Patent ID: 8213452

Claim:
A method of ordering grants of upstream bandwidth in a two-way grant-based communication system, comprising: (a) for each of a plurality of end user devices, determining, at a headend device, a time required for processing of a grant message; (b) constructing the grant message at the headend device, such that (i) grants for end user devices associated with the shortest grant message processing times occur earliest in the grant message; and (ii) grants for end user devices associated with the longest grant message processing times occur later in the grant message; (c) sending the grant message from the headend device to the end user devices at a time that allows each end user device to complete processing of the grant message before its grant, wherein the communication system comprises a DOCSIS-based communication system, and said grant message comprises a MAP message, and wherein said step (b) comprises assigning a first grant of the grant message to the end user device having the shortest grant message processing time.