Scheduler for an information packet switch
AssigneeTelefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
InventorGöran Wicklund
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and apparatus schedule transfer of information packets, each information packet switch inlet port being associated with a packet transfer scheduler for scheduling transfer of information packets. A cell is sorted into a first queue structure according to its information packet switch outlet port, and for each outlet port, according to its logical channel.
Claims20
A method for the scheduled transfer of an information packet through an information packet switch, from one of a number of inlet ports to one of a number of outlet ports, said method comprising:
- a) determining the outlet of the packet;
- and for each inlet port;
- b) sorting the information packet into a first queue structure individual for a specific outlet port by a packet transfer scheduler for said inlet port of the packet, said scheduler having at least one queue structure per outlet port of the packet switch;
- c) selecting at least one packet from the first queue structure to be sent to the output port, the first queue structure having at least a first substructure and a second substructure, the sorting of the incoming packet being done into the first substructure, and the selecting of the at least one packet to be sent to the output port being done from the second substructure;
- d) swapping said first and second substructures of the first queue structure when the second substructure is empty and the outlet port is ready to receive more packets, such that the sorting of the incoming packet will be done into the second substructure and the selecting of packets to be sent to the output port will be done from the first substructure;
- and
- e) sending a Start_Of_List signal from each of the outlet ports to all first queue structures for this outlet port after receiving the packets having the destination through this port to all the inlet ports to initiate the swap of the first and second substructures of the first queue structures for that output port.
A packet transfer scheduler for scheduling the transfer of information packets through an information packet switch from one of a number of inlet ports to one of a number of outlet ports, comprising:
- a) means for determining the outlet port and logical channel code of an incoming packet, and for each inlet port
- b) a first queue structure for each outlet port,
- c) means for sorting said packet into said first queue structure,
- d) means for selecting at least one packet from said first queue structure to be transmitted to the outlet port, wherein the first queue structure comprises at least a first substructure into which incoming packets are sorted, and a second substructure from which outgoing packets are selected, and
- e) means for swapping said first substructure and said second substructure when the second substructure is empty and the outlet port is ready to receive more packets, such that the incoming packets are sorted into the second substructure and the outgoing packets are selected from the first substructure,
- wherein the means for swapping said first and said second substructures is triggered by a Start_Of_List signal sent from each outlet port to all inlet ports simultaneously.
An information packet switch for switching information packets, comprising:
- means for assigning a weight to a logical channel, and
- a packet transfer scheduler for scheduling the transfer of information packets through an information packet switch from one of a number of inlet ports to one of a number of outlet ports, the packet transfer scheduler including
- a) means for determining the outlet port and logical channel code of an incoming packet, and for each inlet port
- b) a first queue structure for each outlet port,
- c) means for sorting said packet into said first queue structure,
- d) means for selecting at least one packet from said first queue structure to be transmitted to the outlet port, wherein the first queue structure comprises at least a first substructure into which incoming packets are sorted, and a second substructure from which outgoing packets are selected, and
- e) means for swapping said first substructure and said second substructure when the second substructure is empty and the outlet port is ready to receive more packets, such that the incoming packets are sorted into the second substructure and the outgoing packets are selected from the first substructure,
- wherein the means for swapping said first and said second substructures is triggered by a Start_Of_List signal sent from each outlet port to all inlet ports simultaneously.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.