System and Method For Establishing And Maintaining Simultaneous Operation of Asynchronous and Isochronous Communications

Abstract

A digital communication system and method for establishing and maintaining simultaneous operation of asynchronous and isochronous communications over the same or different physical communication media. The system includes a Multimode Network Controller having connections to multiple asynchronous and isochronous information sources, two or more normally non-interoperable Member Devices using different native protocols to communicate with the Multimode Network Controller over different wired and wireless physical communication media (or channel), and an algorithm that uses the Time Division Multiple Access technique to enable simultaneous operation of asynchronous and isochronous communications. Some embodiments of the present invention include an algorithm to enable a Member Device to have sub-network controller functions. The system in some embodiments of the present invention may include algorithms that enable the Multimode Network Controller to control and coordinate a transfer of information from information sources to Member Devices over different physical media or through one or more sub-networks.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described by reference to the following drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary environment of a typical wireless home network using Wi-Fi for information transfer between the Internet and portable computers.

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary environment of a typical wired home network using Power Line Communication (PLC) for information transfer between the Internet and computers on the PLC network.

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary environment using the preferred digital communication system with a Multimode Network Controller (MNC).

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary multimode superframe structure that supports both asynchronous and isochronous network traffic concurrently.

FIG. 5 depicts an example of multiplexing multiple isochronous data transfers within a single Isochronous Allocated Channel Time (IACT)

FIG. 6 depicts an example of access architecture for a Wi-Fi system.

FIG. 7 depicts an exemplary functional architecture of a Multimode Network Controller (MNC).

FIG. 8 depicts a flow chart for the address translation process.

FIG. 9 depicts a diagram of a sub-network communicating with the Multimode Network Controller (MNC).

Claims

1. A digital communication system comprising network nodes and connections to multiple asynchronous and isochronous information sources, the network nodes having a Multimode Network Controller and at least two normally non-interoperable Member Devices with different native protocols, the Multimode Network Controller comprising means for controlling and coordinating transfer of information from multiple asynchronous and isochronous information sources to the Member Devices, each Member Device having a transmitter and a receiver and whereas the Member Device uses its native networking protocol to communicate with the Multimode Network Controller to transfer information between the Multimode Network Controller, asynchronous and isochronous information sources, or Member Devices.

2. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the Multimode Network Controller uses a TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access)-based technique for establishing and maintaining communications with one of the Member Devices (MDs) over one physical channel and with another Member Device (MD) over the same or different physical channel.

3. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the networking protocol between the Multimode Network Controller and one Member Device is asynchronous in nature.

4. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the networking protocol between the Multimode Network Controller and one Member Device is isochronous in nature.

5. The digital communication system according to claim 1 further comprising an internet connection to the Multimode Network Controller.

6. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the non-Internet, asynchronous information source is any computing and consumer electronics equipment that hosts and provides information over an Internet Protocol (IP)-based asynchronous connection.

7. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the isochronous information sources are subscription-based content services over cable or satellite provided by content service providers, and non-subscription-based isochronous information sources from computing and consumer electronics equipment.

8. The digital communication system according to claim 7, wherein the Multimode Network Controller maintains a plurality of wired Audio-Video Link connections to content service providers by means of one or more cable/satellite Set-Top Boxes, and to non-subscription-based isochronous information sources.

9. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the networking protocol used by a first Member Device is incompatible with that of a second Member Device, and each Member Device communicates with the Multimode Network Controller using its native networking protocol over a physical channel.

10. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein a first Member Device communicating with the Multimode Network Controller using an isochronous networking protocol is an Isochronous Member Device and a second Member Device communicating with the Multimode Network Controller using an asynchronous networking protocol is an Asynchronous Member Device.

11. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the Multimode Network Controller, using its Time Division Multiple Access-based control means, receives information from an Isochronous Member Device using a native isochronous networking protocol, reassembles the information, delivers the information to the Asynchronous Member Device using a native asynchronous networking protocol over the same physical medium.

12. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the Multimode Network Controller, using its Time Division Multiple Access-based control means, receives information from an Asynchronous Member Device via its native asynchronous networking protocol, reassembles the information and delivers the information to the Isochronous Member Device via its native isochronous networking protocol, over the same physical medium.

13. The digital communication system according to claim 11, wherein the information exchanged between the Isochronous Member Device and the Asynchronous Member Device crosses over different physical mediums.

14. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the connections are wired physical channels, the wired physical channels being coaxial/triaxial cable, twisted-pair Ethernet wire (CAT 5), optical fiber, power line, and telephone line.

15. The digital communication system according to claim 1, wherein the connections are wireless physical channels, the wireless physical channels being radio frequency channels.

16. A method for establishing and maintaining simultaneous operation of asynchronous and isochronous communications in a digital communication system comprising the steps of: connecting a Multimode Network Controller to multiple asynchronous and isochronous information sources and Member Devices of incompatible networks with different native protocols,providing Time Division Multiple Access-based controls in a Multimode Network Controller for establishing and maintaining simultaneous communications with the member devices of non-interoperable protocols over one or more physical channels andtransferring information between the information sources and Member Devices that are both isochronous member devices and asynchronous member devices.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the Multimode Network Controller transfers information from the asynchronous information source to the Isochronous Member Device using an isochronous networking protocol, and to the Asynchronous Member Device using an asynchronous networking protocol, and the Multimode Network Controller autonomously decides to transfer information to the Isochronous Member Device over a physical channel and to the Asynchronous Member Device over a physical channel.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein the Multimode Network Controller maintains a database containing all Member Devices associated with the Multimode Network Controller and the Multimode Network Controller performs proper address translation and protocol conversion between the Asynchronous Member Device and the Isochronous Member Device.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein the Multimode Network Controller transfers information from a first Member Device operating on a wired physical medium to a second Member Device operating on a wireless physical medium.

20. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller establishes a single logical communication channel with a Member Device, the single logical communication channel being time synchronized and repeated at a pre-determined interval, the logical communication channel, also known as Superframe, comprises a Synchronous Beacon Signal and one or more time slots, also known as Allocated Channel Time.

21. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller transmits a Synchronous Beacon Signal at the beginning of each Superframe cycle heard by an Isochronous Member Device and followed by one or more assigned Allocated Channel Time.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the Allocated Channel Time allocates sufficient time for transferring information between the Multimode Network Controller and the Member Devices, the information being application data traffic of asynchronous or isochronous nature or network management traffic.

23. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Allocated Channel Time is allocated for transferring QoS-demanding information between the Multimode Network Controller and Isochronous Member Devices and between one Isochronous Member Device and another Isochronous Member Device, said information being isochronous data traffic comprising time sensitive audio video data.

24. The method according to claim 16, wherein the Multimode Network Controller transmits an Asynchronous Beacon Signal at the beginning of an Allocated Channel Time reserved for asynchronous data traffic.

25. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Asynchronous Member Device listening to the designated physical channel detects the presence of an Asynchronous Beacon Signal and receives information from the Multimode Network Controller or contends for accessing the asynchronous physical channel, said information transferred being asynchronous data traffic comprising Internet Protocol (IP) data.

26. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller intelligently schedules Allocated Channel Time adaptive for asynchronous and isochronous data traffic, providing efficient utilization of limited bandwidth within the constraints of the physical channels, and based on system loading and traffic priority dynamically schedules the number of asynchronous Allocated Channel Time at the base-rate (one per superframe), super-rate (more than one per superframe), or sub-rate (one per multiple superframes).

27. The method according to claim 26 wherein the Multimode Network Controller, through an intelligent scheduling process, recovers unused bandwidth and channel time and reassigns the unused bandwidth and channel time to either an Asynchronous Member Device or an Isochronous Member Device to improve throughput performance.

28. The method according to claim 16, wherein both the Asynchronous Member Device and the Isochronous Member Device communicate with the Multimode Network Controller, and with each other and other compatible networks, transparently using their native networking protocols without changes.

29. The method according to claim 16 wherein a new unmodified Isochronous Member Device, having moved into range of the Multimode Network Controller, detects a Synchronous Beacon Signal, synchronizes with the Superframe, and communicates with the Multimode Network Controller or other Member Devices.

30. The method according to claim 16 wherein a new unmodified Asynchronous Member Device, having moved into range of the Multimode Network Controller, detects an Asynchronous Beacon Signal, synchronizes with the Allocated Channel Time reserved for the asynchronous networking protocol, and communicates with the MNC or other Member Devices.

31. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller assigns Allocated Channel Time to new classes of Member Devices, the Member Devices having either asynchronous or isochronous characteristics.

32. The method according to claim 16, wherein the Multimode Network Controller aggregates two or more adjacent wireless physical channels for transferring of information to the Member Device at an increased rate and throughput.

33. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Member Device only communicates with the Multimode Network Controller or another Member Device at a pre-determined time interval in the Allocated Channel Time reserved for the Member Device's information transfer and outside of that interval switches off power to non-vital parts.

34. The method according to claim 16, wherein a Wi-Fi Access Point as a new class of Member Device, capable of including mesh controller functionality, establishes a wireless sub-network and becomes a Sub-Network Controller (SNC).

35. The method according to claim 34, wherein a new Allocated Channel Time is assigned by the Multimode Network Controller to the Sub-Network Controller, the Sub-Network Controller being the bridge between the Multimode Network Controller and one or more Sub-Network Member Devices that are not in range of the Multimode Network Controller, and wherein the transferring of information between the Multimode Network Controller and the Member Device of the sub-network is relayed by the Sub-Network Controller within the Allocated Channel Time reserved for sub-network communication.

36. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller routes both asynchronous and isochronous network traffic between a wired physical medium and a wireless physical medium in the event that the original physical medium no longer supports information transfer.

37. The method according to claim 16 wherein the Multimode Network Controller multiplexes data received from Isochronous Information Sources for multiple Isochronous Member Devices by creating Multiplexed Data Allocation Slots within an Isochronous Allocated Channel Time, said Multiplexed Data Allocation Slots being adjusted by the Multimode Network Controller to maximize the efficiency of channel time utilization.