Data aggregation architectures for single-chip SDH/SONET framers

Single-chip SDH/SONET framer architectures are described that permit data aggregation from several line ports. After presenting an overview of the usual parallel approach and an extension thereof that exploits distributed algorithms, we introduce a novel data-multiplexing architecture that should be suitable for accommodating data from a relatively large number of ports in a single device. In combination with the new virtual concatenation feature of SDH/SONET, this architecture should also allow transport of data from high-bandwidth applications over multiple wavelengths or multiple fibers.