Patent ID: 6477595
Filing Date: 2002-11-05
Classification: H04L,H04M,H04Q

Abstract:
A multiplexing device for providing high speed network connectivity for the transport of data frames to at least one subscriber, comprising:a digital subscriber line (DSL) transceiver interface coupled to a plurality of subscriber DSL modems; a packet buffer coupled to the DSL transceiver interface for storing the data frames, the packet buffer transferring the data frames over a packet buffer bus; an Ethernet-type port coupled to the packet buffer for uplinking to an external switch; and a central processing unit (CPU) coupled to the packet buffer for executing code to send and receive proprietary protocol packets for communicating management information associated with the plurality of subscriber DSL modems, the management information indicating presence of an Ethernet-type port, current line speed, and media access control (MAC) address; wherein the proprietary protocol packets comprise: a line identification field that identifies a subscriber line associated with one of the subscriber DSL modems; a sequence identification field that is used for synchronization between the data frames; a data length field that specifies the length of a data payload within the data frames; and a checksum field for error detection.