Patent ID: 7448061

Claim:
In a digital cinema network of NTP-timekeeping devices, the network having a variable, but expected maximum, latency among its devices, one of the NTP-timekeeping devices decoding video information, which video information has a nominal frame rate, at an actual frame rate determined by a clock that is not locked to the network NTP time, the network having a schedule of instructions to be performed at one or more future frame times by one or more devices on the network, wherein the schedule's future NTP times corresponding to such future frame times are initially based on said nominal frame rate, a method of instructing said one or more devices with improved frame accuracy, comprising adjusting one or more of the future NTP times in said schedule of instructions in response to a measure of the actual frame rate, and sending at least one NTP-time-adjusted instruction to at least one device on the network, wherein the adjusted NTP time or times of the at least one instruction is or are at least as far in the future as the expected maximum network time latency.