Broadband Terminal Equipment for Congestion Control in the Ring Structure and Its Control Method

1. In the system where a number of broadband terminal equipments are formed in a ring structure in a broadband network terminator, a broadband terminal equipment comprising: a real time traffic temporally storing means for receiving an input of real time traffic from a front broadband terminal equipment, storing the input of the real time traffic for a while and outputting the input of the real time traffic; a non-real time traffic temporally storing means for receiving an input of non-real time traffic from the front broadband terminal equipment, storing the input of the non-real time traffic for a while and outputting the input of the non-real time traffic; a first means for notifying the broadband network terminator of network congestion, receiving an input of a network congestion control signal from the broadband network terminator and controlling a network traffic transmission; an AAL transmission means including a means for storing a real time traffic created in the own broadband terminal equipment and a means for storing a non-real time traffic created in the own broadband terminal equipment; an AAL reception means for receiving a traffic destined for the AAL reception means; and a second means for transmitting a traffic to a rear broadband terminal equipment by adding the self-created real time ard non-real time traffic stored in the AAL transmission means and receiving the input of traffic stored in the real time traffic temporally storing means and in the non-real time traffic temporally storing means from a front broadband terminal equipment, and dropping the input of the traffic to the AAL reception means if destined for the second means and transmitting the input of the traffic to the rear broadband terminal equipment if not destined for the second means.

2. In a congestion control method applied to a subscriber premises network where a number of multi-access functioning broadband terminal equipments are formed in a ring structure in a multi-access broadband network terminator, the congestion control method comprising the steps of: a first stage in which if a broadband terminal equipment is notified of the occurrence or the removal thereof from a storing means, wherein a broadband terminal equipment creates a system management cell which informs the occurrence of congestion or the removal thereof and transmits the system management cell to a broadband network terminator by selecting a logical star-type management channel; a second stage in which if the broadband network terminator receives the system management cell which informs the occurrence of congestion from the broadband terminal equipment after the first stage is performed, wherein the broadband network terminator creates a system management cell for temporary suspension of traffic transmission, and creates a system management cell for resumption of traffic transmission if the broadband network terminator receives the system management cell which informs the removal of congestion and transmits the system management cell to the broadband terminal equipment by selecting a broadcast type management channel; and a third stage in which if the broadband terminal equipment receives a system management cell from the broadband network terminator after initialization of a counter which shows congestion, wherein the broadband terminal equipment discards the received system management cell in the case where the system management cell is destined for itself, and temporally suspends the transmission of self-created traffic if the system management cell slows the occurrence of congestion in the case where the system management cell is not destined for itself or resumes the transmission of the temporally suspended traffic if the system management cell shows the removal of congestion, and transmits the received system management cell to a rear broadband terminal equipment.

3. The congestion control method as defined in claim 2, characterized by that the system management cell comprises a congested condition sub-field which indicates the occurrence or removal of congestion in a function specific field and a B-TE* location identifier field which indicates the position of a broadband terminal equipment connected with a congested condition.

4. The congestion control method as defined in claim 3, characterized by that the first stage comprises: a stage in which if the broadband terminal equipment is notified of the occurrence of congestion from the non-real time traffic queue while waiting for notification thereof, it creates a system management cell provided with information on the B-TE* location identifier and congested condition, a stage in which the broadband terminal equipment notifies the created system management cell to the broadband network terminator by selecting a logical star-type management channel created by a meta signaling function for notification of congestion a stage in which the broadband terminal equipment creates a system management cell provided with information on the congestion removed B-TE* location identifier and congested condition if the non-real time traffic queue notifies that congestion is removed a stage in which and broadband terminal equipment notifies the created system management cell to the broadband network terminator by selecting the logical star-type management channel created by the meta signaling function and returns to standby status for notification of congestion.

5. The congestion control method as defined in claim 4, characterized by that the second stage comprises: a stage in which if the broadband network terminator receives a system management cell from the broadband terminal equipment while waiting for reception thereof, it discriminates a congested condition by means of the received system management cell, a stage in which if the broadband network terminator is notified of the occurrence of congestion from the congested condition sub-field of the received system management cell, it codes a command "NULL" in the generic flow control (GFC) field of a system management cell header to temporally suspend the transmission of self-created non-real time traffic to all B-TE*s located in front of the congested BTE* and transmits a system management cell created by loading a location identifier of the B-TE* which notified congestion to the broadband terminal equipment using a broadcast-type management channel allotted by the meta signaling function and a stage in which if the broadband network terminator is notified of the removal of congestion from the congested condition sub-field of the received system management cell, it codes a command "SET" in the GFC field of a system management cell header to resume the transmission of temporarily suspended self-created non-real time traffic to all B-TE*s located in front of the B-TE* released from congestion and transmits a system management cell created by loading the location identifier of the B-TE* which notified congestion to the broadband terminal equipment.

6. The congestion control method as set forth in claim 5, characterized by that the third stage comprises: a stage in which the broadband terminal equipment initializes a NULL counter to `0` when booted to keep a congested condition produced from several broadband terminal equipments, a stage in which if the broadband terminal equipment receives a system management cell from the broadband network terminator while waiting for reception thereof, it discriminates a location identifier sub-field in the received system management cell, a stage in which if the location identifier of the received system management cell is the same as an own location identifier, the broadband terminal equipment discards the received system management cell and inspects the GFC field of the system management cell header if the location identifier of the received system management cell is not B-TE* itself and a stage in which the broadband terminal equipment increases the NULL counter by `1` and suspends the transmission of self-created non-real time traffic if the GFC field is NULL which shows the occurrence of congestion, and reduces the NULL counter by `1` if the GFC field is SET which shows the removal of congestion and, only in the case where the reduced counter is `0`, resumes the transmission of self-created non-real time traffic and transmits the received system management cell to the next broadband terminal equipment.