Collision-free insertion and removal of circuit-switched channels in a packet-switched transmission structure
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsHarmen Van As, Wolfram W. Lemppenau, Erwin A. Zurfluh
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Abstract
This invention relates to a method and system for a collision free insertion and removal of circuit-switched channels in a self-adaptive transmission data structure carrying different classes of packet-switched traffic on a slotted Local Area Network (LAN). This network may have bus or ring topology. The different classes of traffic are asynchronous traffic (packet-switched), synchronous traffic (packet-switched, time sensitive), isochronous traffic (circuit-switched), and signalling on demand. The inventive self-adaptive transmission data structure permits an economic, flexible and bandwidth efficient integration of these different classes of traffic.
Claims18
Data transmission method for different classes of traffic with different synchronization and/or delay requirements (multi-media communication), in a network comprising stations and interconnection media which carries information organized into slots of constant size and with predefined framing periods for circuit-switched (CS) transmission, said media carrying asynchronous, synchronous, and circuit-switched slots and signalling traffic, comprising the following steps:
- for asynchronous traffic (delay insensitive data traffic) embedding said asynchronous slots between a start-end delimiter pair characterizing and controlling said asynchronous traffic and indicating an address, and, if required, using a first insertion buffer means for delaying or bypassing said synchronous slots in said stations,
- for synchronous traffic (delay sensitive data traffic) embedding said synchronous slots between a start/end delimiter pair characterizing and controlling said synchronous traffic and indicating an address, and, if required, using a second insertion buffer means for delaying or bypassing said synchronous slots in said stations,
- for signalling traffic, which is inserted on demand, embedding signalling slots between a start/end delimiter pair characterizing and controlling the type of signalling and indicating an address, and delaying or bypassing it, if required, by using a third insertion buffer means,
- for circuit-switched traffic embedding circuit-switched slots, having individual channel sizes, between a start/end delimiter pair characterizing and controlling said circuit-switched traffic and containing a channel identifier, said circuit-switched slots being released instantaneously in every framing period by any of the stations as at a free allocatable position, and bypassing said first, second and third insertion buffer means,
- such that said circuit-switched traffic is transmitted in said free allocated position, fixed during at least one framing period, and permeated by asynchronous, synchronous and signalling traffic, and that the asynchronous, synchronous and signalling traffic are delayed or bypassed in accordance to a given hierarchy, and that the transmission of traffic is adapted to the current traffic demand by dynamic allocation among said asynchronous, synchronous and signalling traffic.
Network for the transmission of different classes of traffic with different synchronization and/or delay requirements (multi-media communication network), comprising stations (e.g. PCs, Hosts, telephones, telefax, . . . ) and interconnection media with slots of constant size and predefined framing periods, in particular 125 .mu.s periods for circuit-switched (CS) transmission, one of said stations operating as a scheduler, all stations comprising:
- decoder means coupled to said interconnection media for recognizing to which class of traffic the following slot belongs, and for recognizing if the following slots are integrated into a multi-slot,
- payload receiver means (98) coupled to said decoder means for removing payload from said interconnection media if said decoder means recognizes that this station is the addressee,
- basic-slot regenerator means (95) having an input coupled to said decoder means and an output for regenerating multi-slots into slots (basic-slots),
- bypass means, coupled to said output, for circuit-switched traffic,
- delay means (92), coupled to said output, for asynchronous traffic,
- delay means (91), coupled to said output, for synchronous traffic,
- payload transmitter means for sending payload,
- multiplexing means (93), coupled to the bypass means, the delay means, the payload transmitter means and the interconnection media, for integrating by-passed circuit-switched, asynchronous, synchronous, and payload traffic into said interconnection media
- control means, coupled to said bypass means, delay means, payload transmitter means and multiplexing means, for organizing transmission and bypass/delay with regard to a given hierarchy,
- said station operating as a scheduler (100) further comprising:
- delay means for circuit-switched traffic (101), being inserted into said bypass means for circuit-switched traffic,
- slot/ADU (Atomic-Data-Unit) generator means (105), coupled to said multiplexing means, for the generation of new slots.
Network for the transmission of different classes of traffic with different synchronization and/or delay requirements (multi-media communication network), comprising stations (e.g. PCs, Hosts, telephones, telefax, . . . ) and interconnection media with slots of constant size and predefined framing periods, in particular 125 .mu.s periods for circuit-switched (CS) transmission, at least one of said stations comprising:
- decoder means for recognizing if this station is the addressee, for recognizing to which class of traffic the following slot belongs, and for recognizing if the following slots are integrated into a multi-slot,
- payload receiver means (98) for removing payload from said interconnection media if said decoder means recognizes that this station is the addressee,
- basic-slot regenerator means (95) for regenerating multi-slots into slots (basic-slots),
- bypass means for circuit-switched traffic,
- delay means (92) for asynchronous traffic,
- delay means (91) for synchronous traffic,
- payload transmitter means for sending payload,
- multiplexing means (93) for integrating by-passed circuit-switched, asynchronous, synchronous, and payload traffic into said interconnection media, and
- control means for organizing transmission and bypass/delay with regard to a given hierarchy.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.