Contactless linking device for interconnecting data bus sections

Claim 1

A contactless linking device for interconnecting first and second bus sections of a data bus in order to provide a transparent bi-directional data transmission of data along the data bus, irrespective of protocol used, said contactless linking device comprising: a first transmitter-receiver module connected to the first bus section; and a second transmitter-receiver module connected to the second bus section, said first and second transmitter-receiver modules being disposed face-to-face without mutual contact; wherein each of said and second transmitter-receiver modules includes: a coil having first and second ends, the first end being connected to a fixed potential; modulation means having an input connected to one of the first and second bus sections and an output connected to the second end of said coil, for supplying said coil with a signal to be transmitted, modulated by first data received from said one of the first and second bus sections; and detection means having a detection input connected to the second end of said coil and a detection output connected to said one of the first and second bus sections, for receiving a modulated signal from said coil, for generating second data responsive to said modulated signal, and for transmitting said second data to said one of the first and second bus sections, and wherein said coil in each of said first and second transmitter-receiver modules comprises a flat spiral winding for transmitting and signal and receiving said modulated signal, and wherein said flat spiral winding of said first and second transmitter-receiver modules face each other and have axes substantially aligned to ensure electromagnetic coupling between the modules.