Dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing device driver architecture

• US 20070083873A1
• Filed: 10/05/2006
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sierra Wireless Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Sierra Wireless Incorporated
• Inventors: Roychoudhury, Tilakraj, Kavanaugh, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 8,284,768 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/321
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/545 where tasks reside in different layers, e.g. user- and kernel-space

Abstract

Dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing may be accomplished by establishing one or more virtual channels with a multiplexing device function driver and a multifunction device coupled to a bus, determining one or more functions to be activated on the device, and for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of the activated function. The second-tier function driver has a function driver type. Establishment of the one or more virtual channels is accomplished using a multiplexing protocol and multiplexing device function driver with the multifunction device via a bus driver coupled to the bus.

Claims

1. An apparatus for dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing, comprising:

a bus;

a bus driver coupled to said bus;

a multifunction device coupled to said bus; and

a Multiplex Device Function Driver (MDFD) coupled to said bus driver for establishing one or more virtual channels with said device using a multiplexing protocol between said MDFD and said device via said bus driver;

determining one or more functions to be activated on said device; and

for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of

said activated function, said second-tier function driver having a function driver type.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MDFD is configured to use a fixed table lookup to associate each of said one or more virtual channels between said device and said MDFD with one of said second-tier function drivers.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MDFD is configured to use a fixed table lookup to associate a Data Link Connection (DLC) with one of said second-tier function drivers.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said function driver type comprises one or more of a Control Channel function, an AT/PPP data communication function, a diagnostic mode function, a control and status function, and a geo-location function.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MDFD is configured to use a fixed table lookup to associate each of said one or more virtual channels between said device and said MDFD with one of said second-tier function drivers.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said MDFD is configured to use one or more initial configuration query mechanisms to associate a Data Link Connection (DLC) with one of said second-tier function drivers.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said device is configured to use one or more unique function identifiers to differentiate protocol units for each functional unit of said device.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said one or more unique function identifiers comprise the Data Link Connection (DLC) identifiers in the 3GPP 27.010 protocol.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said bus comprises a Universal Serial Bus (USB).

10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said bus comprises an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers 1394 (IEEE 1394) bus.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said bus comprises a PCI-Express (PCIe) bus.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said multiplexing protocol comprises a non-bus based multiplexer protocol.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein said multiplexing protocol comprises the 3GPP 27.010 Terminal Equipment to User Equipment (TE-UE) multiplexer protocol.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said multiplexing protocol is based on one or more bus specific defined interface components.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said one or more bus specific defined interface components comprises one or more separate Universal Serial Bus (USB) endpoints for each virtual channel.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising using a fixed table lookup to associate each of said one or more virtual channels between said device and said MDFD with one of said second-tier function drivers.

16. A method for dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing, comprising:

establishing one or more virtual channels with a multiplexing device function driver and a multiftunction device coupled to a bus, said establishing using a multiplexing protocol and said multiplexing device function driver with said device via a bus driver coupled to said bus;

determining one or more functions to be activated on said device; and

for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of said activated function, said second-tier function driver having a function driver type.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising using a fixed table lookup to associate a Data Link Connection (DLC) with one of said second-tier function drivers.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein said function driver type comprises one or more of a Control Channel function, an AT/PPP data communication function, a diagnostic mode function, a control and status function, and a geo-location function.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising using a fixed table lookup to associate each of said one or more virtual channels between said device and said MDFD with one of said second-tier function drivers.

21. The method of claim 16, further comprising using one or more initial configuration query mechanisms to associate a Data Link Connection (DLC) with one of said second-tier function drivers.

22. The method of claim 16, further comprising using one or more unique function identifiers to differentiate protocol units for each functional unit of said device.

23. The method of claim 16 wherein said one or more unique function identifiers comprise the Data Link Connection (DLC) identifiers in the 3GPP 27.010 protocol.

24. The method of claim 16 wherein said bus comprises a Universal Serial Bus (USB).

25. The method of claim 16 wherein said bus comprises an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers 1394 (IEEE 1394) bus.

26. The method of claim 16 wherein said bus comprises a PCI-Express (PCIe) bus.

27. The method of claim 16 wherein said multiplexing protocol comprises a non-bus based multiplexer protocol.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein said multiplexing protocol comprises the 3GPP 27.010 Terminal Equipment to User Equipment (TE-UE) multiplexer protocol.

29. The method of claim 16 wherein said multiplexing protocol is based on one or more bus specific defined interface components.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein said one or more bus specific defined interface components comprises one or more separate Universal Serial Bus (USB) endpoints for each virtual channel.

31. An apparatus for dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing, comprising:

a bus;

a bus driver coupled to said bus;

a multifunction device coupled to said bus; and

a means for establishing one or more virtual channels with a multiplexing device function driver and said device coupled to a bus, said establishing using a multiplexing protocol and said multiplexing device function driver with said device via a bus driver coupled to said bus;

determining one or more functions to be activated on said device; and

for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of said activated function, said second-tier function driver having a function driver type.

32. An apparatus for dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing, comprising:

means for establishing one or more virtual channels with a multiplexing device function driver and a multifunction device coupled to a bus, said establishing using a multiplexing protocol and said multiplexing device function driver with said device via a bus driver coupled to said bus;

means for determining one or more functions to be activated on said device; and

means, for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of said activated function, said second-tier function driver having a function driver type.

33. A program storage device readable by a machine, embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method for dynamic bus-based virtual channel multiplexing, the method comprising:

establishing one or more virtual channels with a multiplexing device function driver and a multifuction device coupled to a bus, said establishing using a multiplexing protocol and said multiplexing device function driver with said device via a bus driver coupled to said bus;

determining one or more functions to be activated on said device; and

for each activated function, launching a second-tier function driver to handle operation of said activated function, said second-tier function driver having a function driver type.