Adaptive random access protocol for CATV networks

摘要

A communication system has a plurality of stations which communicate data in a data frame having a plurality of slots, wherein the plurality of slots are data slots DS and/or minislots MS. A master station determines a range parameter R which is based upon a number of slave stations transmitting reservation requests in a data frame, the master station determines a minislot parameter MP according to a number of reservation requests in a queue waiting to be processed by the master station, and the master station transmits the range parameter R and the minislot parameter MP to a plurality of slave stations. Each slave station independently determines a random transmission parameter N. Each slave station transmits a reservation request to the master station if its random transmission parameter N corresponds to the minislot parameter MP and abstains from transmitting a reservation request to the master station if its random transmission parameter N does not correspond to the minislot parameter MP.