摘要 |
The invention encompasses a method of preparing data for transmission, which method comprises: multiplexing data from a plurality of sources (S1, . . . Si, . . . Sn), the multiplexing comprising, for at least one source (Si), classifying the data from the source (Si) into two or more classes (C1,f.Cj, . . . Cm) according to the data's priority, and mapping data from the sources into positions in a data structure (D) according both to the class (Cj) of the data and to a further priority assigned to the source (Si) from which the data originated, the division of data into classes (C1, . . . Cj, . . . Cm) and/or the prioritization of the sources (S1, . . . Si, . . . Sn) being done according to the potential impact of transmission errors on the data; and sub-dividing the data in the data structure (D) into frames while preserving the relative prioritization of the data. The sources may be various multi-media sources. Also disclosed are a method of forward error correction (FEC) encoding the multiplexed data for transmission while maintaining the data's relative prioritization, and a method for decoding and de-multiplexing data. Apparatus for implementing these methods is also disclosed.
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