Abstract: A processing system includes a data processor, an input, an output, a memory, an operation parser, and a timer manager instance controller. The input receives create-timer-manager-instance (CTMI) commands identifying a number of timers supported by a timer manager instance. The output provides responses including a CTMI response associated with the CTMI command. The operation parser receives the CTMI command from the input. The timer manager instance controller receive a control input from the operation parser based upon the CTMI command, and in response, allocates a block of memory locations in the memory based on the number of timers and provides a CTMI response to the output to indicate that the CTMI response was executed by the timer manager instance controller.

Abstract: A network application is verified at a network processor by selecting network application functions based on a field of an ingress packet. The network application is composed of a set of network application functions, with each function carrying out a corresponding packet processing operation, such as packet parsing, statistical gathering, and the like. Each network application function can be invoked by the network processor with a corresponding command. Based on a field of an ingress packet, the network processor can select a sequence of functions to process the packet, wherein the sequence corresponds to functions of the network application or a portion thereof.

Abstract: A processing system includes a data processor, an input, an output, a memory, an operation parser, and a timer manager instance controller. The input receives create-timer-manager-instance (CTMI) commands identifying a number of timers supported by a timer manager instance. The output provides responses including a CTMI response associated with the CTMI command. The operation parser receives the CTMI command from the input. The timer manager instance controller receive a control input from the operation parser based upon the CTMI command, and in response, allocates a block of memory locations in the memory based on the number of timers and provides a CTMI response to the output to indicate that the CTMI response was executed by the timer manager instance controller.

Abstract: A processor is configured to process information according to attribute value criteria organized as a decision tree, wherein an attribute value criterion of the attribute value criteria is a range of attribute values, wherein a portion of the attribute value criteria lead to a matching target value among target values of the decision tree, wherein each of the target values, including the matching target value, is assigned a respective priority value, wherein the processor is configured to count, for each specific attribute value, a respective number of particular attribute value appearances in a set of rules and a respective number of attribute value matches comprising range based matches based on range based appearances for the each specific attribute value, wherein the processor determines the decision tree based on information entropy values and information gain values.

Abstract: A master device has a slave port and a redundant slave port for communicating with slaves according to a network protocol, e.g. EtherCAT, via data packets including a circulating bit. The slaves are arranged in a sequence starting at the slave port, and are connected via a communication medium. A respective slave in the sequence detects whether the connection to its processing receiver is lost, and, if so, internally transfers any data packets from its forwarding arrangement to its processing arrangement, while setting the circulating bit. The master device has a switcher unit coupled to the redundant slave port and a last slave in the sequence. The switcher unit transfers data packets from the switcher receiver to the switcher transmitter, and detects whether a circulating bit is set. If so, the unit switches off said transferring and switches on a connection between the redundant slave port and the switcher for transferring replicated packets to the sequence.

Abstract: A network application is verified at a network processor by selecting network application functions based on a field of an ingress packet. The network application is composed of a set of network application functions, with each function carrying out a corresponding packet processing operation, such as packet parsing, statistical gathering, and the like. Each network application function can be invoked by the network processor with a corresponding command. Based on a field of an ingress packet, the network processor can select a sequence of functions to process the packet, wherein the sequence corresponds to functions of the network application or a portion thereof.

Abstract: A real-time distributed network module arranged to provide an interface between at least one master application and at least one real-time distributed network. The real-time distributed network module comprises a first communications component arranged to transmit and receive real-time distributed network data over at least a first real-time distributed network connection, at least one further communications component arranged to transmit and receive real-time distributed network data over at least one further real-time distributed network connection at least one master application interface component arranged to provide an interface to the at least one master application, and at least one configuration component arranged to perform mapping of communication channels between the first communications component, the at least one further communications component and the at least one master application interface component.

Abstract: This disclosure describes a network flow framework that generates customized network applications based upon user inputs that invokes various software building block functions to process ingress data packets. The network flow framework creates a network application pointer that points to the customized network application, and stores the network application pointer with application classification keys in a classification entry. When the network flow framework receives an ingress data packet, the network flow framework matches the ingress packet's classification key to the application classification key in the classification entry. As such, the network flow framework retrieves the network application pointer from the classification entry and stores the network application pointer in the ingress data packet's header. In turn, the network flow framework retrieves the customized network application corresponding to the network application pointer and processes the ingress data packet accordingly.

Abstract: An EtherCAT packet forwarding system with distributed clocking is provided. The system comprises a master device and a plurality of slaves. The master comprises a processing port and a forward port for being respectively coupled to the at least two Ethernet ports of the master device in a redundant ring topology. The slaves comprise an internal clock indicating a current time, and a slave memory comprising a processing timestamp variable, a forwarding timestamp variable, a temporary timestamp variable and a copy-direct bit.

Abstract: This disclosure describes a network flow framework that generates customized network applications based upon user inputs that invokes various software building block functions to process ingress data packets. The network flow framework creates a network application pointer that points to the customized network application, and stores the network application pointer with application classification keys in a classification entry. When the network flow framework receives an ingress data packet, the network flow framework matches the ingress packet's classification key to the application classification key in the classification entry. As such, the network flow framework retrieves the network application pointer from the classification entry and stores the network application pointer in the ingress data packet's header. In turn, the network flow framework retrieves the customized network application corresponding to the network application pointer and processes the ingress data packet accordingly.

Abstract: An electronic device communicates according to a network protocol that defines data packets, for example EtherCAT. The device has a processor for performing input control on incoming data packets and performing output control on outgoing data packets, and a shared FIFO buffer comprising a multiuser memory. An input unit receives input data, detects the start of a respective data packet, subdivides the data packet into consecutive segments, one segment having a predetermined number of data bytes, and transfers the segment to the FIFO buffer before the next segment has been completely received. The processor accesses, in the input control, the multiuser memory for processing the segment, and, in the output control, initiates outputting the output packet before the corresponding input data packet has been completely received. An output unit transfers the segment from the FIFO buffer, and transmits the segment to the communication medium.

Abstract: A master device has a slave port and a redundant slave port for communicating with slaves according to a network protocol, e.g. EtherCAT, via data packets including a circulating bit. The slaves are arranged in a sequence starting at the slave port, and are connected via a communication medium. A respective slave in the sequence detects whether the connection to its processing receiver is lost, and, if so, internally transfers any data packets from its forwarding arrangement to its processing arrangement, while setting the circulating bit. The master device has a switcher unit coupled to the redundant slave port and a last slave in the sequence. The switcher unit transfers data packets from the switcher receiver to the switcher transmitter, and detects whether a circulating bit is set. If so, the unit switches off said transferring and switches on a connection between the redundant slave port and the switcher for transferring replicated packets to the sequence.

Abstract: An EtherCAT packet forwarding system with distributed clocking is provided. The system comprises a master device and a plurality of slaves. The master comprises a processing port and a forward port for being respectively coupled to the at least two Ethernet ports of the master device in a redundant ring topology. The slaves comprise an internal clock indicating a current time, and a slave memory comprising a processing timestamp variable, a forwarding timestamp variable, a temporary timestamp variable and a copy-direct bit.

Abstract: An electronic device communicates according to a network protocol that defines data packets, for example EtherCAT. The device has a processor for performing input control on incoming data packets and performing output control on outgoing data packets, and a shared FIFO buffer comprising a multiuser memory. An input unit receives input data, detects the start of a respective data packet, subdivides the data packet into consecutive segments, one segment having a predetermined number of data bytes, and transfers the segment to the FIFO buffer before the next segment has been completely received. The processor accesses, in the input control, the multiuser memory for processing the segment, and, in the output control, initiates outputting the output packet before the corresponding input data packet has been completely received. An output unit transfers the segment from the FIFO buffer, and transmits the segment to the communication medium.

Abstract: A real-time distributed network module arranged to provide an interface between at least one master application and at least one real-time distributed network. The real-time distributed network module comprises a first communications component arranged to transmit and receive real-time distributed network data over at least a first real-time distributed network connection, at least one further communications component arranged to transmit and receive real-time distributed network data over at least one further real-time distributed network connection at least one master application interface component arranged to provide an interface to the at least one master application, and at least one configuration component arranged to perform mapping of communication channels between the first communications component, the at least one further communications component and the at least one master application interface component.