Data streaming communication system and method

1. A data communication system for communicating one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, the auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a respective packet destination address, the system comprising:

at least two data handling nodes, a transmitting one of said data handling nodes configured to transmit data to a receiving one of said data handling nodes across a data connection link;

a transmission data formatter associated with said transmitting node configured to format said data packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format and multiplex said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream;

a received data reformatter associated with said receiving node configured to demultiplex said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal and reformat said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of said auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

a packetizer, associated with said transmitting node, configured to arrange said auxiliary data signal into data packets.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein said data packet protocol is an Ethernet packet protocol.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein said data connection link comprises a physical layer of an Ethernet link.

5. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

a clock transmitter configured to transmit a clock signal, associated with said payload streamed data signal, from said transmitting node to said receiving node.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein said one or more payload streamed data signals are audio signals.

7. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

an auxiliary data packet router associated with said receiving node configured to route packets of said auxiliary data signal in accordance with said respective packet destination address.

8. A data transmitting node for transmitting one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal to a receiving node, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said transmitting node comprising:

a transmission data formatter configured to format said packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format and multiplex said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream.

9. A data receiving node for receiving a transmission bitstream comprising one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said packets of said auxiliary data signal being formatted into a streamed data signal format and multiplexed with said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into the transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream; said receiving node comprising:

a received data reformatter configured to demultiplex said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal and reformat said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.

10. A method of data communication system for communicating one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said method comprising:

formatting, at a transmitting node, said packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format and multiplexing said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream; and

demultiplexing, at a receiving node, said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal and reformatting said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of said auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.

11. A method of transmitting one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal to a receiving node, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said method comprising:

formatting said data packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format; and

multiplexing said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream.

12. A method of receiving a transmission bitstream comprising one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said packets of said auxiliary data signal being formatted into a streamed data signal format and multiplexed with said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into the transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream; said method comprising:

demultiplexing said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal; and

reformatting said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of said auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with program code, which when executed by a communication system, causes the communication system to perform a method of communicating one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, the method comprising:

formatting, at a transmitting node, said packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format and multiplexing said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream; and

demultiplexing, at a receiving node, said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal and reformatting said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of said auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.

14. A non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with program code, which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method of transmitting one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal to a receiving node, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said method comprising:

formatting said data packets of said auxiliary data signal into a streamed data signal format; and

multiplexing said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into a transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with program code, which when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform a method of receiving a transmission bitstream comprising one or more payload streamed data signals and an auxiliary data signal, said auxiliary data signal being arranged as one or more data packets according to a data packet protocol, each packet having a packet destination address, said packets of said auxiliary data signal being formatted into a streamed data signal format and multiplexed with said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal into the transmission bitstream for transmission so that bits of the formatted auxiliary data signal are periodically interspersed as single bits amongst bits of the payload streamed data signals in the transmission bitstream, said method comprising:

demultiplexing said transmission bitstream into said payload streamed data signals and said formatted auxiliary data signal; and

reformatting said demultiplexed formatted auxiliary data signal into packets of said auxiliary data signal according to said data packet protocol.