US 4,734,696 AGranted

System and method for transmitting information

AssigneeTelenex Corporation

InventorWilliam P. Rogers

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Abstract

Parallel signals which are to be converted to serial form by successive time-multiplex sampling are divided into two sets, a low-priority set which change relatively infrequently and hence require resampling at only a relatively low rate, and a high-priority set which can change more rapidly and hence require more prompt sampling upon the occurrence of a change in signal value. The low-priority signals are normally sampled and transmitted sequentially at a suitable relatively low rate, but upon the occurrence of a significant change in any of the set of high-priority signals, the sampling and transmission of the low-priority signals is automativelly interrupted and the high-priority signals are sampled and transmitted instead, after which sampling and transmission reverts to the low-priority signals. The net result is that a smaller transmission channel bandwidth can be used than if all signals were transmitted at a regular rate suitable for the high-priority signals.

Claims13

Dependent claims

In a communication system comprising a communications line, a first source of a first set of N relatively more slowly variable separate signals, a second source of a second set of M relatively more rapidly variable separate signals, first means for repetitively sampling said first set of signals successively to produce a first set of corresponding sequential samples thereof on said line, and second means for repetitively sampling said second set of signals successively to produce a second set of corresponding sequential samples thereof on said line, the improvement comprising:

means for normally rendering operative said first sampling means to produce on said line said first set of corresponding sequential samples;
means responsive to a change in any of said second set of signals for interrupting the operation of said first sampling means and for rendering said second sampling means operative to produce said second set of corresponding sequential samples on said line only in response to said change;
and
means for restoring the operation of said first sampling means when said second sampling means has operated to sample all of said signals of said second set a predetermined number of times without a further change occurring in any of said second set of signals.

1 more element

A system for transmitting information contained in a plurality of separate original parallel signals, a first group of which signals are relatively slowly variable in value and a second group of which are relatively rapidly variable in value, comprising:

first controllably activatable sampling means for cyclically sampling said first group of original parallel signals in sequence to produce a first series of samples thereof at the output terminals;
second controllably activatable sampling means for cyclically sampling said second group of original parallel signals in sequence to produce a second series of samples thereof at its output terminals;
encoding means responsive to either of said first and second series of samples for producing an alternating signal having two different values between which it alternates substantially instantaneously, said successive alternating values having time durations representative of the corresponding values of said samples supplied thereto;
means for supplying said first and second series of samples to said encoding means;
means for sensing predetermined changes in any of said second group of original parallel signals to produce a control signal indicative of the occurrence of any such predetermined change;
means responsive to said control signal for normally activating said first sampling means, and for activating said second sampling means and deactivating said first sampling means immediately upon the occurrence of one of said predetermined changes;
means operative upon the completion of said sampling of each of said second group of original parallel signals for deactivating said second sampling means and activating said first sampling means at the point in its cycle where it was last deactivated;
a signal transmission channel;
and
means for applying said alternating signal from said encoder means to said transmission channel.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.