NETWORK CONTROLLER FOR DIGITALLY CONTROLLING REMOTE DEVICES VIA A COMMON BUS
First Claim
1. A method for digitally communicating between a network controller and a plurality of remote devices via a common bus, the method comprising:
- configuring the controller to selectively operate in accordance with any command protocol according to which the plurality of remote devices are capable of communicating, wherein at least some of the plurality of remote devices are capable of communicating according to only one command protocol, the command protocol being selected from the group consisting of Manchester encoding and a Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) protocol; and
transmitting messages between the bus controller and the plurality of remote devices according to the same command protocol with which respective remote devices are capable of communicating.
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Abstract
The present invention provides a network controller that directs communications with a variety of remote devices via a common bus. The network controller includes a transmitter for transmitting messages via the common bus, and a receiver for receiving messages from the common bus. Additionally, the network controller includes a clock for providing clock signals to both the transmitter and receiver. The transmitter and receiver are selected such that the network controller is capable of selectively operating in either synchronous or asynchronous mode. In operation, the network controller is configured in either a Manchester encoding or a Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) protocol. The transmitter transmits messages comprising a command and an address of at least one remote device. In one embodiment, the transmitter simultaneously transmits messages to a plurality of remote devices in accordance with a group address comprised of a multiple bits with each bit associated with a respective group.
113 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A method for digitally communicating between a network controller and a plurality of remote devices via a common bus, the method comprising:
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configuring the controller to selectively operate in accordance with any command protocol according to which the plurality of remote devices are capable of communicating, wherein at least some of the plurality of remote devices are capable of communicating according to only one command protocol, the command protocol being selected from the group consisting of Manchester encoding and a Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) protocol; and
transmitting messages between the bus controller and the plurality of remote devices according to the same command protocol with which respective remote devices are capable of communicating. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A network controller for digitally directing communications with a plurality of remote devices via a common bus, the network controller comprising:
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a transmitter for transmitting digital messages via the common bus;
a receiver for receiving digital messages from the common bus; and
a clock for providing clock signals to both said transmitter and said receiver, wherein both said transmitter and receiver are capable of selectively operating in accordance with any command protocol selected from the group consisting of Manchester encoding and Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter (UART) protocol, wherein said transmitter and receiver are responsive to a command protocol select command that identifies the command protocol according to which the plurality of remote devices are capable of communicating such that said transmitter and receiver thereafter transmit and receive messages, respectively, in accordance with the command protocol identified by the protocol select command, each of at least some of the plurality of remote devices being capable of communicating according to only one of Manchester encoding or the UART protocol. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A network controller for digitally directing communications with a plurality of remote devices via a common bus, the network controller comprising:
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a transmitter for transmitting digital messages via the common bus, said transmitter adapted to transmit messages comprising a command and an address of at least one remote device, said transmitter being further adapted to simultaneously transmit messages to a plurality of remote devices in accordance with a group address comprised of a plurality of bits with each bit associated with a respective group of remote devices, thereby enabling said transmitter to direct a message to a group of remote devices by setting the respective bit of the group address; and
a receiver for receiving digital messages from the common bus. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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Specification