US Patent No: 4,962,497

Number of patents in Portfolio can not be more than 2000

Building-block architecture of a multi-node circuit-and packet-switching system

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Abstract

A modular, substantially infinitely-growable, multi-node switching system operates under distributed control to serve integrated circuit-switched and packet-switched traffic at the data rates appropriate for each type of traffic. The system comprises a plurality of interconnected identical switching units that form at least one communication switching node. A communication switching node is a modular building block of the system; a switching unit is a modular building block of a switching node, and hence also of the system. A plurality of communication endpoint nodes--illustratively PBXs--is connected to the one or more switching nodes for communicating with each other through the switching nodes. A plurality of communication links each connect a different one of the system's switching units to either (a) one of the communication endpoint nodes or (b) a unit of another switching node. All of the links have the same communication format. Each switching node includes a plurality of different ones of the identical switching units, and a communication medium that interconnects all of the units of the switching node to allow each unit of a node to broadcast all communications received from a connected link to all of the units of the node.

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First Claim

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Patent Owner(s)

Patent OwnerAddressTotal Patents
AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH COMPANYMURRAY HILL, NJ3138
AT&T BELL LABORATORIESMURRAY HILL, NJ3372
AT&T INFORMATION SYSTEMS INC.MURRAY HILL, NJ371
AVAYA INC.BASKING RIDGE, NJ2118

International Classification(s)

  • [Classification Symbol]
  • [Patents Count]

Inventor(s)

Inventor Name Address # of filed Patents Total Citations
Ferenc, James J Boulder, CO 3 189
Goke, Louis R Austin, TX 3 195
Grimes, Gary J Birmingham, AL 71 2303
Moffitt, Bryan S Red Bank, NJ 13 401

Cited Art

Patent Info (Count) # Cites Year
 
BELL TELEPHONE LABORATORIES, INCORPORATED (6)
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4,556,972 Arrangement for routing data packets through a circuit switch 56 1983
 
AVAYA TECHNOLOGY CORP. (4)
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4,538,263 Variable-band switching system for voice and data communication 21 1983
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AT&T INFORMATION SYSTEMS INC. (1)
4,631,534 Distributed packet switching system 34 1984
 
E-SYSTEMS, INC. (1)
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GTE LABORATORIES INCORPORATED (1)
4,707,825 Methods of installing and assigning control processors in a distributed-control communications system 14 1985
 
INTERNATIONAL COMPUTERS LIMITED (1)
4,773,067 Multi-node data processing system 9 1986
 
NORTEL NETWORKS LIMITED (1)
4,608,685 Packet and circuit switched communications network 66 1984

Patent Citation Ranking

Forward Cites

Patent Info (Count) # Cites Year
 
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HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P. (4)
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