US2005244158A1PendingUtilityA1

Method and apparatus for a variable rate pipe on a linear connection

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Assignee: LUFT SIEGFRIEDPriority: Dec 30, 2000Filed: Oct 22, 2001Published: Nov 3, 2005
Est. expiryDec 30, 2020(expired)· nominal 20-yr term from priority
Inventors:Siegfried Luft
H04J 14/0227H04Q 11/0062H04J 14/0291H04J 14/0283H04J 14/0241H04B 10/032H04Q 2011/0081H04Q 2011/0086H04L 12/437
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Claims

Abstract

A method and apparatus for a variable rate pipe on a linear connection. In one embodiment of the invention, a method comprises provisioning a pipe from a part of a working channel and at least part of a protection channel of an M:N linear connection, load balancing layer 2/3 traffic transmitted in the pipe while there is not a failure, reducing the pipe's bandwidth when the failure occurs in the M:N linear connection, load balancing layer 2/3 traffic for the reduced pipe; and transmitting the load balanced layer 2/3 traffic in the reduced pipe while there is the failure.

Claims

exact text as granted — not AI-modified
1 . A computer implemented method comprising: 
 provisioning a pipe from a part of a working channel and at least part of a protection channel of an M:N linear connection;    load balancing layer 2/3 traffic transmitted in the pipe while there is not a failure; reducing the pipe's bandwidth when the failure occurs in the M:N linear connection;    load balancing layer 2/3 traffic for the reduced pipe; and transmitting the load balanced layer 2/3 traffic in the reduced pipe while there is the failure.    
     
     
         2 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein the load balancing is performed in accordance with multi-link PPP.  
     
     
         3 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein the load balancing is performed in accordance with ATM SAR.  
     
     
         4 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein the working channel and the protection channel are provisioned from a set of three or more optical fibers.  
     
     
         5 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein the linear connection couples a first optical ring with a second optical ring.  
     
     
         6 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein layer 2/3 traffic is Internet Protocol traffic.  
     
     
         7 . The computer implemented method of  claim 1  wherein layer 2/3 traffic is ATM traffic.  
     
     
         8 . A network element comprising: 
 a control card to allocate a pipe from a working channel and at least part of a protection channel of an M:N linear connection, to detect failures in the M:N linear connection, to reduce the pipe's bandwidth when a failure occurs in the M:N linear connection;    a layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the control card, the layer 2/3 processing circuitry to host a load balancing process and to transmit layer 2/3 traffic in accordance with the load balancing process; and    an optical processing circuitry coupled with the control card and the layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the optical processing circuitry to encapsulate layer 2/3 traffic within optical traffic.    
     
     
         9 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the linear connection couples a first optical ring with a second optical ring.  
     
     
         10 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the layer 2/3 processing circuitry is a packet processing ASIC.  
     
     
         11 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the optical processing circuitry is a TDM ASIC.  
     
     
         12 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the optical processing circuitry is a DWDM ASIC.  
     
     
         13 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the load balancing process is performed in accordance with multi-link PPP.  
     
     
         14 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the load balancing process is performed in accordance with ATM SAR.  
     
     
         15 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the layer 2/3 processing circuitry is an ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry.  
     
     
         16 . The network element of  claim 8  wherein the layer 2/3 processing circuitry is a primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry.  
     
     
         17 . A network element comprising: 
 a control card to allocate a pipe from a working channel and at least part of a protection channel of an M:N linear connection, to detect failures in the M:N linear connection, to reduce the pipe's bandwidth when a failure occurs in the M:N linear connection;    an egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the control card, the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry to process layer 2/3 traffic for transmission in the pipe; an ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry to host a load balancing process and to transmit layer 2/3 traffic to the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry in accordance with the load balancing process; and    an optical processing circuitry coupled with the control card, the ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry and the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the optical processing circuitry to encapsulate layer 2/3 traffic within optical traffic.    
     
     
         18 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the linear connection couples a first optical ring with a second optical ring.  
     
     
         19 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the layer 2/3 processing circuitry is a packet processing ASIC.  
     
     
         20 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the optical processing circuitry is, a TDM ASIC.  
     
     
         21 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the optical processing circuitry is a DWDM ASIC.  
     
     
         22 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the load balancing process is per formed in accordance with multi-link PPP.  
     
     
         23 . The network element of  claim 17  wherein the load balancing process is performed in accordance with ATM SAR.  
     
     
         24 . A network element comprising: 
 a control card to allocate a pipe from a working channel and a protection channel of an M:N linear connection, to detect failures in the M:N linear connection, to reduce the pipe's bandwidth when a failure occurs in the M:N linear connection;    an ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the control card, the ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry receive layer 2/3 traffic, to forward the layer 2/3 traffic to a primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry;    the primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the ingress layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry to host a load balancing process and to transmit layer 2/3 traffic in accordance with the load balancing process;    an egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry coupled with the primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry to process layer 2/3 traffic received from the primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry for transmission in the pipe; and    an optical processing circuitry coupled with the control card, the egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry and the primary egress layer 2/3 processing circuitry, the optical processing circuitry to encapsulate the set of layer 2/3 traffic within optical traffic.    
     
     
         25 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the linear connection couples a first optical ring with a second optical ring.  
     
     
         26 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the layer 2/3 processing circuitry is a packet processing ASIC.  
     
     
         27 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the optical processing circuitry is a TDM ASIC.  
     
     
         28 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the optical processing circuitry is a DWDM ASIC.  
     
     
         29 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the load balancing process is performed in accordance with multi-link PPP.  
     
     
         30 . The network element of  claim 24  wherein the load balancing process is performed in accordance with ATM SAR.  
     
     
         31 . A machine-readable medium that provides instructions, which when executed by a set of one or more processors, cause said set of processors to perform operations comprising: 
 provisioning a pipe from a part of a working channel and at least part of a protection channel of an M:N linear connection;    load balancing layer 2/3 traffic transmitted in the pipe while there is not a failure;    reducing the pipe's bandwidth when the failure occurs in the M:N linear connection;    load balancing layer 2/3 traffic for the reduced pipe; and    transmitting the load balanced layer 2/3 traffic in the reduced pipe while there is the failure.    
     
     
         32 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein the load balancing is performed in accordance with multi-link PPP.  
     
     
         33 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein the load balancing is performed in accordance with ATM SAR.  
     
     
         34 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein the working channel and the protection channel are provisioned from a set of three or more optical fibers.  
     
     
         35 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein the linear connection couples a first optical ring with a second optical ring.  
     
     
         36 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein layer 2/3 traffic is Internet Protocol traffic.  
     
     
         37 . The machine-readable medium of  claim 31  wherein layer 2/3 traffic is ATM traffic.

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