Method, apparatus, system, and article of manufacture for providing distributed convergence nodes in a communication network environment
US8787383B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 16, 2013 |
| Grant date | Jul 22, 2014 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 16, 2033 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L45/00
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Distributed convergence nodes referred to as “Supernodes”, embodied as a functional technology component within an end user application, automatically determine whether said component should become “active” and assume the responsibility of forwarding IP multicast data present on a LAN (which supports IP multicast communication) to a “Routing Supernode” via a WAN (which does not support IP multicast communication). The Routing Supernode, in turn, is responsible for forwarding that traffic to other Supernodes present on other LANs. The traffic sent to and from the Routing Supernode is sent via unicast communication. All Supernodes are responsible for forwarding traffic on their respective LAN across the WAN to a Routing Supernode, and for forwarding traffic received over the WAN from the Routing Supernode onto their own respective LANs. An election process determines which device in a LAN is to operate as a SuperNode.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.