INTERFACE CIRCUIT

摘要

The invention deals with a wireless extension of the IEEE 1394 bus. Considered is a scenario where two clustersof 1394 devices are linked to each other by means of a wireless bridge (9). The devices of one cluster shall communicate with devices of the other cluster without being bridge-aware. The wireless bridge, however, provides for a bus reset isolation. This causes a problem each time a bus reset occurs in one of the clusters. To solve this problem it is proposed to implement a buffer memory (22) for self-identification packets in the 1394 interfaces (11) of both boxes of said wireless bridge (9). In particular these buffer memories (22) shall be implemented in the physical layer section (21) of the 1394 interfaces (11). With these buffer memories the self-identification packets of the bus stations in the other cluster can be collected and they can easily be read out during the self-configuration phase of the network after a bus reset when the bus grant is assigned to the box of the wireless bridge that is also connected to the bus where the bus reset has occurred. The physical layer section of the 1394 interface transmits artificial self-identification packets for all bus stations of the other cluster so that data communication can continue without long delays.