Communication control system

• US 20020091970A1
• Filed: 06/15/2001
• Published: 07/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hideyuki Motoyama, Naoki Furudate, Shinichi Sakamoto
• Original Assignee: Hideyuki Motoyama, Naoki Furudate, Shinichi Sakamoto
• Inventors: Sakamoto, Shinichi, Motoyama, Hideyuki, Furudate, Naoki
• Granted Patent: US 6,748,551 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/43
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2028 eliminating a faulty processor or activating a spare
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2035 without idle spare hardware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/22 using redundant apparatus to increase reliability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40006 Architecture of a communication node current supply arrangements H04L12/10; intermediate storage or scheduling H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40182 by using a plurality of communication lines
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0094 Bus

Abstract

A communication control system equipped with an efficient and economical rescue architecture is provided. A rescue bus is connected to units in a multiple formation and is used for rescue from a fault. A line switch connects a signal in a channel on a line and a signal processing part that processes the signal in normal operation, and disconnects the signal from the signal processing part when a fault has occurred. A rescue bus connecting switch connects the line and the rescue bus when the fault has occurred. A rescue switch connects the rescue bus and a backup signal processing part that processes the signal instead of a faulty unit. A communication units includes a switch part made up of the above switches and the signal processing part. A rescue unit includes a switch part made up of the above switches and the backup signal processing part, and performs a complete rescue or a provisional rescue. A monitor control device monitors fault occurrence and controls the switch part.

Claims

1. A communication control system having a rescue architecture comprising:

a rescue bus connected to units in a multiple formation;

switch parts each including a line switch, a rescue bus connection switch and a rescue switch, the line switch connecting a signal in a channel on a line and a signal processing part that processes the signal in normal operation and disconnecting the signal from the signal processing part when a fault has occurred, the rescue bus connecting switch connecting the line and the rescue bus when the fault has occurred, the rescue switch connecting the rescue bus and a backup signal processing part that processes the signal instead of a faulty unit that is one of the units in which the fault has occurred;

at least one communication unit including one of said switch parts and said signal processing part;

a rescue unit including another one of said switch parts and said backup signal processing part and performing at least one of a complete rescue based on a unit basis and a provisional rescue based on a channel basis; and

a monitor control device monitoring occurrence of a fault and perform switch control of the switch parts.

2. The communication control system according to claim 1, wherein said rescue unit performs rescue that matches a transmission formation of the faulty unit.

3. The communication control system according to claim 2, wherein the rescue bus is a single rescue bus that is shared by communication units.

4. The communication control system according to claim 3, wherein the faulty unit is rescued by the rescue unit, so that the faulty unit can be disconnected and replaced.

5. The communication control system according to claim 3, wherein a faulty channel among channels of said at least one communication unit is rescued by the rescue unit so that normal channels continue to work and only the faulty channel is switched to a channel of the rescue unit.

6. The communication control system according to claim 2, further comprising a rescue bus selecting switch that selects an unused bus from among a plurality of rescue buses, the rescue unit being substituted for the faulty unit via the unused bus.

7. The communication control system according to claim 6, further comprising a plurality of rescue units equal in number to the plurality of rescue buses, so that the complete rescue can be performed, while faulty units equal in number to transmission systems of the plurality of rescue units can be disconnected and replaced.

8. The communication control system according to claim 6, wherein only a faulty channel is replaced by a channel of the rescue unit, while normal channels continue to work.

9. The communication control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rescue unit downloads, on a unit or channel basis, a process program having the same transmission system as that of the faulty unit from at least one of a memory in the rescue unit, said monitor control device and a maintenance terminal.

10. The communication control system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the rescue bus is a single rescue bus that is shared by communication units.

11. The communication control system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the process program that matches the transmission system of the faulty unit is downloaded to the rescue unit on the unit basis, so that the complete rescue can be performed, while the faulty unit can be disconnected and replaced.

12. The communication control system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the provisional rescue is performed so that a faulty channel is replaced by the rescue unit to which the process program that matches the transmission system of the faulty channel is downloaded on the channel basis, while normal channels continue to work.

13. The communication control system as claimed in claim 9, further comprising a rescue bus selecting switch that selects an unused bus from among a plurality of rescue buses, the rescue unit being substituted for the faulty unit via the unused bus.

14. The communication control system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the process program that matches the transmission system of the faulty unit is downloaded to the rescue unit on the unit basis, so that the complete rescue can be performed, while the faulty unit can be disconnected and replaced.

15. The communication control system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the provisional rescue is performed so that a faulty channel is replaced by the rescue unit to which the process program that matches the transmission system of the faulty channel is downloaded on the channel basis, while normal channels continue to work.

16. The communication control system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the rescue unit includes a first rescue unit that performs the complete rescue and a second rescue unit that performs the provisional rescue, so that rescue sequentially shifts from the provisional rescue to the complete rescue.