Patent ID: 8068518

Claim:
A virtual concatenation transmission method comprising: processing pointers so as to keep a phase relationship between a plurality of low-speed frames composing a virtual concatenation always at a same phase with virtual concatenation information at any intervening station or device throughout a network where the frames are transmitted, and transmitting the low-speed frames, multiplexed into arbitrary positions within a first high-speed frame and composing the virtual concatenation, together with the virtual concatenation information indicating a concatenation or link state of positions of the low-speed frames, wherein the low-speed frames composing the virtual concatenation are multiplexed from the first high-speed frame into a second high-speed frame, based on the concatenation information, with the concatenation state and the phase relationship being maintained, in which upon the multiplexing of the low-speed frames, positive/negative stuff processings of all of the low-speed frames are always performed at a same time throughout the network in accordance with positive/negative stuff determination of a head low-speed frame.