Definition: Isochronous Ethernet

National Semiconductor's enhancement to Ethernet for handling real-time voice and video. It adds 96 ISDN channels to standard 10 Mbps Ethernet and runs over the same Category 3 UTP that most 10Base-T networks use. Each ISDN B channel is 64 Kbps, providing a total bandwidth of 6.144 Mbps that can be used for videoconferencing. A D channel and maintenance channel are also provided.

Isochronous Ethernet can be integrated into an existing network by adding an Isochronous Ethernet hub in the wiring closet and replacing standard Ethernet with Isochronous Ethernet adapters.