Extended distance fiber optic interface

Claim 1

An apparatus comprising: a. a host computer, at least a portion of said host computer operating in accordance with a first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol; b. a peripheral device, at least a portion of said peripheral device operating in accordance with a second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol; c. a device controller coupled to said portion of said peripheral device that operates in accordance with said second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol via a cable and wherein said device controller is located at a variable distance from said host computer of up to 10 kilometers; d. a fiber optic input/output link coupled to said portion of said host computer that operates in accordance with said first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and further coupled to said device controller, said fiber optic input/output link having a length that substantially matches said variable distance from said host computer to said device controller and operates in accordance with a predetermined serial optical communication protocol; e. first interfacing means coupled to said host computer and further coupled to said fiber optic input/output link for interfacing between said first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and said serial optical communication protocol; f. second interfacing means coupled to said device controller and further coupled to said fiber optic input/output link for interfacing between said second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and said serial optical communication protocol; and g. at least one of said first and second interfacing means further including means for accommodating said variable distance such that said operation of said host computer is independent of said variable distance, said means for accommodating including a buffering means.

Claim 2

An apparatus comprising: a. a host computer, at least a portion of said host computer operating in accordance with a first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol; b. a peripheral device, at least a portion of said peripheral device operating in accordance with a second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol; c. a device controller coupled to said portion of said peripheral device that operates in accordance with said second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol via a cable and wherein said device controller is located at a variable distance from said host computer of up to 10 kilometers; d. a fiber optic input/output link coupled to said portion of said host computer that operates in accordance with said first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and further coupled to said device controller, said fiber optic input/output link having a length that substantially matches said variable distance from said host computer to said device controller and operates in accordance with a predetermined serial optical communication protocol; e. first interfacing means coupled to said host computer and further coupled to said fiber optic input/output link for interfacing between said first predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and said serial optical communication protocol; f. second interfacing means coupled to said device controller and further coupled to said fiber optic input/output link for interfacing between said second predetermined parallel electrical communication protocol and said serial optical communication protocol; and g. at least one of said first and second interfacing means further including means for accommodating said variable distance such that said operation of said host computer is independent of said variable distance, said means for accommodating including a buffering means.

Claim 14

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the Block Multiplexer Channel interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer Block Multiplexer Channel interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 15

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the Block Multiplexer Channel interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer Block Multiplexer Channel interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 16

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller Block Multiplexer Channel interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 17

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller Block Multiplexer Channel interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 18

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an ESCON interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the ESCON interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer ESCON interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 19

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an ESCON interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the ESCON interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer ESCON interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 20

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having an ESCON interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller ESCON interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 21

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having an ESCON interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller ESCON interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the plurality of peripheral devices.

Claim 22

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the electrical interface, at least one of a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to at least one of the plurality of peripheral devices via at least one of the plurality of peripheral device interfaces, at least another of the plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to at least another of the plurality of peripheral devices via at least one of a plurality of FUTUREBUS+ interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 23

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the electrical interface, at least one of a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to at least one of the plurality of peripheral devices via at least one of the plurality of peripheral device interfaces, at least another of the plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to at least another of the plurality of peripheral devices via at least one of a plurality of FUTUREBUS+ interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 24

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the Block Multiplexer Channel interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer Block Multiplexer Channel interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 25

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the Block Multiplexer Channel interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer Block Multiplexer Channel interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 26

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller Block Multiplexer Channel interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 27

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a Block Multiplexer Channel interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller Block Multiplexer Channel interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 28

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an ESCON interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the ESCON interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer ESCON interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 29

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an ESCON interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having a communication interface which is compatible with the ESCON interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer ESCON interface to the device controller communication interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 30

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having an ESCON interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller ESCON interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 31

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a device controller having an ESCON interface which is compatible with the electrical interface and further having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; b. a fiber optic medium coupling the host computer electrical interface to the device controller ESCON interface; and c. a memory device located within said device controller for buffering the transferred data to the host computer.

Claim 32

An apparatus according to claims 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 or 21 where said memory device is contained within a Reduced Instruction Set Computer.

Claim 33

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a host converter having a fiber optic interface, the host converter is coupled to the electrical interface of the host computer and converts the data from an electrical representation to an optical representation; b. a device controller having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces, the device controller is coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; c. a controller converter having a fiber optic interface, the controller converter is coupled to the device controller and converts the data from an optical representation to an electrical representation; d. a controller memory device coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the plurality of peripheral device interfaces for buffering the transferred data to the peripheral devices; e. a fiber optic medium coupling the fiber optic interface of the host converter to the fiber optic interface of the controller converter; and f. a protocol controller coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the controller memory device for controlling the protocol used during the data transfer.

Claim 34

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a host converter having a fiber optic interface, the host converter is coupled to the electrical interface of the host computer and converts the data from an electrical representation to an optical representation; b. a device controller having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces, the device controller is coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; c. a controller converter having a fiber optic interface, the controller converter is coupled to the device controller and converts the data from an optical representation to an electrical representation; d. a controller memory device coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the plurality of peripheral device interfaces for buffering the transferred data to the peripheral devices; e. a fiber optic medium coupling the fiber optic interface of the host converter to the fiber optic interface of the controller converter; and f. a protocol controller coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the controller memory device for controlling the protocol used during the data transfer.

Claim 37

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a host converter having a fiber optic interface, the host converter is coupled to the electrical interface of the host computer and converts the data from an optical representation to an electrical representation; b. a device controller having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces, the device controller is coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; c. a controller converter having a fiber optic interface, the controller converter is coupled to the device controller and converts the data from an electrical representation to an optical representation; d. a controller memory device coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the plurality of peripheral device interfaces for buffering the transferred data from the peripheral devices; e. a fiber optic medium coupling the fiber optic interface of the host converter to the fiber optic interface of the controller converter; and f. a protocol controller coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the controller memory device for controlling the protocol used during the data transfer.

Claim 38

An apparatus for transferring data between a host computer having an electrical interface and a plurality of peripheral devices located at a distance of up to 10 kilometers therefrom comprising: a. a host converter having a fiber optic interface, the host converter is coupled to the electrical interface of the host computer and converts the data from an optical representation to an electrical representation; b. a device controller having a plurality of peripheral device interfaces, the device controller is coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices via the plurality of peripheral device interfaces; c. a controller converter having a fiber optic interface, the controller converter is coupled to the device controller and converts the data from an electrical representation to an optical representation; d. a controller memory device coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the plurality of peripheral device interfaces for buffering the transferred data from the peripheral devices; e. a fiber optic medium coupling the fiber optic interface of the host converter to the fiber optic interface of the controller converter; and f. a protocol controller coupled to the controller converter and further coupled to the controller memory device for controlling the protocol used during the data transfer.