Patent ID: 7423990

Claim:
In a wireless multimedia system that includes a multimedia server, a plurality of client modules, and a plurality of wireless transport channels, a method for dynamic data rate adjustment of a wireless transport channel of the plurality of wireless transport channels, the method comprises: determining, by one of the plurality of client modules, channel characteristics of the wireless transport channel at or below a receive packet rate to produce determined channel characteristics wherein the determining the channel characteristics of the wireless transport channel further comprises at least one of: determining average signal to noise ratio of the wireless transport channel on a grouping of packets by grouping of packets basis; determining received packet error rate for a plurality of packets; generating, by the one of the plurality of client modules, data rate adjustment feedback based on the channel characteristics, wherein generating the data rate adjustment feedback includes: determining variations in the channel characteristics; determining whether the variations in the channel characteristics affect the data rate of data contained in the packets; and when the variations in the channel characteristics affect the data rate, providing the data rate adjustment feedback to indicate an increase or a decrease in the data rate; providing, by the one of the plurality of client modules, the data rate adjustment feedback to the multimedia server; interpreting, by the multimedia server, the data rate adjustment feedback to determine whether data rate of data contained in packets transported via the wireless transport channel is to be adjusted; and when the data rate of data contained in packets transported via the wireless transport channel is to be adjusted, adjusting, by the multimedia server, data rate of packets transported via the wireless transport channel.