Nortel Networks Corporation

James Kearney

Mark Brian Carson

William Smith

One aspect of the invention provides an ingress apparatus comprising a signal processing apparatus for receiving an incoming data frame and locating the position of path overhead, and a monitoring apparatus arranged to extract information from the located path overhead. The ingress apparatus further includes an insertion apparatus for receiving, from the monitoring apparatus, information extracted from the path overhead of one or more signal path, and being further arranged to insert the extracted information into a respective data frame component which occupies a fixed position in a data frame. Thus, information which would normally occupy a non-fixed position in a data frame is moved to a fixed position. As a result, the information can subsequently be accessed without having to employ relatively complex apparatus for locating information which occupies a non-fixed position.

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Moira, United Kingdom

James Kearney