Patents Assigned to Level 3 Communications, LLC
  • Patent number: 11665286
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure involve systems and methods for a collaboration conferencing system to track a total number of concurrently utilized ports across any number of conferencing bridges of the network for a particular customer and one or more billing actions may occur based on this tracking. This may result in an alternate billing option for the customer's use of the system. Further, a telecommunications network administrator may provide access to the collaboration conferencing system based on a total number of concurrently utilized ports rather than on a per conference or per minute basis. With the information of the number of purchased ports by the customer, the administrator may more accurately predict an available capacity for the collaboration conferencing system needed to support all of the users of the system and the potential collaboration conferences.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Andrew J. Broadworth, Robert F. Nance, Gregory T. Ellison
  • Patent number: 11665259
    Abstract: Provided is a content delivery method and architecture for ways to improve the caching of content at one or more content providing devices of a Content Delivery Network (CDN). In particular, systems and methods are disclosed that vary the requirements to store resources or content within a caching device using a dynamic popularity threshold. This popularity threshold may be varied based on a measured fullness of the storage capacity of the cache device. In another example, the dynamic popularity threshold may be further varied based on a cache pressure, which is an indication of how often the cache replaces stored items with new items. The adjustment to the popularity threshold for caching particular content at the caching device may thus be based on a number of requests for content received at the device to tune the caching procedure for a particular region of the CDN.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: William R. Power, Pawel Jakobowski
  • Patent number: 11659081
    Abstract: Automatic testing/analysis of local loops of telecommunications networks includes obtaining bits-per-tone data for a local loop of a telecommunications network and generating a bit value string from the bits-per-tone data. The bit value string is then analyzed to determine whether it includes a bit pattern indicative of an impairment of the local loop. Further approaches for automatically testing local loops of telecommunications networks include obtaining attenuation data for multiple tones carried by the local loop and determining whether the attenuation data falls below thresholds for providing a service using the local loop.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Thomas C. Woldahl, Erik V. Helfrich, Michael J. Durkin, Larry J. North, Abid Khan
  • Patent number: 11658935
    Abstract: Implementations described and claimed herein provide systems and methods for serving content over a network. In one implementation, a method of serving content is provided. The method includes maintaining a first address record associated with serving a resource and a second address record associated with serving the same resource. The first address record is further associated with a first protocol for a first device capable of serving the resource. Similarly, the second address record is associated with a second protocol, different from the first protocol, for a second device, distinct from the first device, capable of serving the resource. The method further includes providing, in response to at least one resolution request for the resource, the first address record and the second address record.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Joelle T. Maslak
  • Patent number: 11658887
    Abstract: A route viewing system includes a computing system that receives information associated with one or more routes through a network, and identifies the routes that are associated with at least one illicit user computer used by an illicit user. The computing system then obtains a source location of a source address of the routes and a destination location of a destination address of the routes, and displays the routes on a geographical display at the source location of the source address and the destination location of the destination address of each of the routes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Michael Benjamin, Skyler J. Bingham, John S. Reynolds
  • Patent number: 11650994
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a method monitors a plurality of data streams passing through a router in the connectivity service provider environment, and for each of the data streams, periodically samples packets at the router. The method further generates a stream signature based at least on the payload of the sampled packets. The method further includes, for each generated stream signature, attaching information to the stream signature. Such information may, for example, include time-stamp information for the stream signature, or an identification of the router. The method may further comprise storing the stream signatures corresponding to the data streams in a database. The stored stream signatures may be compared to determine matching stream signatures. Matching signatures may identify data streams that carry identical or similar content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Sergey Yermakov, Travis Ewert
  • Patent number: 11646936
    Abstract: Examples of the present disclosure describe systems and methods relating to adaptive virtual services. In an example, a user specifies a device configuration for a platform device. As a result, a service provider installs selected virtual-network functions and defines network connections as specified by the device configuration. Management software may also be installed, thereby enabling the service provider to communicate with and remotely manage the platform device. The installed virtual-network functions are activated on the platform device once it is delivered to the user. In some instances, the user changes the device configuration. For example, the user may install new virtual-network functions, reconfigure or remove existing virtual-network functions, or change defined network connections. As a result, the service provider reconfigures the platform device accordingly. Thus, the user need not purchase new specialized hardware in order to change the available functions of the computer network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Adam Saenger, Matthew Holway, Len Brannen, Gene Clark, Anil Simlot, Zubin Ingah, Johan J. Shane, Michael Gibson, Cory Sawyer, Rich Cerami, Kurt Deshazer
  • Patent number: 11647355
    Abstract: Implementations described and claimed herein provide systems and methods for correlating one or more service areas of a network with one or more geolocation coordinates to determine available services for customers to the network. A service polygon may be generated that define an area in which a particular service offered by a communications network is available. The boundaries of the service polygons may be adjusted based on information corresponding to physical features of the initial area. The service polygons may aid a communications network in providing a list of available services to potential customers or devices connected to the network by determining one or more geolocation coordinate values of a potential connection site and comparing the values to the service polygons. A network management system may determine the available services, current or in the future, to offer such services to a customer to the network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Shawn Draper, Vamsi Kaza, Jerry Matthews, William Gray
  • Publication number: 20230140789
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes providing robust network connectivity by creating a virtual overlay network over a plurality of communication network channels, such that if there is a failover on a first network, a failover overlay tunnel may be used to prevent an interruption in service when the first network drops. An SD-WAN remote may be deployed at an edge location of a network and an SD-WAN base may be installed at a client premises. A first overlay tunnel using a first communication transport may be utilized as a default route and a second overlay tunnel using a second communication transport may be used as a failover route.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 1, 2022
    Publication date: May 4, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Kevin WENZEL
  • Publication number: 20230128125
    Abstract: Improved methods for retrieval of content from CDNs is provided that includes a rendezvous controller that receives information of an identification of content being requested and an estimated location of a content requesting device. Based on this information, the rendezvous system identifies a server within a CDN from which the requested content may be retrieved. The selected server may be based on a repeatable hash function such that the likelihood that the content being requested is cached at the selected server. Steering requests to a server of the CDN which may have the content cached may reduce the number of servers within the CDN with the same cached content, particularly for the highest requested content. The rendezvous system may then return a corresponding domain name associated with the selected server and that can be subsequently submitted to a DNS for resolution to the IP address of the identified server.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2022
    Publication date: April 27, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Kevin C. Johns
  • Publication number: 20230127578
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a computer implemented method receives flow data for one or more flows that correspond to a device-circuit pair. The method calculates a time difference for each flow that corresponds to a device-circuit pair. Based on the calculated time differences and the received flow data, the method updates a probability distribution model associated with the device-circuit pair. Then, the method determines whether a time bucket is complete or open based on the updated probability distribution model.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 23, 2022
    Publication date: April 27, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Sergey Yermakov
  • Publication number: 20230126184
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure involve systems and methods computing devices to access a public network posing as a user to the network to detect one or more malware programs available for downloading through the network. More particularly, a malware detection control system utilizes a browser executed on a computing device to access a public network, such as the Internet. Through the browser, sites or nodes of the public network are accessed by the control system with the interactions with the sites of the public network designed to mimic or approximate a human user of the browser. More particularly, the control system may apply the one or more personality profiles to the browser of the computing device to access and interact with the nodes of the public network. Further, the control system may monitor the information retrieved from the network sites to detect the presence of malware within the nodes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 23, 2022
    Publication date: April 27, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Skyler J. Bingham
  • Patent number: 11637893
    Abstract: Examples described herein relate to apparatuses and methods for managing communications within a supercluster or across superclusters, including a first supercluster having a plurality of first machines and a publish-subscribe (Pub-Sub) channel to which each of the plurality of first machines is subscribed. A second supercluster has a plurality of second machines and a bridge between the first supercluster and the second supercluster. A first machine is configured to receive, via the bridge, an availability status and resource allocation information of each second machine and publish, on the Pub-Sub channel of the first supercluster, the availability status and the resource allocation information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventor: Christopher Newton
  • Patent number: 11637751
    Abstract: A method for identifying VLANs associated with a network includes gathering actual network element configuration data from a plurality of network elements in the network, wherein the actual network element configuration data identifies one or more VLANs that at least some of the plurality of network elements are actually allocated to; correlating the actual network element configuration data with administrative VLAN data; and determining one or more VLANs that are not commonly identified in both the actual network element configuration data and the administrative VLAN data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: James Ryan, Marcus Hadavi, Michael Renner, Peter Faber, Raoul Alcala, John Kane, Hans Zeschin
  • Patent number: 11637790
    Abstract: Novel tools and techniques are provided for implementing intent-based orchestration using network parsimony trees. In various embodiments, in response to receiving a request for network services that comprises desired characteristics and performance parameters for the requested network services without information regarding specific hardware, hardware type, location, or network, a computing system might generate a request-based parsimony tree based on the desired characteristics and performance parameters. The computing system might access, from a datastore, a plurality of network-based parsimony trees that are each generated based on measured network metrics, might compare the request-based parsimony tree with each of one or more network-based parsimony trees to determine a fitness score for each network-based parsimony tree, and might identify a best-fit network-based parsimony tree based on the fitness scores.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Kevin M. McBride, Brett E. Dwyer, James E. Sutherland, Jamie Lin, Brent Smith, Glenn B. Balanoff, Frank Moss, Bryan Dreyer
  • Patent number: 11637757
    Abstract: An optical network including a plurality of gateway nodes interconnected with a plurality of intermediate nodes with segments of fiber. The network includes a plurality of devices, such as reconfigurable optical add drop multiplexers, optimally placed at various nodes throughout the network. The device placement is optimized with an integer linear programming analysis considering span definition such that any given span involves some number of segments not exceeding a number of segments that would require wavelength regeneration, cost of placement of a device at a given node, cost of wavelength regeneration, and various parameters and constraints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Benjamin K. Peterson, Laurel Clark
  • Publication number: 20230120695
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes providing an attestation level to a received communication. The attestation level may be used to communicate a level of security to a network or a called party that receives the communication. The attestation level associated with the communication may indicate to a destination network and/or recipient that the phone number associated with the communication is secure and/or the telephone number has not been spoofed. Determining the attestation level comprises comparing information associated with the communication with stored information and assigning a code based on the comparison. The code may be translated to a tag value that is used to direct the communication to a signing server for attesting the communication at the determined attestation level.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2022
    Publication date: April 20, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Richard D. MOORE, Daniel W. Peele, Matthew C. HESS
  • Patent number: 11632461
    Abstract: The present application describes providing an attestation level to a received communication. The attestation level may be used to communicate a level of security to a network or a called party that receives the communication. The attestation level associated with the communication may indicate to a destination network and/or recipient that the phone number associated with the communication is secure and/or the telephone number has not been spoofed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Richard D. Moore, Joseph Roy, Joseph Scivicque, Matthew C. Hess, George Wendell McFalls
  • Publication number: 20230113446
    Abstract: FlowSpec is a mechanism for distributing rules to routers in a network. Such rules may be used, for example, to drop traffic associated with a distributed denial of service attack. However, a malformed or incorrect FlowSpec announcement may, if distributed in the network, cause legitimate traffic to be dropped, degrading the service experienced by legitimate users. As such, systems and methods for avoiding the distribution of malformed FlowSpec announcements are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2022
    Publication date: April 13, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Michael FELDPUSCH, Christian JENSEN, Lisa HARENSKI, William HOXWORTH
  • Patent number: 11627043
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media which have instructions stored for execution on a processor, for automating the commissioning of a transport network element within a network. A system configured according to this disclosure can be an Automated Commissioning Tool which can initiate communications with a network element on the network. The Automated Commissioning Tool can then retrieve updated firmware corresponding to the network element and configure the network element to have the updated firmware. Finally, the Automated Commissioning Tool can determine, from a network plan, a first port on the network element which is to be connected via a cross-connect to a second port on the network element and establish the cross-connect on the network element. At this point the network element may be commissioned to operate as a transport network element within the network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2023
    Assignee: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: Bernie C. Lehman, Erik W. McLeod