Coordinating MAC Access Grants to Reduce Latency and Buffering
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In communication networks with series-connected transport media, independent operation of Medium Access Controllers (MACs) leads to excessive jitter, latency, and packet loss, causing performance and quality of service issues, and increasing the cost and complexity of buffer requirements.
Innovation Solution
A method where a network entity receives traffic demand information from both MACs to coordinate medium access grants, minimizing buffering time and synchronizing access between the first and second transport media, potentially involving a Media Access Orchestrator (MAO) in a Software Defined Networking (SDN) control plane.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If independent operation of Medium Access Controllers (MACs) is used in series-connected transport media, then each MAC can operate autonomously and control its own medium access, but excessive jitter, latency, and packet loss occur, causing performance degradation and increased buffer requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the operation of multiple independent MACs into a coordinated system where a controlling MAC (or external controller) synchronizes medium access grants across series-connected transport media. This coordination eliminates the performance degradation caused by independent operation while maintaining the autonomy of individual MACs to manage their respective media.
2Ease of operation
If independent operation of Medium Access Controllers (MACs) is used in series-connected transport media, then each MAC can operate autonomously, but the cost and complexity of buffer requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
By coordinating medium access grants across series-connected MACs, the system reduces the need for large buffers at each node. The synchronized operation ensures that traffic flows smoothly through the series-connected media without excessive accumulation, thereby reducing buffer size requirements and associated complexity.
3Reliability
If coordination between MACs is implemented to reduce jitter and latency, then network performance improves, but the complexity of the control mechanism increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a controlling MAC or external controller as an intermediary that coordinates medium access grants between series-connected MACs. This intermediary manages the complexity of coordination centrally, allowing individual MACs to operate with simpler local logic while achieving improved network performance through synchronized operation.
4Reliability
If coordination between MACs is implemented to reduce buffering time, then latency and packet loss are reduced, but the complexity of the system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The controlling MAC or external controller acts as an intermediary that optimizes medium access grants to minimize buffering time and reduce packet loss. By centralizing the coordination logic, the system achieves reduced latency and improved reliability without requiring each individual MAC to implement complex coordination algorithms.
Data Source
AI summary
A method in a communication network is disclosed. The network comprises first and second transport mediums connected in series. Access to the first and second transport mediums is controlled by first and second MACs, respectively. A traffic client of the second MAC receives traffic on the first transport medium for forwarding to the second transport medium. The method comprises receiving from the first MAC information about traffic demands from traffic clients of the first MAC. The method further comprises using the received information, together with information about traffic demands from traffic clients of the second MAC, as input to making a medium access grant decision for the second MAC, wherein the medium access grant decision for the second MAC implements a coordination between traffic access to the first and second transport media. The method also comprises instructing implementation of the medium access grant decision for the second MAC.