Method and appartus for exchanging data between devices operating at different clock rates
AssigneeTellabs Operations, Inc.
InventorJohn M. Golding
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Source-synchronous communications between networked devices can be hindered by differing clock rates and data interface formats among the devices. By implementing a plurality of clock converters, a data interface format of a transmitting device is converted to a data interface format compatible with a receiving device. The clock converters provide a clock signal based on the source-synchronous data clock, and having a phase controlled with respect to an associated data signal. As a result, data exchange between devices operating at different clock rates is made possible.
Claims20
An apparatus for converting a data interface format to enable data exchange between devices operating at different clock rates, the apparatus comprising:
- a clock up-converter configured to derive an up-converted clock signal from a first clock signal of a first device and to provide the up-converted clock signal to a second device, the up-converted clock signal having a phase controlled with respect to a phase of an associated first data signal;
- and
- a clock down-converter configured to derive a down-converted clock signal from a second clock signal of the second device and to provide the down-converted clock signal to the first device, the down-converted clock signal having a phase controlled with respect to a phase of an associated second data signal.
A method of converting a data interface format to enable data exchange between devices operating at different clock rates, the method comprising:
- up-converting a first clock signal from a first device to an up-converted clock signal, the up-converted clock signal having a phase controlled with respect to a phase of an associated first data signal;
- down-converting a second clock signal from a second device to a down-converted clock signal, the down-converted clock signal having a phase controlled with respect to a phase of an associated second data signal;
- and
- transmitting the up-converted and down-converted signals respectively to the second and first devices.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.