FLOW CONTROL METHOD AND COMMUNICATION ELEMENT FOR EXECUTING THE METHOD

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To avoid inequality in a usage rate of an output rate of each connection on the occurrence of congestion and to prevent a usage rate of an output rate of a quene from being degraded even in the case that connections with much difference in the transmission distance are multiplex. SOLUTION: This communication element 31 consists of a queue 31a, a parameter detection section 31b, a congestion decision threshold determination section 31c, a congestion determination section 31d, and an EFCI bit setting section 31e. The parameter detection section 31b and the congestion decision threshold determination section 31c calculate a congestion decision threshold with respect to each connection depending on a flow control delay time. When the congestion decision section 31d detects that a quene length exceeds the congestion decision threshold, the EFCI bit setting section 31e sets a congestion notice signal to an EFCI field of an information cell received by the connection according to an EFCI marking method.