# US 11,916,706 B2 · Gear shifting in a Skywave system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,916,706 B2 - Document ID: US11916706B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/651,981 - Filed: 2022-02-22 - Published: 2023-01-05 - Granted: 2024-02-27 - Earliest claimed: 2018-11-14 - Assignees: Skywave Networks LLC - Applicants: Skywave Networks LLC - Inventors: Kevin J. Babich; Terry Lee Vishloff - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11916706B2 ## CPC - H04L 1/0003: {by switching between different modulation schemes} - H04L 27/0008: {arrangements for allowing a transmitter or receiver to use more than one type of modulation (negotiating modulation type for two-way transmission paths H04L5/1453)} - G06Q 40/02: Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance (credit or loans G06Q40/03) - H04B 17/336: Signal-to-interference ratio [SIR] or carrier-to-interference ratio [CIR] - H04L 1/0025: {Transmission of mode-switching indication} - H04L 1/203: {Details of error rate determination, e.g. BER, FER or WER} - H04L 1/24: Testing correct operation - H04L 25/03019: {adaptive, i.e. capable of adjustment during data reception} - H04L 27/01: Equalisers {(baseband equalizers at the transmitter end H04L25/03343; in analogue transmission systems H04B3/04, H04B7/005)} - H04L 43/0823: Errors, e.g. transmission errors - H04L 43/0852: Delays - H04L 27/366: {Arrangements for compensating undesirable properties of the transmission path between the modulator and the demodulator} - H04L 2025/03726: {Switching between algorithms} - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04B: TRANSMISSION ## Abstract A gear shifting technique has been developed in which modulation and equalization are shifted to achieve optional performance. In one form, two or more equalizers, each associated with a demodulator and message decoder, determine if the modulation being used can be increased in complexity in order to increase the channel throughput or determine if the modulation method should be reduced in complexity in order to improve the receiver error performance. The quality metrics can based on which equalizer-demodulator-decoder is set to first detect a valid message. Other factors can be considered with this technique such as a packet-error ratio and a signal-to-noise ratio. In a financial trading system, message erasures can be favored over errored messages by limiting the number of bit or symbol corrections permitted per message to less than the maximum possible for the selected decoding schemes. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method, comprising: sending a financial instrument transaction instruction via a communication system; wherein the communication system includes a first demodulator-equalizer unit, a second demodulator-equalizer unit, and a third demodulator-equalizer unit; operating the first demodulator-equalizer unit at a second modulation mode; operating the second demodulator-equalizer unit at a second modulation mode; wherein the first modulation mode has higher complexity than the second modulation mode; limiting a number of error corrections per message to less than a maximum possible for a selected decoding scheme; receiving at the communication system an indicator indicating a change to the first modulation mode will provide a system benefit; and upshifting the second demodulator-equalizer unit to the first demodulation mode. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the indicator includes financial performance of the communication system. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: wherein the first modulation mode has higher complexity than the third modulation mode; and upshifting the third demodulator-equalizer unit to the first demodulation mode. ### Claim 4 A method, comprising: sending a financial instrument transaction instruction via the communication system; limiting a number of error corrections per message to less than a maximum possible for a selected decoding scheme; receiving at a communication system an indicator indicating a change to a different modulation mode will provide a system benefit; wherein the communication system includes two or more demodulator-equalizer units; wherein the demodulator-equalizer units include a first demodulator-equalizer unit, a second demodulator-equalizer unit, and a third demodulator-equalizer unit; and wherein the first demodulator-equalizer unit has an equalizer with an equalizer processing time that is shorter than the other demodulator-equalizer units. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, further comprising: determining a packet error rate for the first demodulator-equalizer unit is below a minimum limit. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5, further comprising: instructing a modulator at a remote transmitter station to change to the different modulation mode. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6, further comprising: changing the second demodulator-equalizer unit and the third demodulator-equalizer unit to the different modulation mode; and changing equalizer processing time of the second demodulator-equalizer unit to the short equalizer processing time of the first demodulator-equalizer unit. ### Claim 8 A method, comprising: sending a financial instrument transaction instruction via the communication system; limiting a number of error corrections per message to less than a maximum possible for a selected decoding scheme; receiving at a communication system an indicator indicating a change to a different modulation mode will provide a system benefit; wherein the communication system includes two or more demodulator-equalizer units; wherein the demodulator-equalizer units include a first demodulator-equalizer unit, a second demodulator-equalizer unit, and a third demodulator-equalizer unit; and wherein the third demodulator-equalizer unit has a third equalizer with a long equalizer processing time that is longer than the other demodulator-equalizer units. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising: determining a packet error rate for the third demodulator-equalizer unit is below a minimum limit. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method of claim 9, further comprising: changing the first demodulator-equalizer unit and the second demodulator-equalizer unit to the different modulation mode; and changing equalizer processing time of the second demodulator-equalizer unit to the long equalizer processing time of the third demodulator-equalizer unit.