Methods and systems for routing messages between a mated pair of routing nodes with a distributed processing architecture and one or more redundantly connected remote applications
AssigneeTekelec
InventorJeffrey Alan Craig
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods and systems for routing messages between a mated pair of routing nodes with a distributed processing architecture and one or more redundantly connected remote applications are disclosed. A mated pair of routing nodes uses private point codes to distribute messages destined for remote applications among internal processing modules and between the routing nodes. The routing nodes replace the private point codes with a shared point code before sending the messages to one of the remote applications. When communicating with external PSTN nodes, the mated pair of routing nodes uses the shared point code.
Claims30
A method for routing messages between a mated pair of routing nodes having a distributed internal processing architecture and one or more redundantly connected remote applications, the method comprising:
- (a) receiving a signaling message at a first communications module in a first routing node of a mated pair of routing nodes, the mated pair of routing nodes being redundantly connected to one or more remote applications, the signaling message being addressed to a first point code shared by the mated pair of routing nodes and the one or more remote applications;
- (b) determining, based on information in the signaling message, whether to forward the message to one of the remote applications or to a second routing node of the mated pair of routing nodes;
- (c) in response to determining to forward the message to one of the remote applications, replacing the first point code with a second point code used internally by the first and second routing nodes to identify the remote application and distributing the message to a second communications module within the first routing node using the second point code, the second communications module being associated with the remote application;
- and
- (d) in response to determining to forward the message to the second routing node, replacing the first point code with a third point code used internally by the first routing node to identify the second routing node and distributing the signaling message to a third communications module within the first routing node based on the third point code, the third communications module being associated with the second routing node.
A method for utilizing message transfer part (MTP) routing to communicate messages between routing nodes of a mated pair of routing nodes and a remote application that share a point code, the method comprising:
- (a) communicating with nodes in a public switched telephone network (PSTN) using a first point code shared by a mated pair of routing nodes and a remote application;
- (b) communicating messages between routing nodes of the mated pair of routing nodes using second and third point codes used by the routing nodes to identify each other;
- and
- (c) communicating messages intended for the remote application between the routing nodes using a fourth point code utilized internally by the routing nodes to identify the remote application.
A system including pair of routing nodes having signal transfer point (STP) functionality and remote application support functionality, the system comprising:
- (a) a first routing node capable of operating in a first mode for performing normal STP functions and a second mode for providing remote application support;
- and
- (b) a second routing node for functioning in the first mode for performing normal STP functions, and in the second mode for providing remote application support, wherein the first and second routing nodes are adapted to switch between the first and second modes of operation based on the origins of received signaling messages.
A remote application support system for supporting multiple remote applications using multiple internal point codes, the system comprising:
- (a) a first routing node for communicating with a first network using a first public point code and for internally distributing messages intended for a plurality of remote applications and using a plurality of different private point codes;
- and
- (b) a second routing node coupled to the first routing node, the second routing node being configured to communicate with the first network using the first point code and to internally distribute messages intended for the remote applications using the private point codes.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.