Patent ID: 6856786

Claim:
A wireless communication system, comprising: a wireless hub configured to send downstream communications on at least one downstream channel and receive upstream communications from at least one client device on at least one upstream channel; wherein: said wireless hub comprises, a timeline, having timed storage allocations for scheduled services to be provided in conjunction with at least one client device that is communicating with said wireless hub, a scheduling mechanism configured to, receive service requests from said client devices, determine available time for provision of the requested service, and place a marker identifying the requesting client and the service to be provided in a timed storage location of said timeline corresponding to the available time, and a scheduler configured to retrieve markers in a time window of said timeline and build a message that describes time interval allocation on an upstream channel for said time window; said scheduler comprises, a global scheduler configured to make allocations in said time line for preliminary global time scheduling for STATION IDs according to the admitted Services by marking the Time Line with periodic potential or actual Time Line Elements (grants), and a local scheduler configured to process incoming bandwidth requests and generate data grants in accordance with a service, registered for the requesting client; said timeline comprises, a local window comprising an array of time line elements, and a global window comprising a table of periodic triplets; said local scheduler is further configured to search for holes in said array of time line elements and assign said bandwidth requests to said holes; said local scheduler includes a hole list comprising a list, sorted by size, of unallocated contiguous mini-slots; and said search comprises matching a bandwidth request to said hole list.