US 7,002,957 B2Granted

Method of transporting frames of information between parts of a network through an intermediate network

AssigneeLucent Technolgies Inc.

InventorsRoel Den Bakker, Peter B. Busschbach, Pieter Hulshoff, Maarten Petrus Joseph Vissers

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Abstract

A method is described for transporting information in frames comprising header and payload information from a first network to a second network via a third network. The first and second networks are commonly managed but are independent of management of the third network. Network nodes generate respective headers for each outgoing frame from the node but completely copies payload from an incoming frame to the outgoing frames. Upon crossing a first boundary between the first and third networks, only a first part of the header is copied into the payload such that a reduced size header in the third network fits into space that would otherwise be occupied by a second part of the header that is not copied into the payload. Upon crossing a second boundary between the third and second networks, the headers are retrieved from the payload and used to generate header information in the second network.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A method of transporting information from a first sub-network to a second sub-network via a third sub-network in a transmission network, wherein information is transported between nodes in the transmission network in frames, each of the frames including a header and a payload, wherein a node generates a header for each frame transmitted from the node and wherein the node completely copies payload data from an incoming frame to one or more outgoing frames, and wherein the payload data is allowed to float relative to frames, the method comprising:

copying a first part of a header into payload of a frame upon crossing a first boundary between the first sub-network and the third sub-network such that available space is created in the payload by not copying a second part of the header therein;
in the third sub-network, using a reduced-size header that fits into the available space in the payload;
upon crossing a second boundary between the third sub-network and the second sub-network, retrieving the first part of the header and the reduced-size header from the payload and generating header information in the second sub-network;
adding timing information to the payload when crossing the first boundary, the timing information indicating an extent to which a frame duration in the first sub-network differs from the frame duration in the third sub-network;
and
using the timing information to regenerate frames in the second sub-network upon crossing the second boundary, so that frames in the second sub-network have substantially the same duration as corresponding frames in the first sub-network.

3 more elements

Apparatus for transferring information from a first sub-network to a second sub-network via a third sub-network in a transmission network, wherein information is transported between nodes in the transmission network in frames that each include a header and a payload, wherein a node generates a header for each frames transmitted from the node and wherein the node completely copies payload data from an incoming frames to one or more outgoing frames, wherein the payload data is allowed to float relative to frames, the apparatus comprising:

means for copying a first part of a header into payload of a frame upon crossing a boundary between the first sub-network and the third sub-network such that available space is created in the payload by not copying a second part of the header therein;
means for generating a reduced-size header to be used in the third sub-network that fits into the available space in the payload;
means for adding timing information to the payload crossing the first boundary, the timing information indicating an extent to which frame duration in the first sub-network differs from the frame duration in the third sub-network;
and
means for using the timing information to regenerate frames in the second sub-network upon crossing the second boundary, so that frames in the second sub-network have substantially the same duration as corresponding frames in the first sub-network.

2 more elements

A system for transporting information from a first sub-network to a second sub-network via a third sub-network in a transmission network, wherein information is transported between nodes in the transmission network in frames, each of the frames including a header and a payload, wherein a node generates a header for each frame transmitted from the node and wherein the node completely copies payload data from an incoming frame to one or more outgoing frames, and wherein the payload data is allowed to float relative to frames, the system comprising:

in the first sub-network, a means for copying a first part of a header into payload of a frame for transmission across a first boundary between the first sub-network and the third sub-network, wherein available space is created in the payload by not copying a second part of the header therein, and wherein a reduced-size header is used in the third sub-network, the reduced-size header having a prescribed size that fits into the available space in the payload;
in the second sub-network, a means for retrieving the first part of the header and the reduced-size header from the payload and generating header information in the second sub-network;
one or more rate adapters in the first sub-network to add timing information to the payload when crossing the first boundary, the timing information indicating an extent to which a frame duration in the first sub-network differs from a frame duration in the third sub-network;
and
one or more rate adapters in the second sub-network for regenerating frames in the second sub-network, so that frames in the second sub-network have substantially the same duration as corresponding frames in the first sub-network.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.