Switching techniques for frequency division multiplex - communication systems.

摘要

The present invention relates to a switching technique for packet Frequency Division Multiplexed (FDM) communication systems. In the present system, each of N system users is assigned (a) either a separate fixed one of N transmit frequency channels or a selected free one of L transmit frequency channel for communications to a head-end FDM channel switching arrangement (IO), and (b) a fixed assigned separate one of N receive channels for communications from the head-end FDM channels switching arrangement. At the FDM channel switching means, all FDM channel signals received from the system users are directed into separate paths (21) through the switching arrangement. The signals in each path are demodulated (23) to baseband, and a destination address in each packet is detected (28) to determine where each packet is to be sent. Each path in the switching arrangement is hardwired therethrough to an associated transmitting oscillator (29) which is frequency tuned, by means of the detected destination address, to the unique frequency channel of the user or the external network which is the desired destination of the packet. Thus, switching of a packet signal is accomplished without ever connecting or disconnecting wire lines.