Channel Access Method

What Does Channel Access Method Mean?

Channel access method (CAM) is used in telecommunications and computer networks to allow network terminals to share media capacity through a multipoint transmission medium. CAM examples include bus, hub, wireless and ring networks.

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A channel access scheme is based on a multiplexing method, which allows several data streams or signals to share the same communication channel or physical medium. Furthermore, it is also based on a multiple access protocol and control mechanism known as media access control (MAC).

Channel access method is also know as multiple access method.

Techopedia Explains Channel Access Method

CAM is based on the following protocol features:

  • Physical layer multiplexing
  • The media access control layer, which handles addressing and collision prevention
  • Token passing
  • Polling, a continuous slave/master data querying process
  • Contention or node network access competition

There are four CAM schemes:

  • Frequency division multiple access
  • Time division multiple access
  • Code division multiple access
  • Spatial division multiple access
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Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…