Method And System For Energy Efficient Signaling For 100MBPS Ethernet Using A Subset Technique

• US 20090154500A1
• Filed: 10/01/2008
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Powell, Scott, Diab, Wael William
• Granted Patent: US 8,588,254 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/477
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40032 Details regarding a bus interface enhancer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40136 Nodes adapting their rate to the physical link properties LAN switches H04L49/351
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/00 Reducing energy consumption in communication networks

Abstract

Aspects of a method and system for energy efficient signaling for 100 mbps Ethernet using a subset are provided. In this regard, a network device enabled to communicate over a network link at 1 Gbps or faster may be configured to communicate over the network link at, or approximately at, 100 Mbps by reducing a number of active channels over which the network device communicates and/or reducing a size of a signal constellation utilized by the network device to encode data. The device may communicate according to 1GBASE-T or 10GBASE-T standards. The number of active channels may be reduced to a single bidirectional channel or two unidirectional channels. The signal constellation may be reduced to two or three levels. One or more components of the network device may be unnecessary for recovering data when communicating at 100 Mbps and may thus be powered down, or placed into a lower power mode.

Claims

1. A method for networking, the method comprising:

in a network device enabled to communicate over a network link at 1 Gbps or faster, configuring said network device to communicate over said network link at, or approximately at, 100 Mbps by reducing a number of active channels over which said network device communicates and/or reducing a size of a signal constellation utilized by said network device to encode data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said network device is enabled to communicate utilizing 1GBASE-T standards.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said network device is enabled to communicate utilizing 10GBASE-T standards.

4. The method according to claim 1, comprising reducing said number of active channel to two, wherein each channel communicates data unidirectionally.

5. The method according to claim 1, comprising reducing said number of active channels to one, wherein said one channel communicates data bidirectionally.

6. The method according to claim 1, comprising reducing said size of said signal constellation to three levels.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein said three levels correspond to constellation points +1, 0, and −

1 of the 1GBASE-T standard.

8. The method according to claim 1, comprising reducing said size of said signal constellation to two levels.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein said two levels correspond to constellation points +1, 0 of the 10GBASE-T standard.

10. The method according to claim 1, comprising powering down, or placing into a lower power mode, one or more components of said network device that are unnecessary for recovering data when communicating at 100 Mbps.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein said components may comprise one or more of a convolutional encoder, a Viterbi encoder, a multiplier in a decision feedback equalizer, a multiplier in a cancellation filter, a low density parity check encoder, and a partial response filter.

12. A system for networking, the system comprising:

one or more circuits for use in a network device enabled to communicate over a network link at 1 Gbps or faster, said one or more circuits operable to configure said network device to communicate over said network link at, or approximately at, 100 Mbps by reducing a number of active channels over which said network device communicates and/or reducing a size of a signal constellation utilized by said network device to encode data.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein said network device is enabled to communicate utilizing 1GBASE-T standards.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein said network device is enabled to communicate utilizing 10GBASE-T standards.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to reduce said number of active channel to two, wherein each channel communicates data unidirectionally.

16. The method according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to reduce said number of active channels to one, wherein said one channel communicates data bidirectionally.

17. The method according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to reduce said size of said signal constellation to three levels.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said three levels correspond to constellation points +1, 0, and −

1 of the 1GBASE-T standard.

19. The method according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to reduce said size of said signal constellation to two levels.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein said two levels correspond to constellation points +1, 0 of the 10GBASE-T standard.

21. The method according to claim 12, wherein said one or more circuits are operable to power down, or place into a lower power mode, one or more components of said network device that are unnecessary for recovering data when communicating at 100 Mbps.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein said components may comprise one or more of a convolutional encoder, a Viterbi encoder, a multiplier in a decision feedback equalizer, a multiplier in a cancellation filter, a low density parity check encoder, and a partial response filter.