Park, Vaughan & Fleming LLP
Transparent switch using optical and electrical proximity communication
Embodiments of a switch are described. This switch includes input ports configured to receive signals (which include data) and output ports configured to output the signals. In addition, the switch includes switching elements and a flow-control mechanism, which is configured to provide flow-control information associated with the data to the switching elements via an optical control path. These switching elements are configured to selectively couple the input ports to the output ports based on the flow-control information. Furthermore, a given switching element in the switching elements is coupled to a given input port and a given output port via electrical signal paths that are configured to use proximity communication to communicate the data.
Sun Microsystems, Inc.
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Robert J. John E. Ronald Ashok V.
Drost Cunningham Ho Krishnamoorthy