Time-division multiple-access method for packet transmission on shared synchronous serial buses
DC CAFCFirst Claim
1. Data communications apparatus comprising:
- a time division multiplexed bus having a bandwidth, where a portion of the bandwidth is allotted to packet data;
a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus that share the allotted bandwidth for transmitting packet data; and
a distributed packet manager within each of said packet data sources configured to allocate access to the allotted bandwidth among said packet data sources.
6 Assignments
Litigations
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A plurality of packet data sources, e.g., packet application modules, and synchronous data sources, e.g., synchronous application modules, are coupled to the same TDM bus for communicating data to a network access module. A portion of the bandwidth, or time-slots, of the TDM bus is allocated as a multiple-access packet channel that is shared among the packet application modules. As a result, the network access module receives a single, continuously multiplexed, packet stream for transmission to an opposite endpoint. Packet application modules on the TDM bus contend for this multiple access packet channel when transmitting to the opposite endpoint. In the receiving direction, each packet application module accepts the entire received packet stream from the network access module and may either filter the packets using their address field or may transparently forward the data to a packet service.
88 Citations
32 Claims
-
1. Data communications apparatus comprising:
-
a time division multiplexed bus having a bandwidth, where a portion of the bandwidth is allotted to packet data; a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus that share the allotted bandwidth for transmitting packet data; and a distributed packet manager within each of said packet data sources configured to allocate access to the allotted bandwidth among said packet data sources. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
-
-
4. Data communications apparatus comprising:
-
a time-division multiplexed bus having a bandwidth, where a portion of the bandwidth is allocated to packet data; a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus that share the allocated bandwidth for transmitting packet data; a packet arbitration bus comprising a packet request signal and a packet hold signal; interface circuitry coupled to the packet arbitration bus, said interface circuitry inserting packets to the allocated bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus, and performing a counting function by counting time-slots of the allocated bandwidth so long as the packet request signal is not asserted; and a packet data processor for providing the packets from a packet endpoint to the interface circuitry. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6)
-
-
7. Communications apparatus comprising:
-
a time-division multiplexed bus having a predefined bandwidth; a plurality of synchronous data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating synchronous data in a first portion of the predefined bandwidth; a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating packet data in a second portion of the predefined bandwidth, where the plurality of packet data sources share the second portion of the predefined bandwidth for transmitting packet data; and a distributed packet manager within each of said packet data sources configured to allocate access to the second portion of the predefined bandwidth among said packet data sources. - View Dependent Claims (8, 10)
-
-
9. Communications apparatus comprising:
-
a time-division multiplexed bus having a predefined bandwidth; a plurality of synchronous data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating synchronous data in a first portion of the predefined bandwidth; and a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating packet data in a second portion of the predefined bandwidth, where the plurality of packet data sources share the second portion of the predefined bandwidth for transmitting packet data, the second portion of the predefined bandwidth being shared in such a way that only one of the plurality of packet data sources accesses the second portion of the predefined bandwidth at a time.
-
-
11. Communications apparatus comprising:
-
a time-division multiplexed bus having a predefined bandwidth; a plurality of synchronous data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating synchronous data in a first portion of the predefined bandwidth; a plurality of packet data sources coupled to the time-division multiplexed bus for communicating packet data in a second portion of the predefined bandwidth, where the plurality of packet data sources share the second portion of the predefined bandwidth for transmitting packet data, wherein each one of the plurality of packet data sources includes interface circuitry to the time-division multiplexed bus for synchronizing packet data to the time-division multiplexed bus, and the interface circuitry includes a counter for counting time-slots representing the second portion of the predefined bandwidth. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14)
-
-
15. A method for use in a data communications apparatus for transmitting packet data on a time-division multiplexed bus, the method comprising the steps of:
-
coupling a plurality of packet data sources to the time-division multiplexed bus; allocating a portion of the bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus to the plurality of packet data sources in such a way that the allocated portion is shared among the plurality of packet data sources; transmitting packet data from the plurality of packet data sources on the allocated portion of the bandwidth; and controlling access by said packet data sources to the allocated portion of the bandwidth via a distributed packet manager within each of said packet data sources.
-
-
16. A method for use in a data communications apparatus for transmitting packet data on a time-division multiplexed bus, the method comprising the steps of:
-
coupling a plurality of packet data sources to the time-division multiplexed bus; allocating a portion of the bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus to the plurality of packet data sources in such a way that the allocated portion is shared among the plurality of packet data sources; assigning to each one of the plurality of packet data sources an identification number; counting, in each one of the plurality of packet data sources, a sequence of time-slots representing the allocated portion of the bandwidth; and transmitting packet data from one of the plurality of packet data sources on the allocated portion of the bandwidth only when the value of the count matches the respective identification number assigned to that packet data source. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. A method for transmitting packet data on a time-division multiplexed bus in data communications equipment, the method comprising the steps of:
-
allocating a portion of the bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus as a multiple-access packet channel; coupling a plurality of packet data sources to the time-division multiplexed bus; controlling the access by said packet data sources to the allocated portion of the bandwidth via a distributed packet manager within each of said packet data sources; transmitting packet data from the one of the plurality of packet data sources having access to the multiple-access packet channel. - View Dependent Claims (26)
-
-
21. A method for transmitting packet data on a time-division multiplexed bus in data communications equipment, the method comprising the steps of:
-
allocating a portion of the bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus as a multiple-access packet channel; coupling a plurality of packet data sources to the time-division multiplexed bus; assigning a unique identification number to each one of the plurality of packet data sources; counting, in each one of the plurality of packet data sources, a sequence of time-slots representing the multiple-access packet channel; granting access to the multiple-access packet channel to that one of the plurality of packet data sources that requests access when the value of the count matches the respective identification number of that packet data source; and transmitting packet data from the one of the plurality of packet data sources having access to the multiple-access packet channel. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
-
-
25. A method for transmitting packet data on a time-division multiplexed bus for use in data communications equipment, the method comprising the steps of:
-
allocating a portion of the bandwidth of the time-division multiplexed bus as a multiple-access packet channel; coupling a plurality of packet data sources to the time-division multiplexed bus; arbitrating between the plurality of packet data sources to grant access to the multiple-access packet channel to one of the plurality of packet data sources at a time; and transmitting packet data from the one of the plurality of packet data sources having access in the arbitrating step only if a packet hold signal is not asserted by another one of the plurality of packet data sources.
-
-
27. A data communications apparatus, comprising;
-
a time-division multiplexed bus with a bandwidth which is split into at least two portions, one of the portions being allocated for packet data; a plurality of packet data sources coupled to said time-division multiplexed bus, the packet data sources transmitting packet data on said portion allocated for packet data; and means for arbitrating access to the portion of the time-division multiplexed bus allocated for packet data among the plurality of packet data sources. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
-
Specification