Shared Reference Time for Multi-Client Aircraft Playback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing multimedia systems face challenges in maintaining synchronicity due to network jitter and clock synchronicity issues, leading to reduced media quality and coordination failures in applications like aircraft and cooperative robot tasks.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for synchronized data playback involving a shared reference timeframe, offset calculation devices, and clients that receive timestamped data frames, ensuring playback at determined synchronized times to minimize synchronicity loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If data is transmitted over network to multiple clients, then data distribution is achieved, but network jitter causes loss of synchronicity in playback
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and embeds synchronized playback times into timestamped data frames before transmission. Each client receives pre-scheduled playback instructions, allowing them to play back data at precisely determined times regardless of network jitter, thus maintaining synchronicity without requiring real-time coordination.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an offset calculation device that acts as an intermediary between the data source and clients. This device calculates synchronized playback times by determining offsets relative to a shared reference timeframe, mediating the timing information distribution to all clients and ensuring they all operate from the same time reference.
2Adaptability or versatility
If each client uses its own internal clock, then device independence is maintained, but clock synchronicity differences cause playback desynchronization
Solution Approach 1:
The system establishes a shared reference timeframe that all clients synchronize to, creating an equipotential time reference across the distributed system. By calculating playback times relative to this common reference rather than relying on individual client clocks, the system eliminates clock drift issues while maintaining device independence in other operational aspects.
Solution Approach 2:
The offset calculation device serves as an intermediary that translates the shared reference timeframe into specific synchronized playback times for each client. This mediator eliminates the need for clients to directly compare or synchronize their internal clocks, resolving the contradiction by providing a common time reference without requiring clock harmonization.
3Reliability
If playback time is adjusted for each client, then synchronicity is improved, but system complexity increases due to offset calculations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the offset calculation functionality into a centralized offset calculation device that all clients reference. Rather than requiring each client to independently perform complex synchronization calculations, the system merges the computational burden into a single device that generates synchronized playback times for distribution to all clients, reducing individual client complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Each client is configured to autonomously play back data frames at the synchronized times provided in the timestamped data, without requiring continuous external coordination. The clients self-serve by following the pre-calculated playback schedule embedded in the data stream, reducing the need for complex real-time control systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for synchronized data playback comprising at least one offset calculation device; and a plurality of clients; wherein the plurality of clients are each synchronized to a shared reference timeframe, each of the plurality of clients is configured to receive a common set of timestamped data frames, the offset calculation device is configured to determine a synchronized playback time for each of the common set of timestamped data frames with respect to the shared reference timeframe; and each of the plurality of clients is configured to playback each of the common set of timestamped data frames at the respective determined playback time.