Patent ID: 6549951
Filing Date: 2003-04-15
Classification: G06F,H04L

Abstract:
On a node coupled to a serial bus, a communication controller comprising:a plurality of separate, independent task circuits coupled to the serial bus, each task circuit performing a specialized function responsive to data provided to it; a transaction interface structured to accept data packets from the serial bus and to perform actions only in response to calls from a task circuit and responsive to data contained within the data packets for isochronous and asynchronous data transfer; and a dispatcher structured to receive information provided to it and to issue start commands only in response to calls from a task circuit and to the information received; wherein each task circuit scheduled to execute when data is provided to it by the transaction interface or any of the other task circuits, each task circuit structured to execute until it has exhausted all of the data provided to it, each task circuit configured to execute after the dispatcher issues a start command for that task circuit, the start command issued by the dispatcher only when the dispatcher receives an indication from the transaction interface or the task circuit that provided data to the task circuit that the particular task circuit is not presently executing, and each task circuit structured to operate concurrently with and independently from all of the other task circuits.