Communications of telephony control signaling over data networks
AssigneeNortel Networks Limited
InventorWilliam D. Bressler
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A telephony communications system includes a first type link and a second type link for communicating telephony control signaling among nodes in the system. The first type link may include a System Signaling No. 7 (SS7) link, and the second type link may include an Internet Protocol link. Interfaces to the first and second type links are provided in a layer, such as the message transfer part level two (MTP2) layer. If the layer is configured to a first mode, then the commnunication occurs through the interface to the first type link. If the layer is configured to the second mode, then the communication occurs through the interface to the second type link.
Claims37
A method of communicating control signaling messages in a telephony communications system having a plurality of nodes coupled by channels, the method comprising:
- providing, in a first node coupled to a channel having a first type link and a second type link, a first interface to the first type link and a second interface to the second type link, the channel for coupling the first node and a second node;
- selecting one of the first and second type links to route, to the second node, a control signaling message to manage a call in the telephony communications system;
- communicating the control signaling message over the selected link to the second node;
- and
- selecting different ones of the first and second type links at different times.
A system for communicating control signaling over a telephony communications system having a first type link and a second type link, comprising:
- a laver configurable to a first mode or a second mode to communicate over at least one of the first type link and the second type link;
- and
- the layer including transmit and receive components to process telephony messages,
- the transmit and receive components communicating telephony messages in a first format if the layer is configured to the first mode and in a second format if the layer is configured to the second mode,
- wherein the layer is dynamically configurable to the first and second modes to communicate telephony messages over the first and second type links at different times.
A system for communicating control signaling over a telephony communications system having a first type link and a second type link, comprising:
- a first interface coupled to the first type link;
- a second interface coupled to the second type link;
- and
- a controller to process messages containing control signaling to be communicated through a selected one of the first interface and the second interface to a node coupled to the first and second type links;
- wherein the controller is adapted to select the first and second type links at different times.
A system for communicating control signaling over a telephony communications system having a first type link and a second type link, comprising:
- means for communicating over the first type link;
- means for communicating over the second type link;
- and
- means for selecting the first and second type links to route telephony control signaling at different times to perform load balancing in communicating telephony control signaling over the first and second type links to a node.
A computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave comprising one or more code segments containing instructions for communicating telephony control signaling in a telephony system having a first type link and a second type link, the instructions when executed causing a device to:
- configure a layer to a first mode or a second mode, the layer configured to communicate over the first type link in the first mode and the second type link in the second mode;
- communicate telephony control signaling in a first format if the layer is in the first mode and in a second format if the layer is in the second mode;
- and
- configure the layer to the first and second modes at different times.
An article including one or more machine-readable storage media containing instructions for communicating, telephony control signaling in a telephony system having a first type link and a second tyke link, the instructions when executed causing a device to:
- configure a layer to a first mode or a second mode, the layer configured to communicate over the first type link in the first mode and the second type link in the second mode;
- communicate telephony control signaling in a first format if the layer is in the first mode and in a second format if the layer is in the second mode;
- and
- configure the layer to the first and second modes at different times to perform load balancing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.