Method and apparatus for providing optical internetworking to wide area networks, metropolitan area networks, and local area networks using modular components
First Claim
1. A method for providing an internetworking interface as a peripheral device to a computing system, the method comprising:
- providing an apparatus comprising a first connector for connecting the apparatus to the computing system as a peripheral of the computing system, a second connector for providing the internetworking interface, and a circuit for providing communication between the first connector and the second connector;
connecting the apparatus to the computing system as a peripheral of the computing system by use of the first connector;
connecting the apparatus to a network by use of the second connector; and
internetworking the network and the computing system through the first connector, the circuit, and the second connector.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An arrangement providing optical internetwork to Wide Area Networks (WAN), Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN), and/or Local Area Networks (LAN) as a peripheral device using modular components. WANs can be defined to include wireless, SONET/SDH, or DWDM networks for long haul applications. MANs can be defined to include wireless, Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH), or Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) networks for Metro applications. The exemplary apparatus comprises of a printed circuit board (PCB) with a Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) connector, which provides the interface to a WEB, DataBase (DB), General-Purpose (GP) server, workstation, or PC. The SCSI Optical Device (SOD) provides gateway functionality to WAN, MAN, or LAN. SOD'"'"'s processing is accomplished by one, two, or four processors depending on the OC rate of the optical (fiber) connection. Buffering of data is done by RAM memory located on the circuit board. The data is transmitted on the fiber using standard WAN or MAN protocols. The fiber connection is accomplished through a Network Interface Component (NIC) that consist of an eight way multiplex optical connector to the fiber and a standard Bus connector that interfaces to the circuit board. The NIC is removable and has eight optical frequencies. The SOD also has two slots for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) cards. The first PCMCIA card is required and provides software/firmware instructions for execution by the gateway processor(s). Without the first PCMCIA card, the SOD will not function. The second PCMCIA card is optional and provides an interface to perform field diagnostics and/or network management for trouble analysis via a LAN or TTY port.
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Citations
31 Claims
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1. A method for providing an internetworking interface as a peripheral device to a computing system, the method comprising:
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providing an apparatus comprising a first connector for connecting the apparatus to the computing system as a peripheral of the computing system, a second connector for providing the internetworking interface, and a circuit for providing communication between the first connector and the second connector;
connecting the apparatus to the computing system as a peripheral of the computing system by use of the first connector;
connecting the apparatus to a network by use of the second connector; and
internetworking the network and the computing system through the first connector, the circuit, and the second connector. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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14. An apparatus for providing an internetworking interface as a peripheral device to a computing system, the apparatus comprising:
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a first connector for connecting the apparatus to the computing system as a peripheral of the computing system;
a second connector for providing the internetworking interface; and
a circuit for providing communication between the first connector and the second connector.
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Specification