Mehrstufige erweiterbare optische Paketverteilanordnung mit Überbrückungsschalter

A growable packet switching arrangement where the distribution network (23) blocking probability is substantially reduced because the network has both switch links and chute links, and the network nodes (e.g. 30) include both a switching means (40) interconnecting successive stage switch links and a plurality of non-switching, chute connection means (50) interconnecting successive stage chute links. A network node can transfer a packet, being received on a switch link, to any selected one of the chute connection means of that node for transmission on a chute link. The network nodes are relatively simple and inexpensive because they store only the first few bits needed to route an ATM cell. The blocking probability is further reduced when the number of chutes per node is increased. The number of chutes may be based, for example, on the number of switch link inputs per node.