Network Diagnostic Device Frame Compaction
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Solution Overview
Problem
As communication networks grow in size, speed, and complexity, they face challenges in diagnosing and resolving issues such as inefficient data transmission, incorrect routing, and excessive network traffic, due to changing topologies and protocols, which require effective and flexible diagnostic mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A network diagnostic device is placed in-line between nodes to compress and reorder network data frames by removing or moving non-data units, allowing for better interpretation and analysis of data frames, thereby improving diagnostic capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If data is transmitted at higher speeds (e.g., 10 gigabits per second), then network bandwidth and capacity increase, but diagnostic capability and problem detection become more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the high-speed data stream into individual frames or packets for analysis. The diagnostic device breaks down the continuous 10 gigabit data flow into discrete units that can be individually examined, allowing detailed inspection without being overwhelmed by the overall high speed. This segmentation enables the device to handle and analyze each frame separately while maintaining compatibility with high-speed transmission protocols.
Solution Approach 2:
The diagnostic device acts as an intermediary component inserted into the network path between data sources and destinations. It receives copies or passes through the high-speed data stream, performing diagnostic functions without disrupting the primary high-speed transmission. This intermediary position allows the device to monitor and analyze traffic at high speeds while maintaining the integrity and performance of the main network flow.
2Adaptability or versatility
If network complexity increases with more protocols and topologies, then network functionality and capacity increase, but diagnostic flexibility and adaptability decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The diagnostic device is designed with universal functionality to handle multiple network protocols and topologies through a single platform. It can detect and analyze various frame types including Ethernet, Fibre Channel, and other protocols using the same basic architecture. The device performs multiple diagnostic functions such as frame capture, analysis, filtering, and reporting within one system, making it adaptable to diverse network environments without requiring separate specialized tools for each protocol.
Solution Approach 2:
The device employs configurable parameters and filters that can be dynamically adjusted to match different network protocols and diagnostic requirements. By changing detection parameters, frame size thresholds, protocol-specific settings, and analysis criteria, the same hardware platform can adapt to diagnose various network types and conditions, providing flexibility across multiple protocols and topologies without redesigning the core diagnostic engine.
3Productivity
If frame size increases to improve data transmission efficiency, then network capacity increases, but frame interpretation and analysis become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The diagnostic device segments large data frames into smaller, manageable units for analysis. When a large frame is captured, the device breaks it down into constituent elements such as headers, payload sections, and trailers, allowing systematic examination of each component. This segmentation approach enables the device to handle frames of any size by processing them in discrete, analyzable portions rather than attempting to analyze the entire large frame as a single unit.
Solution Approach 2:
The device analyzes frames by adding dimensional organization to the data structure. It creates multi-dimensional views of frame data including temporal sequences, protocol layers, and structural hierarchies. By organizing frame analysis across multiple dimensions rather than linearly, the device can efficiently interpret complex large frames by examining them from different analytical perspectives simultaneously, reducing the perceived complexity of frame interpretation.
Data Source
AI summary
A network diagnostic component that is placed in-line between two nodes in a network to reorder or compact a data frame to allow the network diagnostic component to interpret the data frame. The network diagnostic component receives a network data frame from the first node for communication with the second node. The network data frame may include a plurality of data units interspersed with one or more non-data units that interrupt the proximity and flow of the data units. The network diagnostic component then reorders the data frame by removing or moving at least some of the non-data units that are interspersed with the plurality of data units. The reordered network data frame may then be interpreted by other components of the network diagnostic component.