| 摘要 |
<p>A method and a distributed switch (70) for a universal transfer mode (UTM) of transferring payload data packets at a regulated bit rate are disclosed. The method defines a protocol that uses an adaptive packet header to simplify data packet routing and increase transfer speed. The protocol supports a plurality of data formats, such as pulse code modulated (PCM) voice data, Internet Protocol (IP) packets, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) cells, frame relay (FR), and the like. The network preferably includes a plurality of modules (72) that provide interfaces to various data sources (95-98). The modules are interconnected by a channel switch (84) with adequate inter-module links so that preferably no more than two hops are required between any origination/destination pair of modules (72). The adaptive packet header is used for both signaling and payload transfer. The header is parsed using an algorithm to determine its function. Rate regulation is accomplished using each module control element (85) and egress port controllers (140) to regulate packet transfer. The protocol enables the modules to behave as a single distributed switch capable of multi-terabit transfer rates. The advantage is a high speed distributed switch capable of serving as a transfer backbone for substantially any telecommunications service. <IMAGE></p> |
