Patent ID: 6934284

Claim:
A method for establishing control signaling between nodes connected to the same communication link, said link carrying a bitstream that is divided into frames, each frame in turn being divided into time slots, said time slots being allocatable to form circuit-switched channels, said method comprising the steps of: all nodes connected to said link using, at link start-up, the same predefined time slot or set of time slots in each fame of said frames to receive control signaling messages from and transmit control signaling messages to nodes connected to said link; said nodes establishing, using control signaling via said predefined time slot or set of time slots, respective control channels, defined by respective time slots or sets of time slots in said frames, reserved for transmission of control signaling messages from respective ones of said nodes; each respective one of said nodes using, when having been reserved such a respective control channel, its respective control channel for sending control signaling messages to other nodes connected to said link, the other nodes on the link accessing this respective control channel only for receiving control signaling messages.