Tttech Computertechnik Ag

Honeywell International Inc.

Fts Computertechnik Gmbh

Titech Auto Ag

Tttech Industrial Automation Ag

Ittech Computertechnik Aktiengesellschaft

Tttech Auto Ag

Günther Bauer

Wilfried Steiner

Brendan Hall

Michael Paulitsch

Matthias Wachter

Hermann Kopetz

Martin Schwarz

Christian Fidi

Harald Angelow

Georg Gaderer

Mirko Jakovljevic

Arjan Geven

Erwan Sudrat

Mehmed Ayhan

Matthias Wächter

Stefan Rebernig

A communication node (NODE) for connecting a fault-tolerant computer (FTC) to a real-time network (NET), wherein the node receives critical application data (HCAD, HCAD) from computation hosts (HOST) of the fault-tolerant computer, and the node is configured to forward the critical application data as node critical application data (NCAD) to the NET. The node includes at least a first end system (ES), a second end system (ES) and a switch (SW), and the switch includes at least a commander part (COM), a monitor part (MON) and a comperator part (COMP). The MON and the COMP may be integrated into an integrated part (MONC). The ESconnects to the computation hosts or a subset thereof, and the ESconnects to the computation hosts or a subset thereof. The ESconnects to the COM, and the ESconnects to the MON. The computation hosts or a subset thereof provide first host critical application data (HCAD) to the ES, and the computation hosts or a subset thereof provide second host critical application data (HCAD) to the ES. The ESis configured to forward the HCADas first end system critical application data (ESCAD) to the COM and the ESis configured to forward the HCADas second end system critical application data (ESCAD) to the MON. The COM is configured to forward the ESCADas commander critical application data (CCAD) to the COMP at a pre-configured commander forwarding point in time (TCOM), and the MON is configured to forward the ESCADas monitor critical application data (MCAD) to the COMP at a pre-configured monitor forwarding point in time (TMON). If the MON and the COMP are not integrated into an integrated part, then the COMP is configured to forward either the CCAD or the MCAD as node critical application data (NCAD), if and only if, the CCAD and the MCAD are identical and the COMP starts to receive the CCAD and the MCAD within an interval of configured length (SYNC-). Alternatively, if the MON and the COMP are integrated into an integrated part (MONC), then the COM is configured to forward the ESCADas NCAD to the NET. The switch includes an interception function (INTERCEPT) which is configured to (i) preempt an ongoing transmission of NCAD and/or (ii) prevent the transmission of NCAD, and the COMP is configured to activate the interception function if and only if the CCAD and the MCAD are not identical or the COMP does not start to receive the CCAD and the MCAD within SYNC-

Communication node for critical systems

The invention describes a method and a computer network for fault tolerant message transmission. Nodes of the network are connected to form a ring network. Nodes in the network form a summation group. For transmitting messages from the nodes of the summation group to a switch edge, nodes of the summation group generate and send summation frames. If a node participating in the summation group determines the non-arrival of a summation frame, it generates first recovery frame, inserts its message into said recovery frame, and sends this first recovery frame in the direction of the summation frame, which it was expecting. After sending the first recovery frame, it generates a second recovery frame, inserts its messages into said second right direction recovery frame, and sends said second right direction recovery frame to the switch.

Method for fault tolerant message transmission in a computer network and computer network

A method and a fault-tolerant computer architecture (FCTA) for fail-safe trajectory planning for a moving entity (MOV). The method and FCTA uses a commander (COM), a monitor (MON), and a safe envelope generating stage (ENV). Based on sensor input, the commander (COM) and the monitor (MON) produce real-time images of objects (OBJ, OBJ) detected. A trajectory planning stage (TRJ-PLN) generates trajectories (COM-TRJ, COM-TRJ), and the safe envelope generating stage (ENV) generates a safety envelope. The commander (COM) provides the one or more trajectories (COM-TRJ, COM-TRJ) to the monitor (MON) and the decision subsystem (DECIDE). A trajectory verification stage (TRJ-VRFY) verifies a trajectory (COM-TRJ, COM-TRJ) generated by the commander (COM) only if said trajectory (COM-TRJ, COM-TRJ) is completely located inside said safety envelope. A moving entity (MOV) uses a trajectory (COM-TRJ, COM-TRJ) generated by the commander (COM) only when said trajectory is verified by the monitor (MON).

Method and fault tolerant computer architecture for reducing false negatives in fail-safe trajectory planning for a moving entity

A method for data integrity check in a network device of a computer network. The network device includes a communication module and a monitoring module. The monitoring module receives (a) the same data being received by a communication module from an input port of the network device, and (b) the same data the communication module transmits towards output port/s of the network device. The monitoring module (i) derives, after receiving the same R-data as the communication module, a sub-tuple of the R-data, a 'R-data sub-tuple', wherein the R-data sub-tuple includes m of the n data elements of the n-tuple of R-data, wherein m&#x3e;0 and m&#x3c;n, (ii) stores, after deriving the R-data sub-tuple, only the R-data sub-tuple, (iii) derives, after receiving the T-data corresponding to the R-data, a sub-tuple of the T-data, a 'T-data sub-tuple', and (iv) compares the stored R-data sub-tuple with the T-data sub-tuple, and (v) executes at least one specified/specifiable action, if the comparison determines the R-data sub-tuple and T-data sub-tuple are not identical.

Network device and method for scalable data integrity checking

Methods and computer systems for establishing an interactive consistency property between receivers of messages. Messages are transmitted to receivers by a sender over a communication network including disjoint communication paths for connecting receivers and sender. Switches include local clocks. Local clocks of non-faulty switches are synchronized to each other with a maximum error (precision), and receivers detect switch failures. Redundant copies of a message are forwarded by sender to each receiver across different disjoint communication paths. A switch of each disjoint path is configured such that redundant copies are forwarded to each receiver with a temporal distance between disjoint paths. That distance is selected such that all non-faulty receivers receive redundant copies in the same receive order, when the switches and communication links of the disjoint paths exhibit no failure. Each receiver concludes from the receive order whether and which redundant copy to accept to satisfy the interactive consistency property.

Method and computer system for establishing an interactive consistency property

A self-checking network device () for communication in a real-time network, wherein the self-checking network device () includes at least four modules (S-COM, P-COM, P-MON, S-MON), wherein the network device () and/or each of the four modules is configured such that a first module (S-COM) of the at least four modules receives both regular data and protocol data from said communication links () on a first input (COM-IN), and said first module (S-COM) forwards protocol data on a second input (P-COM-IN) to a second module (P-COM) of the at least four modules, wherein said second module (P-COM) executes a first function (C-PU) as part of the one or the more of the network protocols using protocol data received on said second input (P-COM-IN) and produces protocol data as output on a first output (P-COM-OUT).

Device and network to reliably communicate in a network

A method for transmitting real-time messages in a computer network (), in particular real-time computer network, wherein said network comprises two or more computing nodes () and one or more star couplers (), wherein said nodes are interconnected via at least one star coupler, wherein each node is connected to at least one star coupler via at least one of the communication links (), and wherein the nodes exchange messages (MM) with one another and with the at least one star coupler, and wherein star couplers, which are synchronized to a global time base (C), transmit a first non-empty set (SSET) of real-time messages according to a synchronized communication paradigm, and/or wherein computing nodes, which are synchronized to the global time base, transmit said first non-empty set of real-time messages according to the synchronized communication paradigm, wherein a star coupler, which is not synchronized to a global time base, and/or a computing node, which is not synchronized to a global time base, transmits a second non-empty subset (CSET) of said first non-empty subset of real-time messages according to an unsynchronized communication paradigm and stops the transmission of said second non-empty subset of real-time messages according to the synchronized communication paradigm.

Method to improve availability of real-time computer networks

A method is provided to detect and handle failures in the communication in a network, including a sender () and a receiver (), where communication between the sender and the receiver is message-oriented. The method includes: (a) the sender sending a message (M, M-C, M-C) to the receiver; (b) the sender monitoring the transmission process of the message inside the sender and/or monitoring the message; (c) the sender executing a correctness check of (i) the message, e.g., its contents, and/or (ii) the transmission process of the message inside the sender; and (d) after the correctness check(s) has/have been completed, the sender informs the receiver of the result of the correctness check(s), wherein (e) the receiver of the message marks the message as being faulty and/or discards the message if the result of a correctness check indicates that the message and/or transmission process is faulty.

Method to detect and to handle failures in the communication in a computer network

An information exchange between at least two processes (FEED_PROC-, FEED_PROC-, CONSUME_PROC-) communicating with each other using at least one queue (QUEUE-) uses a placement plan for determining the order in which messages are placed into the queue. The information feeding processes (FEED_PROC-, FEED_PROC-) place pieces of information (MESG-, MESG-) into the queue (QUEUE-), from where an information consuming process (CONSUME_PROC-) sequentially consumes the pieces of information. The placement plan describes, for at least one possible value of identifying information contained in each of the pieces of information, a respective position (POS-, POS-) in the queue (QUEUE-), such that the pieces of information (MESG-, MESCG-) or respective references thereto are placed into the queue according to positions in the queue (QUEUE-) corresponding to the respective values of the identifying information in the pieces of information.

Static message placement in queues based on an apriori defined placement plan

The invention relates to a method for transmitting messages in a computer network, and to a computer network of this type. The computer network comprises computing nodes (-), said computing nodes (-) being interconnected via at least one star coupler () and/or at least one multi-hop network (), wherein each computing node (-) is connected via at least one communication line () to the at least one star coupler () and/or the at least one multi-hop network (), and wherein the computing nodes (-) exchange Ethernet messages with one another and with the at least one star coupler () and/or the at least one multi-hop network (). A set of two or more components are directly connected to one another in each case by two or more communication lines (), wherein each component in the set is either a computing node (-) or a star coupler (), and sending components in the set of components send to at least two of the two or more communication lines () at least a proportion of the Ethernet messages that are to be sent, and receiving components in the set of components then accept and/or forward at least a proportion of the Ethernet messages received via the two or more communication lines () only if at least two identical messages are received via at least two different communication lines.

Method for transmitting messages in a computer network, and computer network

The invention relates to a method for synchronizing local clocks in a distributed computer network, where said computer network consists of a number of components that are connected to each other via bi-directional communication links, characterized in that

Method for synchronizing local clocks in a distributed computer system

The invention relates to a method for the redundant transmission of messages in a distributed real-time system, wherein the real-time system comprises two or more computing nodes (-) and one or more star couplers (-), wherein the computing nodes (-) are connected to the star couplers (-) by means of bidirectional communication lines () and the star couplers (-) are interconnected by bidirectional communication lines (), and wherein the star couplers (-) connected by the communication lines () form a network infrastructure (), wherein one or more star couplers (-) of the network infrastructure () perform one or more activity rasters (), wherein an activity raster () consists of alternating active phases () and rest phases (), and wherein any message sent in the network infrastructure is assigned to precisely one activity raster (). The invention also relates to a network infrastructure and also a real-time system comprising a network infrastructure of this type.

Method and network infrastructure for the redundant transmission of messages in a distributed real-time system

The goal of the present invention is to improve the useful data efficiency and reliability in the use of commercially available ETHERNET controllers, in a distributed real time computer system, by a number of node computers communicating via one or more communication channels by means of TT ETHERNET messages. To achieve this goal, a distinction is made between the node computer send time (KNSZPKT) and the network send time (NWSZPKT) of a message. The KNSZPKT must wait for the NWSZPKT, so that under all circumstances, the start of the message has arrived in the TT star coupler at the NWSZPKT, interpreted by the clock in the TT star coupler. The TT star coupler is modified, so that a message arriving from a node computer is delayed in an intelligent port of the TT star coupler until the NWSZPKT can send it precisely at the NWSZPKT into the TT network.

Communication method for the transmission of TT ethernet messages in a distributed real time computer system

In a network based on IEEE 1588, comprising a plurality of nodes () and a plurality of connections where each connection connects at least two nodes to allow communication between nodes including the exchange of messages according to a network protocol, the synchronization of IEEE 1588 is improved by allowing multiple grandmaster clocks () to operate simultaneously in the system. Thus, the re-election protocol of IEEE 1588 is made obsolete. For this, a multitude of nodes form a subsystem implementing a high-availability grand master clock () according to the IEEE 1588 Standard, wherein the subsystem is configured to tolerate the failure of at least one of said nodes forming said subsystem. Bi-directional communication link () are configured for physically connecting a IEEE 1588 Master clocks () and/or IEEE 1588 Slave clocks () to the subsystem implementing a high-availability grand master clock ().

Network and method for implementing a high-availability grand master clock

A method for synchronizing local clocks in a distributed computer network includes a number of components that are connected to each other via bi-directional communication links. An a priori configured set of components generates synchronization messages and sends these messages to the network. An a priori configured set of components consumes the generated messages. One or more message-relaying components in between a component that generates a synchronization message and the component that consumes the message adds delay value to the message reflecting the delay imposed by the message-relaying component. A component that is configured to consume a synchronization message delays a received synchronization message upon reception for a duration that is calculated by an a priori configured value for the maximum transmission delay minus the value of the sum of all delay values added to the received message before further usage of the message in the synchronization process.

Growing community of inventors

Vienna, Austria

Günther Bauer