Importance

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Abstract

A computer-communications concentrator for establishing connections between a plurality of asynchronous computer-communications terminals and a two-way computer-communications channel for transmission and switching of packetized data. The concentrator is comprised of one processing unit which is operated asynchronously and is connected to the computer-communications terminals. One X25 interface normalizing function processing unit is connected to the two-way computer-communication channel, with, between the two processing units, a communication system comprised of one memory unit having a first part in which each packet transmitted in one or the other direction is stored, and a second part comprised of forward and return cell pairs. Each cell is provided to store a packet header during a transfer into the communication system, each local header containing the address of the packet stored in the first part of the memory unit, its length, and some data relevant to the type of packet, the interpretation of which is used to determine in the processing unit which reads it, the appropriate processing to be done for the packet at hand. Each link between a terminal and the two-way channel makes use of a couple of selected pairs of cells, each packet being stored in a location available from the first part of the processing unit which introduces this packet into the memory inserting a local header in the corresponding outgoing cell from the associated cell pair, then transferring this local header into the return cell of the other pair from the set associated with the unit which will output the packet from the memory unit when this cell is available as indicated by a particular value of the packet type information.

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First Claim