A hop-by-hop, ER-based algorithm applied in ABR switches

A new ER-based switch algorithm for flow regulation of the ABR traffic in an ATM network, using a hop by hop strategy, is derived and discussed. Using this scheme, the network determines the load factor and the available capacity in each link. The scheme takes into account both the queue length and the growth rate of the queue length. As a result it explicitly acknowledges the sources about the rates at which they should transmit. The analysis is made possible with the use of a fluid approximation theory. Preliminary numerical results show that the algorithm works properly and that in steady state is stable focus. Therefore, its main purpose, namely to sponge all the available bandwidth for the ABR service is achieved.