Requirements for an IMS-based Quadruple Play Service Architecture

Quadruple play can be understood as the provisioning of high-speed voice, video (live broadcast or on demand services, such as video on demand), and data services over broadband connections with mobility support. Currently, there are several trials of the IP multimedia subsystem deployed worldwide that promise to provide telecommunication and advanced multimedia services. This article focuses mainly on the basic requirements of a cooperative service delivery platform for provisioning quadruple play services. As a result of this research, an IMS-based cooperative service delivery platform is presented. This supports various access technologies to acquire the streaming services. To validate our quadruple play architecture, we implemented a prototype based on DVB-H and UMTS as the access technologies. This prototype is part of the ongoing development of the proposed architecture     

Real-time communication in packet-switched networks

The dramatically increased bandwidths and processing capabilities of future high-speed networks make possible many distributed real-time applications, such as sensor-based applications and multimedia services. Since these applications will have traffic characteristics and performance requirements that differ dramatically from those of current data-oriented applications, new communication network architectures, and protocols will be required. In this paper we discuss the performance requirements and traffic characteristics of various real-time applications, survey recent developments in the areas of network architecture and protocols for supporting real-time services, and develop frameworks in which these, and future, research efforts can be considered     

Heading towards an advanced signalling system for multimedia,multiparty services in broadband ISDN

Introduction of the broadband integrated services digital network (B-ISDN) will enable network users to make use of advanced multimedia, multiparty services. With this aim in view, RACE II project R2044, MAGIC, is investigating long-term signalling requirements, architecture and protocols for B-ISDN. New service concepts are being developed in MAGIC which will provide more flexibility when compared to narrowband ISDN (N-ISDN). The service requirements and other signalling requirements, such as the separation between call and associated connections at the network-node interface, are used to determine the distribution of functions over the network. The signalling protocols which are used to exchange the signalling information are subsequently developed. These signalling protocols are simulated to prove the performance and the feasibility of call handling concepts     

5G商用无人机业务感知优化实践

上海市天然气主干网5G工业无人机巡线是5G垂直行业的新型应用项目,这种新型业务对网络能力提出了更高要求,体现在超低时延、超高速率及超远覆盖。利用5G中低空覆盖技术、高速移动技术、基站切换技术、边缘计算协同技术,最终高质量满足了巡检业务需求,大大减少人工成本,极大提升了工作效率和问题发现效率。为5G市场的发展提供了解决方案,提升了市场竞争力。     

H.323: the multimedia communications standard for local areanetworks

This article provides an overview of ITU-T Recommendation H.323, “Visual telephone systems and equipment for local area networks which provide a non-guaranteed quality of service.” This recommendation applies to multimedia communications over packet-switched networks, such as Ethernet, which run TCP/IP, IXP/SPX, or other related protocols. In addition to the multimedia terminal, other H.323 components are defined which provide for conference admissions (gatekeeper), multipoint communications (multipoint controller, multipoint processor), and interoperability (gateway) with terminals on other types of networks. H.323 has application to a variety of network media, including local area networks, enterprise networks, metropolitan area networks, wide area networks, dial-up line connections to LANs, and the Internet. This provides the capability to have global multimedia communications from the desktop using existing network infrastructures     

A multipoint communication service for interactive applications

The multipoint communication layer (MCL) is a generic multipoint communication service designed to support highly interactive multimedia conferencing applications. It supports full-duplex multipoint communication between an arbitrary number of connected locations over a variety of networks. MCL design was driven by the demanding real-time multipoint communication requirements of MICA (multimedia interactive conferencing application). The authors establish the context for MCL by considering MICA's communication requirements and reviewing related work in the area of multipoint communication. They present the overall design of the MCL service and describe its communication primitives, protocol message structures, and implementation. Comparison is made with alternative strategies and the use of MCL services for other applications is examined     

多媒体数据会议应用

介绍了ＩＴＵ－ＴＳＧ８在１９９３－１９９６研究期完成的的Ｔ．１２０系列国际标准。这一系列标准规定了多点多媒体数据／远程信息处理会议应用与各种网络的接口关系，多点通信服务，会计控制，应用定义等。     

FUTURE MULTIMEDIA COMMUNICATIONS VIA SATELLITE

We are now moving into an era when conventional speech service will expand to full multimedia service offerings. This paper looks at ways in which satellite systems could provide such services in both the mobile as well as the fixed bands and the integration and inter-operability of such systems. Provision of multimedia services by ATM to integrate with an ATM core network is taken as the basis of the future network. Some of the constraints and difficulties of provision of ATM over satellite are discussed as well as some potential solutions for the ATM wireless protocols and network architectures which potentially could provide such services. Finally, some suggestions of how new orbit constellations could help meet these requirements are given. © 1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

OSI virtual terminal service

The OSI Virtual Terminal Service (VTS) is one of several application-oriented communication services being provided by protocols operating in the Application Layer of the Open System Interconnection Environment. There will be several Virtual Terminal services and protocols, each catering to a different class of distributed terminal service. Division of the VTS into classes of service allows more timely, economical, and efficient support of distributed terminal service, both now and for the future. Current work is concentrating on the Generic Virtual Terminal Protocol and the Basic Class Virtual Terminal Protocol. The Generic Virtual Terminal Service and Protocol establishes the general approach to providing all classes of VTS and sets the style for generating Virtual Terminal Protocols (VTP's) for Specific classes of terminal use. The Basic Class VTP is the first OSI VTP being developed by the International Organization for Standardization, and is intended to provide distributed terminal access for a wide range of nonsophisticated character-oriented terminals.     

Distributed multimedia applications on gigabit networks

MultiG, an open research program addressing issues that range from end-user requirements on distributed multimedia applications supporting collaborative work to medium-access protocols for multi-gigabit networks on optical fibers, is discussed. The projects in MultiG are described from the top down, beginning with computer-supported cooperative work. Distributed multimedia applications and application generators are then considered, followed by networking issues, including interprocess communication, transport services, network protocols, and high-speed protocol processing. Testbed activities and future plans are described     

Cross-layer analysis of protocol delay in mobile devices receiving BCMCS

Broadcast and multicast services allow the high-speed delivery of multimedia content to multiple subscribers over CDMA2000 wireless networks. This relies on a high-rate broadcast packet data system with an air interface governed by two interacting protocols: the medium access control (MAC) protocol specifies the methods of multiplexing and of forward error correction used to reduce the radio link error-rate seen by the higher layers; and the security protocol specifies the procedures used to encrypt and decrypt content, following the Advanced Encryption Standard. We investigated the mutual effect of these protocols, in the context of an ARM9-based mobile platform, and their influence on delay. This allowed us to propose a novel analytic model that can predict the total delay by summing the separate but related delays incurred by implementations of the MAC and security protocols with particular parameters. This cross-layer model includes the characteristics of error control in the MAC layer and the varying condition of the fading channel in the physical layer. We can use this model to estimate the size of data buffers that mobiles require to provide a seamless multimedia service.     

On management of CATV full service networks: a European perspective

The CATV network operators hope to offer digital services and evolve their networks to full service networks. There are many hurdles for them at the moment in the transition to a digital network and digital service offering from the current analog-based technology. Key to the success of the transition will be a well-integrated and capable management system to allow CATV operators and service providers to control the network as well as the services they will offer. The CATV operators need to agree on a common data communication infrastructure and plan how their new digital services will be offered to subscribers without disrupting the current customer base of analog service users. The choice of network technology and data communication protocols will have a strong influence on the network management technology chosen. A vital element for the provision of a common open communication architecture as well as for the purposes of network management is that the IP is used. The adoption of existing standards is vital in order to establish a fast route to open network management for CATV networks. It is possible that CATV operators and service providers will have to integrate existing SNMP management systems and TMN/OSI management, with newer integrated service management systems based on TINA and implemented on a CORBA platform. There is a strong need to address security issues before any of these technologies can be deployed for service. There is currently investment (deployed systems and research) which uses each of the technologies mentioned, so these technologies will need to coexist. This article highlights the differences between the North American and European network architectures, and outlines the European network and network management scenario. This is based on the authors involvement in a Pan-European CATV project, Integrated Broadband Communication over Broadcast Networks-IBCoBN     

HIPERACCESS: an access system for the information age

This paper introduces the ETSI Project on Broadband Radio Access Networks (EP-BRAN). BRAN systems will be used for local-area applications with limited mobility (HIPERLAN/2); fixed access with area coverage in urban and rural areas (HIPERACCESS); and short-range high-speed point-to-point links (HIPERLINK). They will support transport of either IP or ATM protocols, supporting managed quality of service. Such systems are needed to provide access to the future broadband core networks supporting multimedia applications. The paper focuses on HIPERACCESS. It addresses the motivation and market demand for broadband radio access networks; the objectives and scope of the Project; the operational and technical requirements; the types of networks to be standardised; the scope of the standards; and the issue of spectrum     

Advanced IMS Multipoint Conference Management Using Web Services

The IMS conference control interfaces are still in an early stage of development, allowing only the creation of basic group communication services where the service definition and policy are either preconfigured or managed through proprietary mechanisms. The Web service abstraction for third-party service application development of those native interfaces, the OSA Parlay X multimedia conference Web service, inherits these limitations, therefore constraining the possibilities for advanced multipoint conferencing application deployment over the IMS platform. In order to address these deficiencies, the native IMS conference control interfaces need to be enhanced to provide a broader and finer-grained management environment, while maintaining high flexibility, scalability, and interoperability levels. This article describes the current IMS conferencing framework, at both the native and application-interfacing levels, analyzing its deficiencies and presenting how a deeper involvement of Web services would contribute to overcoming its limitations at both levels.     

Sockets++: a uniform application programming interface for basiclevel communication services

This article presents an enhanced application programming interface based on the well-known BSD Sockets paradigm. The major modifications made during the redesign of Sockets are as follows: using an object-oriented design that facilitates the introduction of new communication service functions and simplifies use and learning; using a new generic communication model that supports a wide range of traditional and advanced communication services such as OSI, Internet, ISDN, and ATM services; using an abstract message-passing concept to transfer service data across the interface which enables operating systems to apply copy-avoiding mechanisms; supporting multipoint communications and enabling applications to distinguish different data streams; supporting direct forwarding of incoming data streams to outgoing streams to yield better performance; avoiding platform dependencies so as to reduce modification costs when porting applications     

The integrated services in the Internet: state of the art

This paper is about the evolution of the Internet from a simple data network into a true multiservice network that can support the emerging multimedia applications and their protocols with appropriate performance and costs. The real-time delivery and specific bandwidth requirements of these multimedia applications have created a need for an integrated services Internet in which traditional best effort datagram delivery can coexist with additional enhanced quality of service delivery classes. The integrated services Internet will be able to commit to meet bandwidth, packet loss, and delay specifications for individual data flows by using the resource reservation protocol together with appropriate packet forward scheduling policies     

下一代网络业务开发和控制平台的标准化研究

下一代网络对业务的快速开发和部署需求越来越迫切,需要在网络能力开放的基础上进一步开放业务的能力.本文对与下一代网络的业务开发和控制相关的两大主要标准化组织3GPP和OMA进行了详细研究,阐述了3GPP IMS作为下一代网络业务开放的统一的控制平台的工作机制,分析了OMA业务环境OSE的概念和思想,并详细分析了OSE与IMS的关系.最后以PoC业务为例阐明了下一代网络的业务开发模式及业务之间的调用关系.     

Blind quality assessment system for multimedia communications using tracing watermarking

This paper presents a novel method to blindly estimate the quality of a multimedia communication link by means of an unconventional use of digital fragile watermarking. Data hiding by digital watermarking is usually employed for multimedia copyright protection, authenticity verification, or similar purposes. However, watermarking is here adopted as a technique to provide a blind measure of the quality of service in multimedia communications. Specifically, a fragile watermark is hidden in an MPEG-like host data video transport stream using a spread-spectrum approach. Like a tracing signal, the watermark tracks the data, where it is embedded, since both the watermark and the host data follow the same communication link. The estimation of the tracing watermark allows dynamically evaluating the effective quality of the provided video services. This depends on the whole physical layer, including the employed video co/decoder. The performed method is based on the evaluation of the mean-square-error between the estimated and the actual watermarks. The proposed technique has been designed for application to wireless multimedia communication systems. According to the results obtained, the sensitivity of the detected tracing watermark on the quality of service (QoS) indices provides for some useful capabilities for analyzing future mobile Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) services.     

Hardware Architectures for the Efficient Implementation of Multi-Service Broadband Access and Multimedia Home Networks

In multimedia applications, the stringent requirements for balancing transmission capacity, flexible service provisioning and cost reduction lead the manufactures to provide highly integrated System-on Chip (SoC) solutions. This paper analyzes the application of high-bandwidth-networking SoCs to improve on the cost efficiency of multimedia service distribution in home networks. We present a case study, where we utilize the inherent protocol processing capabilities and high bandwidth interfaces of a modern network processor, scaled down to match the performance targets and low cost requirements of the home networking environment. An efficient, low cost Residential Gateway architecture results by mapping the home services onto the processing and memory blocks of this SoC. This revised version was published online in September 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.