Mechanisms for use on designated ports in spanning tree protocol entities allow such ports to transition to a forwarding state on the basis of actual communication delays between neighboring bridges, rather than upon expiration of forwarding delay timers. The logic that manages transition of states in...http://www.google.com.au/patents/US6934263?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6934263 - Spanning tree with protocol for bypassing port state transition timers
