ATM switch with VC priority buffers
AssigneeAhead Communications Systems, Inc.
InventorTrevor Jones
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present ATM switch includes a plurality of controllers, each of which contains a plurality of cell buffers to store cells for each VC. A plurality of arbitration buffers store pointers, on a VC priority level basis, to order the processing of cell transmissions. The arbitration buffers are processed in priority order, with an interrupt being generated by a timer associated with each arbitration buffer, other than the highest priority arbitration buffer, to ensure that each arbitration buffer is periodically processed.
Claims10
An ATM network switch, comprising:
- at least one switch fabric;
- and
- a plurality of controllers, each comprising:
- an input link and an output link to said at least one switch fabric;
- at least one external link to an ATM network;
- means for receiving ATM cells from the ATM network;
- means for determining the VC of cells received from the ATM network;
- a plurality of cell buffer means for separately buffering groups of cells of each VC;
- means for creating a pointer to each of said cell buffer means;
- a plurality of arbitration buffer means for buffering said pointers, each of said plurality of arbitration buffer means having a different priority;
- means for reading pointers from said arbitration buffer means, comprising:
- means for ordering the reading of said plurality of arbitration buffer means starting with a one of said plurality of arbitration buffer means having a highest priority;
- timer means for determining a predetermined interval for each of said arbitration buffer means other than said arbitration buffer means having the highest priority level;
- means for enabling each of said arbitration buffer means other than said arbitration buffer means having the highest priority level to be read upon the expiration of said predetermined interval associated with said arbitration buffer means;
- and
- means for transmitting cells from each of said cell buffer means to another of said plurality of controllers via said switch fabric according to pointers read from said arbitration buffer means.
An ATM network switch according to claim wherein said means for ordering the reading of said separate output arbitration buffers includes:
- timer means for determining a predetermined interval for each of said output arbitration buffer means other than said output arbitration buffer means having the highest priority level;
- and
- means for enabling each of said output arbitration buffer means other than said output arbitration buffer means having the highest priority level to be read upon the expiration of a predetermined interval associated with said output arbitration buffer means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.