Switching Chassis Segmentation for Scalable Router Clusters
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current router cluster expansion methods require replacing switching chassis components, leading to high costs and reliability issues due to limited scalability and single-point failures.
Innovation Solution
A switching chassis design where cascade interfaces of any cascade unit are connected to switching ports of switching units, allowing capacity expansion without replacing any components, and enabling seamless integration of new switching and line processing chassis to maintain continuous data services.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a central switching chassis is used to realize data switching between line processing chassis, then data switching capability is achieved, but scalability is limited and reliability is reduced due to single-point failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the switching function into multiple independent switching planes (first switching plane, second switching plane, etc.), each capable of independently handling data switching. This segmentation eliminates the single-point failure risk in a centralized switching chassis while maintaining scalable expansion capabilities through modular addition of switching planes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a single centralized switching chassis to a multi-dimensional switching architecture with multiple switching planes operating in parallel. Each switching plane can be independently scaled and configured, enabling both high reliability through redundancy and scalability through dimensional expansion.
2Productivity
If the number of T line processing chassis is increased, then routing capacity is expanded, but the entire TX chassis needs to be replaced
Solution Approach 1:
The switching chassis is segmented into multiple independent switching planes, each with its own switching fabric and connection interfaces. This allows the system to expand routing capacity by adding more switching planes or connecting more T line processing chassis to existing planes without replacing the entire TX chassis, significantly reducing expansion costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The switching planes are designed with universal connection interfaces that can accommodate various numbers and types of T line processing chassis. The same switching plane architecture can serve different numbers of line processing chassis through flexible connection configurations, eliminating the need for complete chassis replacement during expansion.
3Device complexity
If only one TX switching chassis is used, then device complexity is reduced, but reliability is low due to single-point failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the switching function into multiple independent switching planes within a single TX chassis architecture. Each switching plane operates independently and can continue providing data switching services even if another plane experiences failure, thereby improving reliability without significantly increasing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Each switching plane is designed with localized independence, having its own switching fabric and connection resources. This local quality allows each plane to function autonomously, providing fault isolation and ensuring that a failure in one plane does not affect the operation of other planes, thus enhancing service continuity.
Data Source
AI summary
A switching chassis includes more than one cascade unit and more than one switching unit, where: the cascade units have cascade interfaces to connect line processing chassis; the switching units have switching ports to connect the cascade interfaces; and any cascade interface of any cascade unit is connected to one switching port of any switching unit. A router cluster with the above switching chassis includes switching chassis and line processing chassis interconnected via optical fibers, where: any optical interface of any line processing chassis is connected to one cascade interface of any cascade unit; and any cascade interface of any cascade unit is connected to one switching port of any switching unit. With the present invention, the capacity of a router cluster can be expanded without the need to replace any component of the router cluster so that the expansion cost is lower.