Claims
- 1. A method of determining a connection between a data emitting device and a network device which may carry the data, wherein the network device is comprised of a store for a data source address of a last frame transmitted to the network device and an input traffic count comprising:(a) periodically reading the data source address, (b) periodically reading the input traffic count, (c) determining whether the data source address has always stayed the same, (d) in the event the data source address has always stayed the same, determine whether the traffic count has exceeded a predetermined threshold, (e) in the event the result of step (d) is true, indicate that the data source address identifies with acceptable probability a data emitting device directly connected to the network device.
- 2. A method as defined in claim 1, including:(f) in the event the result of step (c) is false, indicate that a device identified by the data source address is directly connected to the network device.
- 3. A method as defined in claim 2 in which the store is an address resolution table of a communications routing device.
FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates to a method of determining the topology of a network of objects, such as the physical topology of a network of data communications devices. This is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/749,671 filed Nov. 15, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,411,997, which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/599,310 filed Feb. 9, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,933,416, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/558,729 filed Nov. 16, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,462.
US Referenced Citations (7)
Foreign Referenced Citations (4)
Number |
Date |
Country |
455402 |
Nov 1991 |
EP |
WO 9419889 |
Sep 1994 |
WO |
WO 9501030 |
Jan 1995 |
WO |
WO 9613108 |
May 1996 |
WO |
Continuation in Parts (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
08/599310 |
Feb 1996 |
US |
Child |
08/749671 |
|
US |
Parent |
08/558729 |
Nov 1995 |
US |
Child |
08/599310 |
|
US |