voice card, and managing the IP address in association with a telephone number. An access gateway system for a multimedia service. The method of claim 1, The control and switch module is configured to configure an IP subnetwork address including a plurality of IP addresses to configure, in a corresponding data card, an IP subnetwork terminating an IP network for a plurality of subscriber lines connected to the data card. And a controller for fixedly assigning and managing each other, and allocating and managing the IP subnetwork address used for the Internet and the IP subnetwork address used for the VoP IP network. The method of claim 15, The controller is configured to allocate individual IP addresses included in an IP subnetwork address space allocated to a data card to a plurality of subscribers connected to the data card, wherein the number of IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address is the same. And accessing and releasing an IP address only when the subscriber's Internet terminal activates the connection when the number of subscriber lines connected to the data card is less than that. The method of claim 15, The controller is configured to allocate individual IP addresses included in an IP subnetwork address space allocated to a data card to a plurality of subscribers connected to the data card, wherein the number of IP addresses included in the IP subnetwork address is the same. If there are more subscriber lines connected to the data card, the IP address included in the IP subnetwork address space of the VoP IP network and the IP address included in the IP subnetwork address space of the Internet are managed for each subscriber line. And the IP address included in the IP subnetwork address space of the VoP IP network in association with the POTS service telephone number. According to claim 1, In order to guarantee QoS for VoIP packets transmitted and received through the VoP IP network, the number of activated VoIP sessions and other access gateway systems for each packet card connected to the VoP IP network exceeds the number of active sessions set in the packet card. If it is, the access gateway system for a multimedia service, characterized in that for rejecting the call setup for the VoIP call establishment of the subscriber. In a generation-generation network in which QoS guarantee network and the Internet are physically or logically separated to guarantee communication quality, And routing / forwarding the received data to the QoS guaranteed network or the Internet by separating according to the type of data received from the subscriber network. The method of claim 19, And the type of the received data is separated according to the required QoS.