Cisco Technology, Inc.

Rudolph Benedict Klecka

Norman William Finn

Rong Pan

Peter Geoffrey Jones

Hiroshi Suzuki

Xuechen Yang

Hariprasada Rao Ginjpalli

Linda Tin-Wen Cheng

Pascal Thubert

Patrick Wetterwald

Eric Michel Levy-Abegnoli

Charles Calvin Byers

Frederick Roland Schindler

Theodore Grevers, Jr

Dylan Thomas Walker

Gregory Faison Morris

Johnston Reid McGaughey

Raja Rajaram Kannan

Scott Lawrence Lennartz

John Alvin Herrmann

Yonghan Kang

Freddy Alejandro Mercado

In one embodiment, a device receives control logic programmed within at least one controller included within an industrial network. The device also determines a network topology of the industrial network, and derives a network policy for the industrial network based upon, at least in part, the control logic and the network topology.

Deriving a network policy for an industrial automation network

In one embodiment, a device in a network maintains a topology database of one or more topologies of entities in the network. The device identifies a replacement entity that has physically replaced a particular one of the entities in the network. The device determines whether neighbor information regarding one or more of the entities that neighbor the replacement entity matches neighbor information in the topology database associated with the replaced entity. The device determines whether client information regarding one of more clients of the replacement entity matches client information in the topology database associated with the replaced entity. The device sends an alert when the neighbor or client information of the replacement entity does not match the neighbor or client information in the topology database associated with the replaced entity.

Automated network entity replacement based on historical topology consciousness

In one embodiment, a virtual firewall is installed on a port of a device that communicates across a zone boundary within an industrial network. The virtual firewall is then configured based on operation of the industrial network, such that the port may then communicate via the firewall to a remote virtual firewall of a remote port of a remote device across the zone boundary.

Configuring firewalls for an industrial automation network

In one embodiment, a device receives a network policy based upon, at least in part, a physical network, and configures a design of an industrial network overlay on the physical network based upon, at least in part, the network policy. The configuring, according to the techniques herein, may generally include: determining a number of virtual local area networks (VLANs) within the industrial network overlay; determining which devices of the physical network are on which VLAN; determining placement of at least one virtual firewall within the industrial network overlay; and determining at least one communication path for the industrial network overlay between at least two devices.

Configuring the design of an industrial automation network

A method for allocating port assignments for transmitting a reserved network stream across a network node comprises determining a cycle time associated with a network node. The method also comprises establishing, for at least one port of the network node, a plurality of virtual layers associated with the cycle time, wherein each of the plurality of virtual layers is divided into 2n equally-spaced slots per cycle (where n&#x3e;0). The method further comprises receiving a reserved stream request associated with transmission of a reserved stream across the node, and determining a number of slots required to transmit the reserved stream. The method also comprises assigning one or more slots associated with a port of the network node to the transmission of packets associated with the reserved stream based on the determined number of slots. The method further comprises transmitting the stream according to the slot assignment associated with the port of the network node.

Flexible deterministic binary scheduler

A set of network communications devices shares available power among themselves to meet overall system power loading. An individual device is configured to include a local power supply delivering power to a local power bus at a local supply voltage varied in response to a voltage control signal. A protection component is connected between the local power bus and an external power cable used to connect the device to another device for sharing power. The protection component provides an interruptible low-impedance DC path for carrying current based on direction and magnitude of a voltage difference between the local power bus and the external power cable. Control circuitry is used to: (a) drive a current-sharing bus connected among the devices to influence a value of a system current-sharing signal indicating a level of system power loading among the devices; (b) generate a difference signal indicating a difference between local power loading of the local power supply and the system power loading reflected by the system current-sharing signal; and (c) generate the voltage control signal based on the difference signal to achieve a predetermined sharing of the system power loading by the local power supply.

Power sharing network communications device

The embodiments described herein present methods and apparatus for an energy-saving status indicator. A method includes receiving a configuration of a first power consumption state for a status indicator light in a network device. The method then activates the first power consumption state using the configuration. After detecting a condition, the method activates a second power consumption state for the status indicator light. The transition from the first power state to the second power state may be from a low power state to a normal operating state or from a normal operating state to a low power state in various embodiments. Other embodiments are described.

Energy-saving status indicator

Growing community of inventors

Austin, TX, United States of America

Rudolph Benedict Klecka