System for managing a cost-constrained resource

A system comprising:

• a cost-constrained resource wherein the cost-constrained resource is constrained by the number of resource consumers that can access it concurrently;
• a plurality of resource consumers adapted to request access to the cost-constrained resource, where each of the plurality of resource consumers is adapted to provide values corresponding to a degree of need that the resource consumer has for access to the cost-constrained resource, the degree of need is determined based on an amount of data stored in a data buffer of the cost-constrained resource relative to a total amount of data that the data buffer is operable to store, wherein the data stored in the data buffer is processed by the resource consumer;
• and
• a concurrency arbitrator adapted to:
• receive concurrent requests from at least two of the plurality of resource consumers;
• determine a need value for each resource consumer requesting access to the cost-constrained resource, where the need value corresponds to the values provided by the plurality of resource consumers;
• determine which resource consumer is to have access to the cost-constrained resource;
• grant access by the determined resource consumer to the cost-constrained resource based on the determined need value;
• and
• control a rate of data output from the cost-constrained resource to the plurality of resource consumers based on data throughput requirements of the plurality of resource consumers.

A system comprising:

• a cost-constrained resource wherein the cost-constrained resource is constrained by the number of resource consumers that can access it concurrently;
• a plurality of resource consumers adapted to request access to the cost-constrained resource, where the cost constrained resource includes one or more buffers storing data that is to be transferred to at least two of the plurality of resource consumers;
• and
• a concurrency arbitrator adapted to:
• receive concurrent requests from at least two of the plurality of resource consumers;
• determine which resource consumer is to have access to the cost-constrained resource;
• and
• grant access to the cost-constrained resource to a given resource consumer of the at least two of the plurality of resource consumers based on an amount of data stored in the one or more buffers of the cost-constrained resource that is to be transferred to the given resource consumer.

A method for controlling access to a cost-constrained resource comprising:

• requesting access to the cost-constrained resource by a plurality of resource consumers wherein the cost-constrained resource is constrained by the number of resource consumers that can access it concurrently;
• generating need values in each of the plurality of resource consumers that indicate the need that each resource consumer has for access for the cost-constrained resource, where the need values are based on an amount of data stored in a data buffer of the respective resource consumer relative to a total amount of data that the data buffer is operable to store, wherein the data stored in the data buffer is processed by the resource consumer;
• transmitting the need values to a concurrency arbitrator;
• and
• controlling access to the cost-constrained resource using the concurrency arbitrator wherein the concurrency arbitrator is adapted to receive concurrent requests from at least two of the plurality of resource consumers and use the need values of each of the resource consumers to determine which resource consumer is to have access to the cost-constrained resource, where the concurrency arbitrator grants access to the cost-constrained resource to a determined resource consumer based on the need values provided by the plurality of resource consumers.