Which statement defines jitter in a telemetry network?

• A. The variability in packet arrival times.
• B. The average end-to-end delay.
• C. The data rate variability due to modulation.
• D. The error rate of CRC checks.

Answer: (B)

Jitter is the variability in packet arrival times. In a telemetry network, timing predictability matters because data often needs to be processed or acted on in near real time. If packets arrive at perfectly regular intervals, there is little or no jitter; when some packets arrive earlier and others later than expected, those timing fluctuations are jitter. This variation can complicate buffering and timing guarantees, impacting the smoothness of telemetry streams and real-time decisions.

The average end-to-end delay describes the typical time it takes for a packet to travel from source to destination, which is about the overall latency rather than the variability of arrival times. Data rate variability due to modulation refers to changes in how fast data is transmitted, not when packets arrive. The error rate of CRC checks concerns data integrity—whether bits were corrupted during transmission—rather than timing differences.