Method and apparatus for a high-speed multimedia content switch with compressed internet protocol header

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The preferred embodiment of the present invention describes the technical requirements for a high-speed multimedia content switch with a compressed IP header (e.
g.
, real-time transport protocol (RTP)).
The underlined IP network supports a multi-protocol label switch (MPLS).
The present invention augments the header compression algorithm and the MPLS protocols to accommodate faster header compression functions through the IP network.
FIG.
1 illustrates the architecture of a header compression unit 100 and a header decompression unit 170.
The header compression unit 100 comprises three (3) components: a packet skimmer 110, a header compression engine 120 and a MPLS proxy engine 130.
The header decompression unit 170 essentially comprises the same three (3) components as the header compression unit 100: a MPLS proxy engine 180, a header decompression engine 190 and a packet skimmer 200.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention interconnects the header compression and decompression engines 120, 190 to a plurality of IP routers 140, 160 and the IP network 150 via the packet skimmers 110, 200 and the MPLS proxy engines 130, 180.
FIG.
2 illustrates a logical diagram of the net effect of the header compression and decompression units 100, 170 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
In operation, IP packets 210 are fed into the header compression unit 100, via the packet skimmer 110, from the IP network 150.
The packet skimmer 110 is an IP switch with the capability of matching the header and payload of the IP packet 210 with a predefined pattern at wire speed.
The packet skimmer 110 has two (2) major functions.
First, the packet skimmer 110 takes the IP packets 210 from the IP network 150, processes the IP header and routes the IP packet 210 based on a routing table.
The packet skimmer 110 exchanges IP routing information with directly connected IP routers 140 to build the dynamic routing entries in the routing table