Statistical Multiplexing for Digital Audio Broadcasting Applications

In a shared telecommunications medium such as the Eureka 147 Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) system, we expect that available bandwidth will be optimally allocated to different users. This paper proposes optimal bandwidth allocation by use of statistical multiplexing that both service providers and multiplex operators can benefit from. Moreover, an auditory-based objective measure (i.e., ITU-R PEAQ) has been employed to make sure that the encoded audio materials maintain "broadcast quality". In our simulations of statistical multiplexing of five different "broadcast quality" radio programs, we show that a variable bit rate (VBR) stream with an average bit rate of 192 kbps could be saved as extra bandwidth in DAB to create new services. We also show that this VBR stream provides at least 112 kbps of extra capacity 98.5% of the time. The extra bandwidth can be used to transmit new audio programs, data or any side information to augment the radio listening experience.