Communication control apparatus and shaping apparatus having token bucket

1. A communication control apparatus for shaping packets stored in a plurality of queues that are grouped in a plurality of groups of queues, the communication control apparatus comprising:

shaping apparatuses provided for respective ones of the groups of queues, each of the shaping apparatuses including a shaping block that includes a token bucket that accumulates tokens with a predetermined rate and a comparator, wherein

each of the groups of queues includes one or more of the plurality of queues that are configured to store one or more packets having lengths equal to or less than a maximum packet length, and

when the one or more of the queues of a first one of the groups of queues store one or more packets and the comparator in a first one of the shaping apparatuses provided for the first one of the groups of queues detects that a number of the tokens accumulated in the token bucket in the first one of the shaping apparatuses is equal to or larger than a reference number corresponding to the maximum packet length, the first one of the shaping apparatuses allows one of the one or more packets to transmit and subtracts a consumed number of tokens corresponding to a length of the one of the packets from the tokens in the token bucket in the first one of the shaping apparatuses.

2. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein

the first one of the shaping apparatuses further includes an arbitration block,

the first one of the groups of queues includes two or more of the plurality of queues that are configured to store two or more packets having lengths equal to or less than the maximum packet length, and

when the two or more of the queues store two or more packets and the comparator in the first one of the shaping apparatuses detects that the number of the tokens accumulated in the token bucket in the first one of the shaping apparatuses is equal to or larger than the reference number, the arbitration block i) receives the two or more packets, ii) selects one of the received packets to transmit, and iii) informs the token bucket in the first one of the shaping apparatuses of a length of the selected one of the packets so that the consumed number of tokens corresponding to the length of the selected one of the packets is subtracted from the tokens.

3. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein

the shaping apparatuses include a second one of the shaping apparatuses provided for a second one of the groups of queues that are configured to store one or more packets having lengths equal to or less than the same maximum packet length, the second one of the shaping apparatuses includes a second shaping block that includes a second token bucket that accumulates tokens with a second predetermined rate and a second comparator, the second one of the shaping apparatuses receives, when the comparator in the first one of the shaping apparatuses detects that the number of the tokens accumulated in the token bucket in the first one of the shaping apparatuses is equal to or larger than the reference number, the one or more packets from the first one of the shaping apparatuses, and

when the one or more of the queues of the second one of the groups of queues store second one or more packets and the second comparator detects that a number of the tokens accumulated in the second token bucket is equal to or larger than the reference number, the second shaping block allows to transmit both of i) the one or more packets received from the first one of the shaping apparatuses and ii) the second one or more packets stored in the second one of the groups of queues.

4. The communication control apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein

the second one of the shaping apparatuses further includes a second arbitration block that receives, when the second shaping block allows to transmit, the one or more packets received from the first one of the shaping apparatuses and the second one or more packets stored in the second one of the groups of queues, and

the second arbitration block i) selects one of the received packets to transmit, and ii) informs the token bucket and the second token bucket of a length of the selected one of the packets so that the consumed number of tokens corresponding to the length of the selected one of the packets is subtracted from the tokens in the token bucket and in the second token bucket.

5. A shaping apparatus for shaping one or more packets stored in one or more queues, the shaping apparatus comprising:

a shaping block including a token bucket that accumulates tokens with a predetermined rate and a comparator, wherein,

the one or more queues are configured to store one or more packets having lengths equal to or less than a maximum packet length, and

when the one or more queues store one or more packets and the comparator detects that a number of the tokens accumulated in the token bucket is equal to or larger than a reference number corresponding to the maximum packet length, the shaping apparatus allows one of the one or more packets stored in the one or more queues to transmit and subtracts a consumed number of tokens corresponding to a length of the one of packets from the tokens in the token bucket.

6. The shaping apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein

the one or more queues include two or more queues that are configured to store two or more packets having lengths equal to or less than the maximum packet length;

the shaping apparatus further includes an arbitration block, and

when the two or more queues store two or more packets and the comparator detects that the number of the tokens accumulated in the token bucket is equal to or larger than the reference number, the arbitration block i) receives the two or more packets, ii) selects one of the two or more packets to transmit, and iii) informs the token bucket of a length of the selected one of the packets so that the consumed number of tokens corresponding to the length of the selected one of the packets is subtracted from the tokens.