Patent ID: 7110410

Claim:
A method for coupling an ATM communication layer to a plurality of N mutually time-independent time division multiplex communication terminals having an overall payload cell rate CR N , the method comprising the steps of: generating a control signal sequence with a clock rate corresponding to the overall payload cell rate CR N of the N time-division multiplex communication terminals, whereby control signals in the control signal sequence represent one of a first and a second status; offering a fixed data pattern; transmitting ATM cells coming from the ATM communication layer into an ATM cell waiting list; transmitting, on demand, an ATM cell from the ATM waiting list to the requesting time-division multiplex communication terminal when a respectively oldest control signal of the control signal sequence represents the first status, and transmitting the fixed data pattern to the requesting time-division multiplex communication terminal when the oldest control signal of the control signal sequence represents the second status; and deleting the oldest control signal of the control signal sequence.