A physical switching device for use in a communication network to switch Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) network layer packets and method of use therefor is provided. The physical switching device includes at least a first and a second virtual switch. Each virtual switch includes a decision mechanism for determining an associated directive based on a destination identifier within a particular packet received at a data port. A processor is coupled to each virtual switch to insert the particular packet into an outgoing data stream on another data port to deliver the packet. Both data ports are associated with a plurality of data interfaces in the physical switching device. A management apparatus is coupled to each virtual switch to maintain information on an association between the plurality of data interfaces and the virtual switches. The management apparatus limits each processor to only inserting the particular packet on another data port associated with the same virtual switch which received the particular packet.

Method and apparatus for virtual switching

The Logical Channel Table (LCT), utilizing simple conventional channels or Composite Channels, provides mapping between a Logical Channel Number (LCN) representing a service and the transport stream (TSID) / program number (PN) on which the service can be found. The LCT entry contains a Composite Channel Indicator (CCI), which when set to '1', indicates that the selected channel is a composite channel thereby indicating the home channel of the Composite Channel. The LCT provides the Composite Channel Table (CCT) to the decoder (10) so that the tuner (12) can be returned to the actual program designated in the CCT for current viewing. Each entry in the CCT associates a Composite Channel Number (CCN) with a LCN and represents the 'present' definition for the composite channel. As time progresses, the CCN is used as a 'pointer' to the LCN which is the currently active service for the composite channel. These tables work with conventional MPEG-2 service definitions to decode multi-service transport streams.

Logical and composite channel mapping in an mpeg network

An ATM network switch and method of utilization for adaptively providing integrated services therein is disclosed. In providing such integrated services, if the allocated bandwidth for one connection has been consumed, or if the connection is not entitled to allocated bandwidth, the connection can optionally use dynamic bandwidth arbitration, or a combination of both allocated and dynamic. The switch includes an input port processor, a bandwidth arbiter, and an output port processor. Cells are transmitted from the input to the output, under the control of respective port processors and the bandwidth arbiter. Flow control is implemented on a per-connection basis. Individual queues are then assigned to traffic type groups in order to provide traffic type flow control. Based upon prioritization information associated with the cell at the input, cells are prioritized and transmitted from the output, with each cell maintained in the same order, relative to other cells on a connection, in which it was received.

Allocated and dynamic bandwidth management

A packet transfer scheme in a network system capable of realizing a high speed, large capacity inter-network communication under an internet environment. A network interconnection apparatus (router) has a memory for storing a correspondence relationship between a virtual connection used in receiving a packet from one logical network and a virtual connection used in transmitting a packet to another logical network, and a transfer at a datalink layer is carried out according to the registered correspondence relationship, to effectively form a bypass pipe capable of transferring a packet by an datalink layer level processing alone over a plurality of networks from the transmission terminal to the destination terminal, so that a high speed packet transfer between networks can be realized.

Network interconnection apparatus network node apparatus and packet transfer method for high speed large capacity inter-network communication

An apparatus for supervising and controlling ATM traffic, and which collects traffic information, comprises a cell detecting unit for outputting a cell detecting signal whenever detecting a user information cell flowing through an ATM switch unit, an idle cell detecting unit for outputting an idle cell detecting signal whenever detecting an idle cell flowing through an ATM switch unit, a cell counting unit for counting the cell detecting signals output from the cell detecting unit, an idle cell counting unit for counting the idle cell detecting signals output from the idle cell detecting unit, an idle cell rate detecting unit for detecting an idle cell rate from both counts output from the cell counting unit and the idle cell counting unit at regular intervals, and a control unit for performing the operation of traffic control in accordance with the idle cell rate provided from the idle cell rate detecting unit at regular intervals.

Apparatus and a method for supervising and controlling ATM traffic

In a packet network which includes a plurality of packet switching stations and in which a packet including in its header portion a VPI (Virtual Path Indentifier) for identifying one of logical paths multipliexed on a transmission line and a VCI (Virtual Connection Identifier) for identifying one of logical connections multiplexed on one logical path is communicated between the switching stations, each switching station preliminarily designates a VCI to be given to a packet directed to that station when a logical connection is to be set up between that station and another station. When receiving an information packet from the other station, the each station makes access to header label conversion tables on the basis of a VCI included in the received packet to read internal routing information necessary for a packet switching operation and a VCI to be given to a packet to be delivered.

Packet switch communication network using packet having virtual channel identifier

In a packet network which includes a plurality of packet switching stations (52, 54, 56, 58) and in which a packet including in its header portion a VPI (Virtual Path Identifier) for identifying one of logical paths multiplexed on a transmission line and VCI (Virtual Connection Identifier) for identifying one of logical connections multiplexed on one logical path is communi­cated between the switching stations, each switching station preliminarily designates a VCI to be given to a packet directed to that station when a logical connec­tion is to be set up between that station and another station. When receiving an information packet from the other station, the each station makes access to header label conversion tables (14, 24) on the basis of a VCI included in the received packet to read internal routing information necessary for a packet switching operation and a VCI to be given to a packet to be delivered.

Packet switch network for communication using packet having virtual connection identifier vci

PURPOSE:To provide a VCI on a circuit without duplication by providing an information transfer connection (VCI) different from a transmission/reception direction and allowing each switchboard to decide a reception VCI at call setting. CONSTITUTION:When a call takes place in the switchboard, an information transfer VCI at a reception side is decided and a starting signal including the VCI in its parameter is sent to an opposite switchboard. An incoming station similarly decides the reception side information transfer VCI, the start ending signal including the VCI in its parameter is returned to an outgoing station and then the call is set. Moreover, a label conversion table is provided decentralizingly on an incoming side and the outgoing side of a switch and the internal VCI and routing information used in the exchange are set to the incoming side label conversion table and the VCI and the VPI for outgoing line are set to an outgoing side label conversion table and as soon as the VCI is converted into an internal VCI at the incoming side, switch routing information is set to the VPI area of a packet header and as soon as the internal VCI is converted into the VCI for outgoing line at the outgoing side, the VPI is added to the packet header.

Shinobu Gohara

Papers

Packet switch communication network using packet having virtual channel identifier

Packet switch network for communication using packet having virtual connection identifier vci

Packet switching system and packet switchboard