Single transmission bus data network employing a daisy-chained bus data assignment control line which can bypass non-operating stations

Claim 1

A network of stations for data transmissions therebetween, said network comprising: a single transmission bus; a plurality of stations coupled to said bus; a bus assignment control line coupled to each of said stations in a serial manner to transmit a bus assignment control pulse; a plurality of preceding station non-operating alert lines, each coupled between a preceding station and a succeeding station to alert said a succeeding station that said a preceding station has received said bus assignment control pulse; each of said stations including detection means to detect when its preceding station has received but not transmitted a bus assignment control pulse after a time duration sufficient to allow said preceding station to have been assigned to said transmission bus and to have completed its transmission; a request counter means disposed for counting to a second given count in response to a signal requesting access to said transmission bus and, if said each station does not request access to said bus, to signal said pulse receiving and transmitting means to transmit said bus assignment control pulse to said next succeeding station; and initiate circuit means disposed for initiating an assignment control pulse to be transmitted to another station after each said station has completed transmission, said request counter means resets said initiate circuit means when a particular count is reached which is greater than said second given count.