Multi-access edge computing (MEC) service contract formation and workload execution

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11924060-B2
Application number	US-201916570153-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 13, 2019
Priority date	Sep 13, 2019
Publication date	Mar 5, 2024
Grant date	Mar 5, 2024

Abstract

Embodiments herein may include systems, apparatuses, methods, and computer-readable media, for a multi-access edge computing (MEC) system. A MEC orchestrator is to receive a request for service that includes a workload from a user agent; and facilitate formation of a SLA for servicing the workload. To facilitate the formation of the SLA includes to obtain, via a decentralized contracting system, bids from a plurality of service providers to respectively service a plurality of functions or tasks of the workload. The MEC orchestrator is also to translate the workload into the plurality of functions or tasks, and schedule servicing of the functions of tasks with the one or more service providers, including one or more edge computing devices, in accordance with the SLA. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system for edge computing orchestration, comprising:
a communication interface to receive, from a user agent, a request for a service that corresponds to a workload;
one or more computer processors coupled to the communication interface, wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
translate the workload into a set of functions,
identify a set of worker nodes capable of performing the set of functions,
receive a set of bids to satisfy the workload, wherein each bid of the set of bids includes a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) and a service price to satisfy the workload,
select, according to terms of a smart contract, an individual bid from among the set of bids based on a set of KPIs and a service price included in the individual bid,
create a service level agreement (SLA) based on capabilities of the identified set of worker nodes to execute respective functions of the set of functions to provide a quality of service for distributed servicing of the workload and on the set of KPIs and the service price included in the individual bid, and
cause scheduling of the distributed servicing of the set of functions by the identified set of worker nodes in accordance with the SLA.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the capabilities of each worker node of the set of worker nodes is registered on a blockchain, and wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
identify the set of worker nodes based on the capabilities registered on the blockchain.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
translate the workload into the set of functions and an execution plan to manage the distributed servicing of the workload by the set of worker nodes; and
manage, based on the execution plan, the set of worker nodes for servicing the set of functions.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the execution plan includes a security plan, and the one or more computer processors are to:
manage a set of service providers for servicing the set of functions according to the security plan.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
record at least data related to the set of service providers for servicing the set of functions.

6. The system of claim 3 , wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
collect telemetry and statistics data produced by the set of worker nodes based on execution of the set of functions; and
validate that the SLA has been fulfilled based on the collected telemetry and statistics data.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more computer processors are to:
send the SLA to the user agent;
receive, from the user agent, an acceptance of the SLA; and
trigger the scheduling in response to the acceptance of the SLA.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the set of worker nodes includes one or more of one or more edge compute nodes and one or more network access nodes.

9. A cloud computing service, comprising:
a set of cloud compute nodes to:
register a set of workers with a decentralized contracting system, wherein each registration includes capabilities of a corresponding worker of the set of workers; and
submit a bid to satisfy a workload, wherein the bid includes a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) and a service price to satisfy the workload, wherein the set of KPIs are used by an orchestrator to create a service level agreement (SLA), for execution, by the set of workers, of a set of functions to provide a quality of service to satisfy the workload;
when the bid is accepted according to terms of a smart contract, receive a set of functions corresponding to the workload; and
manage the set of workers to perform the set of functions according to the SLA.

10. The cloud computing service of claim 9 , wherein the SLA includes one or more of a description of the workload, resources to perform the workload, performance parameters for the workload, a quality of service (QoS) for the workload, a cost for performing the workload, payment for performing the workload, and contract terms determined by the decentralized contracting system.

11. The cloud computing service of claim 9 , wherein the set of cloud compute nodes is to manage the set of workers to perform the set of functions according to an execution plan determined by an orchestrator that created the SLA.

12. The cloud computing service of claim 11 , wherein execution plan includes a security plan, and the set of cloud compute nodes is to manage the set of workers to perform the set of functions according to the security plan.

13. The cloud computing service of claim 9 , wherein the set of cloud compute nodes is to collect telemetry and statistics data produced by the set of workers based on execution of the set of functions.

14. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media (NTCRM) comprising instructions for providing edge computing orchestration, wherein execution of the instructions by one or more processors is to cause a compute node to:
translate the workload into a set of functions,
identify a set of worker nodes capable of performing the set of functions,
receive a set of bids to satisfy the workload, each bid of the set of bids including a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) and a service price to satisfy the workload;
select, according to terms of a smart contract, an individual bid from the set of bids based on the set of KPIs and the service price included in each bid;
create a service level agreement (SLA) based on capabilities of the identified set of workers to execute respective functions of the set of functions to provide a quality of service for distributed servicing of the workload and the set of KPIs and the service price in the selected bid, and
cause scheduling of the distributed servicing of the set of functions by the identified set of worker nodes in accordance with the SLA.

15. The one or more NTCRM of claim 14 , wherein each worker node of the set of worker nodes has their capabilities registered on a blockchain, and execution of the instructions is to cause the compute node to:
identify the set of worker nodes based on the capabilities registered on the blockchain.

16. The one or more NTCRM of claim 14 , wherein execution of the instructions causes the compute node to:
send the SLA to the user agent;
receive, from the user agent, an acceptance of the SLA; and
trigger the scheduling in response to the acceptance of the SLA.

17. The one or more NTCRM of claim 14 , wherein execution of the instructions is to cause the compute node to:
collect telemetry and statistics data produced by the set of worker nodes for executing the set of functions; and
validate that the SLA has been fulfilled based on the collected telemetry and statistics data.

18. The one or more NTCRM of claim 17 , wherein the telemetry and statistics data contains an amount of time and an amount resources utilized to accomplish individual tasks of respective functions of the set of functions, and execution of the instructions is to cause the compute node to:
record the collected telemetry and statistics data as respective records in a blockchain.

19. The one or more NTCRM of claim 14 , wherein the set of worker nodes include one or more of a set of edge compute nodes and a set of network access nodes.

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Smith Ned M
• Bakshi Sanjay
• Adrangi Farid
• Guim Bernat Francesc

Classifications

• H04L41/5006 Primary

  Creating or negotiating SLA contracts, guarantees or penalties · CPC title

• G06Q30/08 Primary

  Auctions · CPC title

• H04L41/5009

  Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF] · CPC title

• H04L67/10

  in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network (software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46) · CPC title

• H04L67/566

  Grouping or aggregating service requests, e.g. for unified processing · CPC title