Patent ID: 7349422

Claim:
In a station computer system that is network connectable, along with one or more other station computer systems, to an access point computer system over a common wireless link, the station computer system and the one or more other station computer systems being configured to exchange data packets with the access point computer system over the common wireless link, the data packets potentially including higher priority data having a higher priority than other lower priority data of a lower priority, a method for providing higher priority data contention free access to the common wireless link, the method comprising: an act of indicating to the access point computer system that the station computer system can potentially send higher priority data over the common wireless link to the access point computer system; an act of receiving a slot time from the access point computer system, the slot time selected based at least in part on the time interval between the end of a Short Inter Frame Space and the beginning of a contention window utilized by lower priority data, the slot time being a multiple of a time interval that was calculated based at least in part on the number of data classification enabled stations supported by the access point computer system, the slot time representing a fixed time when the station computer system can check for access to the common wireless link such that the station computer system does not have to contend with lower priority data; an act of receiving an indication from an application that higher priority data is to be sent to the access point computer system; and an act of checking the common wireless link at the slot time to determine if the common wireless link is available.