Inventors:
Sanford Eisenhandler - Belleville NJ
Tayyab Chaudhry - Clark NJ
Xiaoyang Lee - New York NY
Ping S. Lam - Cranbury NJ
Yosuke Fujita - Allendale NJ
Assignee:
Panasonic Technologies, Inc. - Princeton NJ
International Classification:
H04L 1228
Abstract:
An apparatus for transmitting data from a first device to a second device is provided. The invention is suitable for use in a system having first and second communications media. The apparatus includes a network interface coupled to the first medium for receiving and examining data from the first device. A clustering facility is provided for coupling the first device directly to the network interface and for selectively coupling the second device to the network interface. The network interface identifies the second device as being coupled to either the clustering facility or the second medium. The apparatus transmits the data from the network interface to the second device by way of the clustering facility, if the network interface identifies the second device as being coupled to the clustering facility. The apparatus routes the data from the network interface to the second device by way of the second medium if the network interface identifies the second device as being coupled to the second medium. In the exemplary embodiment, both media follow the Consumer Electronics Bus (CEBus) standard.
