Scalable virtual channel

• US 20020131426A1
• Filed: 01/16/2001
• Published: 09/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Shalvi, Ofir, Amit, Mati, Yagil, Ariel
• Granted Patent: US 7,274,679 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2801 Broadband local area networks

Abstract

The present invention comprises aggregating a plurality of physical channels to a single logical channel, a scalable virtual channel (SVC). This may be implemented in a point to multipoint communications system. The present invention enables a variety of receivers, some receivers being able to receive only one physical channel, and other receivers being able to receive a plurality of physical channels as a SVC, with at least one same channel being used for both types of receivers.

Claims

1. A data receiving device, comprising:

a scalable virtual channel (SVC) media access control (MAC) function;

a first PHY receiver coupled to the SVC MAC function; and

at least a second PHY receiver coupled to the MAC function, wherein the MAC function is adapted to converge the receipt of data transmission for the first and second receivers.

2. The data receiving device according to claim 1 wherein the data receiving device comprises a point-to-multipoint receiver, a cable modem, a satellite receiver, a wireless receiver or a fiberoptic receiver.

3. The data receiving device according to claim 1 wherein the first and second receiver are adapted to receive data from a point-to-multipoint transmitting system, a cable modem termination system (CMTS), a satellite transmitter, a wireless receiver, or a fiberoptic transmitter.

4. The data receiving device according to claim 3 wherein the first receiver is assigned a first physical channel, the second receiver is assigned a second physical channel, wherein the first and second physical channels operate as a single virtual channel for receiving data.

5. The data receiving device according to claim 4 wherein data from the CMTS is routed to one of the physical channels based on channel load.

6. The data receiving device according to claim 5 wherein the information received by the data receiving device is a data stream comprising a plurality of data packets, wherein some data packets are placed in queue for the first channel and other data packets are placed in queue for the second channel.

7. The data receiving device according to claim 6 wherein the SVC MAC function includes a SVC reordering manager adapted to reorder data packets to the order received by the data receiving device.

8. The data receiving device according to claim 1 further comprising:

at least a third receiver coupled to the SVC MAC function, wherein the SVC MAC function is adapted to converge the receipt of data transmission for at least the first, second and third receivers.

9. The data receiving device according to claim 1 wherein the data receiving device is adapted to operate at 512 QAM, 1024 QAM or higher.

10. The data receiving device according to claim 1 further comprising a circuit for reducing phase noise.

11. A data transmission device, comprising:

a plurality of transmitters;

a SVC media access control (MAC) function coupled to the transmitters,

wherein the transmission device is adapted to send data to a cable modem over at least two physical channels adapted to be a single virtual channel.

12. The data transmission device according to claim 11 wherein the SVC MAC function comprises a SVC flow manager adapted to select at least one destination physical channel for each data packet.

13. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send unicast data packets ordered according to transmission time start.

14. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to forward data packets to a carrier having the shortest queue.

15. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to enumerate data packets sent to the cable modem.

16. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to schedule data packets based on a threshold.

17. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send data packets in a broadcast scheduling scheme.

18. The data transmission device according to claim 12 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send data packets in a multicast scheduling scheme.

19. The data transmission device according to claim 11 further comprising a wide-band loop circuit for reducing phase noise coupled to at least one transmitter.

20. The data transmission device according to claim 11 wherein the data transmission device is adapted to operate at 1024 QAM.

21. The data transmission device according to claim 11 wherein the device comprises a point-to-multipoint transmitter, a cable modem termination station (CMTS), a satellite transmitter, a wireless transmitter, or a fiberoptic transmitter.

22. A communication network, comprising:

a data transmission device including a plurality of transmitters, a transmitting scalable virtual channel (SVC) media access control (MAC) function coupled to the transmitters; and

a data receiving device including a receiving SVC MAC function, and a plurality of receivers coupled to the receiving SVC MAC function, wherein the transmission device is adapted to send data to the data receiving device over a plurality of physical channels adapted to be a single virtual channel.

23. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the data transmission device transmitting SVC MAC function comprises a SVC flow manager adapted to select at least one destination physical channel for each data packet.

24. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send unicast data packets ordered according to transmission time start.

25. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to forward data packets to a carrier having the shortest queue.

26. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to enumerate data packets sent to the data receiving device.

27. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to schedule data packets based on a threshold.

28. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send data packets in a broadcast scheduling scheme.

29. The communication network according to claim 23 wherein the SVC flow manager is adapted to send data packets in a multicast scheduling scheme.

30. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the data transmitting device further comprises a wide-band loop circuit for reducing phase noise.

31. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the network is adapted to operate at 512 QAM, 1024 QAM or higher.

32. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the data transmission device comprises a point-to-multipoint transmitter, a cable modem termination station (CMTS), a satellite transmitter, a wireless transmitter, or a fiberoptic transmitter and the data receiving device comprises a point-to-multipoint receiver, a cable modem, a satellite receiver, a wireless receiver, or a fiberoptic receiver.

33. The communication network according to claim 32 wherein the data receiving device first receiver is assigned a first physical channel, the data receiving device second receiver is assigned a second physical channel, wherein the first and second logical channels operate as a single virtual channel for the data received.

34. The communication network according to claim 33 wherein data from the CMTS is routed to one of the physical channels based on channel load.

35. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the data receiving device receiving SVC MAC function includes a SVC reordering manager adapted to reorder data packets and to delete duplicated packets.

36. The communication network according to claim 22 further comprising:

at least a third receiver coupled to the data receiving device SVC MAC function,

wherein the data receiving device SVC MAC function converges data transmission for at least the first, second and third receivers.

37. The communication network according to claim 22 wherein the data receiving device further comprises a circuit for reducing phase noise.

38. The communication network according to claim 22, further comprising:

a non-SVC data receiving device adapted to receive data over only one physical channel, wherein data is sent to the SVC data receiving device and the non-SVC data receiving device over the same physical channel.

40. The method according to claim 39 further comprising:

routing the data to the first and second carriers based on channel load.

41. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises:

sending unicast data packets ordered according to the transmission time start.

42. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises forwarding data packets to a carrier having the shortest queue.

43. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises:

enumerating data packets sent to the receiving device.

44. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises:

scheduling data packets based on a threshold.

45. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises:

sending data packets in a broadcast scheduling scheme.

46. The method according to claim 39 wherein sending data comprises:

sending data packets in a multicast scheduling scheme.

48. The method according to claim 47 wherein the data comprises data packets, further comprising:

reordering the data packets to the order received by a transmitter device.

49. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises:

receiving unicast data packets ordered according to transmission time start.

50. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises receiving data packets sent to a carrier having the shortest queue.

51. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises receiving enumerating data packets.

52. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises receiving data packets scheduled based on a threshold.

53. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises receiving data packets in a broadcast scheduling scheme.

54. The method according to claim 47 wherein receiving data comprises receiving data packets in a multicast scheduling scheme.

39. A method of transmitting data, comprising:

receiving a data stream comprising packets to send to a receiving device;

sending a first portion of the data stream packets to the receiving device over a first carrier; and

sending a second portion of the data stream packets to the receiving device over a second carrier, wherein the first carrier and the second carrier operate as a single virtual channel for the data stream.

47. A method of receiving data, comprising:

receiving data from a plurality of carriers; and

merging the data from the carriers, wherein the plurality of carriers operate as a single virtual channel for the data.