Orks, Etwork, Ransceivers – CTI Products NCB/AY with Serial Interface User Manual
Page 9: Ntroduction, Ncb/ay
CTI Products, Inc.
NCB-AY User Guide
1. Introduction
3
1.
I
NTRODUCTION
W
HAT IS AN
NCB/AY
U
NIT
?
The Network Combiner NCB/AY
TM
Module is a wide-area router with two
asynchronous serial ports that is used for L
ON
W
ORKS
networks. The NCB/AY
unit is used in pairs to connect L
ON
W
ORKS
networks real-time, spanning
distances from building-wide to worldwide.. With the use of a CSU/DSU, The
communication channel spanning the distance between local networks can be any
digital channel such as fractional T1/E1 or microwave digital channel banks.
Data transfer between distant networks via an NCB module pair is "live", delayed only by the transit time
through the routers and modem connections.
The NCB module uses router technology so that no custom coding or additional hardware is necessary to
seamlessly connect multiple networks across very large distances. The NCB module is self-contained, easily
configured with standard network management tools, and requires no custom programming or coding changes
in system nodes.
Basic Application
A basic application of the NCB module is where two multi-node LonWorks networks, separated by a distance
beyond the reach of conventional wired media, need to be interconnected, as in Figure 1. This distance could be
across a large building, business campus, city, etc. Using the NCB module, this interconnection is
accomplished using one NCB module local to each network site and a single voice-grade telephone circuit
connecting the two NCB modules. Additional networks can be added to this unified network by simply adding
an NCB module pair per network.
VIRTUAL
ASYNCHRONOUS
CHANNEL
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
NCB-AY
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
LONWORKS
NODE
BUILDING 1
BUILDING 2
NCB-AY
Figure 1 Networks in two buildings connected with NCB modules
LonWorks Network Transceivers
The local LonWorks networks at different sites do not need to use the same network transceiver type. For
example, an FTT-10A network, a TPT/XF-78 network, and a PLT-22 network can all be interconnected by
using pairs of NCB modules with network transceivers matching the local network at each site.
Read this
section to learn
the general
function and
capabilities of an
NCB Router