Surface-space managed network fabric

• US 7,599,314 B2
• Filed: 10/13/2008
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nant Holdings IP, LLC (NantWorks, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Raptor Networks Technology Inc. (Fonon Corp.)
• Inventors: Wittenschlaeger, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper, Kevin C
• Application Number:
  US12/250,342
• Publication Number:
  US 20090154391A1
• Time in Patent Office: 358 Days
• Field of Search: 370254-255, 370/316, 455/12.1, 455427-430
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18504 Aircraft used as relay or high altitude atmospheric platform
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/1856 for call routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18584 Arrangements for data networking, i.e. for data packet routing, for congestion control data switching networks H04L12/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/19 Earth-synchronous stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/042 comprising distributed management centres cooperatively managing the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/12 Reselecting a serving backbone network switching or routing node
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/18 for allowing seamless reselection, e.g. soft reselection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/24 Reselection being triggered by specific parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/249 according to timing information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/20 Manipulation of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/25 Maintenance of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/06 Airborne or Satellite Networks space-based or airborne stations H04B7/185

Abstract

A managed surface-space network fabric is presented. The surface-space network fabric can include a spaced-based network fabric and a surface-based network fabric integrated together to form a single fabric managed by a global fabric manager. The global fabric manager cooperates with other fabric managers local to each fabric to establish a communication topology among all the nodes of the fabric. Preferred topologies include paths from any port on a node to any other port on another node in the fabric. The surface-space fabric, and each individual fabric, can function as a distributed core fabric operating as a single, coherent device.

Claims

1. A distributed surface-space network fabric, comprising:

a space network fabric of networked spacecraft nodes interconnected via inter-spacecraft communication links, and including at least one of the spacecraft nodes functioning as a space fabric manager capable of configuring a spacecraft communication topology among the spacecraft nodes;

a surface network fabric of networking nodes interconnected via surface communication links, including at least one of the surface nodes functioning as a surface fabric manager capable of configuring a surface communication topology among the surface nodes, and where at least some of the surface nodes are communicatively coupled to at least some of the spacecraft nodes via up/down communication links; and

a global fabric manager configured to establish a global communication topology among the spacecraft and the surface nodes in cooperation with the space and the surface fabric managers.

2. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the surface and the spacecraft nodes are fungible with respect to being the global fabric manager.

3. The fabric of claim 2, wherein the global manager and at least one of the space and surface managers operate on a common node selected from the surface and the spacecraft nodes.

4. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the space manager maintains coherency of the spacecraft topology upon loss of connectivity with the global fabric manager.

5. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the inter-spacecraft links comprise optical links.

6. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the up/down links support a bandwidth of at least 10 Gbps.

7. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the up/down links comprise aggregated links.

8. The fabric of claim 1, further comprising intermediary networking nodes at an altitude between the surface fabric and the space fabric, and in communication with the surface and the space fabrics.

9. The fabric of claim 8, wherein at least one of the intermediary nodes comprises a non-powered flight craft.

10. The fabric of claim 1, wherein at least one of the spacecraft nodes is in a geosynchronous orbit.

11. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the global topology comprises a path from a first physical port on one of the spacecraft nodes to a second physical port on one of the surface nodes.

12. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the spacecraft nodes comprise a fabric switching module configured to operate as the space manager.

13. The fabric of claim 12, wherein the switching module comprises a software update to the spacecraft nodes.

14. The fabric of claim 12, wherein the space fabric comprises a distributed core fabric.

15. The fabric of claim 14, wherein the spacecraft nodes comprise a redundant fabric switching module.

16. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the space manager, the surface manager, and the global manager can migrate from a first networking node to a different networking node.

17. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the global fabric manager is administered by an individual under authority of the United States government.

18. The fabric of claim 1, wherein at least one of the spacecraft nodes is located at a LaGrange point.