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US 7,610,428 B2Granted
System for providing a communication interface
AssigneeAugmentix Corporation
InventorsMatthew Darrell Barron, Jr., Todd Delton Grabbe
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system, providing a communication interface, is provided. The system includes an embedded device and a host. The embedded device includes an Ethernet controller that is connected to a communication bus on the host. The host includes device drivers of the Ethernet controller. Therefore, no special host-side software is required to establish the communication between the embedded device and the host.
Claims34
A system comprising:
- a. an embedded device, the embedded device comprising:
- i. a microprocessor, the microprocessor comprising a first Ethernet controller;
- ii. a first Physical layer (PHY), wherein the first PHY is coupled to the first Ethernet controller through a physical transmission medium;
- iii. a second Ethernet controller, the second Ethernet controller comprising a second PHY, wherein the second PHY is coupled to the first PHY through a physical transmission medium on the embedded device, wherein the first Ethernet controller, the first PHY the second PHY and the second Ethernet controller form a network on the embedded device;
- iv. an electrical isolation medium;
- and
- v. an interface operable to be physically coupled to a communication bus;
- and
- vi. Power supply module, the power supply module providing a power supply to the embedded device.
- b. a host, the host comprising the communication bus, wherein the interface of the embedded device is physically coupled to the communication bus, the host and the embedded device are electrically isolated from one another by the electrical isolation medium, the communication bus is coupled to the second Ethernet controller and the host is configured to communicate with the embedded device through the second Ethernet controller using only device drivers included with an operating system running on the host.
7 more elements
An embedded device for communicating with a host, the embedded device comprising:
- a. a microprocessor, the microprocessor comprising a first Ethernet controller;
- b. an electrical isolation medium
- c. a first Physical layer (PHY), wherein the first PHY is coupled to the first Ethernet controller through a physical transmission medium;
- and
- d. a second Ethernet controller, the second Ethernet controller comprising a second PHY, where the second PHY is coupled to the first PHY through a physical transmission medium on the embedded device, wherein the first Ethernet controller, the first PHY the second PHY and the second Ethernet controller form a network on the embedded device and the second Ethernet controller is coupled to a communication bus comprised in the host through an interface physically coupled to the communication bus, wherein the host and the embedded device are electrically isolated from one another by the electrical isolation medium and the host is configured to communicate with the embedded device through the second Ethernet controller using only device drivers included with an operating system running on the host
- e. Power supply module, the power supply module providing a power supply to the embedded device.
3 more elements
A system comprising:
- an embedded device, the embedded device comprising:
- a microprocessor, the microprocessor comprising a first Ethernet controller;
- an electrical isolation medium;
- an interface operable to be physically coupled to a communication bus;
- a first Physical layer (PHY), wherein the first PHY is coupled to the first Ethernet controller through a physical transmission medium;
- and
- a second Ethernet controller, the second Ethernet controller comprising a second PHY, wherein the second PHY is coupled to the first PHY through a physical transmission medium on the embedded device such that the first Ethernet controller, the first PHY the second PHY and the second Ethernet controller form a network on the embedded device;
- and
- an instrumentation processor, the instrumentation processor collecting information about the host, the instrumentation processor transmitting the information to the microprocessor;
- and
- a host, the host comprising the communication bus, wherein the interface of the embedded device is physically coupled to the communication bus, the host is electrically isolated from the embedded device by the electrical isolation medium the communication bus is couple to the second Ethernet controller and the host is configured to communicate with the embedded device through the second Ethernet controller using only device drivers included with an operating system running on the host Power supply module, the power supply module providing a power supply to the embedded device.
8 more elements
An embedded device for communicating with a host, the embedded device comprising:
- a microprocessor, the microprocessor comprising a first Ethernet controller;
- an electrical isolation medium;
- an interface operable to be physically coupled to a communication bus;
- a first Physical layer (PHY), wherein the first PHY is coupled to the first Ethernet controller through a physical transmission medium;
- an instrumentation processor, the instrumentation processor collecting information about the host, the instrumentation processor transmitting the information to the microprocessor;
- and
- a second Ethernet controller, the second Ethernet controller comprising a second PHY, where the second PHY is coupled to the first PHY through a physical transmission medium on the embedded device such that the first Ethernet controller, the first PHY the second PHY and the second Ethernet controller form a network on the embedded device, the second Ethernet controller operable to be coupled to a communication bus comprised in the host through an interface physically coupled to the communication bus, wherein the host and the embedded device are electrically isolated from one another by the electrical isolation medium and the host is configured to communicate with the embedded device through the second Ethernet controller using only device drivers included with an operating system running on the host Power supply module, the power supply module providing a power supply to the embedded device.
4 more elements
A method of communicating between an application and a host, comprising:
- sending a communication from a microprocessor on an embedded device to an application on a host through a communication bus of the host, wherein the embedded device is physically coupled to the communication bus using an interface and the embedded device comprises a first Ethernet controller, a first Physical layer (PHY), coupled to the first Ethernet controller through a physical transmission medium, a second Ethernet controller, the second Ethernet controller comprising a second PHY, wherein the second PHY is coupled to the first PHY through a physical transmission medium on the embedded device such that the first Ethernet controller, the first PHY the second PHY and the second Ethernet controller form a network on the embedded device and the embedded device is physically coupled to the communication bus using an interface, the host and the embedded device are electrically isolated from one another by the electrical isolation medium and the communication bus is couple to the second Ethernet controller and the host is configured to communicate with the embedded device through the second Ethernet controller using only device drivers included with an operating system running on the host;
- Embedded device further comprising power supply module, the power supply module providing a power supply to the embedded device;
- and
- receiving the communication at the application on the host.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.