Patent ID: 7602708

Claim:
A communication method for communicating on a network that includes communication devices, which perform communications in a connected mode or a non-connected mode, said method comprising: an information operation of sending an item of information representing a passband necessary for a transmission in the connected mode on the network; a passband allocation operation of allocating the passband for connected mode transmissions based on the item of information, wherein the passband allocation operation is performed in coordination with another communication device which is to effect a transmission in the connected mode; a second allocation operation of allocating for non-connected-mode transmissions all or part of the passband not allocated for the connected-mode transmissions, for each communication device that is to effect a transmission in the non-connected mode, wherein the second allocation operation is performed independently from other communication devices in the network; an adjustment operation, made by a communication device which is to effect a transmission in the non-connected-mode, of adjusting the allocated passband for the non-connected mode according to a number taken in the list consisting of the number of time periods without any transmission and the number of packets not transmitted during a period of time; a release operation of releasing the allocated passband; and a connection establishment operation of establishing a connection, wherein, if the connection is effected by a source communication device intended to transmit information on a path on the network, the connection establishment operation includes an operation of transmitting an item of information representing a passband necessary for connection to each intermediate communication device on the path, wherein, if the connection is effected by each intermediate communication device on the path, the connection establishment operation includes an operation of determining an availability of a link leading to a following communication device of the path, and an operation of transmitting an item of information representing the unavailability of the link, to the source communication device in an event of unavailability, and wherein at least one of the operations of the method is performed by a computer processor coupled to a memory device.