Wireless Channel Reservation for Audio Video Content Protection Latency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing content protection mechanisms, such as HDCP 2.0, face challenges in minimizing latencies for audio/video networks due to unpredictable delays in wireless communication, leading to unbounded frame exchange latency and potential connection drops in wireless local area networks.
Innovation Solution
Reserving a wireless communication medium for a sufficient time period to accommodate both request and response frame exchanges within a single transmission opportunity period, using RTS and CTS messages, and optionally employing dummy frames to manage processing delays, thereby ensuring timely content protection message exchanges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If content protection control messages are exchanged over wireless communication medium without reservation, then the system maintains simplicity in channel access, but the latency becomes unbounded and connection stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by reserving the wireless communication medium in advance for a specific time period before the actual content protection message exchange occurs. This reservation ensures that the channel is available and dedicated for the control message exchange, eliminating the need for contention and reducing latency. The reservation is established prior to the transaction, allowing the system to prepare the communication path ahead of time.
2Reliability
If wireless channel is reserved for content protection messages, then latency is reduced and connection stability is improved, but the system complexity increases due to additional reservation protocols
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the content protection message exchange with the existing wireless communication framework by integrating the reservation mechanism into the standard channel access protocol. Instead of creating a completely separate reservation system, the invention combines the content protection transactions with the existing wireless medium access control, allowing control messages to be exchanged within the same communication infrastructure that handles data traffic.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple devices contend for wireless channel access, then the system maintains flexibility in channel usage, but random access delays increase and cause unbounded latency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the content protection control message exchange from the general contention-based channel access pool. By separating these critical control messages from the regular data traffic contention, the invention ensures that these messages receive dedicated channel access without being subject to the random delays experienced by other devices. This extraction creates a prioritized communication path for content protection transactions.
Data Source
AI summary
Reducing latencies for content protection in audio/video networks includes reserving a wireless channel for a time period to accommodate control message exchange for content protection in data communication between a wireless transmitter and wireless receiver over a wireless channel. The control message exchange includes wirelessly transmitting a control request message from the transmitter for content protection to the receiver, and transmitting a control response message from the receiver to the transmitter in reply. Reserving the wireless channel includes reserving the wireless channel for a time period that accommodates the control message exchange. The time period includes a single transmission opportunity period for communication on the wireless channel, to reduce latency for the control message exchange between the transmitter and receiver.