Lossless aggregation for transporting stored video over a CBR communications channel

Video information can be transmitted using a variable bit rate (VBR) or a constant bit rate (CBR) virtual channel in a broadband network (e.g., an ATM network). CBR transmission has many advantages from the networking standpoint: multiplexing, bandwidth allocation, user/network contractual agreement, and network-usage tariff are all simpler under the CBR transmission framework. This paper considers how to deliver video over a CBR channel. It introduces a new concept called lossless aggregation for the transmission of a bundle of stored videos over a common channel. No data is dropped during the adaptation process and hence it does not cause any image degradation. We show that significant receiver buffer reduction can be achieved using lossless aggregation.