Communication apparatus, relay apparatus, communication system, communication method, and program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12341673-B2
Application number	US-202118270935-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 13, 2021
Priority date	Jan 13, 2021
Publication date	Jun 24, 2025
Grant date	Jun 24, 2025

Abstract

The communication apparatus includes: a processing device that processes communication data to be transmitted to and received from a partner apparatus; a transmission unit that transmits the communication data to the partner apparatus; an internal state measurement unit that measures a state related to transmission of the communication data between the processing device and the transmission unit and a determination unit that determines a communication mode in communication with the partner apparatus from the state. The transmission unit transmits the communication data to the partner apparatus in the determined communication mode.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A communication apparatus comprising:
a processing device that processes communication data to be transmitted to and received from a partner apparatus;
a network interface card (NIC); and
an internal bus connecting the processing device and the NIC, wherein the processing device is one or more selected from CPU (Central Processing Unit), FGPA (Field Programmable Gate Array), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and TPU (Tensor processing unit);
the NIC comprising:
a transmission unit, including one or more processors, configured to transmit the communication data from the communication apparatus to the partner apparatus;
an internal state measurement unit, including one or more processors, configured to measure a state of the internal bus, inside the communication apparatus, that connects the processing device to the NIC within the communication apparatus; and

a determination unit, including one or more processors, configured to determine a communication mode for communication with the partner apparatus based, at least in part, on the state of the internal bus;
wherein:
the transmission unit is configured to transmit the communication data to the partner apparatus using the determined communication mode;
the determination unit is configured to determine a part inside the communication apparatus that is a bottleneck limiting communication speed of the communication apparatus; and
the determination unit is configured to determine the communication mode for communication with the partner apparatus based on a communication speed corresponding to the bottleneck.

2. The communication apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the determination unit is further configured to determine the communication mode from a state related to transmission of the communication data in the partner apparatus.

3. The communication apparatuses according to claim 1 ,
wherein the transmission unit is configured to transmit data within a free capacity of an internal buffer of the partner apparatus.

4. A communication system comprising:
a plurality of communication apparatuses including a communication apparatus and a partner apparatus that communicate with each other over a network;
the communication apparatus comprising:
a processing device that processes communication data to be transmitted to and received from the partner apparatus;
a network interface card (NIC); and
an internal bus connecting the processing device and the NIC, wherein the processing device is one or more selected from CPU (Central Processing Unit), FGPA (Field Programmable Gate Array), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and TPU (Tensor processing unit);

the NIC comprising:
a transmission unit, including one or more processors, configured to transmit the communication data from the communication apparatus to the partner apparatus;
an internal state measurement unit, including one or more processors, configured to measure a state of the internal bus, inside the communication apparatus, that connects the processing device to the NIC within the communication apparatus; and
a determination unit, including one or more processors, configured to determine a communication mode for communication between the communication apparatus and the partner apparatus based, at least in part, on of state of the internal bus;
wherein:
the transmission unit is configured to transmit the communication data to the partner apparatus using the determined communication mode;
the determination unit is configured to determine a part inside the communication apparatus that is a bottleneck limiting communication speed of the communication apparatus; and
the determination unit is configured to determine the communication mode for communication with the partner apparatus based on a communication speed corresponding to the bottleneck.

5. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing one or more instructions causing a computer to function as the communication apparatus according to claim 1 .

6. The communication system according to claim 4 ,
wherein the determination unit is further configured to determine the communication mode from a state related to transmission of the communication data in the partner apparatus.

7. The communication system according to claim 4 ,
wherein the transmission unit is configured to transmit data within a free capacity of an internal buffer of the partner apparatus.

8. A communication method comprising:
measuring a state of an internal bus inside a communication apparatus, wherein the communication apparatus includes (a) a processing device that processes communication data to be transmitted and received from a partner apparatus, (b) a network interface card (NIC), and (c) an internal bus connecting the processing device and the NIC, wherein the processing device is one or more selected from CPU (Central Processing Unit), FGPA (Field Programmable Gate Array), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and TPU (Tensor processing unit);
determining a part inside the communication apparatus that is a bottleneck limiting communication speed of the communication apparatus;
determining a communication mode for communication between the communication apparatus and the partner apparatus based on the state of the internal bus and a communication speed corresponding to the bottleneck; and
transmitting the communication data to the partner apparatus using the determined communication mode.

9. The communication method according to claim 8 , further comprising:
determining the communication mode from a state related to transmission of the communication data in the partner apparatus.

10. The communication method according to claim 8 , further comprising:
transmitting data within a free capacity of an internal buffer of the partner apparatus.

11. The communication apparatuses according to claim 3 , wherein the transmission unit is configured to:
estimate the free capacity of the internal buffer of the partner apparatus from release notification history of credit signal received from the partner apparatus, and transmit data within the estimated free capacity.

12. The communication system according to claim 7 , wherein the transmission unit is configured to:
estimate the free capacity of the internal buffer of the partner apparatus from release notification history of credit signal received from the partner apparatus, and transmit data within the estimated free capacity.

13. The communication method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
estimating the free capacity of the internal buffer of the partner apparatus from release notification history of credit signal received from the partner apparatus, and transmitting data within the estimated free capacity.

Assignees

• Nippon Telegraph & Telephone

Inventors

• Mano Toru
• Nishizawa Hideki
• Tsukishima Yukio
• Hibi Tomoya
• Ichikawa Junki
• INOUE Kiwami

Classifications

• H04L69/24

  Negotiation of communication capabilities · CPC title

• H04L43/08 Primary

  Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters · CPC title

• H04B1/401 Primary

  for selecting or indicating operating mode · CPC title