Inventors:
Edward M. Horiuchi - Glendale AZ
David A. Smiley - Peoria AZ
Daryl P. Slaviero - Glendale AZ
Assignee:
AG Communication Systems Corporation - Phoenix AZ
International Classification:
H04L 1216
H04Q 1100
Abstract:
A multipoint video conferencing system in which the video conferencing terminals are in a daisy-chain arrangement with the head-of-chain terminal connected to the ATM network. ATM cells are relayed from the ATM network downstream to the last terminal, and from each terminal upstream to the network. Each video conference terminal has a video program input port provisioned with a unique ATM address, and a plurality of video program out ports, each provisioned with one of the video program input port addresses. ATM cells generated from each video program input port are transmitted upstream to the ATM network where they are relayed back to the head-of-chain terminal and then downstream to the last terminal. Each video conferencing terminal may also receive ATM cells having addresses that match the addresses provisioned for its video program output ports. These cells are converted to analog video programs and transmitted out the associated video output ports.