US Patent No: 4,890,224

Number of patents in Portfolio can not be more than 2000

Method and apparatus for fault tolerant communication within a computing system

Stats

ATTORNEY / AGENT: (SPONSORED)
 

Importance

Loading Importance Indicators... loading....

Abstract

A method and apparatus for fault tolerant communication among a plurality of I/O controllers and a communication controller using an I/O bus having byte-parallel and bit-serial data lines. Each controller is connected to the bit-serial and byte-parallel data lines and the CPU communication controller is capable of selectively indicating which set of lines shall be used for communicating information. When serial communication is desired, a switching signal is transmitted by the CPU communication controller on the serial data line whereupon the I/O controllers switch communication from the byte-parallel data lines to the bit-serial data line. Serial arbitration conflicts are avoided by allocating a time interval to each I/O controller. Each time interval is divided into 3-bit periods. An arbitrating I/O controller asserts the first itself bit true, asserts the second bit false, and disconnects from the bus during the third bit period to separate in time the modules connected to the bus from each other. The CPU communication controller in an operating system initializes newly-inserted modules and synchronizes unsynchronized modules by generating a signal on the bus for prescribed periods of time after which synchronizing control modules within each I/O controller synchronizes the I/O controller with the rest of the system.

Loading the Abstract Image... loading....

First Claim

Related Publications

Loading Related Publications... loading....

Patent Owner(s)

Patent OwnerAddressTotal Patents
HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANYPALO ALTO, CA2944

International Classification(s)

  • [Classification Symbol]
  • [Patents Count]

Inventor(s)

Inventor Name Address # of filed Patents Total Citations
Fremont, Michael J Palo Alto, CA 4 205

Cited Art

Patent Info (Count) # Cites Year
 
Allen-Bradley Company, Inc. (1)
4,527,270 Communications network with stations that detect and automatically bypass faults 84 1983
 
FISHER-ROSEMOUNT SYSTEMS, INC. (1)
4,627,045 Alternating communication channel switchover system 39 1984
 
Honeywell Information Systems Inc. (1)
4,405,978 Microprocessor based computer terminal 6 1979
 
NORTEL NETWORKS LIMITED (1)
4,254,496 Digital communication bus system 15 1979
 
P.E.T. INTERNATIONAL, INC. (1)
4,281,315 Collection of messages from data terminals using different protocols and formats 55 1979
 
RADISYS CORPORATION (1)
4,570,220 High speed parallel bus and data transfer method 137 1983
 
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED (1)
4,463,421 Serial/parallel input/output bus for microprocessor system 35 1983

Patent Citation Ranking

Forward Cites

Patent Info (Count) # Cites Year
 
MOSYS, INC. (9)
5,613,077 Method and circuit for communication between a module and a bus controller in a wafer-scale integrated circuit system 76 1994
5,737,587 Resynchronization circuit for circuit module architecture 18 1995
5,666,480 Fault-tolerant hierarchical bus system and method of operating same 106 1995
5,592,632 Defect tolerant integrated circuit subsystem for communication between a module and a bus controller in a wafer-scale integrated circuit system 93 1995
5,831,467 Termination circuit with power-down mode for use in circuit module architecture 87 1996
5,843,799 Circuit module redundancy architecture process 58 1997
6,272,577 Data processing system with master and slave devices and asymmetric signal swing bus 19 1997
6,717,864 Latched sense amplifiers as high speed memory in a memory system 1 2002
7,634,707 Error detection/correction method 1 2004
 
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION (3)
5,396,602 Arbitration logic for multiple bus computer system 138 1993
7,380,161 Switching a defective signal line with a spare signal line without shutting down the computer system 1 2005
7,793,143 Switching a defective signal line with a spare signal line without shutting down the computer system 0 2008
 
INVENSAS CORPORATION (3)
5,729,152 Termination circuits for reduced swing signal lines and methods for operating same 48 1995
6,393,504 Dynamic address mapping and redundancy in a modular memory device 21 2000
6,754,746 Memory array with read/write methods 14 2000
 
FUJITSU LIMITED (2)
5,369,759 Call information based matching system for stored program-controlled switching system 3 1992
7,853,838 Method and apparatus for handling failure in address line 0 2009
 
HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P. (2)
5,815,688 Verification of accesses in a functional model of a speculative out-of-order computer system 16 1996
5,794,012 Verification of strongly ordered memory accesses in a functional model of an out-of-order computer system 7 1996
 
HYNIX SEMICONDUCTOR INC. (2)
7,443,760 Multi-port memory device with serial input/output interface 1 2006
7,843,749 Multi-port memory device with serial input/output interface 0 2008
 
CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA (1)
5,734,328 Apparatus for switching communication method based on detected communication distance 8 1994
 
CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC. (1)
5,689,513 Data transmission system having a backup testing facility 6 1996
 
Dell USA, L.P. (1)
5,640,517 Method and apparatus for masters to command a slave whether to transfer data in a sequential or non-sequential burst order 19 1996
 
HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY (1)
5,371,892 Method for configuring a computer bus adapter circuit board without the use of jumpers or switches 35 1992
 
KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA (1)
5,819,052 Portable computer which performs bus arbitration using a serial bus 11 1996
 
LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION (1)
7,315,551 Synchronous low voltage differential I/O buss 0 2002
 
LSI LOGIC CORPORATION (1)
6,754,179 Real time control of pause frame transmissions for improved bandwidth utilization 16 2000
 
NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CORPORATION (1)
6,182,179 System that is able to read and write using a transmission medium and is able to read stored information via a model information structure using a different transmission medium 3 1998
 
NEC CORPORATION (1)
5,502,712 Routing system in data communication with frame relay procedure control 13 1994
 
RENESAS ELECTRONICS CORPORATION (1)
5,608,881 Microcomputer system for accessing hierarchical buses 60 1993
 
SILICON TECH LIMITED (1)
6,301,167 Apparatus for testing semiconductor memory 4 2000