Patent ID: 7596148

Claim:
A method for receiving data from a plurality of virtual channels, the method comprises: storing, by a memory, a stream of data as a plurality of data segments, wherein the stream of data includes multiplexed data fragments from at least one of the plurality of virtual channels, and wherein a data segment of the plurality of data segments corresponds to one of the multiplexed data fragments; decoding, by a processing module, at least one of the plurality of data segments in accordance with one of a plurality of data transmission protocols to produce at least one decoded data segment; storing, by the memory, the at least one decoded data segment, in a generic format, to reassemble at least a portion of a packet provided by the at least one of the plurality of virtual channels; and routing, by the processing module, the at least one decoded data segment as at least part of the reassembled packet to one of a plurality of destinations in accordance with the at least one of the plurality of virtual channels.