Robert G Mullins

US Patent:

RE38619, Oct 12, 2004

Filed:

Jul 23, 1999

Appl. No.:

09/360100

Inventors:

Bernardo Paratore - Doylestown PA
Robert Patrick Mullins - Eagleville PA
Michael J. Gittings - Moorestown NJ
Dennis R. Clark - South Hampton PA

Assignee:

General Instrument Corporation - Horsham PA

International Classification:

H04J 316

US Classification:

370347, 370503

Abstract:

In a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) communication network, a central office (CO) provides interactive communication between a service provider and a plurality of user terminals. To synchronize transmissions of the user terminals, a timebase timer in the CO generates modulo N-bit cyclical reference counts as time markers. In a downstream direction to the plurality of user terminals, time marker insertion units in the CO receive both (a) separate digital TDMA transport streams having a predetermined data rate including data packets and Media Access Control (MAC) packets that are interspersed between the data packets at predetermined intervals, and (b) the time markers generated by the timebase timer, and insert a currently received time marker count into a concurrently received MAC packet. The resultant downstream TDMA transport streams with the inserted time marker counts in the MAC packets are transmitted in continuous TDMA output transport stream to the remote user terminals. The time markers are independent of a data rate, a physical channel, and a channel protocol of the transport stream.

US Patent:

56663587, Sep 9, 1997

Filed:

Oct 16, 1995

Appl. No.:

8/543702

Inventors:

Bernardo Paratore - Doylestown PA
Robert Patrick Mullins - Eagleville PA
Michael J. Gittings - Morrestown NJ
Dennis R. Clark - South Hampton PA

Assignee:

General Instrument Corporation of Delaware - Hatboro PA

International Classification:

H04J 316

US Classification:

370347

Abstract:

In a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) communication network, a central office (CO) provides interactive communication between a service provider and a plurality of user terminals. To synchronize transmissions of the user terminals, a timebase timer in the CO generates modulo N-bit cyclical reference counts as time markers. In a downstream direction to the plurality of user terminals, time marker insertion units in the CO receive both (a) separate digital TDMA transport streams having a predetermined data rate including data packets and Media Access Control (MAC) packets that are interspersed between the data packets at predetermined intervals, and (b) the time markers generated by the timebase timer, and insert a currently received time marker count into a concurrently received MAC packet. The resultant downstream TDMA transport streams with the inserted time marker counts in the MAC packets are transmitted in continuous TDMA output transport stream to the remote user terminals. The time markers are independent of a data rate, a physical channel, and a channel protocol of the transport stream.