Bell Communications Research, Inc.

Tony T Lee

Edward Arthurs

Matthew S Goodman

Chong K Kim

A merging network which receives three or more simultaneous input lists of sorted numbers and merges the input lists to form a single sorted list at its outputs. The merging network comprises three stages of interconnected comparator modules, the merging network inputs being connected to the inputs of the comparator modules of the first stage with a mod shuffle interconnection pattern. The outputs of the third stage form the network outputs of the merging network. The first, second, and third stages include one or more comparator modules which are larger than two-by-two. The inventive merging network may be utilized recursively to form a sorting network.

Merging network with three or more simultaneous inputs

A modular architecture for a very large packet switch is disclosed. Each module comprises a Batcher subnetwork and an expansion routing network, which expansion routing network includes a set of binary tree subnetwork interconnected with a set of banyan subnetworks. A packet may be routed from an input of the switch to any output by means of only one switch module. This means that the switch modules may be synchronized independently of each other and if one module fails the remainder of the modules may continue to route packets.

Modular architecture for very large packet switch

An optical switch for use in a fiber optic telecommunications network is disclosed. An important feature of the inventive switch is its multicast capability. The inventive switch utilizes two internal networks, an optical network for transmission and an electronic network for control. Illustratively, the transmission network is an optical star network which links the input ports and output ports of the invention switch. The electronic control network is in the form of a track of ring which surrounds the optical star and sequentially connects the input and output ports.

Multicast packet switching method

An optical switch for use in a fiber optic telecommunications network is disclosed. An important feature of the inventive switch is its multicast capability. The inventive switch utilizes two internal networks, an optical network for transmission and an electronic network for control. Illustratively, the transmission network is an optical star network which links the input ports and output ports of the inventive switch. The electronic control network is in the form of a track or ring which surrounds the optical star and sequentially connects the input and output ports.

Broadband optical multicast switch

A copy network capable of packet replication is disclosed. An encoding process transforms the set of copy numbers, specified in the headers of incoming packets, into a set of monotone address intervals which form new packet headers. This process is carried out by a running adder network and a set of dummy address encoders. A broadcast banyan network performs the packet replication according to a Boolean Interval Splitting Algorithm. Finally, trunk number translators determine the destinations of individual copies. The copy network is self-routing, non-blocking and has a constant packet latency.

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Bridgewater, NJ, United States of America

Tony T Lee