US 2010/0250805 A1 · COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL

Abstract

One aspect relates to a communication protocol for communicating between one or more entities, such as devices, hosts or any other system capable of communicating over a network. Another aspect relates to a system architecture that permits more than one slave system (e.g., a slave device) to be connected to a master system (e.g., a master device) in a communication system implementing a master/slave protocol. In one aspect, a pass-through device is provided that facilitates communication and authentication to one or more downstream slave devices. Yet another aspect relates to a star-based configuration of slave devices coupled to the master, and protocols for communicating and authenticating slave devices. Another aspect relates to a protocol that allows communication between entities without a priori knowledge of the communication protocol. In such a protocol, for example, information describing a data structure of the communication protocol is transferred between communicating entities. Further, an authentication protocol is provided for providing bidirectional authentication between communicating entities. In one specific example, the entities include a master device and a slave device coupled by a serial link. In another specific example, the communication protocol may be used for performing unbalanced transmission between communicating entities.

Claims41

Dependent claims

A method for communicating between a plurality of devices comprising acts of:

receiving, by a master device through at least one serial communication link coupling the master device to a plurality of slave devices, a message from at least one of the plurality of slave devices;
communicating, from the master device to the plurality of slave devices coupled to the master device through the at least one serial communication link, an unaddressed message including data to be communicated to the plurality of slave devices responsive to the received message;
and
determining that all of the plurality of slave devices have received the unaddressed message.

1 more element

A slave device comprising:

a processor;
a first serial interface adapted to couple the slave device to one or more downstream slave devices, wherein the first serial interface is adapted to receive a message from at least one of the one or more downstream slave devices;
and
a second serial interface adapted to couple the slave device to a master device, wherein the second serial interface is adapted to communicate the received message to the master device, and is adapted to receive from the master device, an unaddressed message including data to be communicated to the slave device and one or more downstream slave devices responsive to the received message, and wherein the second serial interface is adapted to communicate the received unaddressed message to the one or more downstream slave devices.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Communication protocol

Life of this patent

Communication protocol

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims41