WO2011020380A1

WO2011020380A1 - Streaming media server system and related implementation method, device, and iptv system

Info

Publication number: WO2011020380A1
Application number: PCT/CN2010/074548
Authority: WO
Inventors: 肖蓉; 范建明; 程宁
Original assignee: 中兴通讯股份有限公司
Priority date: 2009-08-16
Filing date: 2010-06-25
Publication date: 2011-02-24
Also published as: CN101651823A; CN101651823B

Abstract

The present invention provides a streaming media server system and a related implementation method, device, and an IPTV system. The streaming media server system includes at least one Universal Service Server (USS). The USS connects with at least one Point of Present (POP) server, and the USS is used for assigning, after receiving the multimedia service requests sent by a user terminal, the POP server providing multimedia service for said user terminal. The POP server is used for providing multimedia service for the user terminal. The IPTV service system of the present invention only needs to interact with the USS, thereby reducing the load of the IPTV service system. And the USS is able to dynamically configure its capability to provide the service by increasing or decreasing the number of the POP servers connected with the USS according to the number of the user terminals.

Description

Streaming media server system and related implementation method, device and IPTV system

The present invention relates to the field of multimedia communications, and in particular, to a streaming media server system, a content publishing implementation method, a content on-demand implementation method, a universal multi-service server (USS, Universal Service Server), and an IPTV system in a network television (IPTV) system. Background technique

Currently, IPTV solutions typically consist of an IPTV service system, a streaming server system, and a terminal system. IPTV service system for media distribution, media location and streaming server system management. Streaming media server system, used for media storage, forwarding, codec, and service to users. Streaming media server systems generally have network distribution, cluster distribution, etc., but in any distribution form, a single node is a single The server or server group of the station. Each node is directly managed by the IPTV service system. Which streaming server node provides the service required by the terminal is also located by the service system, and the processing capability of a single node is limited by hardware and software, and does not support dynamic capacity expansion.

As the number of users and user areas expands, a single node may not be able to meet the needs of a large number of users. In the current network system, only the number of nodes in the network can be increased to meet user requirements. This not only imposes a burden on the management of the business system, but also because the services provided by each node in the same area are the same, it is wasteful and error-prone to control multiple nodes to provide the same service by the business system. A streaming media server group capable of dynamically expanding its service capabilities can effectively solve the above problems. Summary of the invention

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a new streaming medium for the increasing user demand. Volume server system and related methods.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a streaming media server system is provided, the system comprising at least one universal multi-service server (USS), and the USS is connected to at least one POP (Point of Present) server; The USS is configured to: after receiving the multimedia service request sent by the user terminal, specify a POP server that provides a multimedia service for the user terminal;

The POP server is configured to provide a multimedia service for the user terminal.

Preferably, the USS is further configured to add or delete the number of POP servers connected to the USS according to the number of user terminals providing the multimedia service.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a USS is further provided, where the USS is connected to at least one POP server; the USS includes: a content management unit, a media storage and forwarding unit, a selection unit, and a receiving and forwarding unit;

The content management unit is configured to: after receiving the media content publishing message sent by the IPTV service system, send the media content publishing message to the media storage and forwarding unit and/or the POP server connected to the media storage and forwarding unit according to the configuration policy of the USS. Upper

a media storage and forwarding unit, configured to save media content published by the IPTV service system; and a selecting unit, configured to: after receiving the multimedia service request sent by the user terminal, specify a POP server that provides a multimedia service for the user terminal;

The receiving and forwarding unit is configured to connect with the IPTV service system, the user terminal, and the POP server for message interaction.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an IPTV system is provided for media distribution, media location, and management of a streaming media server system. The streaming media server system is used for media storage, forwarding, codec, and user Provide services;

The streaming media server system includes at least one USS and at least one POP server connected to the USS; Preferably, the IPTV service system establishes a WINTCP link with the USS, and is configured to deliver media distribution and media location signaling according to the established link;

The USS is configured to manage a POP server connected to the USS, so that the POP server provides multimedia services for the user terminal.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a content distribution implementation method is further provided, which is applied to a streaming media server system, where the system includes a USS and at least one POP server connected to the USS; the method includes:

After receiving the media content publishing message sent by the network television (IPTV) service system, the content management unit of the USS sends the media content publishing message to the media storage and forwarding unit and/or the POP connected to the media storage and forwarding unit according to the configuration policy of the USS. On the server, the media content publishing message includes a media content source address, and the media content is pulled down according to the media content source address and stored, and the publishing result is returned to the content management unit of the USS.

Preferably, the configuration policy of the USS itself includes: publishing to the media storage and forwarding unit, publishing to the media storage and forwarding unit, the POP server hanging under the media storage and forwarding unit, and at least one of the POP servers posted to the media storage and forwarding unit. Strategy.

Preferably, when the USS adds a POP server connected to the USS, the method further includes: the added POP server queries the IPTV service system for the published media content through the USS, and sends the reverse pulldown of the media content to the IPTV service system. The message informs the IPTV service system to push down the media content to the added POP server.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a content on-demand implementation method is further applied to a streaming media server system, the system comprising a USS and at least one POP service connected to the USS.

The method includes: After receiving the on-demand request of the user terminal, the USS specifies a POP server that provides an on-demand service for the user terminal, and forwards the on-demand request to the POP server;

After receiving the on-demand request sent by the USS, the POP server sends the media stream to the user terminal. Preferably, the POP server that provides the on-demand service for the user terminal includes: The USS determines a POP server that provides an on-demand service for the user terminal according to the IP segment of the user terminal.

The organization structure of the streaming media server system of the present invention uses the USS to hang the POP server. The POP server is transparent to the IPTV service system, and the IPTV service system only needs to interact with the USS, thereby reducing the burden of the IPTV service system; The suspended POP server can dynamically configure its ability to provide services by adding or deleting the number of POP servers it hangs according to the number of users. DRAWINGS

1 is a schematic structural diagram of a streaming media server system according to the present invention;

2 is a schematic flowchart of a specific implementation manner of a method for implementing content distribution according to the present invention;

3 is a schematic flowchart of a method for implementing on-demand content of the present invention;

4 is a flowchart of a specific embodiment of a method for implementing on-demand content of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another USS according to another embodiment of the present invention. detailed description

The English corresponding to the English/abbreviation used in the present invention is as follows:

RTSP: Real-Time Streaming Protocol, see RFC 2326;

STB: set top box;

DESCRIBE, SETUP, PLAY, PAUSE, TEARDOWN, OPTIONS, GETPAR AMETER: RTSP protocol signaling method.

The core idea of the present invention is: Configuring a plurality of subordinate service presentation service node (POP, Point of Present) servers on one USS, and treating the POP server as a resource unified tube of the USS. To enhance the processing power of a single USS, the POP server can be dynamically added and deleted to achieve the ability to dynamically configure node service capabilities. At the same time, the present invention discloses a method for content management and service delivery by a streaming media server node in this composition mode.

The invention will now be described in detail in conjunction with the drawings and embodiments.

System embodiment

The present invention provides a streaming media server system, as shown in FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a streaming media server system according to the present invention.

The streaming media server system includes at least one USS, N (N > 0) POP servers, and the POP server can be regarded as a hanging resource box of the USS. The USS has unified management of its own Media Storage Transmit Unit (MSTU, Media Storage Transmit Unit) resources and POP servers through content storage policies and resource selection policies.

The USS needs to establish a chain with the IPTV service system, and manages various services through the USS. Generally, a WINTCP link is established, which is mainly used to transmit signaling such as media distribution and media positioning; and POP server to IPTV. The business system is transparent. The control plane of the terminal system and the USS link are established, and the media plane needs to be transmitted through the POP server. Therefore, although the processing capacity of the streaming media server group is greatly increased, the complexity of service management and terminal control is not increased.

The media content in the streaming media server system is shared. After receiving the content publishing instruction of the IPTV service system, the USS sends the content group to its own MSTU and all POP servers, so that all the nodes in the group share the content. When the user terminal requests the service of the on-demand content from the USS in the streaming media server group, the USS selects the POP server serving the user according to the IP address of the user terminal, and the selected policy can be pre-configured by the database module on the USS. After receiving the message of the on-demand content service provided by the USS, the POP server sends the media stream to the user terminal to provide services for the user.

In the beginning, the streaming server system can only include USS, but when USS comes with MSTU The resource is full, that is, the service capacity of the server group reaches the upper limit. At this time, the USS is connected to the POP server in the streaming server system. After the configuration, the newly added users can be assigned to the newly added POP server. When the user in the streaming media server system area drops, the POP server resources can be blocked, and new users are not assigned to the server. When the POP server users all exit, the attached POP server can be removed. A user needs to occupy USS resources. The USS knows the number of users on its own node, and increases or deletes the number of connected POP servers according to the number of users. In this way, the number of POPs can be dynamically configured according to the number of regular users of the node. For example, if there are many users in a large city, there are a few more, and a small city is less.

The content of each server in the streaming media server system must be shared. When a POP server is added, the POP server queries the IPTV service system for the existing content through the USS, and can query the result to the IPTV. The service system sends a content reverse pull-down message, so that the IPTV service system pushes the content that has been published on other POP units to the node. At this time, except for the newly added POP server in this node, the content file already exists on other servers. According to the USS release control policy, the POP server that already has the content does not receive the content publishing instruction, and the content is only published to The new POP server is on.

According to the streaming media server system of the present invention, the service capability of the streaming media server group can be dynamically configured, and the users on the respective servers are smoothly processed, so that the user playback is not affected.

Method embodiment

According to another aspect of the present invention, a content distribution implementation method is provided, which is applied to a streaming media server system, the system includes a USS and a POP server connected thereto, and the USS includes a media storage and forwarding unit; A schematic flowchart of a specific embodiment of the content distribution implementation method of the present invention.

The content distribution method of the present invention is: After the USS receives the media content publishing message of the IPTV service system, the USS publishes the media content to its own media storage and forwarding unit and/or its attached POP server. The specific operation process of the foregoing method includes the following steps: the USS further includes a content management unit;

Step 201: After receiving the media content publishing message sent by the IPTV service system, the content management unit of the USS sends the media content publishing message to the media storage and forwarding unit and/or the POP server connected thereto according to the configuration policy of the USS. The media content release message includes the media content source address.

Step 202: The media storage and forwarding unit of the USS and/or its attached POP server pull down the media content according to the content source address and store it, and return the publishing result to the content management unit of the USS.

The configuration policy of the USS itself includes one of the following: publishing to the media storage and forwarding unit; publishing to the media storage and forwarding unit and the POP unit under it; publishing to the POP unit under it.

When the USS increases the POP server connected to the POP server, the content distribution method further includes: the added POP server queries the IPTV service system for the published media content through the USS, and sends a reverse pull-down message of the media content to the IPTV service system. The added POP server receives the media content pushed down by the IPTV service system and stores it.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a content on-demand implementation method is applied to a streaming media server system, where the system includes a USS and a POP server connected thereto; as shown in FIG. 3, the flow of the content on-demand implementation method of the present invention is shown in FIG. schematic diagram.

The method includes:

Step 301: After receiving the on-demand request of the user terminal, the USS specifies a POP server that provides an on-demand service for the user terminal, and forwards the on-demand request to the POP server.

The specific operation of the POP server that provides the on-demand service for the user terminal may include: The USS determines a POP server that provides services for the user terminal according to the IP segment of the user terminal. The selection strategy can be configured in advance, specifically, how many ip addresses are from the ip server to which POP server provides services. Step 302: After receiving the on-demand request sent by the USS, the POP server sends the media stream to the user terminal.

As shown in FIG. 4, a flowchart of a specific embodiment of the content on-demand implementation method is as follows: Step 401: The USS receives a DESCRIBE message and a SETUP message sent by the user terminal. Step 402: The USS specifies a POP server that provides an on-demand service for the user terminal according to the IP address of the user terminal, and returns a DESCRIBE response message SETUP response message to the user terminal.

The specific operation is:

After receiving the DESCRIBE signaling sent by the user terminal, the USS obtains the configured POP server information, which is specifically configured with several POP servers, and each POP server specifically corresponds to the IP segment; then the USS determines the attribution according to the IP address of the user terminal. The POP server, while the USS checks whether the content requested by the user is available, mainly checking whether the content exists and the status is normal. If the content requested by the user is available, the user terminal sends a DESCRIBE success response message; if not, the user cannot view the content. The content is gone.

The user terminal sends a SETUP message to the USS. After receiving the SETUP signaling sent by the STB, the USS establishes a session with the user terminal. If the session is successfully established, the SETUP success response is sent to the user terminal. If the session establishment is unsuccessful, the current on-demand fails.

Step 403: The USS receives the PLAY message sent by the user terminal and forwards the PLAY message to the POP server that provides the service for the user terminal.

Step 404: After receiving the PLAY message forwarded by the USS, the POP server sends the media stream to the user terminal.

As shown in FIG. 5, it is a schematic structural diagram of another USS according to another embodiment of the present invention.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is also provided a USS, the server comprising:

The content management unit 501 is configured to send the media content publishing message to the media storage and forwarding list according to the configuration policy of the USS after receiving the media content publishing message sent by the IPTV service system. Yuan and / or its POP server attached to it;

The media storage and forwarding unit 502 is configured to save media content published by the IPTV service system, and the selecting unit 503 is configured to: after receiving the multimedia service request sent by the user terminal, specify a POP server that provides the multimedia service for the user terminal;

The receiving and forwarding unit 504 is connected to the IPTV service system, the user terminal, and the POP server for message interaction.

By employing the system and method of the present invention, more users can be served than a single USS or POP server. The addition and deletion of the POP server does not affect the service to the user. At the same time, both the service system and the terminal system only interact with the USS signaling, and the whole system is flexible and simple.

It should be noted that the above embodiments are only intended to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to be limiting, and the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments. Or equivalents, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and the claims.

Claims

Claim

A streaming media server system, the system comprising a universal multi-service server (USS), wherein the USS is connected to at least one service presentation service node (POP) server; and the USS is configured to receive a user terminal. After the sent multimedia service request, the POP server that provides the multimedia service is specified for the user terminal;

The system according to claim 1, wherein the USS is further configured to add or delete the number of POP servers connected to the USS according to the number of user terminals providing multimedia services.

A USS, wherein the USS is connected to at least one POP server; the USS includes: a content management unit, a media storage and forwarding unit, a selection unit, and a receiving and forwarding unit;

The content management unit is configured to: after receiving the media content publishing message sent by the IPTV service system, send the media content publishing message to the media storage and forwarding unit and/or the POP server connected to the media storage and forwarding unit according to the configuration policy of the USS;

4. An IPTV system, configured for media distribution, media location, and management of a streaming media server system; the streaming media server system, configured to store, forward, encode, and decode, and provide services to users; The streaming server system includes at least one USS and at least one POP server connected to the USS.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the IPTV service system and The USS establishes a link for transmitting media distribution and media positioning signaling according to the established link. The USS is configured to manage a POP server connected to the USS, so that the POP server provides a multimedia service for the user terminal.

A content distribution implementation method, applied to a streaming media server system, wherein the system includes a USS and at least one POP server connected to the USS;

The method includes:

The method according to claim 6, wherein the configuration policy of the USS itself comprises: publishing to a media storage and forwarding unit, publishing to a media storage and forwarding unit, and a POP server hanging under the media storage and forwarding unit, and publishing to the POP server At least one of the policies of the POP server hanging under the media storage and forwarding unit.

The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein when the USS adds a POP server connected to the USS, the method further includes: the added POP server queries the IPTV service system for the published media content through the USS, And sending a reverse pull-down message of the media content to the IPTV service system, and notifying the IPTV service system to push the media content to the added POP server.

A content on-demand implementation method, applied to a streaming media server system, wherein the system includes a USS and at least one POP server connected to the USS;

After receiving the on-demand request sent by the USS, the POP server sends the media stream to the user terminal.

The method according to claim 9, wherein the POP server that provides the on-demand service for the user terminal comprises: the USS determines a POP server that provides an on-demand service for the user terminal according to the IP segment of the user terminal.