Bandwidth transfer switching system

• US 6,674,749 B1
• Filed: 01/04/2002
• Issued: 01/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: George Mattathil
• Original Assignee: George Mattathil
• Inventors: Mattathil, George
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hoang, Thai D
• Application Number:
  US09/622,252
• Time in Patent Office: 732 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352-356, 370/395.41, 370/395--39, 370/359, 370/463, 370/468-469
• US Class Current: 370/353
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/64 Hybrid switching systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/121 Details of network access arrangements or protocols

Abstract

A bandwidth transfer switching system (100) connecting various customer devices (12a-g), including local area networks (44), from customer premises (42) through a local loop (50) to a telco central office (50), to deliver switched circuit traffic to central office switches (60) and data packet traffic to wide area networks (64), such as the Internet. Access concentrators (104, 140) are employed at the customer premises (42), remote concentrators (106, 140) and optional relay nodes (160, 140) are employed in the local loop (50), and transfer switches (108, 140) are employed in the central office (56). Copper wire lines (166) and fiber optic lines (168) are used to handle typical protocols such as POTS, E1/T1/xDSL, and SONET between the various transfer nodes (140).

Claims

1. An improved communications system of the type in which:

a public switched telephone network has communications devices of both circuit switched and packet transfer types at a plurality of customer premises which intercommunicate via at least one telco central office with communications devices of respective like types;

the improvement comprising an access network including an access concentrator located at a first said customer premises, a remote concentrator located between said first said customer premises and a first said telco central office, and a transfer switch located at said first said telco central office;

wherein said access concentrator is suitable for;

accepting both switched signals from said circuit switched types of said communications devices and packet signals from said packet transfer types of said communications devices; and

communicating both of said switched signals and said packet signals as a terminating node signal over a first internal interface to said remote concentrator;

and wherein said remote concentrator is suitable for;

accepting said terminating node signal from said access concentrator; and

communicating said terminating node signal as a distributor node signal over a second internal interface to said transfer switch;

and wherein said transfer switch is suitable for;

accepting said distributor node signal from said remote concentrator;

separating said switched signals from said distributor node signal for transmission onward to instances of said circuit switched types of said communications devices at another said customer premises than said first said customer premises; and

separating said packet signals from said distributor node signal for routing onward to instances of said packet transfer types of said communications devices at another said customer premises than said first said customer premises.

2. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

said circuit switched types of said communications devices employ analog signal protocols; and

said access concentrator includes at least one plain old telephone system interface, to receive said switched signals from said circuit switched types of said communications devices.

3. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

said circuit switched types of said communications devices include members of the set consisting of telephone devices, facsimile devices, modem devices, and special service signaling devices; and

said access concentrator includes at least one plain old telephone system (POTS) interface, to receive said switched signals from said circuit switched types of said communications devices.

4. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

said packet transfer types of said communications devices employ ethernet signal protocols; and

said access concentrator includes at least one ethernet interface, to receive said packet signals from said packet transfer types of said communications devices.

5. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

said packet transfer types of said communications devices include members of the set consisting of computers, computerized digital devices, digital network devices, digital video units, and digital audio units; and

said access concentrator includes at least one digital network interface, to receive said packet signals from said packet transfer types of said communications devices.

6. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

said terminating node signal includes a circuit layer for said switched signals and a packet layer for said packet signal, wherein;

said circuit layer is configured as dedicated to a set number of sub-circuits when said access network is initially provisioned and thereby able to accommodate a like said number of said switched signals; and

said packet layer is dynamically shared and thereby able to include a quantity of said packet signal ranging from as few as none to as many as a plurality.

7. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein said first internal interface employs a protocol which is a member of the set consisting of POTS, T1, E1, DSx, and xDSL.

8. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein said second internal interface employs a protocol which is a member of the set consisting of POTS, T1, E1, DSx, SLC-96, GR-303, and SONET.

9. The improved communications system of claim 1, wherein:

the telco central office includes a central office switch connecting to said instances of said circuit switched types of said communications devices at said another said customer premises than said first said customer premises;

the telco central office includes a router connected to a digital network connecting to said instances of said packet transfer types of said communications devices at said another said customer premises than said first said customer premises; and

said transfer switch includes;

a first external interface connected to the central office switch, wherein said first external interface employs a protocol which is a member of the set consisting of T1, E1, and DSx to direct said switched signals into the central office switch; and

a second external interface connected to the digital network, wherein said second external interface employs a digital network protocol.

10. The improved communications system of claim 9, wherein said digital network protocol is an ethernet protocol.

11. The improved communications system of claim 1, further comprising at least one relay node located between said access concentrator and said remote concentrator, to communicate said terminating node signal over longer distances between the customer premises and the telco central office.

12. A method for bandwidth transfer on a public telecommunications network wherein communications devices using switched signals and packet signals are located at a plurality of customer premises and intercommunicate via at least one telco central office, the method comprising the steps of:

(1) accepting at least one customer signal from the communications devices into an access concentrator, wherein each said customer signal is a member of the set consisting of the switched signals and the packet signals;

(2) integrating all said customer signals received at said access concentrator into a terminating node signal;

(3) communicating said terminating node signal to a remote concentrator across a first internal interface;

(4) accepting at least one said terminating node signal at said remote concentrator;

(5) integrating all said terminating node signals received at said remote concentrator into a distributor node signal;

(6) communicating said distributor node signal to a transfer switch across a second internal interface;

(7) accepting at least one said distributor node signal at said transfer switch;

(8) separating all said switched signals from said distributor node signal and transmitting said switched signals onward to instances of said circuit switched types of said communications devices at another said customer premises than said first said customer premises; and

(9) separating all said packet signals from said distributor node signal and routing said packet signals onward to instances of said packet transfer types of said communications devices at another said customer premises than said first said customer premises.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said customer signal is an instance of the switched signals; and

said step (1) includes receiving said customer signal into a plain old telephone system interface.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said customer signal is from a member of the set consisting of telephone devices, facsimile devices, modem devices, and special service signaling devices; and

said step (1) includes receiving said customer signal into a plain old telephone system (POTS) interface.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said customer signal is an instance of the packet signals; and

said step (1) includes receiving said customer signal into an ethernet interface.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said customer signal is from a member of the set consisting of computers, computerized digital devices, digital network devices, digital video units, and digital audio units; and

said step (1) includes receiving said customer signal into a digital network interface.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein:

said terminating node signal includes a circuit layer for said switched signals and a packet layer for said packet signal, wherein;

said circuit layer is configured as dedicated to a set number of sub-circuits when said access network is initially provisioned and thereby able to accommodate a like said number of said switched signals; and

said packet layer is dynamically shared and thereby able to include a quantity of said packet signal ranging from as few as none to as many as a plurality.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein said step (3) includes employing a protocol which is a member of the set consisting of POTS, T1, E1, DSx, and xDSL across said first internal interface.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein said step (6) includes employing a protocol which is a member of the set consisting of POTS, T1, E1, DSx, SLC-96, GR-303, and SONET across said second internal interface.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the telco central office includes a central office switch connected to said instances of said circuit switched types of said communications devices at said another said customer premises than said first said customer premises;

the telco central office includes a router connected to said instances of said packet transfer types of said communications devices at said another said customer premises than said first said customer premises;

said step (8) includes transmitting said switched signals via said central office switch; and

said step (9) includes routing said packet signals via said router.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein said step (9) further includes employing an ethernet protocol when routing said packet signals via said router.

22. The method of claim 12, further comprising passing said terminating node signal via at least one relay node located between said access concentrator and said remote concentrator, to communicate said terminating node signal over longer distances between the customer premises and the telco central office.