Communication system and method for distributing content

摘要

A wireless communication system performs high-quality communication using Multicast communication where re-transmission processing is performed. The wireless communication system includes a program distribution unit for distributing a program using the Multicast communication; a first communication path for transmitting the program distributed from the program distribution unit; first communication units; user terminals; and a second and the user terminal and is also a wireless communication path where the re-transmission of a frame is performed, wherein the first communication unit selects a Multicast frame of a program requested by the user terminal from the first communication path, converts the selected Multicast frame into a Unicast frame, and transmits the converted Unicast frame to the user terminal.

主权项

1. A communication system, comprising:
a first communication device; and a second communication device, wherein the first communication device includes: a first content receiving unit operable to receive, via a first communication path, a Multicast frame which stores a content and has a Multicast IP address as a destination address at a Network Layer of the Multicast frame; a conversion unit operable to convert the received Multicast frame into a Unicast frame addressed to the second communication device, the Unicast frame having only one IP header storing only one Multicast IP address, which is the same as the Multicast IP address of the Multicast frame, as a destination address at a Network Layer of the Unicast frame, the Unicast frame also having a Media Access Control (MAC) address of the second communication device as a destination address at a Data Link Layer of the Unicast frame, the only one Multicast IP address in the Unicast frame being stored in an IP header of the Unicast frame, the MAC address in the Unicast frame being stored in a MAC header of the Unicast frame, the IP header and the MAC header being adjacent to each other with no information therebetween, and the IP header storing the Multicast IP address, wherein there is no IP address between the Multicast IP address stored in the IP header and the MAC header; and a first content transmission unit operable to transmit the converted Unicast frame to the second communication device via a second communication path, based on a protocol having a re-transmission processing, and the second communication device includes: a second content receiving unit operable to receive the Unicast frame transmitted via the second communication path from the first communication device based on the protocol having the re-transmission processing, wherein the re-transmission processing is performed at a Media Access Control (MAC) layer that is a layer lower than a layer of a communication protocol defining the Multicast frame.