Method for explicit data rate control in a packet communication environment without data rate supervision
First Claim
1. A method for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein communication includes the steps of:
- causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end;
waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets;
causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, the method comprising the steps of;
establishing a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station;
invoking said limit upon transmission of said acknowledgment packet from said second digital packet transmission station to said first digital packet transmission station;
thereafterinserting a latency based on said limit at any point traversed by said acknowledgment packet between said second transmission station and said first transmission station.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for explicit data rate control is introduced into a packet communication environment (10) which does not have data rate supervision by adding latency to the acknowledgment (ACK) packet and by adjusting the size of the flow control window associated with the packet in order to directly control the data rate of the source data at the station (12 or 14) originating the packet.
227 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein communication includes the steps of:
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causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, the method comprising the steps of; establishing a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; invoking said limit upon transmission of said acknowledgment packet from said second digital packet transmission station to said first digital packet transmission station;
thereafterinserting a latency based on said limit at any point traversed by said acknowledgment packet between said second transmission station and said first transmission station. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein communication includes the steps of:
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causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet through a transmission window having a preselected capacity to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, wherein said acknowledgment packet specifies a sequence value of data which is being acknowledged, said sequence value of data being useful to establish a trailing edge boundary on a window of data transmission, the improvement comprising; selecting substitute sequence values to establish a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; and inserting a plurality of substitute acknowledgment packets, each having one of said substitute sequence values, in place of said acknowledgment packet, said substitute acknowledgement packets specifying an amount of data acknowledged to indirectly control size of said window of data transmission. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein communication includes the steps of:
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causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet through a transmission window having a preselected capacity to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, wherein said acknowledgment packet includes a window size indicator that specifies an allowable range of transmission of data beyond a range of data acknowledged as a window size to be advertised from said second data transmission station to said first data transmission station, said indicator being useful to establish a leading edge boundary on said window of data transmission, the improvement comprising; selecting a substitute indicator for said window size indicator to establish a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; and inserting said substitute indicator into said acknowledgment packet. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An apparatus for controlling data rate of said data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein said communication environment includes:
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means for causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; means for waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; means for causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, the improvement comprising; means for establishing a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; means for providing said limit upon transmission of said acknowledgment packet from said second digital packet transmission station to said first digital packet transmission station; and means for invoking, said limit at any point traversed by said acknowledgment packet between said second transmission station and said first transmission station.
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18. An apparatus for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein said communication environment includes:
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means for causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet through a transmission window having a preselected capacity to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; means for waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; means for causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, wherein said acknowledgment packet specifies a sequence value of data which it is being acknowledged, said sequence value of data being useful to establish a trailing edge boundary on a window of data transmission, the improvement comprising; means for selecting substitute sequence values to establish a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; and means for inserting a plurality of substitute acknowledgment packets, each having one of said substitute sequence values, in place of said acknowledgment packet, said substitute acknowledgment packets specifying an amount of data acknowledged to indirectly control size of said window of data transmission.
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19. An apparatus for controlling data rate of data packets in a digital data packet communication environment employing TCP/IP protocols and having a plurality of digital packet transmission stations interconnectable in paths, wherein said data packet communication environment lacks explicit end-to-end data rate supervision, wherein communication environment includes:
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means for causing a first digital packet transmission station at a first end to send at least a first source packet through a transmission window having a preselected capacity to a second digital packet transmission station at a second end; means for waiting at said first digital packet transmission station for at least one acknowledgment packet before sending additional source packets; means for causing said second digital packet transmission station to send an acknowledgment packet toward said first digital packet transmission station after receipt of said at least one first source packet, wherein said acknowledgment packet includes a window size indicator that specifics an allowable range of transmission of data beyond a range of data acknowledged as a window size to be advertised from said second data transmission station to said first data transmission station, said indicator being useful to establish a leading edge boundary on said window of data transmission, the improvement comprising; means for selecting a substitute indicator for said window size indicator to establish a limit on explicit rate of emission of packets from said first transmission station to said second transmission station; and means for inserting said substitute indicator into said acknowledgment packet.
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Specification