Network architecture for broadband data communication over a shared medium
First Claim
1. A communication network, comprising:
- a headend; and
a plurality of network terminals in communication with the headend over a shared communication medium,wherein the headend transmits successive DVB compatible downstream data frames over the shared communication medium at a downstream frame transmission rate, each downstream data frame including one or more upstream transmission permits, each upstream transmission permit within said downstream data frame identifying an upstream RF carrier channel, each upstream transmission permit being one of a selected plurality of permit types, andwherein each of said network terminals receives said downstream data frames and reads the permits contained therein, one or more of said network terminals transmitting an upstream response to the received permit over the identified RF carrier channel, the network terminals collectively transmitting upstream data frames over the RF carrier channel at an upstream frame rate synchronized with said downstream frame rate.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Network architectures and data communication protocols for supporting both downstream and upstream transport of digital data between a headend facility and multiple downstream network terminals over a shared communication medium include downstream framing protocols compatible with DAVIC/DVB modem transmission framing synchronization and FEC standards at the physical layer. The downstream data frames are formed by two or more repeating pairs of DVB compatible frame slots, wherein each downstream frame is transmitted over the same interval, e.g., 250 μsec in preferred formats, regardless of the number of DVB slot pairs it contains. All downstream frame rates are supported by a single upstream data rate. Upstream bandwidth is allocated based on a selected set of operating criteria and service type priorities, based on both a polling basis and a contention basis, on one or more in-band RF carrier channels. Low delay services such as synchronous telephony are provided with requisite delivery and priority.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A communication network, comprising:
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a headend; and a plurality of network terminals in communication with the headend over a shared communication medium, wherein the headend transmits successive DVB compatible downstream data frames over the shared communication medium at a downstream frame transmission rate, each downstream data frame including one or more upstream transmission permits, each upstream transmission permit within said downstream data frame identifying an upstream RF carrier channel, each upstream transmission permit being one of a selected plurality of permit types, and wherein each of said network terminals receives said downstream data frames and reads the permits contained therein, one or more of said network terminals transmitting an upstream response to the received permit over the identified RF carrier channel, the network terminals collectively transmitting upstream data frames over the RF carrier channel at an upstream frame rate synchronized with said downstream frame rate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A communication network, comprising:
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a headend; and a plurality of network terminals in communication with the headend over a shared communication medium, wherein the headend transmits successive DVB compatible downstream data frames over the shared communication medium, each downstream data frame including one or more upstream transmission permits, each upstream transmission permit within said downstream data frame being associated with an individual upstream RF carrier channel, wherein each upstream transmission permit is one of a selected plurality of permit types, and wherein each of said network terminals receives said downstream data frames and reads the permits contained therein, and wherein one or more of said network terminals transmits an upstream response to the received permit, and wherein the permit types transmitted in each downstream data frame are selected based on a permit allocation criteria, the permit types including a first permit type for authorizing upstream transmission of relatively high CDV traffic, and a second permit type for authorizing upstream transmission of relatively low CDV traffic. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17)
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18. A communication network, comprising:
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a headend; and a plurality of network terminals in communication with the headend over a shared communication medium, wherein the headend transmits successive DVB compatible downstream data frames over the shared communication medium, each downstream data frame including an upstream transmission permit associated with an upstream RF carrier channel, wherein the permit transmitted in each respective downstream data frame is selected based on a permit allocation criteria, and include a first permit type for authorizing upstream transmission of relatively high CDV traffic, and a second permit type for authorizing upstream transmission of relatively low CDV traffic, wherein permits of the second type include both reservation mode permits and contention mode permits, respectively and wherein the permit type transmitted in each respective downstream data frame is selected based on a permit allocation process, the permit allocation process including a first criteria for issuing permits of the first type on a scheduled mode basis, and a second criteria for issuing permits of the second type on a round robin basis. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification