instantaneous transmission rate

In the transmission of data by a transmission facility or system, such as a link, a loop, or a trunk, the short-term rate at which the data are transmitted, given by the ratio of (a) the number of transmitted data units, such as bits, characters, or blocks, in a short performance measurement period to (b) the duration of the period, such as 50,000 bits in 25 ms (milliseconds), to yield an instantaneous transmission rate of 2 Mb · s⁻¹ (mbps, Mb/sec, megabits per second). Note: The instantaneous transmission rate may vary from 0 to the maximum possible or allowable rate. However, it usually is higher than the effective transmission rate, i.e., the average transmission rate. synonyms instantaneous transmission speed. See also binary digit, bit, byte, block, character, data rate, data signaling rate, effective transmission rate, efficiency factor, link, loop, performance measurement period, throughput, transmission rate, trunk.