On guaranteed bandwidth channels

This paper introduces a new scheme and design of a protocol for guaranteed bandwidth channels. Given traffic characteristics of media streams, it is possible to bound delays experienced through each node in the network, using appropriate discretion at channel establishment time. Once a channel with such bounded delays is established, our scheme uses feedback techniques to match the flow of media units at each node with that of the playback rate at the client site. The feedback is triggered by preset marks in the buffers at each node called water marks. The receipt of a feedback by a node changes the rate of flow at that node, thus matching the rate of playback at the client. Jitter is implicitly controlled in such a scheme, as buffering absorbs the different delays experienced by media units. The scheme also provides continuity of playback for multimedia streams, removing this responsibility from the higher software layers at the client. We present analytical proofs that our scheme provides guaranteed bandwidth and prove the protocol safe. Further, simulation results are provided to validate the protocol