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[802.3_SPMD] reminder - if you have comments to the TCI text

All – just to update you, I’ve received some helpful editorial comments from Chris Diminico and will be preparing a minor update to the TCI text on Monday (pacific time).  If you have comments, I would appreciate if you could try to get them to me by noon Monday, so that I may consider and perhaps incorporate them.

 

Among the comments from Chris I am implementing are two things to note:

 

  1. What I called the “PMA port of the TCI” will be renamed TC3.  (so the ports of the TCI are TC1 & TC2 to the mixing segment, and TC3 to the PMA).  This is because, as Chris rightly points out, the term “port” has a lot of meaning in IEEE Std 802.3 – and the way I was using it is not that…

 

  1. A possible definition for TCI added to 1.4:
    1.4.558b Trunk Connection Interface (TCI): The mechanical and electrical interface between the shared transmission medium (single balanced pair of conductors) and the PHY (e.g., 10BASE-T1M) (see IEEE Std 802.3 Clause 168). 

 

This would parallel the definition of MDI (but leave out MAUs and power – at least until we figure out how the power interface works…)


1.4.395 Medium Dependent Interface (MDI): The mechanical and electrical or optical interface between the transmission medium and the MAU (e.g., 10BASE-T) or the PHY (e.g., 1000BASE-T) and also between the transmission medium and any associated (optional per IEEE Std 802.3, Clause 33, Clause 104, and Clause 145) Powered Device (PD) or Endpoint Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE).

 

It also occurs to me that we may eventually wish to modify the definition of “trunk cable” in 802.3 (1.4.558)  so that it not only references coaxial cable but also balanced pair cabling – but I will leave that for a comment or a different set of changes…  I’m not sold on that, because “trunk cable” isn’t yet used in our text, and as defined, “trunk cable” and “drop cable” are two definitions for 10BROAD36 which interact and connect a MAU – something we don’t do, and we don’t need to add confusion for. (note, “trunk cable” shows up in all the old coax 10BASEx clauses (clauses 8-11, Annex B, and Annex D – we also misused the term in Annex 146B for Single-Pair powering).  For reference, see 1.4.558 and 1.4.292 in IEEE Std 802.3-2022:

1.4.558 trunk cable: The main (often large diameter) cable of a coaxial cable system. See also: drop cable.

1.4.292 drop cable: In 10BROAD36, the small diameter flexible coaxial cable of the broadband medium that connects to a Medium Attachment Unit (MAU). (See: trunk cable.)

 

George Zimmerman, Ph.D.

President & Principal

CME Consulting, Inc.

Experts in Advanced PHYsical Communications

george@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

310-920-3860

 

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