Flow control mechanism for block switching nodes
US4380063A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 10, 1981 |
| Grant date | Apr 12, 1983 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 10, 2001 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L47/39
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
In a communication network comprising block switching nodes interconnected by transmission links, a flow control mechanism is provided in each switching node for regulating the flow of addressed data blocks or messages. A hardware look-ahead mechanism effective within each node tests for each data block received from a link and buffered at an input port, whether it can be accepted at the appropriate output port of the same node for further transmission. A token mechanism effective over links permits maintenance at each output port of a node of an indication whether any data block can be accepted in the input port at the other end of the respective link. By the combined operation of look-ahead mechanisms and token mechanisms the flow of addressed messages in a direction where the transmission path is already filled up is prevented. This has a positive smoothing effect on overall traffic flow where short-time or local overloads occur.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.