Service assignment apparatus

A service assignment method for assigning a service corresponding to a network-service request received by a service-request-compatible apparatus, to a service-request-incompatible apparatus being incapable of providing a network service which said service-request-compatible apparatus can provide, where said service-request-compatible apparatus and said service-request-incompatible apparatus are located on an identical communication path,

• said method comprising the steps of:
• obtaining information on a network-service-provision state of said service-request-compatible apparatus;
• detecting a service-request-incompatible apparatus to which a service is to be assigned, based on path information which is provided in advance and network information on said service-request-compatible apparatus of which said information on the network-service-provision state is obtained;
• making a parameter conversion from said information on the network-service-provision state and information on said service-request-incompatible apparatus determined by said target-apparatus determining means, into a service which can be set in said service-request-incompatible apparatus;
• and
• setting said service into which said parameter conversion is made, in said service-request-incompatible apparatus.

A computer-readable storage medium storing a service assignment program comprising:

• network-information collecting means which collects information on a network-service-provision state of a service-request-compatible apparatus, and periodically collects network information from said service-request-compatible apparatus and a service-request-incompatible apparatus;
• target-apparatus determining means which determines a service-request-incompatible apparatus which cannot provide a network service provided by said service-request-compatible apparatus, based on said information on the network-service-provision state and/or said network information;
• service mapping means which determines a service which is to be set in said service-request-incompatible apparatus, based on said information on the network-service-provision state and information on said service-request-incompatible apparatus determined by said target-apparatus determining means;
• service setting means which sets said service determined by said service mapping means, in said service-request-incompatible apparatus;
• and
• network-service-provision-permission-decision means which receives from said service-request-compatible apparatus a request for decision as to whether to permit provision of a network service in response to a network-service request received by said service-request-compatible apparatus, makes a decision as to whether to permit provision of the network service, sends a result of the decision to said service-request-compatible apparatus, and supplies information on permission, as said information on the network-service-provision state of said service-request-compatible apparatus, to said target-apparatus determining function.