Patent ID: 7551554

Claim:
A programmable intra-packet switching method comprising: determining which, if any, of a plurality of data ports connected to a network contains a data packet available for processing; fragmenting a first portion of a first available data packet into at least one data cell having a defined size; wherein this fragmentation of the first data packet continues until a user-defined number of cells are generated; storing, in a memory, at least one data element concerning the first available data packet, wherein: the at least one data element includes a data element indicative of the incomplete fragmentation status of said first available data packet; and the at least one data element enables fragmenting of a second portion of the first available data packet subsequent to fragmenting at least a portion of a second available data packet; and subsequent to fragmenting the first portion of the first data packet and prior to fragmenting the second portion of the first available data packet, fragmenting at least a portion of the second available data packet on a different one of the plurality of data ports.