Patent ID: 7633973

Claim:
A packet processing device for receiving a plurality of flows of packets arriving in random order and assembling the packets according to the flows, comprising: packet accumulator means for storing the received packets; packet analyzer means for analyzing the received packets and extracting analysis information about the flows to which the respective packets belong; frequency predictor means for measuring a reception interval of packets belonging to an identical one of the flows, calculating a reception frequency prediction value based on the measured reception interval, and storing the calculated frequency prediction value in frequency prediction storage means, the frequency predictor means being operative in response to input of the analysis information to read, from the frequency prediction storage means, the frequency prediction value of the flow corresponding to the input analysis information; flow processor means for generating flow information including the read frequency prediction value of the flow corresponding to the analysis information, selecting an assembling termination flow indicative of a flow of which packet assembling is to be terminated, based on the frequency prediction value of the generated flow information as well as those set in flow information stored in flow information storage means, and updating the flow information stored in the flow information storage means; and packet transfer means, responsive to selection of the assembling termination flow by the flow processor means, for outputting the packets stored in the packet accumulator means and associated with the selected assembling termination flow to a transfer destination, wherein level values indicative of frequency levels corresponding to respective different ranges of the reception interval are defined beforehand, and wherein when a packet is received, the frequency predictor means sets a level value indicative of highest reception frequency as the frequency prediction value and sets the level value successively to a lower level value with every passage of a predetermined frequency prediction update time.