Patent ID: 8160096
Filing Date: 2012-04-17
Classification: H04J

Abstract:
1. A method of reserving bandwidth along an end-to-end path formed between a source node and a destination node in a network comprising a plurality of nodes, the method comprising: allocating a first time slot in a node for a first communications link in a first end-to-end path; receiving, at the node and after allocating the first time slot, a bandwidth request for a second communications link in a second end-to-end path; temporarily holding bandwidth in the node as a floating hold for the second end-to-end path, without allocating a resulting time slot, in response to the bandwidth request for the second communications link; receiving, at the node and after receiving the bandwidth request for the second communications link, a bandwidth request for a third communications link on a third end-to-end path; temporarily holding bandwidth in the node as a floating hold for the third end-to-end path, without allocating a resulting time slot, in response to the bandwidth request for the third communications link; determining sufficient bandwidth resources are available to accommodate the bandwidth request for the third communications link; and allocating the temporarily held bandwidth for the third end-to-end path to a second time slot directly adjacent to the first time slot while still holding the temporarily held bandwidth for the second end-to-end path based on the determining sufficient bandwidth resources are available to accommodate the bandwidth request for the third communications link.