General internet method for routing packets in a communications network

Patent 5353283 Issued on October 4, 1994. Estimated Expiration Date:

May 28, 2013. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

Patent References

Network adapter for connecting local area network to backbone network
Patent #: 4933937
Issued on: 06/12/1990
Inventor: Konishi

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Inventor

Tsuchiya, Paul F.

Assignee

Bell Communications Research, Inc.

Application

No. 069275 filed on 05/28/1993

US Classes:

370/392, Processing of address header for routing, per se370/400Having a plurality of nodes performing distributed switching

Examiners

Primary: Safourek, Benedict V.

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Suchyta; Leonard Charles, Gurey; Stephen M.

International Class

H04L 012/56

Abstract

A method for transmitting a packet via a sequence of nodes in a network is disclosed. The transmitted-packet contains a sequence of one or more identifiers in a sequence of fields 410, 420, 430, 440, 450, 460, 470, 480 and a pointer pointing to a particular identifier in the sequence of identifiers in a field 485 of a routing section of a header in the packet. A node of the sequence of nodes at which the packet is located selects a forwarding table from a set of forwarding tables maintained in a memory at that node. The node then retrieves an entry from the selected forwarding table indexed by the identifier in the sequence of identifiers pointed to by the pointer. The node then transmits the packet to the next node of the sequence of nodes indicated by the retrieved forwarding table entry.

Other References

Information Sciences Institute, RFC 791, "Internet Protocol," Sep. 1981
W. Stallings, "Handbook of Computer Communication Standards," vol. 1, Chapter 5.5 (1990)
J. Moy, "OSP Version 2," RFC-1247, USC/Information Sciences Institute, Jul. 1991
International Organization for Standardization ISO 10589, "Intermediate System to Intermediate System Intra-Domain . . . Connectionless-mode Network Serv." (ISO 8473)
J. M. McQuillan et al., "The New Routing Algorithm for the ARPANET," IEEE Trans. on Comm., vol. COM-28, No. 5, May 1980, pp. 711-719
Z. Wang et al., "Shortest Path First With Emergency Exits," Proc. of SIGCOMM (1990)
S. E. Deering, "Multicast Routine in Internetworks and Extended LANs," Sigcomm, pp. 55-64, Aug. 198