Patent ID: 7343540

Claim:
A method for sending data packets from a transmitter to a receiver through a shared-medium digital transmission network, each packet ending in a stop symbols field delimiting the end of said each packet, the method comprising the steps of: dividing data of at least a portion of said each packet into one or more frames; applying a systematic forward-error-correction (FEC) block code to each frame of said each packet, said systematic FEC block code maintaining data symbols, of the frames, in an unaltered state and adding parity-check symbols; gathering together the parity-check symbols of the frames of said each packet in a parity-check field of said each packet; modifying said each packet by adding, after the stop symbols field delimiting the end of said each packet, the parity-check field of said each packet, and adding, after the parity-check field of said each packet, a delimiter of the parity-check field of said each packet, thereby creating a plurality of modified packets; and transmitting the modified packets from the transmitter to the receiver through the shared-medium digital transmission network.