FlexE Clock Information Transparent Transmission via 64B/66B Extraction

The patent extracts clock information from the service data stream by identifying and extracting 64B/66B control characters (0x55 or 0x56) that contain clock rate and time phase information. This extracted clock information is then separately processed and used to generate a recovered clock signal, allowing the service data to be transmitted with rate adaptation while the clock information is preserved and transmitted independently through the FlexE client service.

The patent introduces an intermediary clock information extraction and recovery mechanism that acts between the service data transmission and the clock synchronization requirements. The intermediary process extracts clock information from the service data, recovers the clock signal at intermediate network devices, and uses this recovered clock to resynchronize the service data stream, thereby maintaining clock transparency despite the addition/deletion of idle code blocks.

The patent segments the clock synchronization function from the data transmission function in FlexE clients. Each FlexE client independently performs clock information extraction and recovery on its assigned service data stream, rather than requiring centralized clock management across cascaded clients. This segmentation allows multiple virtual logical ports to be supported while each handles its own clock synchronization independently, reducing overall system complexity.

The patent enables each FlexE client to perform self-service clock recovery by autonomously extracting clock information from its own service data stream and generating its own recovered clock signal. This self-service approach eliminates the need for complex centralized clock distribution mechanisms across cascaded FlexE clients, allowing each client to independently maintain clock synchronization for its virtual logical ports.