Interface for managing information exchanges on a communications bus

An interface arrangement for managing the exchange of information between units connected by a communications bus, said units including at least one control unit and a plurality of peripheral units, each of said units having a distinct address, any one of said units being capable of transmitting and receiving information comprising data and a destination address, said destination address corresponding to the address of the one of said units which receives transmitted information wherein said interface arrangement comprises:

• (a) a plurality of data reception means, each of said data reception means being connected to receive information from said communications bus and to transmit information to an associated one of said units;
• (b) a plurality of data transmission means, each of said data transmission means being connected to transmit information to said communications bus and to receive information from said associated one of said units;
• (c) scanning means for generating address signals in a predetermined sequence, said scanning means being connected to transmit said address signals to said communications bus, said address signals representing the addresses of said units and said predetermined sequence corresponding to the order of priority of said units for access to said communications bus by said units;
• (d) a plurality of priority comparison means, each of said priority comparison means being connected to receive said address signals from said communications bus and to transmit control signals to an associated one of said data transmission means;
• and
• (e) a plurality of destination address comparison means, each of said destination address comparison means being connected to receive destination address signals from said communications bus and to transmit control signals to an associated one of said data reception means,
• wherein each of said priority comparison means compares said address signals generated by said scanning means with signals representing the address of an associated unit and generates an equality signal in response to correspondence, each of said destination address comparison means compares destination address signals received from said communications bus with signals representing the address of an associated unit and generates an equality signal in response to correspondence, each of said priority comparison means in which said equality signal was not generated being disabled from transmitting a data transmission enabling signal to said associated data transmisssion means and each of said destination address comparison means in which said equality signal was not generated being disabled from transmitting a data reception enabling signal to said associated data reception means.