System and method for communicating packetized data over a channel bank
First Claim
1. An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, comprising:
- a plurality of channel units each generating packetized data; and
contention circuitry incorporated into the channel bank that ignores time slot boundaries in the time division multiplexing addressing scheme while enabling a packetized data protocol in the channel units for communicating packetized data over the communications link independently of the time slot boundaries.
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Abstract
An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, the communications link having a predetermined format for data transmitted over the communications link including a framing bit and a frame period defined by the framing bit, is provided wherein the apparatus comprises a plurality of channel units for generating packetized data, each piece of packetized data having a packet period corresponding to a sufficient amount of time to communicate the packetized data over the communications link, a system for allocating the communication link to a channel unit that is currently sending data over the communications link for the packet period, a system for skipping the framing bit when communicating said packetized data if the framing bit occurs during the packet period, a system for determining a next sender of packetized data over the communications link, the determining system being distributed over the plurality of channel units so that each channel unit independently determines whether it is the next sender, and a system for allocating the communications link to the channel unit that is the next sender of packetized data after said packet period so that the time division multiplexing addressing scheme of the channel bank is ignored, and the channel bank is communicating packetized data. A method for communicating packetized data over a channel bank is also disclosed.
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Citations
57 Claims
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1. An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, comprising:
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a plurality of channel units each generating packetized data; and
contention circuitry incorporated into the channel bank that ignores time slot boundaries in the time division multiplexing addressing scheme while enabling a packetized data protocol in the channel units for communicating packetized data over the communications link independently of the time slot boundaries. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, comprising:
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a plurality of channel units each generating packetized data; and
contention circuitry incorporated into the channel bank that ignores the time division multiplexing addressing scheme while enabling a packetized data protocol in the channel units for communicating packetized data over the communications link, the contention circuitry providing a plurality of contention periods for assigning a next sender of packetized data over the communications link and the channel units generating contention signals that are compared by the contention circuitry to determine which of the channel units to assign as the next sender, the contention signals including a priority value used by the contention circuitry to determine which of the channel units to assign as the next sender and a fairness value for preventing a channel unit that has sent packetized data using a particular priority value from sending additional data at that same particular priority value until the other channel units have also had a chance to send data at that particular priority value. - View Dependent Claims (12)
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13. A method for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, comprising:
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generating packetized data during packet periods using channel units in the channel bank;
assigning one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data over the communications link;
assigning one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data over the communications link; and
ignoring fixed time slots in the time division multiplexing addressing scheme in the channel bank while enabling the current sender to use a packetized data protocol that transmits the packetized data over the communications link without using the fixed time slots in the time division multiplexing addressing scheme. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 25)
generating a plurality of contention signals from the channel units;
sending the contention signals over a contention bus; and
comparing the contention signals to determine the next sender.
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19. A method according to claim 13 wherein the contention signals include priority signals that assign priorities to the packetized data transmitted by the channel units.
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25. A method according to claim 13 including retaining the communications by the current sender of packetized data if no next sender of packetized data has been determined.
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20. A method for communicating packetized data over a communications link using a channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme, comprising:
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generating packetized data during packet periods using channel units in the channel bank;
assigning one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data over the communications link;
assigning one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data over the communications link;
ignoring the time division multiplexing addressing scheme in the channel bank while enabling the current sender to use a packetized data protocol to communicate the packetized data over the communications link; and
generating a fairness signal that prevents the channel units from sending packetized data at a particular priority after previously sending data at that particular priority until the other channel units have had a chance to send packetized data at that particular priority. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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26. An electronic storage medium containing a software program for operating in a channel bank, the channel bank having a time division multiplexing addressing scheme for communicating over a communications link, the software program comprising:
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program code for generating packetized data during packet periods from channel units in the channel bank;
program code for assigning the communications link to one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data over the communications link;
program code for assigning one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data over the communications link; and
program code for ignoring fixed time slots in the time division multiplexing addressing scheme in the channel bank while enabling the channel units to use a packetized data protocol that transfers the packetized data over the communications link independently of the fixed time slots. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
generating a plurality of contention signals from the channel units;
sending the contention signals over a contention bus; and
comparing the contention signals to determine the next sender.
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32. An electronic storage medium according to claim 26 including program code for assigning priorities to the packetized data transmitted by the channel units.
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33. An electronic storage medium according to claim 26 including program code that generates a fairness signal that prevents the channel units from sending packetized data at a particular priority after previously sending data at that particular priority until the other channel units have also had a chance to send packetized data at that particular priority.
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34. An electronic storage medium according to claim 33 including program code that resets the fairness signal once all of the channel units have had a chance to send packetized data at that particular priority.
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35. An electronic storage medium according to claim 34 including program code that resets the fairness signal for one of the channel units for a particular priority when another one of the channel units becomes the next sender at that particular priority.
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36. An electronic storage medium according to claim 26 including program code that determines the next sender by selecting one of the channel units having a same priority as the other channel units but that has a different fairness signal for that priority.
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37. An electronic storage medium according to claim 26 including program code that generates a current sender signal indicating one of the channel units as the current sender of packetized data, a next sender signal indicating one of the channel units as the next sender of packetized data, priority signals indicating particular priorities for packetized data to be communicated by the channel units, and slot signals indicating slot addresses for the channel units within the channel bank.
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38. An electronic storage medium according to claim 26 including program code that retains the communications link by the current sender of packetized data if no next sender of packetized data has been determined.
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39. An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link, comprising:
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a plurality of channel units generating packetized data and assigning priority values to the packetized data, the channel units also generating fairness signals indicating whether the channel units have previously sent packetized data at that particular priority value;
a contention circuit that allocates one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data and assigns one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data, the contention circuit assigning the next sender based on the priority values assigned by the channel units to the packetized data and also based on the fairness signals generated by the channel units, the contention circuit allocating the communication link to the next sender after said current sender has finished sending packetized data. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. An electronic storage medium containing a software program for communicating packetized data over a communications link, the software program comprising:
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program code for generating packetized data from channel units and assigning priority values to the packetized data, the program code also generating fairness signals indicating whether the channel units have previously sent packetized data at a particular priority value;
contention program code that allocates one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data and assigns one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data, the contention program code assigning the next sender based on the priority values assigned by the channel units to the packetized data and also based on the fairness signals generated by the channel units, the contention circuit allocating the communication link to the next sender after the current sender has finished sending packetized data. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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53. An apparatus for communicating packetized data over a communications link, comprising:
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means for generating packetized data from channel units and assigning priority values to the packetized data, the program code also generating fairness signals indicating whether the channel units have previously sent packetized data at a particular priority value;
means for allocating one of the channel units as a current sender of packetized data and assigning one of the channel units as a next sender of packetized data, means for assigning the next sender based on the priority values assigned by the channel units to the packetized data and also based on the fairness signals generated by the channel units; and
means for allocating the communication link to the next sender after the current sender has finished sending packetized data. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57)
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Specification