User's Manual

SkyGateway/SkyExtender Installation And Configuration
September 2004 1-5
Scheduling and
Bandwidth
Management
As mentioned, the SkyPilot System supplements the 802.11 protocol with
sophisticated synchronization. By transmitting over different antennas in
different 100us mini-slots of the one-second synchronization frame, a
SkyPilot basestation or node provides 360° coverage through multiple high-
power point-to-point connections. In addition, highly accurate traffic rate
control and jitter control are enabled.
Bandwidth management within a network presents a particular challenge
due to the high number of interconnections, with each SkyExtender node
typically communicating with a multitude of others. The SkyPilot system
ensures that mini-slots are provided over each link, with the number of mini-
slots used by each pair of nodes varying as subscriber bandwidth demand
changes.
The SkyPilot system provides rate control for subscriber traffic both in the
downstream (SkyGateWay to SkyConnector) and upstream (SkyConnector
to SkyGateWay) directions. Maximum upstream and downstream rates can
be specified for each subscriber. In conditions of oversubscription, when the
overall bandwidth demand is higher than system capacity, the individual
subscriber data rates will be reduced proportionately.