Patent ID: 9565083
Date: 2017-02-07
CPC Classifications: H04L

Claim:
1. A system for in-band signaling for automated network protection, comprising: a channel monitor comprising hardware at a first network node operable to augment a traffic signal received at the first network node with a signal quality indicator for a working channel carrying the traffic signal between the first network node and a second network node; a switch matrix comprising hardware at the first network node, the switch matrix operable to perform packet-switched routing of data cells carrying the traffic signal; and a status monitor comprising hardware at the first network node and communicatively coupled to the switch matrix, the status monitor operable to indicate placement of the traffic signal, via the in-band signaling, from the working channel onto a protection channel also between the first network node and the second network node by the switch matrix, based on the signal quality indicator, as read by that status monitor from a data cell, satisfying requirements imposed by a state-machine-implemented algorithm provided by the status monitor, wherein the in-band signaling comprises communication between the status monitor and the switch matrix via overhead of the data cell which is formatted for packet-switched delivery by the switch matrix.