Patent ID: 7515545
Filing Date: 2009-04-07
Classification: H04Q

Abstract:
1. A communication system comprising: a switching device having a plurality of bidirectional port pairs, each of which is a combination of an input port and an output port, said switching device being capable of entering a loop back state for delivering a signal applied to an input port to an output port which forms said bidirectional port pair together with said input port; a plurality of signal repeaters each having an input port and an output port for connection to an input port or an output port which forms part of one of said bidirectional port pairs; and a controller for controlling said switching device and said signal repeaters, wherein each said signal repeater includes: transmitting means for transmitting a signal from its output port to said switching device after said signal repeater has added an identifier to the signal; and receiving means for receiving a signal from said switching device at its reception port to detect an identifier included in the signal, and said controller sets one of said bidirectional port pairs included in said switching device into a loop back state, and checks whether the identifier added to the signal transmitted from said transmitting means matches the identifier included in the signal received by said receiving means to detect a connecting relation between the output port and input port of said signal repeater and the output port and input port which forms said bidirectional port pair.