Multiplexing spacer outputs on cell emissions

In ATM networks, one effective way to provide service guarantees is to shape individual traffic streams at various points in the network. In the paper, the authors present a method for multiplexing a large number of single-stream spacer outputs on cell emissions rather than on cell arrivals. The method not only approximates first come first served (FCFS) multiplexing of such outputs but also better suits bursty arrivals. A number of performance related issues of the proposed method are identified and examined.