This method, which is entitled staggered stripping, will provide effective support for multiple users accessing the different objects in the database . It consists of allocating continuous media objects to a parallel collection of rotating storage devices such that: (a) the fetch of an object can be accomplished at a predefined rate (bytes/sec) that matches the desired delivery rate for the object, (b) at each instant only a subset of the storage device is used for a particular request for an object, (c) the exact subset of storage devices being used for a particular request changes over time in such a way that the request presents a balanced load across all of the storage devices, and (d) the allocation and scheduling scheme can accommodate a wide range of required object delivery rates without incurring "collisions" between requests.

In staggered stripping, the exact method of stripping is a function of the object bandwidth requirement. Finally, this method of allocation enables a very efficient and simple scheduling algorithm.

Reference: UCLA Case No. 1995-524

US Patent Number: 5,799,174