Feedback loop for dynamic network resource allocation

Abstract

A system, apparatus and method for dynamic resource allocation is provided, where a network resource shared by a plurality of electronic devices having unique service profiles and unique billing profiles is monitored. Allocation of the shared network resource as well as the service profiles and billing profiles are dynamically modified.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 receiving a service profile for each of a plurality of devices sharing a network resource; 
 receiving a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices; 
 generating a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices; 
 repeating:
 receiving traffic profiles over said network resource for said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list and 
 
 dynamically modifying at least one of said service profile and said billing profile for said selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profile or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles; 
 until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and 
 when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, clearing said prioritization list. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1  wherein said dynamically modifying comprises increasing or reducing an overall bit-rate cap or data volume cap in a service profile for at least one of said devices. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 2  wherein said dynamically modifying further comprises increasing or decreasing a rate or a charge in a billing profile for said at least one of said devices. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1  wherein one of said devices at a first end of said list is a first device to be subject to said dynamically modifying if said network resource would be under-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 4  wherein said dynamically modifying comprises increasing an overall bit-rate cap or data volume cap for said one of said devices at said first end of said list. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5  wherein said increasing fully utilizes a remainder of a capacity of said network resource. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1  wherein one of said devices at a first end of said list is a first device to be subject to said dynamically modifying if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 7  wherein said dynamically modifying comprises decreasing an overall bit-rate cap or data volume cap for said one of said devices at said first end of said list. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 8  wherein said decreasing brings said traffic profiles into alignment with full utilization of a capacity of said network resource. 
     
     
       10. An apparatus for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 a network interface configured to receive a service profile for each of a plurality of devices sharing a network resource and to receive a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices; and 
 a processor connected to said network interface and configured to generate a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices; 
 said processor further configured to repeat:
 receiving traffic profiles over said network resource for said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list and dynamically modifying at least one of said service profile and said billing profile for said selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profile or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles; 
 
 until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and 
 said processor further configured, when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, to clear said prioritization list. 
 
     
     
       11. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein said dynamically modifying comprises increasing or reducing an overall bit-rate cap or data volume cap in a service profile for at least one of said devices. 
     
     
       12. The apparatus of  claim 11  wherein said dynamically modifying further comprises increasing or decreasing a rate or a charge in a billing profile for said at least one of said devices. 
     
     
       13. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein one of said devices at a first end of said list is a first device to be subject to said dynamically modifying if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       14. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein one of said devices at a first end of said list is a first device to be subject to said dynamically modifying if said network resource would be under-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       15. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein said apparatus is incorporated into a policy server that connects to said devices via a public land mobile network infrastructure. 
     
     
       16. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein said apparatus is incorporated into a billing server that connects to said devices via a public land mobile network infrastructure. 
     
     
       17. The apparatus of  claim 10  wherein said network interface is configured to connect to a policy server and a billing server that are each connectable to said devices via a public land mobile network infrastructure. 
     
     
       18. A computer-implemented method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 grouping, by a computing system that includes one or more cellular network elements, a plurality of computing devices sharing a cellular network resource;   receiving a service profile for each of the plurality of devices sharing the network resource;   receiving a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices;   generating a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices within the group, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   repeating, by the computing system:
 determining and receiving traffic profiles indicating attributes of current traffic activity over said network resource by said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list; and 
 dynamically modifying said service profile for the selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profiles or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles, wherein the dynamic modification includes automatically reducing a maximum guaranteed bit rate to a lower guaranteed bit rate in response to contention for the shared network resource; 
   until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and   when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, clearing said prioritization list.   
     
     
       19. The method of claim 18, wherein the network resource is a cellular base station. 
     
     
       20. The method of claim 18, wherein the network resource is a back-haul link. 
     
     
       21. The method of claim 18, wherein the traffic profiles over the network resource indicate: data rates, data volumes, types of content, radio access type, congestion information, and device type. 
     
     
       22. The method of claim 18, wherein the dynamic modification further includes modifying a data volume cap. 
     
     
       23. The method of claim 18, wherein the dynamic modification further includes modifying a restriction on one or more content types. 
     
     
       24. The method of claim 18, wherein the dynamic modification further includes modifying a restriction on one or more protocol types. 
     
     
       25. The method of claim 18, wherein the receiving the service profile for each of the plurality of devices includes one or more of: accessing a memory of the computing system or receiving data via a network link. 
     
     
       26. The method of claim 18, wherein the dynamic modification is performed only if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       27. A method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 grouping, by a computing system of a cellular network, a plurality of computing devices sharing a cellular network resource;   receiving, by the computing system, a service profile for each of the plurality of devices sharing the network resource;   receiving, by the computing system, a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices;   generating, by the computing system, a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices, within the group based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   repeating, by the computing system, until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource:
 receiving traffic profiles over said network resource for said plurality of devices, wherein the traffic profiles over said network resource indicate attributes of data communicated by corresponding ones of the devices using the network resource; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list; and 
 dynamically modifying said service profile for said selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profile or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles, wherein the dynamically modifying includes modifying a restriction on communications for the at least one of said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource to according to at least one dynamically modified service profile; and 
   when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, the computing system clearing said prioritization list.   
     
     
       28. The method of claim 27, wherein the network resource is a cellular base station or a back-haul link. 
     
     
       29. The method of claim 28, wherein the traffic profiles over the network resource indicate: wherein the traffic profiles over the network resource indicate: data rates, data volumes, types of content, radio access type, congestion information, and device type. 
     
     
       30. The method of claim 27, wherein the dynamic modification includes: modifying a data rate cap, modifying a data volume cap, modifying a restriction on one or more content types, and modifying a restriction on one or more protocol types. 
     
     
       31. The method of claim 27, wherein the dynamic modification includes modifying a restriction on video content. 
     
     
       32. The method of claim 27, wherein the receiving the service profile for each of the plurality of devices includes one or more of: accessing a memory of the computing system or receiving data via a network link. 
     
     
       33. The method of claim 27, wherein the dynamic modification is performed if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles and not if said network resource would be under-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       34. A method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 grouping, by a computing system of a cellular network, a plurality of computing devices sharing a cellular network resource, wherein the cellular network resource is a base station or a back-haul link;   receiving, by the computing system, a service profile for each of the plurality of devices sharing the network resource;   receiving, by the computing system, a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices;   generating, by the computing system, a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   repeating, by the computing system:
 receiving traffic profiles that indicate attributes of current traffic activity over said network resource for each of said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles, wherein the traffic profiles indicate data rates, data volumes, and types of content for ones of said plurality of devices; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list and 
 dynamically modifying said service profile for said at least one selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profiles or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles wherein the dynamic modification includes:
 automatically reducing a maximum guaranteed bit rate to a lower guaranteed bit rate in response to contention for the shared network resource; and 
 adjusting a restriction on one or more multimedia content types in response to contention for the shared network resource; 
 
   until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and   when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, the computing system clearing said prioritization list.   
     
     
       35. The method of claim 34, wherein the receiving the service profile for each of the plurality of devices includes one or more of: accessing a memory of the computing system or receiving data via a network link. 
     
     
       36. The method of claim 34, wherein the dynamic modification is performed if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles and not if said network resource would be under-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       37. An apparatus for dynamic allocation of network resources in a cellular network comprising:
 a network interface configured to receive a service profile for each of a plurality of devices sharing a hardware network resource and to receive a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices; and   a processor connected to said network interface and configured to group the plurality of devices sharing the cellular network resources and generate a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices within the group, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   wherein said processor further configured to repeat:
 receiving traffic profiles over said network resource for said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list; and 
 dynamically modifying said service profile for said selected devices, if said network resource is underutilized by communications corresponding to said traffic profiles or if said network resource would be over-utilized by communications corresponding to said traffic profiles wherein the dynamically modifying includes modifying a restriction on communications for the at least one of said plurality of devices; 
   until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and   wherein said processor is further configured, when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, to clear said prioritization list.   
     
     
       38. The apparatus of claim 37, wherein the restriction on communications is a guaranteed bit rate. 
     
     
       39. The apparatus of claim 37, wherein the network resource is one of a cellular base station or a backhaul link. 
     
     
       40. The apparatus of claim 37, wherein the processor is configured to perform the dynamic modification only if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles. 
     
     
       41. A computer-implemented method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 grouping, by a computing system that includes one or more cellular network elements, a plurality of computing devices sharing a cellular network resource;   receiving a service profile for each of the plurality of devices sharing the network resource;   receiving a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices;   generating a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices within the group, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   repeating, by the computing system:
 receiving predetermined traffic profiles indicating attributes of current traffic activity over said network resource by said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list; and 
 dynamically modifying said service profile for the selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profiles or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles, wherein the dynamic modification includes automatically reducing a maximum guaranteed bit rate to a lower guaranteed bit rate in response to contention for the shared network resource; 
   until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and   when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, clearing said prioritization list.   
     
     
       42. A computer-implemented method for dynamic allocation of network resources comprising:
 grouping, by a computing system that includes one or more cellular network elements, a plurality of computing devices sharing a cellular network resource;   receiving a service profile for each of the plurality of devices sharing the network resource;   receiving a billing profile for each of said plurality of devices;   generating a prioritization list defining an order of said plurality of devices within the group, based on said billing profiles and on a billing history for each of said plurality of devices;   repeating, by the computing system:
 determining and receiving traffic profiles indicating attributes of current traffic activity over said network resource by said plurality of devices; 
 managing said network resource according to said service profile and said billing profile if said network resource is fully utilized by said traffic profiles; and, 
 selecting at least one of said devices based on said prioritization list; and 
 dynamically modifying at least one of said service profile and said billing profile for the selected devices, if said network resource is under-utilized by said traffic profiles or if said network resource would be over-utilized by said traffic profiles, wherein the dynamic modification includes automatically reducing a maximum guaranteed bit rate to a lower guaranteed bit rate in response to contention for the shared network resource; 
   until said plurality of devices no longer continue to share said network resource; and   when said plurality of devices are no longer sharing said network resource, clearing said prioritization list.