JPH04216157A - Data transfer control system for wide-band communication network - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To efficiently perform data transfer from a server to a workstation by transferring data considered to be necessary in advance so as to provide for a displaying request from a workstation for display. CONSTITUTION:Plural servers 10 are connected to a workstation 20 for display trough a digital line 4 and the information transferred from each server is displayed on the workstation 20. Namely, each server 10 reads out data that can be transferred in advance from an external storage device 2 and transfers the data to the workstation 20 side in advance. On the workstation 20 side, received data are assembled to a displaying image based on a layout table 22 and preserved in a memory 21 so as to provide for the generation of a displaying request.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a data transfer control system for a broadband communication network (large transmission capacity communication network).

[0002] In a broadband communication network using a digital line such as broadband ISDN, a plurality of information processing devices are connected via the line, and data is transferred between the information processing devices. The data transfer speed of the digital line in this type of broadband communication network is extremely fast, much faster than the speed at which data can be read by accessing the secondary storage device (external storage device) connected to each information processing device. fast. Therefore,
If the external storage device is accessed and data is read every time a data transfer request is made, the high speed of the digital line cannot be utilized.

0003

[Prior Art] A case in which multimedia data distributed and stored in a network is collected and displayed on the screen of an information processing device such as a workstation connected to a broadband communication network (including audio playback). I'll think about it. Broadband communication networks make it possible to access distant information sources as if they were at hand, increasing opportunities to use multiple databases distributed across the network as shared databases.

[0004] Therefore, when displaying a multimedia document on a display of a workstation or the like, for example, it is necessary to collect and integrate display data distributed over a network based on document layout information.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of a broadband communication network system. In the figure, 1 is a plurality of servers (data supply device)
It is. In the figure, server #1 supplies text, server #2 supplies still images, and server #3 supplies video. 2 is an external storage device connected to each server 1. As the external storage device 2, for example, a hard disk device or an optical disk device is used.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a display workstation that forms a broadband communication network together with the server 1. These servers 1 and display workstations 3 are connected via a digital line 4. The server 1 corresponds to a database that provides data to the display workstation 3. Server 1 is typically implemented using a workstation. Multimedia data shared by each server 1 is stored in each external storage device 2. 3a is a display that integrates and displays data from each server 1.

[0007] In the system configured in this way,
When there is a data transfer request from the display workstation 3 to each server 1, each server 1 reads the corresponding portion of data from its own external storage device 2 and transfers it to the display workstation 3. The display workstation 3 displays the multimedia information sent from each server 1 on the display 3a.

[0008]

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] In this way, when the display workstation 3 attempts to collect multimedia information from each server 1 on the network and display it on the display 3a, for example When trying to create a human interface that displays a single page of a document such as , the communication line (
Even though the digital line) 4 has sufficient transmission capacity, it takes time to read data from the external storage device 2 of the server 1 and output it to the communication channel (network), so it is difficult to display the data at a satisfactory speed. The problem is that it cannot be done. In other words, since the external storage device 2 reads data from the disk area using mechanical contact such as a hard disk device, it takes a considerable amount of time for the data reading head to contact the corresponding area. This is because it takes a long time to access.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a data transfer control system for a broadband communication network that can efficiently transfer data from a server to a display workstation. The purpose is

0010

[Means for Solving the Problems] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the principle of the present invention. Components that are the same as those in FIG. 6 are designated by the same reference numerals. In the figure, a plurality of servers 10 are connected to a display workstation 20 via a digital line 4, and information transferred from each server 10 is transferred to the display workstation 20.
This constitutes a data transfer control system for a broadband communication network that is displayed on the screen. 2 is an external storage device connected to each server 1 and stores data; 11 is an internal memory of the server 1;

Reference numeral 21 is a memory for storing data sent via the digital line 4 provided on the side of the display workstation 20, and 22 is a memory for storing the identification code of the display data, the display position on the screen, the display size, etc. A layout table 23 is a display for displaying multimedia information.

0012

[Operation] Each server 10 reads data that can be transferred in advance from the external storage device 2 and transfers the data from the server 10 to the display workstation 20 side in advance.The display workstation 20 side transfers the received data to the layout table 22 is assembled into a display image based on the information, and stored in the memory 21 in preparation for the occurrence of a display request. With this configuration, even if it takes time to read data from the external storage device 2, the read data is prepared in advance by assembling it into image data.
It is possible to provide a data transfer control system for a broadband communication network that can quickly display a display request on the display 23 when a display request occurs, and can efficiently transfer data from a server to a display workstation.

[0013]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the display workstation 20. As shown in FIG. Components that are the same as those in FIG. 1 are designated with the same reference numerals. In the figure, 21 is a main memory. This main memory 21 includes a layout table 22 and a data table 24.

25 is a CPU that performs overall control operations; 26;
27 is a keyboard/mouse for inputting data or commands, and 27 is an external storage device such as a hard disk. 28
29 is a first display frame buffer (hereinafter simply referred to as display frame buffer 0) that stores one screen worth of image data to be displayed on the display 23; 30 is also a display; 23, which stores one screen worth of image data to be displayed on the second
(hereinafter simply referred to as display frame buffer 1).

31 is a high-bandwidth ISDN interface;
It is connected to an external digital line 4. 32 is a data transmission/reception buffer that temporarily holds data for transmission and reception; 33
is an image switching device that selects either display frame buffer 0 or display frame buffer 1 based on instructions from display control register group 28. 34 is a D/A that converts the output of the image switching device 33 into an analog signal.
The converter 23 is a display that displays the output of the D/A converter 34. 35 is a system bus that connects these components. The operation of the device configured as described above will be explained as follows.

The display workstation 20 shown in the figure and the plurality of servers 10 are connected via a high-bandwidth ISDN, specifically, a high-bandwidth ISDN interface 3.
Information is mutually transferred with the server 10 via 1. It is assumed that of the two frame buffers 0 and 1 for display shown in the figure, only display frame buffer 0 is currently used to display on the display 23. That is, the output of the display frame buffer 0 is converted into an analog image signal by the D/A converter 34 and displayed on the display 23. ■When a request occurs in the display workstation 20 to collect multimedia data from each server 10 necessary for displaying the pages before and after the currently displayed page, the CPU 25 stores the multimedia data in the main memory 21 in the display workstation. Referring to the data table 24 that stores the resident data location, a data transmission request is sent to each server connected via broadband ISDN.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the data table 24. As shown in the figure, the display data ID, the location indicating the ID of the server that stores the display data, and the type of data are stored. For example, display data ID3 is
It is stored in the server with the ID number "2", and the type of data is text.

[0019] Therefore, by referring to the data table 24, it is possible to know in which server a specific type of data is stored, and the CPU 25 issues a data transmission request to the server 10 shown in the data table 24. . This data transmission request enters the wideband ISDN interface 31 via the system bus 35 and is sent to the wideband ISDN interface 31 via the system bus 35.
It goes out to the digital line 4 via the DN interface 31. Then, the target server is notified via the digital line 4.

Each server 10 that receives the data transmission request searches the database for the requested data, reads it from the external storage device 2, and transmits it to the display workstation 20 via the broadband ISDN. On the display workstation 20 side, when the display data requested from each server 10 is received, the CPU 25 refers to the layout table 22 resident in the main memory 21 and stores the unused display frame memory 1 (Fig. 30) Assemble and store each data into a screen image that can be displayed immediately.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the layout table 22. As shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, display data ID22a
, Screen coordinates (X, Y) 22b, Display size (horizontal, vertical)
22c, and data location 22d in the display preparation complete state. In the example shown in the figure, display data ID=1 is stored in the display frame memory 1. The coordinates on the screen are X = 300, Y = 100, and the display size is horizontal = 5
50, height=700. Other display data is stored within each server 10, but if transferred to the display workstation 20, it is assembled into a screen image based on the specifications in the layout table 22. ■When a request occurs on the display workstation 20 side to collect multimedia data from each server 10 necessary for displaying the pages before and after the currently displayed page, the CPU 25 sends the main memory 20 in the display workstation 20 With reference to the data table 24 that stores data locations resident in the broadband ISDN line 4,
A data transmission request is sent to each server 10 connected to the server.

Each server 10 that receives a data transmission request searches the database for the requested data, reads it from the external storage device 2, and transmits it to the display workstation 20 via the broadband ISDN line 4. On the display workstation 20 side, the CPU 25 receives the display data requested from each server 10 and stores it in the transmission/reception buffer 32 as it is. The data stored in the transmission/reception buffer 32 is read out by the CPU 25 as necessary, assembled into image data, and then stored in the display frame buffer 1. ■When a request occurs on the display workstation 20 side to collect only large-sized still image data from each server 10 among the multimedia data necessary for displaying the pages before and after the currently displayed page.
The CPU 25 refers to the data table 24 that stores the data location resident in the main memory, searches for the server 10 storing the still image, and sends a data transmission request to the server 10 via the broadband ISDN line 4. Send.

Each server 10 that receives a data transmission request searches the database for the requested data, reads it from the external storage device 2, and transmits it to the display workstation 20 via the broadband ISDN line 4. On the display workstation 20 side, when the CPU 25 receives the display data requested from each server 10, it refers to the mainout table 22 resident in the main memory 21 to obtain layout information, and displays unused display frames. Each piece of data is assembled into a screen image that can be immediately displayed and stored on a memory 1.

For other display data whose size is not so large, the CPU 25 sends a data read request to each server 10 that holds the data, and each server 10 that receives the data searches the database for the requested data. All data that can be forwarded from the external storage device 2 is loaded into the transmission/reception buffer. The data loaded into the transmit/receive buffer is read out as needed and transmitted to the wideband ISDN.
The data is transferred to the display workstation 20 via the line 4. ■When a request occurs on the display workstation 20 side to collect only large-sized still image data from each server 10 among the multimedia data necessary for displaying the pages before and after the currently displayed page, the CPU
25 refers to the data table 24 that stores the data location resident in the main memory, searches for the server 10 storing the still image, and connects the broadband ISD to that server 10.
A data transmission request is transmitted via the N line 4.

Each server 10 that receives the data transmission request searches the database for the requested data, reads it from the external storage device 2, and transmits it to the display workstation 20 via the broadband ISDN line 4. On the display workstation 20 side, the CPU 25 receives the display data requested from each server 10, and stores all the data that can be forwarded as is in the data transmission/reception buffer 32.

For other display data whose size is not so large, a data read request is sent to each server holding the data, and the server 10 that receives the data searches the database for the requested data and stores it in the external storage device 2. Load all data that can be pre-transferred and read from the send/receive buffer. ■When a request is made on the display workstation 20 side to read multimedia data necessary for displaying the pages before and after the currently displayed page from the external storage device 2 of each server 10, the display workstation 20
A read request is sent to each server 10 connected to the broadband ISDN line 4 by referring to a data table 24 that stores the data location resident in the main memory 21 of the 0.

[0027] Each server 10 that received the data read request
searches the database for the requested data, and
All data that can be read from the external storage device 2 and forward-transferred is loaded into the transmission/reception buffer of the network.

The above describes the case where image data is assembled in the display frame buffer 1 in preparation for the next display request when the display frame buffer 0 is used and the display frame buffer 1 is not used. did. When the display of display frame buffer 0 is finished,
The display control register group 28 sends a switching signal to the image switching device 33 to switch to the display frame buffer 30 side. As a result, the image data stored in the display frame buffer 1 is converted into an analog image signal by the D/A converter 34 and displayed on the display 23.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a workstation on the server side. Components that are the same as those in FIG. 1 are designated with the same reference numerals. In the figure, 11 is a main memory, 12 is a CPU that performs overall control operations, and 13 is a database management unit that stores the location of requested data. 14 is a keyboard/mouse for inputting various commands, and 15 is a display frame buffer for storing display data. On the display workstation 20 side, there are two display frame buffers that are switched and used in order to increase data transfer efficiency, but each server side does not need them, so there is only one display frame buffer. It is provided.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a broadband ISDN interface, and the broadband ISDN interface 16 and the line 4 are connected. That is, the server exchanges information with the display workstation 20 via this broadband ISDN interface 16. 17 is a data transmission/reception buffer that temporarily holds transmitted and received data; 18 is a D/A converter that converts the output of the display frame buffer 15 into an analog signal; and 19 is an image converted into an analog signal by the D/A converter 18. It is a display that displays information.

In the apparatus configured as described above, when receiving a data transfer request from the display workstation 20, the CPU 12 searches the database management section 13 to determine whether the desired data exists in the external storage device 2. If the data exists, the data is read from the external storage device 2 and temporarily stored in the main memory 11.
Transfer from digital line 4 to display workstation 20 via broadband ISDN interface 16.

It is also possible to hold all the data to be transferred in advance in the data transmission/reception buffer 17 in preparation for a display request from the display workstation 20. In this case, the contents of the data transmission/reception buffer 17 are transmitted directly to the digital line 4 via the broadband ISDN interface 16.

As described above, in the present invention, the possibility of the next display is predicted at a certain point in time, and display data that is likely to be necessary is transferred or loaded from the external storage device 2 into the transmission/reception buffer 17. , it can meet the demands of human interfaces that require high-speed display.

According to the present invention, in order to transfer even data that may be wasted, the CPU of the workstation
The burden will increase. Therefore, it is desirable to adopt a pre-transfer method that meets the system capabilities and human interface requirements. The characteristics of the present invention described in the above-mentioned items 1 to 2 are summarized item by item as follows. ■The fastest display possible. It is possible to display at high speed, which is slightly inferior to ■■. This is effective when there is no unused display frame buffer (including systems that have only one display frame buffer) or when memory cannot be allocated for display data storage. It is possible to display at high speed, which is slightly inferior to ■■. It is possible to reduce the communication load from (1) and (2). It is possible to display at high speed, which is slightly inferior to ■■. It is effective when there is no unused display frame buffer (including systems with only one display frame buffer) or when memory cannot be allocated for display data storage, and further reduces the communication load. be able to. It is possible to display at high speed, which is slightly inferior to ■■. This is effective when there is no unused display frame buffer (including systems with only one display frame buffer) or when memory cannot be allocated for display data storage, and it further reduces the communication load. is possible.

[0035]

[Effects of the Invention] As described above in detail, according to the present invention, data considered to be necessary is transferred in advance when transferring data, in preparation for a display request from a display workstation. By doing so, it is possible to provide a data transfer control system for a broadband communication network that can efficiently transfer data from a server to a display workstation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the principle of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a display workstation.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a data table.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a layout table.

FIG. 5 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a server workstation.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of a broadband communication network system.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 External storage device 4 Digital line 10 Server 11 Memory 20 Display workstation 21 Memory 22 Layout table 23 Display

Claims (4)

[Claims] Claim 1: A plurality of servers (10) are connected to a display workstation (20) via a digital line (4), and transfer information from each server (10) is displayed on the display workstation (20). In the data transfer control system for a broadband communication network, each of the servers (10) has an external storage device (2) for storing data.
) and an internal memory (11), and the display workstation (20) side includes a memory (21) for storing data sent via a digital line (4) and an identification code for display data. and a layout table (22) that stores the display position, display size, etc. on the screen, and the server (10) side can perform advance forwarding in response to data display requests from the display workstation (20). The data is read from the external storage device (2) and transferred to the display workstation (20) in advance, and the display workstation (20) converts the received data into a display image based on the layout table (22). 1. A data transfer control system for a broadband communication network, characterized in that it is configured to be assembled, stored in a memory (21), and prepared for the occurrence of a display request. Claim 2: Of the data that can be transferred in advance, only data such as large-sized still images is transferred to the server (10
) to the display workstation (20),
On the display workstation (20) side, the display image is assembled based on the layout table (22), and the memory (
21) The data transfer control system for a broadband communication network according to claim 1, wherein the data transfer control system stores the data in the broadband communication network in preparation for generation of a display request. 3. Of the data that can be transferred in advance, only data such as large-sized still images is transferred to the server (10
) to the display workstation (20),
Send/receive buffer memory (3
2) The data transfer control system for a wideband communication network according to claim 1, wherein the data transfer control system stores the data in the data storage area 2) in preparation for generation of a display request. 4. All data that can be transferred in advance is stored in advance from the external storage device (2) of the server (10) to the transmitting/receiving buffer memory (17) used for normal communications in preparation for the occurrence of a sending request. 2. A data transfer control system for a broadband communication network according to claim 1.