Higher-layer-processing data in time-sensitive data blocks at a physical-layer-interface device

An apparatus, comprising:

• a physical-layer interface device, the physical-layer interface device configured to:
• receive data blocks;
• remove higher-layer-processing data from a first ingressing data block of the received data blocks, wherein the higher-layer processing of the higher-layer processing data includes operations associated with Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) layer 2 or higher and comprises removing higher-layer-processing data from the data blocks, wherein the higher-layer processing data removed from the first ingressing data block includes integrity-detection data;
• remove a portion of the first ingressing data block;
• and
• add the portion of the first ingressing data block to a subsequent ingressing data block, a size of the portion corresponding to a size of integrity-detection data such that the removal of the higher-layer-processing data at the physical-layer interface device does not render the ingressing data blocks too short according to a time-sensitive networking (TSN) protocol.

A method, comprising:

• receiving data blocks;
• removing higher-layer-processing data from a first ingressing data block of the received data blocks, wherein the higher-layer processing of the higher-layer processing data includes operations associated with Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) layer 2 or higher and comprises removing higher-layer-processing data from the data blocks, wherein removing the higher-layer processing data from the first ingressing data block includes removing integrity-detection data from the first ingressing data block;
• and
• removing a portion of the first ingressing data block;
• and
• adding the portion to a subsequent ingressing data block, a size of the portion corresponding to a size of integrity-detection data such that the removal of the higher-layer-processing data at a physical-layer interface device does not render the ingressing data blocks too short according to a time-sensitive networking (TSN) protocol.