Patent ID: 6574294
Filing Date: 2003-06-03
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
A method of inputting data from a digital device to a computer at high speed through a serial port of the computer, the computer including a system CPU and an interrupt mechanism for interrupting the system CPU, the interrupt mechanism having associated with it a characteristic interrupt latency between when an interrupt is received and when servicing of the interrupt is actually begun, and the serial port of the computer including a communications buffer having a predetermined small number of bytes of buffer storage, the method comprising the steps of:a) the serial port of the computer autonomously receiving in the communications buffer, from the digital device, a multiple-byte poll frame; b) the computer reading the poll frame from the communications buffer; c) the computer acknowledging to the digital device receipt of the poll frame; d) thereafter receiving in the communications buffer from the digital device a data frame comprising a succession of data units; e) turning off at least one interrupt to service the communications buffer such that data transfer speed is independent of said characteristic interrupt latency; f) indicating by means of said poll frame the beginning of a block of data to be transferred; g) after a first data frame has been transferred, transferring at least one additional data frame in accordance with steps a) to e); and h) indicating by means of a last poll frame the end of the block of data to be transferred.