Mapping cable service flows to IP network

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10122625-B2
Application number	US-201615005219-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 25, 2016
Priority date	Apr 1, 2015
Publication date	Nov 6, 2018
Grant date	Nov 6, 2018

Abstract

A novel method of handling network traffic for cable service flows in a distributed cable system is presented. Such a cable systems use remote distribution nodes in the fields to handle RF communications with cable modems in a distributed fashion. A packet engine is configured to assign a logical interface to each cable service flow in the cable system. Each logical interface in the packet engine is uniquely identifiable by a compound identifier that includes the identifier of the corresponding service flow and the identifier of the remote distribution node. Upon receiving upstream data packet from a particular cable service flow, the remote distribution node applies a set of tags or labels to the data packet identifying the data packet as being from the particular cable service flow. The remote distribution node then forwards the tagged packet toward the packet engine, where the tags/labels are used to direct the packet toward the corresponding logical interface of the particular cable service flow.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
receiving, at a remote distribution node, radio frequency (RF) signals from a plurality of cable modems for a plurality of cable service flows;
creating a packet for a particular service flow based on the received RF signals;
inserting first and second tags into the packet, the first tag identifying the particular cable service flow, the second tag identifying the remote distribution node;
forwarding the packet to one of a plurality of logical interfaces in a packet engine in a cable head end, wherein the first and second tags are jointly used to identify the one of the plurality of logical interfaces in the packet engine that is configured to handle the particular cable service flow, wherein each of the plurality of logical interfaces are configured to handle a different cable service flow.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first and second tags are VLAN tags.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote distribution node is a fiber node (FN) that transceives digital data over an optical fiber network with a cable head end.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the particular cable service flow is a cable modem.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the particular cable service flow is a service of a cable bundle.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote distribution node is an ether node (EN) that is in Internet Protocol (IP) communication with the cable head end.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the RF signals are received over RF channels that are established over CATV cables with the plurality of cable modems.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second tag is further for identifying a port on a switch that is connected to the remote distribution node.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the switch is for switching between a plurality of remote distribution nodes, wherein each remote distribution node is for converting RF signals from a set of cable modems to optical fiber signals to the cable head end.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the packet engine is for providing access to the Internet and for providing L2/L3 routing to each of the cable service flows.

11. A system comprising:
a cable head end comprising a packet engine;
a set of cable modems for providing a plurality of cable service flows; and
a set of remote distribution nodes for receiving RF signals from the plurality of cable modems and for forwarding packets to the cable head end, the packets created based on the received RF signals for the plurality of cable service flows,
wherein a remote distribution node inserts first and second tags into packets it creates for a particular cable service flow, the first tag identifying the particular cable service flow, the second tag identifying the remote distribution node,
wherein the packet engine comprises a plurality of logical interfaces, each logical interface configured to handle a different one of the plurality of cable service flows, wherein the first and second tags are jointly used to identify one of the plurality of logical interfaces in the packet engine that is configured to handle the particular cable service flow.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein each remote distribution node is a fiber node (FN) that transceives digital data over an optical fiber network with the cable head end.

13. The system of claim 11 , wherein the particular cable service flow is a cable modem.

14. The system of claim 11 , wherein the particular cable service flow is a service of a cable bundle.

15. The system of claim 11 , wherein each remote distribution node is an ether node (EN) that is in Internet Protocol (IP) communication with the cable head end.

16. The system of claim 11 , wherein the RF signals are received over RF channels that are established over CATV cables with the plurality of cable modems.

17. The system of claim 11 , wherein the second tag is further for identifying a port on a switch that is connected to the remote distribution node.

18. The system of claim 17 , wherein the switch is for switching between the set of remote distribution nodes, wherein each remote distribution node is for converting RF signals from a set of cable modems to optical fiber signals to the cable head end.

19. The system of claim 11 , wherein the packet engine is for providing access to the Internet and for providing L2/L3 routing to each of the cable service flows.

Assignees

• Gainspeed Inc
• Nokia America Corp

Inventors

• Biswal Iswar
• Kothari Bhupesh
• Khambatkone Alok
• Winterbottom Philip

Classifications

• H04L45/44

  Distributed routing · CPC title

• H04L45/566 Primary

  Routing instructions carried by the data packet, e.g. active networks · CPC title

• H04L45/04 Primary

  Interdomain routing, e.g. hierarchical routing · CPC title

• H04L45/16

  Multipoint routing · CPC title