Patent ID: 7788440

Claim:
A method for coupling at least two independent bus systems, wherein a different cycle time is assigned to each bus system, comprising: (a) buffering in a memory of a bus coupler connected between a first bus system having a first cycle time and a second bus system having a second cycle time a predefined number of first data items from a data sequence, wherein the first data items comprise sampled values of a measured value recorded according to a first sampling rate defined by the first cycle time, wherein the sampled values describe a graph of the measured value; (b) calculating an offset between the first cycle time and the second cycle time; and (c) determining a second data item by an extrapolation function that extrapolates a next value for the graph of the measured value, the extrapolation function based on the first data items, the first cycle time, the second cycle time, and the offset; (d) transmitting the second data item to the second bus system; (e) repeating steps (a) through (d) to generate a plurality of second data items that substantially describe the graph of the measured value according to a second sampling rate defined by the second cycle time.