Abstract: A technique for controlling the flow of among the ports of a multi-port bridge. The bridge includes a memory for storing packets and a plurality of ports. Each port includes a receive buffer, a transmit buffer and a “triplet” buffer. A data packet is received by the receive buffer of a port. As the packet is still being received, a look-up table is utilized to identify the appropriate destination port for the packet. A result of the look-up is a “triplet” which includes three fields: a first field containing the identification of the source port, a second field containing the identification of the destination port, and a third field containing a starting address assigned to the incoming packet in the memory. The triplet is placed upon the communication bus a first time. If the destination port is available to receive the packet directly from the source port, the destination port receives the packet simultaneously as the packet is stored in the memory.

Abstract: A signal strength for a received signal such as a radio signal transmitted over a wireless network is determined based on a large number of sample measurements of the received signal which may be taken over disjoint time intervals. Each sample is digitized so as to take on one of a discrete number of values, for example, 256 possible values for an 8-bit converter. The number of occurrences for each of the values is accumulated in bins (counters) and the indication of signal strength is determined by a summation of the measured values based on processing of the counts rather than the sample measurements themselves. The signal strength measurements are provided as monotonically related values, more particularly, logarithmic magnitude representations of the measured signal strength of each sample measurement. Bin counts are reduced iteratively by replacing counts greater than 1 by incrementing the count of a proportionately higher value bin until only counts of 1 or zero remain.

Abstract: In a process for transmitting data in a digital transmission system with a packet-switched service, an ARQ protocol and channel coding are used for minimizing errors with coders and decoders that supply “soft” information. When a data frame is transmitted again within the ARQ protocol, the information obtained by means of the channel decoder and ARQ protocol, that is, the “soft” information, is processed according to the coded bits together with the data frames transmitted again n+1 to N in data frame n (n= . . . N and n=number of data frames transmitted within the ARQ protocol). This process makes it possible to process the information obtained a priori during decoding of the data frame n+1 together with one or several data frames 1 to n.

Abstract: The invention relates to an adapter equipment (IWF), a method and an arrangement for setting up a data call terminating at a subscriber in a telecommunication network. In the invention, adaptation functions of two or more data services are integrated into a single adapter pool that has one common MSISDN number shared by all the data services. After the connection has been set up, the IWF does not try to synchronize itself according to any data service towards another network but it monitors a traffic channel arriving from the other network (ISDN, PSTN) in order to identify the data service used by the calling terminal equipment. After the IWF has identified the data service, it starts operating in the manner required by the identified data service and data transmission may begin.

Abstract: The system of the present invention utilizes an interface unit and a controller located at a central cable station. The interface unit interfaces the controller with a cable connection, which connects the interface unit to a plurality of cable modems located at remote locations. The cable modems write transmission requests into slots that are defined by the controller as contention slots and that are communicated along a channel of the cable connection. The cable modems also write other data into slots that are defined by the controller as data slots and that are also communicated along the channel of the cable connection. The controller is configured to define certain ones of the slots communicated along the aforementioned channel as data slots and to allocate these data slots to particular ones of the cable modems in response to transmission requests received by the controller. The controller is preferably configured to define each slot not allocated to a particular cable modem as a contention slot.

Abstract: A Receive Frame Processor (RFP) in a network bridge/router for receiving frame-characterizing information from other elements of the bridge/router and for generating plural code vectors which result in the selective processing of a received frame in software and/or hardware is provided. The received information is utilized in constructing code vectors representative of how a received frame is to be processed. Further data structures stored in conjunction with the RFP are indexed by the constructed code vectors and indicate whether the frame is to be processed in the RFP hardware, by software in an associated Frame Processor, or both. These data structures also indicate whether the port through which the frame was received is to be blocked to prevent misordering of received frames. If the frame is to be processed in software, the RFP generates a Receive Vector which is provided to the FP and which conveys the frame-characterizing code vectors to the FP.

Abstract: An access communication network to make possible automatic designing a lower cost access communication network under various constraints by using existing equipment on the basis of demand information is to be provided. The equipment is classified into communication equipment and civil-engineered equipment; information is given, before automatic designing, as to whether each item of equipment is to be deleted or its position is fixed to use its unoccupied capacity; and allows the designer to freely define an eligible deployment site for the equipment and thereby to calculate the configuration of a low deployment cost access communication network and civil-engineered equipment needed therefor.

Abstract: A network bridge/router for identifying a data unit to be routed by a network bridge/router, for identifying a protocol associated with the received data unit to be routed, and for carrying out appropriate data unit transfer operations, all in hardware. A Receive Header Processor (RHP) analyzes the destination address of the received data unit, in hardware, for determining if routing or bridging is required. If routing is required, the RHP uses portions of the received data unit header as a compare value against predefined values stored in data structures which provide a protocol ID identifying the protocol of the received data unit and serving as an index to the appropriate microcode handling routine, executed by the RHP, for the data unit. The handling routine causes the RHP to forward data unit identifying information appropriate to the identified protocol and obtained from the received data unit to further hardware-based data unit processing elements.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and device for switching user data, belonging to a connection, between different time slots in a switch or a switch stage such that sequence and frame integrity are preserved. According to the invention, an efficient algorithm is utilized for determining distribution information, in form of storage positions in one or more control memories in the switch. User data is caused to be switched, according to this distribution information from the algorithm, such that these user data maintain the same reciprocal time order through the switch or switch stage. The distribution information determined by the algorithm assures sequence integrity and at the same time minimizes the delay of user data through the switch and/or switch stage. The algorithm also generates control information in form of delay values for delaying some user data such that data belonging to incoming time slots in one and the same frame are assigned to outgoing time slots in the same frame.

Abstract: Information providers act as sources of information consisting of a plurality of variable length messages and issue control packets, enabling/disabling packets and data packets. Each data receiver has a unique address as a permanent attribute. The enabling/disabling packets selectively enable or disable a specific data receiver or a specific group of data receivers. Therefore to avoid that the loss of the enabling/disabling packet leads to the loss of the corresponding whole set of packets, each data receiver stores data packets for later use in the re-establishment of the entire set of transmission packets. However, only data packets provided by any FRIEND information provider (i.e. information provider from which the data receiver is authorized to receive information on a selective basis) are managed by the data receiver.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a switching fabric for a packet-switched communications network. Said switching fabric comprises a plurality of input ports and a plurality of output ports, and a plurality of switch elements (SE1-SE5) which are arranged in multiple stages and connected with each other into a switching fabric. Each switch element has a plurality of inputs and outputs and each switch element routes a data packet present at its given input to at least one of its outputs on the basis of routing information (SRT) carried by said data packet. In order to reduce internal blocking in the switch, each switch element (SE1) in at least the first switching stage is formed by a routing network element (RE.sub.1) and a shift network element (SHE.sub.

Abstract: An electronic bus system comprises a bus wire (BW) with at least two signal transmission wires (W1, W2) and a left and a right end, which are each defined by a terminating resistor connecting the signal transmission wires to each other. A plurality of electronic control units (ECU-ECUn) are between the two ends of the bus wire (BW) connected to the signal transmission wires (W1, W2) and are adapted, via these, to transmit and receive electric signals. The bus wire (BW) is divided into a plurality of sections (S1-Sn), which are interconnected by means of connecting circuits (CC1-CCn), and forms an annular unit. Each connecting circuit (CC1-CCn) comprises relay means, by means of which each connecting circuit, coordinated with the other connecting circuits, can connect at least one terminating resistor integrated therein, in order to define the left and/or right end of the bus wire (BW).

Abstract: An ATM cell boundary identification apparatus and method.

Abstract: In a communication system having a base station (1) and terminal stations (5-1 to 5-M) in two-way communication, frequency converters (12-1 to 12-N) transmit transmitting signals. The terminal stations transmit channel selection signals to the base station. A level controller 15 discriminates, in response to the channel selection signals from the terminal stations, each of the channels that is selected by the terminal stations and produces and supplies a level control signal to the respective frequency converters. The selected frequency converter increases a level of the transmitting signal that corresponds to the channel which is selected by a terminal station.

Abstract: A clock regeneration apparatus which regenerates and distributes a timing signal in a synchronous data transmission network. The network is organized by a plurality of transmission units being linked in a ring topology, and at least two transmission units have external clock sources for synchronization purposes. The clock regeneration apparatus, disposed in each transmission unit, has a clock source list that contains entries for at least two line clock sources provided from neighboring transmission units. A clock selection controller selects a reference clock source with which the transmission unit is to be synchronized. A clock quality transmitter supplies one of the two neighboring transmission units that is not selected as the reference clock source by the clock source selection controller, with a message requesting not to use a corresponding line clock source for synchronization.

Abstract: A method of providing a list of digital control channel (DCCH) frequencies that are in use in a radio telecommunications network to a mobile station operating in the network. Each DCCH includes a superframe having an extended broadcast control channel (E-BCCH) time slot which is broadcast in an E-BCCH cycle. The method begins by dividing the list of DCCH frequencies into a plurality of DCCH subsets, and sequentially or randomly broadcasting the DCCH subsets to the mobile station in the E-BCCH time slot of the DCCH. The next DCCH subset is broadcast when the current E-BCCH cycle is completed. Alternatively, the next DCCH subset may be broadcast when a timer expires. In this case, a broadcast control channel (BCCH) change notification (BCN) indicator is changed whenever a new subset is broadcast.

Abstract: In one embodiment of the invention, an access point for use in a powerline based network includes first physical layer circuitry to interface with a powerline and second physical layer circuitry to interface with an antenna. The access point also includes circuitry to interface between the first and second physical layer circuitry. The first and second physical layer circuitry and the circuitry to interface between the first and second physical layer circuitry allow an untethered electrical device to have data communication through the powerline with an electrical device tethered to the powerline. Under another embodiment of the invention, a powerline based network includes a powerline and an access point connected to the powerline and capable of wireless communication.

Abstract: At least a portion of the data units in a bridge/router are processed by logic circuits according to cast type. The cast type, source address and destination address of an incoming data unit are determined by examining the header. For a unicast data unit, the source address and destination address are employed to obtain a transmit port indicator from memory, and the unicast data unit is directed to the port indicated by the transmit port indicator. For a non-unicast data unit, the source address and destination address are employed to obtain a first port mask that indicates valid ports for receipt of the data unit and a second port mask that indicates valid ports for transmission of the data unit from memory. The first and second port masks are combined to generate a third port mask, and the non-unicast data unit is directed to the ports indicated by the third port mask.

Abstract: Selective acceptance of short messages enables a cellular subscriber to predetermine which short message will actually be delivered to the subscriber's mobile station. Using an Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) transmission, the subscriber determines which selection criteria will be used and then builds in the network Home Location Register (HLR) a list of originating entities from which short messages will either be accepted or rejected. A screening application resident on the HLR then determines the identity of the entity associated with any request for short message routing information and causes the short message to be delivered or deleted according to the input provided by the subscriber. A confirmation message is returned to the originating entity indicating delivery or the reason for failure.

Abstract: A network router is presented for transferring data between multiple communication networks. The network router has a network interface unit (NIU) for each communication network the router is coupled to, and a single memory unit for storing the data. Each NIU is adapted for coupling to a network transmission medium of the corresponding communication network. A section of the memory unit (i.e., a memory partition) is allocated for each communication network (i.e., for each NIU). Each memory partition includes a memory subpartition allocated for each NIU. A receive unit within each NIU receives data from the corresponding network transmission medium and determines, using address information within the packetized data, which of the other NIUs should transmit the data (i.e., the destination NIU). The receive unit then stores the received data within the memory subpartition allocated to the destination NIU within the memory partition assigned to the receiving NIU.