Patent ID: 8064482

Claim:
A control system for a distributed, industrial automation system, comprising: a plurality of Ethernet switching units in a switched data network operating via a common synchronous time base among the Ethernet switching units, each Ethernet switching unit comprising a processor and an associated memory and being connected to a user device or a plurality of user devices or another Ethernet switching unit in a distributed, industrial automation system, wherein a communication between the user devices is effected in transmission cycles via data packets forwarded across the switched data network, wherein each transmission cycle is subdivided into a first section for transmission of real-time-critical data over the switched data network and a second section for transmission of non-real-time-critical data over the switched data network, wherein the Ethernet switching units are configured to have a length of the transmission cycle before a time of data transmission, including a length of the transmission cycle comprising the first section intended for transmission of the real-time critical data and a remaining length of the transmission cycle comprising the second section intended for transmission of the non-real-time-critical data; and wherein non-real-time-critical data occurring during the first section of the transmission cycle is temporarily stored in the memory and later forwarded across the switched data network during the second section of a current or subsequent transmission cycle.