METHOD OF OPERATION OF REMOTE DATA/CONTROL APPARATUS WITH CONTROLLED RESPONSE TIMING

摘要

This invention relates to communications apparatus, such as remote data/control apparatus. A first unit (10) and a second unit (11) are arranged to exchange messages over a communication channel. To avoid collision between responses between different remote units, the first unit has means for requesting a response from the second unit and means for communicating to the second unit a value (23) representing a time delay and the second unit has means for monitoring the channel, determining when the channel becomes free and transmitting its response to the first unit delayed by that time delay after the channel becomes free.