Patent ID: 7167452

Claim:
A method for transmitting information among the nodes of a network defining a directional bandwidth between node pairs, said method including the steps of: receiving local information at a first node of said network, to thereby define first node local data; receiving local information at a second node of said network, to thereby define second node local data; performing processing at said first node on at least a portion of said first node local data to thereby produce first node processed data, which first node processed data is improved by including in the processing at least some of said second node local data; preloading said second node with a function which represents the value of the improvement to said first node processed data which is gained by the incorporation into said processing at said first node of various elements of said second node local data; preloading said second node with information relating to an effective directional bandwidth which is at least one of (a) the maximum value of said directional bandwidth from said second node to said first node, (b) the maximum rate at which information can be processed at said first node and (c) the lesser of said maximum value of said directional bandwidth from said second node to said first node and said maximum rate at which information can be processed at said first node; at said second node, transmitting over said network to said first node that portion of said second node local data which (a) has the greatest value of said function and (b) can be transmitted within said effective directional bandwidth from said second node to said first node.