Compressed Packet Header Error Correction for Bandwidth Efficiency

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing data transmission methods fail to differentiate between protecting packet headers and data, often leading to unnecessary redundancy and increased bandwidth costs, particularly in wireless channels where errors can disrupt decoding and require duplex links, which are not always available.

Innovation Solution

The method involves applying error correcting codes specifically to the compressed packet headers, allowing partially corrupted data payloads to be received while ensuring the header's integrity, reducing the scope of checksums to only the header and modifying the link header to include ECR information, which can be integrated with conventional header compression mechanisms.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If error-correcting codes are applied to both header and data together, then header protection is improved, but bandwidth efficiency deteriorates due to unnecessary redundancy on data

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveheader protectionVSAvoidbandwidth efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the packet into header and data portions, applying error-correcting codes only to the header portion while leaving the data portion unprotected. This selective segmentation resolves the contradiction by protecting only the critical header elements without adding redundant protection to the data, thereby improving header reliability while maintaining bandwidth efficiency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies different quality levels of protection to different parts of the packet: strong error-correcting protection is applied locally to the header where it is critical, while no protection is applied to the data portion. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by concentrating protection resources where they are most needed rather than applying uniform protection across the entire packet.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Reliability

If retransmission techniques are used, then data reliability is improved, but system complexity increases due to requiring duplex links

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata reliabilityVSAvoidlink requirement
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies error-correcting codes to the header in advance before transmission, preparing the header for potential errors proactively. This preliminary protection action resolves the contradiction by preventing header corruption upfront, eliminating the need for complex retransmission protocols and duplex links that would otherwise be required to ensure reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Reliability

If extensive error-correcting coding is applied at the physical layer, then transmission reliability is improved, but bandwidth consumption increases due to high redundancy

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetransmission reliabilityVSAvoidbandwidth consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the error-protection function from the physical layer and applies it selectively only to the header at a higher protocol layer. This extraction resolves the contradiction by removing unnecessary redundancy from the data portion while maintaining essential protection for the header, thereby reducing overall bandwidth consumption while preserving transmission reliability for critical elements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentEP2218203B1Method and device for the reliable transmission of compressed network headers
Publication Date: 2021.02.24 THALES SA
  • EP2218203B1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP2218203B1 patent drawingFigure 4~5

AI summary

The invention relates to a method for data transmission in a transmission system, in which the data is transmitted in the form of packets including at least one compressed header field and a data field, and in a format adapted to the transmission system, characterised in that it comprises at least the following steps: recovering the data packet to be transmitted that comprises a compressed header and useful data, and identifying the header portion and the useful-data portion; applying a correction encoding selected at the header and providing the new resulting packet to the linking layer while also indicating the protection mode used; generating the linking header according to the transmission format of the transmission system in question while integrating the protection mode used, and adapting the CRC control sum of the linking layer; and upon reception, applying the error correction decoding in two steps.