Shared-medium contention algorithm exhibiting fairness
First Claim
1. A station comprising:
- a receiver for sensing a shared-communications medium;
a transmitter for transmitting a first portion of a flow into said shared-communications medium, wherein said first portion has a maximum length of T milliseconds; and
a processor for waiting for at least T*(N−
1) milliseconds before said station contends for access to said shared-communications medium to transmit a second portion of said flow, wherein N is a positive integer equal to the number of coordinated flows permitted concurrently on said shared-communications medium.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A technique is disclosed for maintaining fairness in scheduling order while communicating multiple streams on a shared-communications medium. Simulations have shown that the scheduling order of when stations transmit is of great importance. Typically, the scheduling order of multiple streams of message traffic on a shared-communications medium is unfair, at least in the short term. Streaming applications, however, demand fairness in short term scheduling. Otherwise, the intermediate delays would be unacceptably uneven. To address the delay problems associated with multiple streams on a shared-communications medium, each station transmits a portion of a coordinated flow. After transmitting the portion, the station self-imposes a restriction interval, during which time, the station cannot contend again for the purpose of transmitting the next portion of the coordinated flow.
44 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A station comprising:
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a receiver for sensing a shared-communications medium;
a transmitter for transmitting a first portion of a flow into said shared-communications medium, wherein said first portion has a maximum length of T milliseconds; and
a processor for waiting for at least T*(N−
1) milliseconds before said station contends for access to said shared-communications medium to transmit a second portion of said flow, wherein N is a positive integer equal to the number of coordinated flows permitted concurrently on said shared-communications medium. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A system comprising:
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a first station for;
contending for access to a shared-communications medium;
transmitting a first portion of a flow into said shared-communications medium, wherein said first portion has a maximum length of T milliseconds; and
waiting for at least T*(N−
1) milliseconds before again contending for access to said shared-communications medium to transmit a second portion of said flow, wherein N is a positive integer equal to the number of coordinated flows permitted concurrently on said shared-communications medium; and
a second station for receiving said first portion of said flow. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification