Playout buffering in ip telephony: a survey discussing problems and approaches

Playout buffering is a key component in telephony over IP services. It allows the receiver to compensate network jitter and to resynchronize the received packets flows so as to achieve smooth voice decoding. The management of the playout buffer heavily influences the final quality of service (QoS), since the packet loss rate and total one-way delay depend upon it. In this article, starting from an analysis of the jitter impairment in real-time voice communications, we survey the approaches that have been proposed in the past to address this problem. A classification and a chronological timeline of strategies and breakthroughs are provided, with an analysis of interactions with other related areas. Particular attention is devoted to the techniques employing sophisticated speech quality models, which represent the latest advance in this field. The article ends with an analysis of the advantages and weaknesses of the proposed solutions. PLAYOUT BUFFERING IN IP TELEPHONY: A SURVEY DISCUSSING PROBLEMS AND APPROACHES 3RD QUARTER 2006, VOLUME 8, NO. 3 www.comsoc.org/pubs/surveys

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