HOME NETWORK SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20080271094A1
• Filed: 06/04/2008
• Published: 10/30/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kliger, Avi, Shtern, Alon, Avishay, Nachum, Kopelman, Rami, Wasserman, Amir
• Granted Patent: US 8,755,289 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2801 Broadband local area networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2836 Protocol conversion between an external network and a home network controlling appliance services of a home automation network from a device located outside the home and the home network H04L12/2818; protocol conversion H04L69/08; adaptation of digital video signals for transport over a specific home network H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2838 Distribution of signals within a home automation network, e.g. involving splitting/multiplexing signals to/from different paths adaptations of television systems for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution H04N7/106; hybrid transport H04L12/6418; home network arrangements specially adapted for distribution of digital video signals H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/40117 Interconnection of audio or video/imaging devices home automation networks H04L12/2803; bitstream network arrangements specially adapted for distribution of digital video signals H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4625 Single bridge functionality, e.g. connection of two networks over a single bridge
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2383 Channel coding or modulation of digital bit-stream, e.g. QPSK modulation arrangements for detecting or preventing errors in the information received by adapting the channel coding H04L1/0009; analogue front ends or means for connecting modulators, demodulators or transceivers to a transmission line H04L27/0002
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42607 for processing the incoming bitstream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43632 involving a wired protocol, e.g. IEEE 1394 high-speed IEEE 1394 serial bus H04L12/40052
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4382 Demodulation or channel decoding, e.g. QPSK demodulation analog front ends or means for connecting modulators, demodulators or transceivers to a transmission line H04L27/0002
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6118 involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/102 Circuits therefor, e.g. noise reducers, equalisers, amplifiers H04N7/108 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/106 for domestic distribution

Abstract

A demarcation point unit connected between a home network backbone and an external network. The demarcation point unit includes a blocking filter and splitter. The blocking filter receives a home network signal from the home network backbone and an external signal from the external network. The blocking filter separates the home network signal from the external signal, and returns the home network signal back to the home network backbone. The splitter has an input and at least two outputs. The input of the splitter receives the home network signal from the blocking filter.

Claims

1. In a home network having a plurality of network modules, one of the modules being a network master module, each of the network modules being connected to a coax backbone, a method for communicating over the coax backbone between network modules, the method comprising:

using the master module to receive requests sent over the coax backbone from network modules for bandwidth to transmit bursts,

establishing an order of transmission opportunities for the network modules to follow when transmitting the bursts;

using the master module to transmit over the coax backbone an allocation burst that allocates a transmission opportunity to each of the modules to transmit bursts, the allocation burst being based on the transmission order; and

calibrating at least one of the plurality of home network modules to transmission characteristics of the home network, the calibrating using a self-train burst transmitted by the at least one of the plurality of home network modules.

2. The method of claim 1 using the master module to transmit an allocation burst that allocates a transmission opportunity that depends at least in part on the amount of data ready for transmission in a selected transmission cycle.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising designating one of the modules to be the master module.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising synchronizing the network modules to a predetermined burst transmitted by the master module.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising allocating bandwidth to each network module requesting a guaranteed quality of service.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving over the backbone, at a selected network module, a grant signal that indicates that the selected network module can transmit a burst.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting, by a selected network module, an empty burst if the selected network module has no data to transmit.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising changing an amount of allocated bandwidth.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising using the master module to change the order of transmission opportunities.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising using the master module to change the order of transmission opportunities and to change an amount of allocated bandwidth.

11. A home network comprising:

a coax backbone;

a plurality of network modules, each of the network modules being connected to the coax backbone, at least one of the plurality of network modules operational to transmit a self-train burst, the self-train burst that calibrates the at least one of the plurality of home network modules to the characteristics of the home network; and

a network master module connected to the coax backbone, the master module that receives requests from the network modules over the coax backbone, the requests being for bandwidth to transmit bursts, the master module that establishes a transmission order of transmission opportunities for the network modules to follow when transmitting bursts and that transmits an allocation burst over the coax backbone that allocates a transmission opportunity to each of the modules to transmit bursts, the allocation burst being based on the transmission order.

12. The network of claim 11 wherein the parameters of a transmission opportunity for a selected network module depends at least in part on an amount of data ready for transmission at the selected network module in a selected transmission cycle.

13. The network of claim 11 wherein, in response to a predetermined burst transmitted by the master, the plurality of network modules are synchronized.

14. The network of claim 11 further comprising bandwidth allocated to each network module requesting a guaranteed quality of service.

15. The system of claim 11 further comprising a grant signal that indicates that a given network module can transmit a burst.

16. The system of claim 11 further comprising an empty burst associated with a selected network module that has communicated that the selected network module includes no data to transmit.

17. The system of claim 11 wherein the master module is configured to change the order of transmission opportunities.