Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for distributing communication scheduling. The method and apparatus schedule communication across a plurality of links through a link scheduler and schedule flows to be communicated across the plurality of links through a flow scheduler. Typically, the link scheduler is positioned a distance from the flow scheduler. In one embodiment, the method and apparatus utilize a plurality of flow schedulers where each schedules flows across one of the plurality of links.

Abstract: The present invention advantageously addresses the needs above as well as other needs through a method and apparatus for providing distributed admission control for a communication network. The method and apparatus are configured to receive new flows at a terminal and determine at the terminal the amount of resources available to the terminal. The terminals accept new flows if there are sufficient available resources and deny new flows if there is insufficient available resources. The method and apparatus further manage the bandwidth for flows of the communication network from an access point. The access point includes a bandwidth manager which reserves bandwidth for flows if there is available time within communication frames.

Abstract: A method of automatic repeat request (ARQ) for a plurality of packets to be transmitted to a receiver, and a means for accomplishing the method, the method includes the step of: performing automatic repeat request for packets belonging to respective ones of a plurality of packet flows independent from and without affecting the transmission of packets of others of the plurality of packet flows, wherein each of the plurality of packet flows corresponds to a specified type of service. The packets belonging to the different flows are transmitted within the same transmit frame. In some variations, the method is implemented as a selective repeat ARQ method and may be used between any generic transmitter and receiver within a point to point system or a network topology, such as a wireless indoor local area network.

Abstract: A closed form solution is provided in a receiver, such as an OFDM receiver, including the step of determining an uncoded bit error rate (BER) at an output of a demodulator of a receiver based upon at least a target BER to be achieved after the completion of forward error correction at the receiver. In a variation, the solution is used to provide an optimum bit loading algorithm designed to meet the target BER and including the steps of: measuring a channel condition metric corresponding to a signal received from a transmitter at a receiver via a communication channel; and determining an optimum number of bits/symbol supportable by the communication channel based upon at least the measured channel condition metric and the target BER. In some variations, these closed form solutions may be performed offline and stored in the receiver as a lookup table.