Remote transmission system

[0001] The claims of this application benefit from Provisional US Patent Application No. 60 / 847,148, filed on September 26, 2006, which is incorporated in full by appeal.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to the remote sending of multimedia content in general and in particular to carrying it out over a wireless communication network.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Remote sending of multimedia content is known in the art. These postings are usually used to provide real-time or near-real news / sport events happening outside of a prepared television studio. TV crews are often sent to film live events in many different places and the video / audio material is broadcast back to the studio where it is broadcast.

[0004] Organizations in the news / sport field are using wireless broadband connections to broadcast live multimedia content back to the studio. Figures 1A and 1B, which are now referenced, illustrate the technologies currently used to provide remote emissions in real time.

[0005] Fig. 1A shows a video camera 5 that is used to film the current event at a remote location. The camera 5 is connected by cable 10 to the satellite message collection vehicle (SNG) 15. The SNG vehicle 15 has on its roof an antenna 20 that transmits data for broadcasting to the relay satellite 25 in orbit around the earth. The relay satellite 25 then transmits the data to the receiving antenna 30 at the television studio 35.

[0006] Typically, the SNG 15 car has many different equipment (not shown), for example a video encoder, satellite modem and assembly station. This equipment is used to process and transmit data to relay satellite 25. The SNG car then uses a broadband connection to send data to satellite 25 via antenna 20. The data is then downloaded to studio 35, where it is usually mounted and broadcast.

[0007] Fig. 1B illustrates microwave technology for remote live broadcasts. Functionally analogous to the SNG 15 from Fig. 1A, the electronic message collection vehicle (ENG) 16 processes data from camera 5 before transmission. However, the antenna 40 sends data using microwave transmission and instead of the relay satellite 25 the data is sent to a relatively local microwave relay station 45. The data is then transferred to studio 35 via the Internet 46 or a wired connection 48.

[0008] Satellite and microwave technologies have similar operational limitations. For example, both technologies require connections on the 'line of sight'. In order to send transmission data, an unblocked line must exist between antenna 20 and relay satellite 25. Similarly, an unblocked line must exist between antenna 40 and microwave relay station 45 to use microwave technology. For this reason, these technologies are not suitable for use in some locations. For example, none of these technologies can be used from an underground car park. Tall buildings and / or other topographic elements affect the usability of microwave technology and, to a lesser extent, satellite technology.

[0009] Another limitation is that both technologies require the prior consent of the operator responsible for the relay installation. None of these technologies can be used without the operator providing dedicated resources.

[0010] In addition, serviceable roads are needed for SNG and ENG 15 and 16 to access remote transmission locations. Smaller "transportable" units are available, called "flyaway", which can be used as an alternative to SNG and ENG 15 and 16 vehicles. "Flyaway" devices can be transported to a remote location using other modes of transport, including, for example, by plane, helicopter or off-road vehicle. However, they are still bulky and difficult to carry in their arms. The "flyaway" device is usually divided into two separate units, each weighing about 40 kg.

[0011] The British company Inmarsat sells a product line for a broadband global computer network (BGAN), which is much lighter and more compact than "flyaway" devices. However, such products are limited to a send bandwidth of only 256 Kbps-512 Kbps.

[0012] US Patent Application Publication Number 2002/0174434 (Lee et al.) Is directed to virtual broadband communication by bundling a group of link switching channels and packet switching. The method of data transmission over a telecommunications network includes: dividing the data stream into multiple sub-streams; transmitting the sub stream over the associated circuit switched commutation in one communication session; and playing a single data stream from multiple sub streams. Devices for transmitting data from a source to a destination include: a grouping device and a channel ungrouping device capable of dividing the data stream into multiple sub-streams, a data stream transmitted from the source, a grouping device and a channel ungrouping device capable of reproducing a single data stream from multiple data sub-streams for transmission to destination point; and a plurality of commutation channels combines the coupled communication with the grouping device and the channel ungrouping device and capable of transmitting the assigned sub stream.

[0013] US Patent Application Publication Number 2006/0085551 (Xie et al.) Is directed to methods of streaming multimedia data. In the streaming technique of the main media stream that has been requested, the anti-shadow stream that represents the backup copy of the main media stream is sent along with the output multimedia stream that represents the output copy of the main media stream. The content of the antishadow stream is shifted forward in time relative to the output multimedia stream so as to ensure that the output stream loss data is substituted. The ordered data frames of the output stream are delayed in order compared to the anti-shadow stream.

SUMMARY OF THE CURRENT INVENTION [0014] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a virtual broadband transmission unit is provided comprising a stream generator for generating multiple data streams from the incoming multimedia data stream and a transmission management unit for controlling the sending of multiple data streams through multiple transmission channels to at least one wireless communication network.

In addition, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the incoming multimedia data stream comprises at least one video and audio data.

[0016] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the unit also comprises a video encoder for encoding the multimedia data stream.

[0017] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least one wireless network is at least one of the following networks: a mobile cellular network, a WiFi network, a WiMax network and a satellite network.

Still further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stream generator comprises a data packet generator comprising at least one of a forward error correction processor (FEC) for providing FEC codes to the data stream, a packet encapsulation (packet encapsulation) unit for generating numbered data packets from the data stream; and an interleaver for translating data packets.

In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stream generator also includes a queue buffer for receiving data packets from the packet generator and a retransmission queue for storing copies of the packets for retransmission.

[0020] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stream generator comprises a plurality of modems for transmitting a plurality of data streams.

[0021] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, each modem includes an associated modem management unit and each associated modem management unit includes means for extracting the next data packet from the data packet generator for transmission via the modem.

Still further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the unit also includes a return channel for receiving a feedback signal regarding at least one of the timeliness and quality of the plurality of data streams.

[0023] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the feedback signal includes at least one of the missing data packets, restored data packets, serial numbers and time stamps of received packets and data retransmission requests.

[0024] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the transmission management unit comprises a traffic analyzer for analyzing the feedback signal and adjusting the settings for the stream generator components in response to the analysis.

[0025] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the transmission management unit comprises means for searching the retransmission queue to locate a copy of at least one of the missing data packets and for forwarding the found copy for retransmission.

[0026] Still further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the components comprise at least one of a video encoder, FEC (forward error correction) processor, packet encapsulation units, interleaver, queue buffer and modem management unit.

[0027] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is also provided a virtual broadband receiver comprising means for receiving multiple multimedia data streams from a plurality of data connections, and an assembly language engine for assembling data streams into a single multimedia stream.

[0028] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the multimedia data streams comprise at least one video and audio data.

[0029] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the data streams comprise a series of data packets with serial numbers and incoming in generally non-serial order.

[0030] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the assembler engine comprises a jitter buffer containing memory spaces for inserting data packets in them in logical order according to serial numbers.

Still further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the resynchronization buffer also comprises means for viewing a logical receiving window comprising the resynchronization buffer area associated with data packets having substantially recently issued serial numbers, means for viewing the logical retransmission window containing the synchronization buffer area associated with data packets having serial numbers issued earlier than numbers associated with the logical receiving window, and means for viewing the logical exit window containing the synchronization buffer area associated with data packets having serial numbers issued earlier than the numbers associated with logical pickup window.

[0032] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the data packets also contain FEC packets.

[0033] Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the assembler engine also includes a FEC decoder for using FEC data to restore incorrectly received data packets and to insert the restored data packets into the intelligent resynchronization buffer according to their associated serial numbers.

[0034] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the assembler engine also includes a retransmission requesting unit for requesting retransmission of incorrectly received data packets whose associated serial numbers are logically located in the retransmission window.

Still further, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiver also includes a reverse channel through which the retransmission request can be transmitted and a reverse channel management unit to control reverse channel operations.

[0036] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiver comprises a statistics collection unit from the operation of the smart resynchronization buffer.

[0037] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the statistics comprise time stamps and serial numbers associated with at least one of the following: data packets, empty spaces, restored data packets and retransmission requests.

[0038] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiver also includes an output speed controller for controlling the speed at which data packets are released from the exit window.

[0039] Still further, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the receiver also comprises a video decoder for decoding the video data contained in the data packets.

[0040] In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a remote reporting method is also provided comprising organizing video data generated at a remote reporting location into data packets and sending data packets via multiple modems via at least one wireless network to the transmitting station.

[0041] In addition, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least one wireless network is at least one of the following networks: cellular network, WiFi, WiMax and satellite.

In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least one wireless network is at least two separate cellular networks.

[0043] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least two separate cellular networks use at least two different cellular technologies.

[0044] Still further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes receiving a feedback signal regarding the success of the send, analyzing the feedback signal and adjusting the operational settings for organizing and a plurality of modems in response to the analysis results.

[0045] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes generating packets with FEC codes.

[0046] In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes interleaving the packet order before transmitting.

[0047] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes receiving retransmission requests for at least one missing data packet and retransmitting at least one missing data packet.

[0048] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is also provided a method comprising receiving data packets via a plurality of channels from a remote reporting location and assembling a video stream from data packets.

[0049] In addition, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the folding comprises using the synchronization buffer to set the data packets in logical order.

[0050] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the synchronization buffer comprises the following logical windows: a receive window, a retransmission window and an exit window.

[0051] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes sending retransmission requests for missing packets that are logically associated with the retransmission window.

[0052] Still further, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes tracking performance statistics on submission and transmitting performance statistics to a remote reporting location.

[0053] In addition, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the operating statistics contain details of the operation for the modems used to send data packets from the remote reporting location.

[0054] Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the operational details include at least one of the following: missing data packets, invalid data packets, retransmission requests for data packets, and retransmission time for data packets.

[0055] Further, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes analyzing said performance statistics, determining the requested changes in operating settings according to the analysis, and transmitting the desired changes to a remote reporting location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0056] The object considered to be the invention has been particularly indicated and clearly reserved in the final part of the description. However, the invention, both in terms of organization and mode of operation, together with its objects, features and advantages, can best be understood by reference to the following detailed description read with accompanying drawings, where:

Figures 1A and 1B are schematic illustrations of prior art systems for remote broadcasting;

Fig. 2 is a schematic illustration of a novel virtual broadband system constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 3 is a schematic illustration of a virtual broadband transmission unit constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a schematic illustration of the inputs and outputs of a packet interleaver constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 5 is a schematic illustration of the flow of data packets through numerous modems constructed and operating as part of the system of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a schematic illustration of a virtual broadband receiving unit constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 7 is a schematic illustration of incoming data packets sorted in an intelligent resynchronization buffer constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention; and Figures 8A and 8B are schematic illustrations of an intelligent resynchronization buffer constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention.

[0057] It is important to be aware that for the simplicity and clarity of the illustrations, the elements depicted in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements for clarity. In addition, when deemed appropriate, reference numbers may be repeated between the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE CURRENT INVENTION [0058] The following detailed description provides numerous specific details to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be used in practice without these specific details. In other cases, well-known methods, procedures and components are not described in detail so as not to obscure the present invention.

[0059] The invention is set out in the appended claims.

[0060] Applicants have realized that for the purposes of remote multimedia sending, mobile networks have several advantages. For example, such networks do not require line of sight and can be used, for example, in closed buildings, underground garages, narrow streets and other places.

[0061] It should be understood that the broadband services provided by cellular network operators are usually asymmetrical. They generally provide greater bandwidth for downloading data and only limited bandwidth for sending data. For example, 1 megabit per second may be provided for downloading data, and only 64 kilobits per second for sending data. Applicants have realized that multiple cellular devices can be used together to create a "virtual broadband" connection for sending. In such a virtual broadband connection for sending (virtual broadband connection), the total sum of the sending capabilities of the devices may represent sufficient total bandwidth to allow multimedia transmission substantially live.

[0062] We now refer to Figure 2, which illustrates an innovative virtual broadband system 100 for remotely transferring live multimedia data over a cellular network constructed and operating in accordance with the present invention. As in the prior art, you can use the video camera 5 to film current events in a remote location. Cable 10 can connect camera 5 to a virtual broadband sending unit 110 that can support several cellular modems 112 to transmit multimedia data over one or more backbone cellular networks 120. Each modem 112 may generate a separate logic channel 115 and multiple channels 115 may be virtual broadband connection 118.

[0063] It should be understood that, depending on the number of channels 115, the combined capacity of sending virtual broadband connection 118 may be similar to that of a single satellite or microwave connection in the line of sight.

[0064] Data from network 120 can be transferred to virtual broadband receiver 130 via internet connections 122, connections on leased lines 124, connections on cellular networks 126 or the above connections in any combination. The virtual broadband receiver 130 can be placed in studio 35, which can then broadcast data to television, the Internet, etc.

[0065] Networks 120 may be one or more cellular networks available from a remote location. You should be aware that one or more operators can provide such networks and that these networks 120 can also use more than one technology. For this reason, one should be aware that virtual broadband connection 118 may consist of a plurality of channels 115 transmitted to one or more network operators, with each operator supporting one or more networks possibly with different technologies.

[0066] Channels 115 can be transferred to virtual broadband receiver 130 via a number of routes, including, for example, internet connection 122, leased line connection 124 and connection in cellular network 126. As described below in this document, virtual broadband receiver 130 can accept data from a whole number of sources for processing.

[0067] It should be understood that the existing cellular communication system is designed to provide mobile connectivity. Therefore, the virtual broadband unit 110 can be much lighter and its transport can be much easier than prior art satellite and microwave systems.

[0068] We now refer to Fig. 3, which illustrates in detail an exemplary virtual wideband unit 110. The virtual wideband sending unit 110 may include a video encoder 131, a configurable stream processor 140 and a traffic analyzer 150. As described below, the configurable stream processor 140 may process the incoming video stream 135 from the video encoder 131 to provide a plurality of send streams 195, one per modem 112 (FIG. 2). Motion analyzer 150 may configure configurable stream processor 140 settings based on current statistical feedback signals received via one or more return channels 190. Batteries (not shown) may also be included to provide a mobile power source.

[0069] The configurable stream processor 140 may include a forward error correction module (FEC) 155, packet encapsulation unit 160, interleaver 165, queue generator 170, multiple modem management units 175, multiple modem drivers 180 and retransmission mechanism 185. Video Stream 135, which is introduced into the configurable stream processor 140, may be encoded, e.g., using H.264 encoding, or may be unencoded.

[0070] The FEC processor 155 may pre-divide the data in the data stream 135 into packets and may add additional packets with FEC codes. FEC codes consist of information that can be used to play missing or invalid packets, if needed. In the sample FEC scheme, the FEC 155 processor can add an additional 10% of packets to the stream. If some packages are lost or received incorrectly, FEC codes can be used to restore missing packages. Be aware that the FEC percentage and the number of packets in a FEC group can be configurable. In principle, configuration can always be carried out when a new channel 115 is opened (Fig. 2). Thus, each time a new channel is opened or the existing channel is changed, reconfiguration can be performed. You can use any suitable algorithm for the FEC 155 processor, for example Reed-Solomon.

[0071] The packet encapsulation unit 160 may add serial numbers and time stamps to each video packet and FEC.

[0072] Next, packets can go to interleaver 165. Interleaving can attempt to minimize the impact of packet loss due to transmission interruption. Packets can be "postponed", which results in an output order that can reduce the risk of losing subsequent packets due to a given transmission error. Fig. 4, which we now refer briefly to, shows the operation of interleaver 165. The input packet queue 166 may have packets received in the order 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. (determined by the packet numbers assigned by the packet encapsulation unit 160). Output 167 packets can be "interleaved"; the order can be random so that the subsequent packet numbers are no longer adjacent. In Fig. 4, output packets 167 have order 4, 7, 12, 1, 5, etc.

[0073] Returning to Fig. 3, the interleaved packets 167 are then forwarded to queue generator 170, where they remain in the queue until they are pulled out of the queue by one of the numerous modem management units 175. Typically, there may be one modem management unit 175 for each modem 112 (Fig. 2). A modem 180 driver may be associated with each modem management unit 175. Modem controllers 180 can manage individual modems 112 for transmitting packets.

[0074] After the packet was pulled out by modem management unit 175, a copy of its physical data can be forwarded to the retransmission queue, where it can remain in place until its space is needed for the new packet. Therefore, the packet may still be available for retransmission for a period of time after it has been initially pulled out by one of the modem management units 175. The retransmission mechanism 185 may look in the retransmission queue for the packet needed for retransmission. After finding the desired packet, it can be moved to the beginning of the queue so that the proper modem management unit 175 can retransmit it as soon as possible.

[0075] We now refer briefly to Figure 5, which illustrates how modem management units 175 can extract packets from queue generator 170 and can forward them to modem controllers 180. Queue generator 170 may include output buffer 171 and buffer controller 172 As shown, output buffer 171 may include interleaved packets 173 waiting to be pulled out by modem management units 175. Four units managing 175A, 175B, 175C and 175D modems are shown. Each modem management unit 175 (A, B, C, D) can be associated with one modem driver 180 (A, B, C, D), which in turn manages one associated modem 112 (A, B, C, D).

[0076] Each modem 112 may have different performance characteristics. For example, the 112B modem may be suitable for the highest connection speed. The 112C may be of similar speed but have a higher rate of observed errors. The 112D modem may be relatively slow, but it may experience very few errors. The 112A modem may be the most modern high-quality modem, but it can connect to the core network 120 (Figure 2), which currently has a high error rate. So be aware that many different factors can affect the actual performance of your 112 modem. Such factors may include, for example, modem speed, modem reliability, connection quality, operating license restrictions, and network congestion. In addition, you should be aware that such factors may not be permanent; a given modem 112 can operate at different levels over a short period of time.

[0077] Therefore, each modem management unit 175 can be configured to "power" its associated modem controller 180 at the optimal speed for current conditions. For this reason, according to the example illustrated in Fig. 5, the 175B modem management unit can be assigned a very high speed; of the seventeen packets shown, 173 seven can be forwarded by the 180B modem driver. The 175C and 175D modem management units can be assigned a lower speed, each of which only provides four 173 packets for the 180C and 180D modem controllers, respectively. The 175A modem management unit can be assigned an even lower speed. It can only provide two 173 packets to the 180A modem driver.

[0078] Therefore, each modem management unit 175 may query buffer controller 172 at a different rate for the next available packet 173. Be aware that in this way already interleaved packets 173 are distributed unevenly between modems 112, thus passing effectively second interleaving process.

[0079] As packets 173 are pulled out by modem management units 175, the buffer controller may record the packet number and modem management unit 175 that sent it for transmission on the array of pulled packets 174. As described below, table 174 can be used to analyze operation individual modems 112.

[0080] Also, be aware that, as mentioned above, the operation of each modem 112 may change over a given sending session. In addition, you should be aware that the overall operating tendency for all 112 modems involved may also change during the send session. Therefore, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the motion analyzer 150 (Fig. 3) can analyze current statistics of operation from the ongoing send session to improve settings for the configurable IP 140 stream processor.

Returning to Fig. 3, a plurality of reverse channels 190 may provide performance data from the virtual wideband receiver 130 (Fig. 2) to the traffic analyzer 150. Such data may include, for example, time stamps for the arrival of packets, missing packet numbers, numbers packages with errors and packet retransmission requests.

[0082] Traffic analyzer 150 may forward such retransmission requests to the retransmission mechanism 185. It should be understood that because duplicate data can be transmitted through each of the multiple return channels 190, multiple copies of such retransmission requests can be received by the retransmission mechanism 185. From this therefore, the retransmission mechanism 185 may track the receipt of such requests and ignore any duplicates. Mechanism 185 can then process such requests as already described above.

[0083] Traffic analyzer 150 may also query the table of extracted queue generator packets 174 to associate packet numbers received via reverse channel 190 with modem management units 175 that processed the original packets. The traffic analyzer 150 may analyze this information to detect operating trends among 112 modems. If modem 112 has a high or increasing error rate, missing packets or delay, the traffic analyzer 150 may order the associated modem management unit 175 to reduce its speed or even close the associated modem 112. Similarly, in response to reducing errors, missing packets and / or delay analyzer traffic 150 may instruct the associated modem management entity 175 to increase the transmission speed of its associated modem 112.

[0084] Traffic analyzer 150 may also seek to balance the speed among modem management units 175. For example, if several modem management units 175 are ordered to decrease their speed, then other modem management units 175 may be ordered to increase their speed to offset the anticipated total limit throughput.

[0085] The motion analyzer 150 may also identify general operating trends. For example, current statistics may indicate that few packets are lost, if any. In this case, the motion analyzer 150 may instruct the interleaver 165 to reduce the interleaving level. Another exemplary trend may include an overall higher level of detected errors. In this case, the traffic analyzer 150 may instruct the FEC 155 to increase the FEC overhead or change the compression of video data received from encoder 131.

[0086] The overall high level of errors and missing packets can lead to a situation where the combined speed of all modem management units 175 may be insufficient to transmit the entire video stream 135 in a timely manner. In this case, the traffic analyzer 150 may use the return signal channel 198 to command the video encoder 131 (Fig. 3) increasing the compression ratio to reduce the bandwidth needed to transmit the video stream 135 after processing.

[0087] We now refer to Fig. 6, which shows in detail a virtual wideband receiver 130 constructed and operating in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Receiver 130 may include an assembler motor 200, output speed controller 220, packet decapsulation unit 225, and feedback management unit 250.

[0088] The assembler motor 200 may receive a plurality of streams 201 via connections 122, 124 and / or 126 for processing. The folded stream, designated 206, can then be forwarded to the output speed controller 220, which in turn can forward it to the packet decapsulation unit 225 to remove additional information in the packets. The resulting multimedia data stream 230 can then be output from the virtual broadband receiver 130 to the television station 35 (Fig. 2). Feedback signal management unit 250 may receive retransmission requests from assembler engine 200 and may collect statistics of incoming streams 201.

Return signal management unit 250 may also provide retransmission requests and statistics via return channel 190 to traffic analyzer 150 (Fig. 3).

[0089] As mentioned above, a plurality of channels 201 may be received from several different connections, e.g., internet connections 122, leased lines 124 and / or connections on cellular network 126. Regardless of the connections used for transmission, packets in streams 201 may be introduced to the assembler engine 200 in the state in which they are, in the order they arrived.

[0090] The assembler engine 200 may include an intelligent de-synchronization buffer 205, an FEC decoder 215 and a retransmission requesting unit 210. The FEC decoder 215 may be any suitable FEC decoder, e.g. Intelligent de-synchronization buffer 205 can serve two purposes: it can be an area where stream packets 201 are "de-interleaved" and can also provide a framework for use by FEC and retransmission mechanisms 215 and 210 when resolving missing packets.

[0091] We now refer briefly to Fig. 7, which illustrates how packets 203 from streams 201 can be placed in intelligent resynchronization buffer 205. An exemplary size for the intelligent resynchronization buffer can be 1001000 msec. Four input streams 201A, 201B, 201C and 201D are shown, as are the time stamps, from 0 to 24, where 0 is the rightmost time stamp. Therefore, packet # 3 arriving at time stamp 0 may be the first processing packet 203.

[0092] The intelligent deployment sync buffer 205 may have sequential numbered tanks, where in Figure 7 the tanks are designated from 1 to 17. As each packet 203 is received, it can be placed in its associated tank, according to its packet number. Thus, package No. 3, which arrived first, can be placed in tank 3. Hence, packets stored in buffer 205 may represent packets 203 in their original order, even if their order of arrival could be 3,5,8,4,7.

[0093] In the example of Fig. 7, packets 1, 2 and 6 are still missing. Thus, buffer 205 may indicate which packets have not yet arrived.

[0094] We now refer to Figures 8A and 8B, which illustrate how the FEC decoder 215 and retransmission request unit 210 use the intelligent resynchronization buffer

205. Fig. 8A illustrates how the retransmission request unit 210 can logically split buffer 205 into three windows: exit window 211, retransmission window 212 and receive window 213. Exit window 211 can store data for transmission as serial packet stream 206.

[0095] It should be understood that windows 211, 212 and 213 cannot be stuck in static locations opposite the intelligent resynchronization buffer 205. Instead, they can be dynamically defined in terms of offsets from the latest packet 203 to be derived from the intelligent resynchronization buffer.

205. Thus, Fig. 8A represents a snapshot at a time where the exit window 211 stores exemplary six packets awaiting exit, of which packet 1 may be the first in the queue. As soon as package # 1 is added to the serial packet stream

206, exit window 211 may move to include packets 2-7.

[0096] Therefore, it is also important to be aware that packets 203 cannot change their physical position after they are placed in the smart resynchronization buffer 205. In fact, the continuous sliding of windows 211, 212 and 213 can lead to the illusion of "movement" along the buffer . For this reason, you should be aware that any discussion below about traffic or following packets 203 within intelligent resync buffer 205 can only relate to logical traffic defined by sliding windows 211, 212 and 213.

[0097] As discussed above, packets 203 may not arrive in serial order, especially since they may have been interleaved before transmission and may have been transmitted and / or received over a plurality of connections and channels. For this reason, as packets 203 can be received, they can be placed in the receiving window 213 in order of their packet number. An example of the size of the receiving window 213 can be 50-400 msec. No action can be taken to replace the missing 203 packages at this stage; it may be reasonable to assume that any missing packages may still arrive without any added processing. For example, in Fig. 8A, packet number 17 may not yet arrived because it was transmitted after packets 16-23 (due to interleaving, for example). To this end, the retransmission window 213 may be large and be, for example, 200-1000 msec.

[0098] Packets 203 may then go to the retransmission window 212. This window may define a window for retransmission requesting of missing packets 203. As described above, before this step, a retransmission request may not be necessary, since it may still be likely that the missing packet may still arrive in any case. Conversely, after this stage it may be too late to request retransmission, because the execution of such a request requires a certain amount of processing cycle time - the request must first reach the virtual broadband unit 110 (Fig. 2) and then the retransmitted packet 203 must still arrive in the appropriate time to add it to serial packet stream 206. Therefore, the retransmission threshold 214 may define the point at which retransmission requests may no longer be a viable option for a given packet 203.

[0099] According to the exemplary data of Fig. 8A, packet 10 may be missing from the retransmission window 212. Therefore, the retransmission requesting unit 210, which may view the retransmission window 212, may submit the retransmission request to the feedback management unit 250. The retransmission requesting unit 210 may make one or more requests as long as the missing packet 10 is "placed" in the retransmission window 212. Timing for such requests can be configurable.

[0100] It should be understood that the size and location of the retransmission window 212 may be configurable. For example, when the rate of missing packages is low, it may be possible to use a small window 212, such as just 200 msec. If the virtual broadband unit 110 has fast modems, it may be possible to reduce the size of the output window 211 in light of the fact that the processing time for retransmission may be shorter. Therefore, you should also be aware that the size and location of the retransmission window 212 can effectively determine the size and location of windows 211 and 213.

[0101] Packets 203 can then go to exit window 211. As described above, after the missing packet 203 has reached exit window 211, no more retransmission requests can be sent on its behalf. However, you should be aware that the missing packets 203 may still arrive and be placed in exit window 211. For example, a retransmission request may have been previously submitted from retransmission window 213 for packet 2. If package No. 2 can arrive in time, it can still be placed in its serial order in exit window 211.

[0102] Fig. 8B illustrates how the FEC decoder 215 can divide buffer 205 into three windows similar to those used by the retransmission request unit 210: exit window 216, activation window 217 and receive window 218. Exit window 216 can be defined as starting at threshold FEC 219 and can generate serial packet stream 206. Again, be aware that any discussion below regarding traffic or following packets 203 within Intelligent Resync Buffer 205 can only relate to logical traffic defined by sliding windows 216, 217 and 218.

[0103] Functionally, exit window 216 and receive window 218 may be equivalent to windows 211 and 213, respectively, defined for the requesting unit retransmission 210. Missing packets 203 that are still in receiving window 218 cannot be dealt with and no further processing for missing can be initiated 203 packets that crossed the FEC 219 threshold and entered exit window 216. However, similarly to the relationship between window 212 and windows 211 and 213, the size and location of windows 216 and 218 can be determined by the size and location of the activation window 217. Therefore, although windows 216 and 218 are functionally similar to windows 211 and 213, their respective sizes and locations may vary.

[0104] Missing packets in the activation window 217 can be played using the FEC codes of other packets 203 that have already arrived and have been placed in the smart resynchronization buffer 205. Therefore, the size and location of the activation window 217 may be functions of the FEC percentage used and the amount of time needed to play the package

203.

[0105] For example, Figure 8B shows window 217 as an exemplary size of ten packets 203. This can illustrate the case where the FEC percentage was defined requiring nine received packets 203 in order to reconstruct the tenth packet, for example missing packet 10. In figure 8B also shows an example of the size of five 203 packets for output window 216. This may illustrate a case where the time it takes to restore a missing packet may be similar to the time it may take to get five 203 packages out.

[0106] It should be understood that the sizes and locations of both retransmission window 212 and activation 217 may be exemplary. You can configure other sizes and locations to meet specific requirements and / or prevailing conditions. Also, be aware that sizes and locations can be reconfigured during operation to compensate for changing conditions and / or error rates. It is further important to be aware that both the retransmission requester 210 and the FEC 215 decoder can simultaneously use the same intelligent unsynchronization buffer 205.

Therefore, mechanisms 210 and 215 may have configurable priority settings to avoid conflicting and / or unnecessary actions.

[0107] Returning to Fig. 6, the serial packet stream 206 from the assembler engine 200 may be forwarded to the output speed controller 220. It should be understood that the serial packet stream 206 may ultimately be intended for live broadcast on television. Therefore, the output speed controller 220 can control the speed at which the serial packet stream 206 is released to maintain the appropriate transmission speed.

[0108] The output of the controller 220 may then be forwarded to the packet decapsulation unit 225, where packet overhead, including for example packet numbering and time stamps, may be removed. The resulting multimedia stream 230 may then be broadcast and / or stored for future use.

[0109] Reverse signal management unit 250 may include statistics collection unit 255 and reverse channel management unit 260. Statistics collecting unit 255 may receive a continuous stream of packet statistics from the intelligent synchronization buffer 205. Such statistics may include, for example, numbers of missing / restored packets as well as time stamps and packet numbers for received packets. The statistics gathering unit 255 may then forward these statistics to the return channel management unit 260. Such statistics may be provided in the raw state with little or no pre-processing. Such statistics can finally be processed and analyzed by the traffic analyzer 150 (Fig. 3). However, according to an alternative preferred embodiment of the present invention, such processing may also be included in feedback management unit 250.

[0110] Reverse path management unit 260 may also receive retransmission requests from retransmission requesting unit 210. Reverse path management unit 260 may then transmit such statistics and retransmission requests to virtual broadband unit 110 (Fig. 3) via reverse path 190. 190 can be any suitable connection to the virtual broadband unit 110.

[0111] As discussed above, using such packet statistics, the traffic analyzer 150 may be able to optimize the quality and flow of a plurality of connections 115 (Fig. 2) to thereby create a virtual broadband connection 118. It should be understood that combining such optimization with the error checking and correction functions of the virtual broadband receiver 130 may provide improved end-to-end quality service for the system 100.

[0112] In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, non-cellular wireless technologies may also be used for connections 115. For example, WiFi and / or WiMax and / or satellite technologies (eg BGAN) may be used instead of or in addition to virtual cellular networks for connecting broadband unit 110 with Internet. Similarly, WiFi and / or WiMax and / or satellite can be used by the virtual broadband receiver 130 to receive streams 201 (Fig. 6).

[0113] In another alternative embodiment of the present invention, the virtual wideband receiver 130 may be a mobile unit at a remote location. It can receive stream 201 via the same technologies used for broadcasting, e.g. cellular networks, WiFi and / or WiMax.

[0114] In another alternative embodiment of the present invention, the virtual wideband unit 110 and the virtual wideband receiver 130 may share wireless resources and / or may even be in the same physical unit.

[0115] While some features of the invention have been illustrated and described herein, many modifications, substitutions, changes and equivalents will now be disclosed to those of ordinary skill in the art.