Patent US6683865B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US6683865B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
System for routing and switching in computer networks
Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy
•
Filing: 1999-10-15
•
Granted: 2004-01-27
•
Expires: 2019-10-15
Abstract
Abstract A protocol for a computer network in which routing operation codes (ROCs) in headers of packets transmitted within the network specify to a receiving router which of a number of routing or switching methods to apply to forward associated packets. The packets may be forwarded in any of the following modes: (a) a broadcast mode, (b) a hop-by-hop mode based on receiving node address information, (c) a label swapping mode, (d) a source-switching mode, (e) a flow switching mode, or (f) a hop-by-hop mode based on sending mode address information. In the label swapping mode, packets are accepted by the receiving router if the packets include a media access control address of the receiving router, and packets are forwarded from the receiving router according to a switching table indexed by a media access control address of a transmitting router. In the source switching mode, the headers include source routes specified in terms of local link identifiers used by routers in the network. Also, receiving routers are identified using local link identifiers associated with communication links between a transmitting router and an intended receiving router.
Inventors
- 👤 J. Joaquin Garcia-Luna-Aceves
- 👤 David A. Beyer
- 👤 Thane J. Frivold
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-08 21:05
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04L; H04L45/00; H04L45/56; H04L45/566
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 54
Claim 1
Independent Claim
97 words
A method comprising: receiving a packet at a first router of a data network; forwarding the packet to a second router of the data network according to one of a plurality of forwarding modes specified by a routing operation code in the header of the packet, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein the packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein the packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
97 words
A method comprising: receiving a packet at a first router of a data network; forwarding the packet to a second router of the data network according to one of a plurality of forwarding modes specified by a routing operation code in the header of the packet, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein the packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein the packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of modes further comprise a broadcast mode wherein packets transmitted by the first router are accepted by all neighboring routers of the first router.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
48 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the modes wherein a packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header comprise a label swapping mode and a hop-by-hop mode wherein the packet is accepted based on the receiving node address included in the header.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein a value of the routing operation code determines certain types of other information included in the header of the packet.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 4 , wherein a sending node address is included in the header of the packet regardless of which of plurality of modes is specified by the routing operation code.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the sending node address comprises a medium access code address of the sending node.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 4 , wherein the receiving node address comprises a medium access code address of the receiving node.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
34 words
The method of claim 2 , wherein the header of the packet includes a receiving node-assigned local link identifier if the routing operation code specifies one of the source switching or flow switching modes.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the header of the packet includes a flow label if the routing operation code specifies the flow switching mode.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
30 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the flow switching mode receiving routers are identified using local link identifiers associated with communication links between transmitting routers and intended receiving routers.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein in the flow switching mode, flow states at routers of the data network are established according to information in data packets transmitted within the data network.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 11 , wherein the information included in the data packets allows for bindings between incoming and outgoing flow labels to be established at each of the routers.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
30 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the header of the packet includes a source route to an intended destination if the routing operation code specifies the source switching mode.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein the source route is specified in terms of local link identifiers used by routers in the data network.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 13 wherein the source route is obtained by using either a flood search process or a routing protocol operative within the data network.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
77 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein forwarding the packet comprises: reading in the header of the packet at the first router a routing operation code that specifies the source switching mode; reading in the header of the packet at the first router a source route; replacing a first transmitting router local link identifier in the header of the packet at the first router with a second transmitting router local link identifier needed by the second router.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
93 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein forwarding the packet comprises: reading in the header of the packet at the first router a routing operation code that specifies the source switching mode; reading in the header of the packet at the first router a source route; replacing a first transmitting router local link identifier and a first receiving router local link identifier in the header of the packet at the first router with a second transmitting router local link identifier and a second receiving router local link identifier needed by the second router.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
71 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein forwarding the packet comprises: reading in the header of the packet at the first router a routing operation code that specifies the flow switching mode; reading in the header of the packet at the first router a source route; replacing a first flow label in the header of the packet at the first router with a second flow label needed by the second router.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the packet comprises a data packet that includes flow setup instructions for a next receiving node.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the header of the packet includes a path-traversed field.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
63 words
The method of claim 3 , wherein forwarding the packet comprises: reading in the header of the packet at the first router a routing operation code that specifies the label swapping mode; replacing a first flow label in the header of the packet at the first router with a second flow label by indexing a flow switching table stored at the first router.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
94 words
A packet for use in a data network, comprising: a header that includes a routing operation code that specifies one of a plurality of modes for forwarding the packet within the data network, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein a packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein a packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header and not on a receiving node address; and, a payload.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
94 words
A packet for use in a data network, comprising: a header that includes a routing operation code that specifies one of a plurality of modes for forwarding the packet within the data network, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein a packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein a packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header and not on a receiving node address; and, a payload.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
16 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the plurality of modes further comprise a broadcast mode.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
48 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the modes wherein a packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header comprise a label swapping mode and a hop-by-hop mode wherein the packet is accepted based on the receiving node address included in the header.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
30 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header further includes a sending node address regardless of which of the plurality of modes is specified by the routing operation code.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
21 words
The packet of claim 25 , wherein the sending node address comprises a medium access code address of the sending node.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
21 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the receiving node address comprises a medium access code address of the receiving node.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
32 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a transmitting node-assigned local link identifier if the routing operation code specifies one of the source switching, flow switching, or incremental modes.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
31 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a receiving node—assigned local link identifier if the routing operation code specifies one of the source switching or flow switching modes.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
40 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes both a transmitting node-assigned local link identifier and a receiving node-assigned local link identifier if the routing operation code specifies one of the source switching, flow switching, or incremented modes.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
23 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a flow label if the routing operation code specifies the flow switching mode.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
27 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the packet includes a source route to an intended destination if the routing operation code specifies the source switching mode.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
13 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a path-traversed field.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
41 words
The packet of claim 33 , wherein the path-traversed field comprises (1) a hop count specifying a total number of routers visited by the packet and (2) an ordered sequence of medium access control addresses of routers visited by the packet.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
23 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a payload-type field that specifies the type of payload that follows the header.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
15 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the header includes a time to live field.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
26 words
The packet of claim 36 , wherein the header further includes a version field that specifies a version of a protocol used to process the packet.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
54 words
The packet of claim 37 , wherein the header further includes (1) a reliability field that specifies a degree of reliability with which the packet must be successfully forwarded by a router and (2) a priority field that specifies a priority that the packet should be assigned in a transmission queue of a router.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
80 words
The packet of claim 22 , wherein the routing operation code determines which of a plurality of fields of information are included in the header of the packet, wherein the plurality of fields of information comprise (1) address information of a receiving router, (2) local link identifier information assigned by a transmitting router, (3) local link identifier information assigned by a receiving router, (4) a flow label, (5) a source route, (6) a path traversed, and (7) a payload type.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
139 words
A router comprising: a neighbor identification table configured to allow the router to determine whether a received packet should be accepted and, if so, which of a plurality of switching tables to access to retrieve information for forwarding the packet within a data network; a source switching table of the plurality of switching tables, wherein the source switching table is configured to provide packet forwarding information which the router is to use to forward the packet using a source switching process; a flow switching table of the plurality of switching tables, wherein the flow switching table is configured to provide packet forwarding information when the router is to forward the packet using a flow switching process, wherein the flow switching table specifies mappings from incoming flows to outgoing flows, local link identifiers for next hops, and associated link-level information.
Claim 43
Dependent Claim
139 words
A router comprising: a neighbor identification table configured to allow the router to determine whether a received packet should be accepted and, if so, which of a plurality of switching tables to access to retrieve information for forwarding the packet within a data network; a source switching table of the plurality of switching tables, wherein the source switching table is configured to provide packet forwarding information which the router is to use to forward the packet using a source switching process; a flow switching table of the plurality of switching tables, wherein the flow switching table is configured to provide packet forwarding information when the router is to forward the packet using a flow switching process, wherein the flow switching table specifies mappings from incoming flows to outgoing flows, local link identifiers for next hops, and associated link-level information.
Claim 44
Dependent Claim
33 words
The router of claim 40 , wherein the neighbor identification table is arranged so as to be indexed using local link identifiers assigned by neighboring routers to links communicatively coupling the router thereto.
Claim 45
Dependent Claim
27 words
The router of claim 40 , wherein the neighbor identification table is further arranged to provide pointers to the source switching table and the flow switching table.
Claim 46
Dependent Claim
31 words
The router of claim 40 , wherein the neighbor identification table is arranged so as to be indexed using local link identifiers assigned by the router to links to neighboring routers.
Claim 47
Dependent Claim
34 words
The router of claim 40 , wherein the source switching table is arranged so as to be indexed according to local link identifiers assigned by neighboring routers to links communicatively coupling the router thereto.
Claim 48
Dependent Claim
97 words
A router of a data network, comprising: means for receiving a packet; and, means for forwarding the packet to another router of the data network according to one of a plurality of forwarding modes specified by a routing operation code in the header of the packet, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein the packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein the packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header.
Claim 49
Dependent Claim
97 words
A router of a data network, comprising: means for receiving a packet; and, means for forwarding the packet to another router of the data network according to one of a plurality of forwarding modes specified by a routing operation code in the header of the packet, wherein the plurality of modes comprise (1) modes wherein the packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header and (2) source switching, flow switching, and incremental modes wherein the packet is accepted based at least in part on a local link identifier included in the header.
Claim 50
Dependent Claim
16 words
The router of claim 45 , wherein the plurality of modes further comprise a broadcast mode.
Claim 51
Dependent Claim
48 words
The router of claim 45 , wherein the modes wherein a packet is accepted based on a receiving node address included in the header comprise a label swapping mode and a hop-by-hop mode wherein the packet is accepted based on the receiving node address included in the header.
Claim 52
Dependent Claim
27 words
The router of claim 45 , wherein a value of the routing operation code determines certain types of other information included in the header of the packet.
Claim 53
Dependent Claim
50 words
The router of claim 45 , wherein the means for forwarding the packet comprise: means for reading in the header of the packet a routing operation code that specifies the source switching mode; means for specifying an outgoing interface and link-level information for transmitting the packet to a next hop.
Claim 54
Dependent Claim
65 words
The router of claim 45 , wherein the means for forwarding the packet comprise: means for reading in the header of the packet a routing operation code the specifies the flow switching mode; means for mapping an incoming flow label to an outgoing flow label; means for identifying a next hop; means for specifying necessary link-level information for transmitting the packet to the next hop.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US4466060A
Cited
US4987536A
Cited
US5115433A
Cited
US5394436A
Cited
US5233604A
Cited
US5588121A
Cited
US5487064A
Cited
EP0627835A1
Cited
US5596719A
Cited
US5548578A
Cited
US5602841A
Cited
US5600641A
Cited
US5572528A
Cited
US5608721A
Cited
US5721819A
Cited
US5638371A
Cited
US5805593A
Cited
US5633866A
Cited
US5933425A
Cited
US5854899A
Cited
US5881246A
Cited
US5896379A
Cited
US5999536A
Cited
US5964841A
Cited
US5918016A
Cited
US5926463A
Cited
US6006272A
Cited
WO1999046899A2
Cited
US6108314A
Cited
US6480892B1
Cited
WO2000039967A2
Cited
WO2000048367A2
Cited
WO2001030035A2
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2007-01-26 | 2007-07-28 | 2008-01-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2011-01-26 | 2011-07-28 | 2012-01-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2015-01-26 | 2015-07-28 | 2016-01-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |