Patent ID: 6580721
Filing Date: 2003-06-17
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
A method of transfer rate allocation for traffic streams in a shared path through a switched data network, the shared path being used to transfer a plurality of traffic streams, and identity of data packets of each traffic stream being stored in a traffic stream buffer, each traffic stream having an assigned quality-of-service index, but none of the traffic streams having a predefined transfer rate allocation, comprising, at a predefined interval, the steps of:a) monitoring an occupandy of a traffic stream buffer which represents a count of data units in each traffic stream; b) storing a current occupancy of each traffic stream buffer in a first memory; c) storing a previous occupancy of each traffic stream buffer in a second memory; d) comparing the current occupancy with a predefined lower bound and a predefined upper bound to determine a current zone for each traffic stream selected from a set of predefined zones; e) comparing the current occupancy and the previous occupancy to determine whether a change in buffer occupancy for each traffic stream is positive, neutral or negative; and f) requesting a change in the transfer rate allocation for a traffic stream if the zone and the change in buffer occupancy in combination meet a predetermined criteria.