Staggered Software Synchronization for Multi-Stream VSync
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Solution Overview
Problem
In multi-streaming systems, the synchronization of VSync signals among multiple clients can lead to scheduling delays and missed frames due to the lack of sufficient processing resources, resulting in a jittery user experience, as all containers tend to align their VSync operations, overwhelming the available processors.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves staggering or offsetting the synchronization signals, such as VSyncs, by applying unique offsets to each container's VSync timing, ensuring they are not aligned, thereby distributing the processing load and maintaining consistent timing over time, even with fewer processors than clients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all containers independently generate and schedule their VSync operations at the same time, then each container can maintain its own synchronization timing, but the processing resources become overwhelmed leading to scheduling delays and missed frames
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the synchronized VSync operations of multiple containers by introducing unique offsets to each container's VSync timing. Instead of all containers generating VSync signals simultaneously, each container's VSync is staggered by a specific offset value, dividing the concentrated processing demand into distributed time slots. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining synchronization reliability through controlled offsetting while preventing processing overload through temporal distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements periodic VSync operations with staggered timing for different containers. Each container generates VSync signals at regular intervals (e.g., 60Hz), but with unique offsets applied to their timing. This periodic action with offsetting distributes the processing load across time periods, ensuring that not all containers request processing simultaneously, thus maintaining reliability while preserving processing throughput.
2Ease of operation
If the number of processors is equal to the number of applications, then each application can be scheduled without delay, but in multi-streaming systems there are far fewer processors than clients leading to insufficient processing capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a temporal dimension to resource allocation by offsetting VSync timing across containers. Instead of competing for the same processing slots simultaneously (one-dimensional competition), containers are distributed across different time offsets, effectively adding a time dimension to resource utilization. This allows fewer processors to handle more applications by spreading the demand across time, resolving the contradiction between scheduling simplicity and resource quantity.
3Stability of the object's composition
If VSync operations are aligned across all containers, then synchronization is achieved, but this causes applications to be unblocked at the same time overwhelming the CPUs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary offsetting actions to each container's VSync timing before synchronization occurs. By pre-calculating and applying unique offsets to each container's VSync schedule, the system prevents simultaneous unblocking of applications. This preliminary action maintains synchronization stability through controlled offsetting while avoiding the scheduling delays that would result from simultaneous processing demands.
Data Source
AI summary
Approaches in accordance with various embodiments can reduce scheduling delays due to concurrent processing requests, as may involve VSyncs in multi-streaming systems. The software synchronization signals can be staggered relative to each other by offsetting an initial synchronization signal. These software synchronization signals can be readjusted over time such that each synchronization signal maintains the same relative offset, as may be with respect to other applications or containers.