Abstract: A data bus node, being a control node or a sensor node and being arranged to communicate over a TDMA data bus. The node includes a time signal processing device being configured to define a TDMA time slot transmission schedule for at least the node. A switch is configured to either connect or isolate a transmission path of the node to the bus and is configured to be controlled by the TDMA time slot transmission schedule for the node via a bus transmission access control device. The bus transmission access control device is configured to be further controlled by at least one external control signal via at least one external data transmission link being physically separated from the bus. A fault tolerant data bus system includes such a bus node and an aircraft exploiting the node/system. The babbling idiot problem is solved and at the same time the node/s/system fail silent behavior is enhanced.

Abstract: A fault tolerant data processing system for controlling a real time process. The system is tolerant to systematic faults in its software. The system includes a data processor unit with a program memory and a data memory and input and output units where program software residing in the program memory can be executed on the data processor unit. The system includes a normal-mode software program residing in the program memory, and a backup-mode software program also residing in the program memory arranged to perform the same or similar function of the normal mode software program but being differently implemented than the normal-mode software program, and where a trigger signal received by the data processor unit can switch execution control such that the normal-mode software program stops executing and the backup-mode software program starts executing.

Abstract: A data bus node, being a control node or a sensor node and being arranged to communicate over a TDMA data bus. The node includes a time signal processing device being configured to define a TDMA time slot transmission schedule for at least the node. A switch is configured to either connect or isolate a transmission path of the node to the bus and is configured to be controlled by the TDMA time slot transmission schedule for the node via a bus transmission access control device. The bus transmission access control device is configured to be further controlled by at least one external control signal via at least one external data transmission link being physically separated from the bus. A fault tolerant data bus system includes such a bus node and an aircraft exploiting the node/system. The babbling idiot problem is solved and at the same time the node/s/system fail silent behavior is enhanced.