US3652804A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Maintenance busy link map marking in a stored program controlled switching system
Assignee: AT&T Inc
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Filing: 1969-10-24
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Granted: 1972-03-28
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Expires: 1989-10-24
Abstract
Abstract A stored program processor controlled switching system is disclosed wherein links of the switching network are busied for both maintenance and communication purposes. The busy or idle state of a link is recorded in a processor link map. A separate maintenance map records the particular links which are busy for maintenance purposes. When a link is made maintenance busy, a link map work defining a link group containing that link is marked with an index to a maintenance map word which contains information as to which link of the link group is maintenance busy. An audit program periodically checks the link map with the actual communication paths through the network and is directed to the proper maintenance map word so that it can reconcile discrepancies between the link map and the communication paths through the network.
Inventors
- 👤 William K Comella
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 11:41
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04Q; H04Q3/00; H04Q3/42; H04Q3/54; H04Q3/545
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 16
Claim 1
Independent Claim
111 words
A system including a plurality of circuit elements selectively available for a plurality of service tasks and a certain other task, a first memory area storing prescribed indications representing availability data for said elements, means for reserving one of said elements for said certain other task, a second memory area storing which of said elements are reserved for said certain other task, and means responsive to a certain other task reservation condition of said one element for marking said first memory area with a prescribed indication for said one element and an index of a location in said second memory area storing certain other task reservation data for said one element.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
111 words
A system including a plurality of circuit elements selectively available for a plurality of service tasks and a certain other task, a first memory area storing prescribed indications representing availability data for said elements, means for reserving one of said elements for said certain other task, a second memory area storing which of said elements are reserved for said certain other task, and means responsive to a certain other task reservation condition of said one element for marking said first memory area with a prescribed indication for said one element and an index of a location in said second memory area storing certain other task reservation data for said one element.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
44 words
The system of claim 1 further including means responsive to said certain other task reservation condition of said one element for marking said second memory area with an address of a location in said first memory area storing availability data for said one element.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
86 words
The system of claim 2 further including means comparing service task busy conditions of said circuit elements with said Prescribed indications stored in said first memory area, means responsive to a comparison for recognizing in said first memory area a prescribed indication for an element which is not service task busy, and means responsive to said index and activated by said recognizing means for examining said second memory area to determine a certain other task reservation condition for said element which is not service task busy.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
149 words
A communications system comprising a plurality of links selectively available for communication paths and maintenance paths, a first memory area storing availability data for said links, audit means periodically comparing busy conditions of said links used for communication paths with stored availability data including means responsive to a comparison for recognizing in said first memory area a busy condition of a link excluded from a communication path, and a second memory area storing which of said links are reserved for maintenance paths, characterized by means responsive to a maintenance reservation condition of one of said links for marking said first memory area with an index of the location in said second memory area storing maintenance reservation data for said one link, and means controlled by said index and activated by said recognizing means for examining said second memory area to determine an actual maintenance reservation condition of said link.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
149 words
A communications system comprising a plurality of links selectively available for communication paths and maintenance paths, a first memory area storing availability data for said links, audit means periodically comparing busy conditions of said links used for communication paths with stored availability data including means responsive to a comparison for recognizing in said first memory area a busy condition of a link excluded from a communication path, and a second memory area storing which of said links are reserved for maintenance paths, characterized by means responsive to a maintenance reservation condition of one of said links for marking said first memory area with an index of the location in said second memory area storing maintenance reservation data for said one link, and means controlled by said index and activated by said recognizing means for examining said second memory area to determine an actual maintenance reservation condition of said link.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
128 words
In a telephone switching system having a switching network including a plurality of links for establishing connections among trunk circuits, operator positions, and functional service circuits, a processor for controlling said links for establishing said connections for maintenance and communication services, a scratch pad memory having a link map for recording busy-idle data for said links and a maintenance map for recording reservation data of said links for maintenance services, the invention comprising means for addressing said maintenance map to record maintenance reservation data for prescribed ones of said links, means responsive to said maintenance map addressing for controlling said link map to record busy data for said prescribed links, and means for recording in said link map index data of maintenance map addresses for said prescribed links.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
128 words
In a telephone switching system having a switching network including a plurality of links for establishing connections among trunk circuits, operator positions, and functional service circuits, a processor for controlling said links for establishing said connections for maintenance and communication services, a scratch pad memory having a link map for recording busy-idle data for said links and a maintenance map for recording reservation data of said links for maintenance services, the invention comprising means for addressing said maintenance map to record maintenance reservation data for prescribed ones of said links, means responsive to said maintenance map addressing for controlling said link map to record busy data for said prescribed links, and means for recording in said link map index data of maintenance map addresses for said prescribed links.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
104 words
In a telephone system, the invention according to claim 5 wherein said link map comprises a plurality of words corresponding to said links in a predetermined fixed format, said maintenance map includes a plurality of numbered cells each selectively associable with a word of said link map when one of said prescribed links whose busy-idle data is recorded in said word is maintenance reserved, each of said cells recording maintenance reservation data for the prescribed links corresponding to the words associated with said each of said cells, and said index data includes the number of the one of said cells associated with said word.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
38 words
In a telephone system, the invention according to claim 6 further comprising means responsive to said map addressing for recording in said word of said link map flag data indicative of a maintenance reservation for said prescribed links.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
121 words
In a telephone system, the invention according to claim 7 further comprising means periodically comparing states of links busy in communication service connections with busy-idle data recorded in said link map, means responsive to a comparison for recognizing in said link map a busy link not in a communication service connection, means activated by said recognizing means for examining said flag data to determine a maintenance reservation condition of a link whose busy-idle data is recorded in said word containing said flag data, and means activated by said examining means and responsive to the presence of said flag data for examining an associated cell in accordance with said index data to determine an actual maintenance reservation condition of said busy link.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
34 words
In a telephone systeM, the invention according to claim 8 further comprising means responsive to flag data in one of said words for inhibiting maintenance reservations for the links corresponding to said one word.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
42 words
In a telephone system, the invention according to claim 9 further comprising means responsive to a communication busy condition of one of said links for inhibiting a maintenance reservation for said one link until said one link communication busy condition is terminated.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
141 words
A method for controlling apparatus to mark a processor memory to indicate a maintenance busy condition of one of a plurality of links in a switching system, wherein said links are controlled by said processor for connection into paths for both communication and maintenance purposes, and said processor memory includes a first area storing availability data for said links and a second area storing maintenance busy data for said links, comprising the apparatus steps of recording in said first area of said memory busy data for said one link, recording in said second area of said memory maintenance busy data for said one link, and recording in said first area of said memory at the location containing busy data for said one link the address in said second area of said memory containing said maintenance busy data for said one link.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
141 words
A method for controlling apparatus to mark a processor memory to indicate a maintenance busy condition of one of a plurality of links in a switching system, wherein said links are controlled by said processor for connection into paths for both communication and maintenance purposes, and said processor memory includes a first area storing availability data for said links and a second area storing maintenance busy data for said links, comprising the apparatus steps of recording in said first area of said memory busy data for said one link, recording in said second area of said memory maintenance busy data for said one link, and recording in said first area of said memory at the location containing busy data for said one link the address in said second area of said memory containing said maintenance busy data for said one link.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
47 words
The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of recording in said second area of said memory at the location containing said maintenance busy data for said one link the address in said first area of said memory containing said busy data for said one link.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3495220A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-03-28 | 1975-09-27 | 1976-03-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-03-28 | 1979-09-27 | 1980-03-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-03-28 | 1983-09-27 | 1984-03-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |