Network device for indoor network

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a network device for an indoor optical network. A master access device of the present disclosure is provided for an indoor optical network comprising one or more slave access devices optically coupled to the master access device. The main access device comprises one or more optical amplifiers, wherein each optical amplifier is configured to amplify a downlink optical signal or amplify an uplink optical signal; and an optical splitter / combiner module configured to split the amplified downlink optical signal into one or more split optical signals, and send the one or more split optical signals to one or more slave access devices, and / or one or more uplink optical signals from one or more slave access devices are combined into a combined uplink optical signal, and the combined uplink optical signal is the uplink optical signal to be amplified. The invention also provides an optical communication system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to network equipment for indoor networks, and more particularly for indoor optical networks. Specifically, this disclosure provides a main access device, an optical communication system, and a corresponding method. Background Technology

[0002] Fiber to the room (FTTR), also known as fiber-to-the-home networking, is an emerging and rapidly developing application that provides a higher quality network experience as an in-home network, for example, by distributing and coordinating WiFi routers.

[0003] The connection between the external access network and the home's internal FTTR network is called the main FTTR unit (MFU) or FTTR gateway. In most cases, the external access network serving the FTTR system is a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) solution, employing a standardized passive optical network (PON) system, such as a gigabit passive optical network (G-PON) or a 10 gigabit symmetrical passive optical network (XGS-PON). Today, the MFU is the element where the XGS-PON or G-PON access network terminates at the optical network terminal (ONT) and where the FTTR home network begins. In PON terminology, the ONT is sometimes referred to as an optical networking unit (ONU).

[0004] Unlike current home networks that primarily rely on WiFi or copper-based networking solutions, there is a trend for FTTR (Firmware Transit Network) to have the home network managed by the same network operator as the access network. Therefore, the network operator deploys and manages the MFU (Multi-Functional Unit), which includes software controls for remote management.

[0005] A traditional MFU (Medium-Terminal Array) consists of complex components. An MFU comprises an ONT (Optical Line Terminal) transceiver, an FTTR (Optical Line Termination) transceiver (OLT), and traffic routing functionality leading to the sub-FTTR unit (SFU). The OLT within the MFU is sometimes referred to as the main FTTR transceiver. In the MFU, the ONT converts the PON optical signal back to the electrical domain and separates traffic used for the FTTR network from traffic from other users. The selected traffic is then transmitted to the OLT of the FTTR system.

[0006] Considering power consumption, this can be inefficient, as traffic primarily flows through the FTTR gateway, but optical-electro-optical (OEO) conversion and electrical processing are still required. Furthermore, the OLT is a more expensive component, costing four to five times more than the ONT. OLT management can be very complex because data needs to be repackaged, requiring remote configuration by the network operator.

[0007] Therefore, network operators need a simple and efficient solution to manage both PON and FTTR. Summary of the Invention

[0008] In view of the aforementioned challenges and drawbacks, this disclosure aims to provide an improved primary access device, an improved indoor optical network, and a corresponding method for indoor optical networks. The goal is to simplify network management and enable simpler WiFi AP coordination. Another goal is to simplify traffic routing in the primary access device to reduce power consumption, and preferably also reduce cost. Yet another goal is to provide a solution that can simultaneously support different optical systems.

[0009] These and other objectives are achieved through embodiments of the disclosure described in the independent claims. Advantageous implementations are further defined in the dependent claims.

[0010] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, a master access device for an indoor optical network is provided. The indoor optical network includes one or more slave access devices optically coupled to the master access device. The master access device includes one or more optical amplifiers, each configured to amplify a downlink optical signal or an uplink optical signal. The master access device also includes an optical splitter / combiner module configured to split the amplified downlink optical signal into one or more split optical signals and transmit the one or more split optical signals to one or more slave access devices, and / or combine one or more uplink optical signals from one or more slave access devices into a combined uplink optical signal, wherein the combined uplink optical signal is the uplink optical signal to be amplified.

[0011] This disclosure proposes using one or more optical amplifiers (OAs) in an MFU to create a transparent optical path between an external access network and a home FTTR network. Since only OAs and passive optical components (e.g., optical splitters) are used in the MFU, this effectively creates a direct, all-optical path from the network operator's OLT in the central office to the WiFi access points in the home network, where there is no OEO or active traffic routing. The network operator can then directly manage all WiFi APs connected to the FTTR network on the same access network.

[0012] In an implementation of the first aspect, one or more optical amplifiers include a first downlink optical amplifier configured to amplify a first downlink optical signal from a first passive optical network.

[0013] Different OA technologies can be used to implement the OA used in the proposed MFU. For example, a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) can be used to amplify the four wavelengths required for G-PON and XGS-PON transmission: 1260 nm to 1280 nm, 1290 nm to 1330 nm, 1480 nm to 1500 nm, and 1575 nm to 1579 nm. Amplification can also be achieved in the C-band (through erbium doping) or the O-band (through praseodymium doping) using doped fiber or doped waveguide amplifiers.

[0014] In an implementation of the first aspect, one or more optical amplifiers further include a second downlink optical amplifier configured to amplify a second downlink optical signal from a second passive optical network, wherein the second passive optical network is different from the first passive optical network.

[0015] More than one downlink OA can be implemented in the MFU to amplify more than one optical signal in the downlink direction.

[0016] In the implementation of the first aspect, the main access device further includes: a first multiplexer / demultiplexer (Mux / Demux) module configured to split the received optical stream into a first downlink optical signal and a second downlink optical signal; and a second Mux / Demux module configured to combine the amplified first downlink optical signal and the amplified second downlink optical signal into an amplified optical stream.

[0017] Two downlink signals can be split and combined using an optical multiplexer. Two downlink signals can be recombined before entering the optical splitter using another optical multiplexer.

[0018] In an implementation of the first aspect, one or more optical amplifiers further include a first uplink optical amplifier configured to amplify a first uplink optical signal.

[0019] In the implementation of the first aspect, one or more optical amplifiers further include a second uplink optical amplifier configured to amplify a second uplink optical signal. More than one uplink OA can be implemented in the MFU to amplify more than one optical signal in the uplink direction.

[0020] In the implementation of the first aspect, the first Mux / Demux module is further configured to: combine the amplified first uplink optical signal and the amplified second uplink optical signal into an amplified uplink optical stream; and output the amplified uplink optical stream to a first passive optical network and / or a second passive optical network. The first Mux / Demux module can be used to split and combine two downlink signals and two uplink signals.

[0021] In the first aspect of the implementation, the main access device further includes a first control module, which is configured to control whether the first uplink optical amplifier and / or the second uplink optical amplifier are turned on or off.

[0022] In the implementation of the first aspect, the first control module is further configured to activate the first uplink optical amplifier and / or the second uplink optical amplifier only when any of the one or more slave access devices is transmitting to the master access device. Fast OA bias control can be used to activate one or more OAs in the uplink direction only when one ONU in the home network is transmitting, in order to avoid noise accumulation.

[0023] In the implementation of the first aspect, the second Mux / Demux module is further configured to split the combined uplink optical signal into a first uplink optical signal and a second uplink optical signal.

[0024] In the implementation of the first aspect, the main access device further includes a second control module configured to control the gain of each of the one or more optical amplifiers. The management and control unit in the MFU can control the gain of the OA.

[0025] In the implementation of the first aspect, the second control module is also configured to control the gain of each of one or more optical amplifiers based on the loss of the optical splitter / combiner module. In an FTTR network, the gain of the OA needs to be higher than the splitter's loss (to compensate for power and sensitivity losses), but not too high (to avoid Rx overload). Gain control of the SOA can be easily achieved by measuring the power before and after the FTTR splitter.

[0026] In the first implementation, the optical splitter / combiner module is also configured to provide the split optical signal to the second control module.

[0027] In the implementation of the first aspect, the second control module is further configured to provide the first control module with one or more transmission timing information from the access device. The management and control units in the MFU can also provide uplink timing information to the fast OA bias control.

[0028] In the implementation of the first aspect, the first control module is further configured to turn on or off the first uplink optical amplifier and / or the second uplink optical amplifier based on the transmission timing information received from the second control module.

[0029] In some implementations, because FTTR networks are relatively short (up to 200 m), ONUs within the same home network are all located at the same distance, simplifying the timing of enabling / disabling. Therefore, by using the ONU in the MFU to listen to the transmission authorization granted to the AP-ONU, the precise timing required to enable / disable SOA can be determined, allowing for accurate control of enabling and disabling SOA.

[0030] In an implementation of the first aspect, the primary access device further includes an optical detector configured to detect the presence of an uplink optical signal from one or more secondary access devices. Alternatively, the fast SOA bias control can use a photodiode (PD) to detect uplink signals from the ONU of the home network. For example, an unused splitter port can be connected to the photodiode, which is then connected to the fast SOA bias control.

[0031] In the implementation of the first aspect, the photodetector is further configured to provide detection results to the first control module, and the first control module is further configured to turn on or off the first uplink optical amplifier and / or the second uplink optical amplifier based on the detection results.

[0032] According to a second aspect of this disclosure, an optical communication system is provided. The optical communication system includes one or more PONs and one or more indoor optical networks. Each indoor optical network includes a master access device according to the first aspect or any implementation thereof, and includes one or more slave access devices optically coupled to the master access device.

[0033] The implementation of the optical communication system in the second aspect can correspond to the implementation of the main access device in the first aspect described above. The method of the second aspect and its implementation achieves the same advantages and effects as those described above regarding the main access device and its implementation in the first aspect.

[0034] According to a third aspect of this disclosure, a method is provided for operating a master access device for an indoor optical network. The indoor optical network includes one or more slave access devices optically coupled to the master access device. The method includes the steps of: amplifying a downlink optical signal and / or amplifying an uplink optical signal; splitting the amplified downlink optical signal into one or more split optical signals, and transmitting the one or more split optical signals to one or more slave access devices; and / or combining one or more uplink optical signals from one or more slave access devices into a combined uplink optical signal, wherein the combined uplink optical signal is the uplink optical signal to be amplified.

[0035] The third method can be implemented in a manner corresponding to the implementation of the main access device described in the first aspect. The fourth method and its implementation achieve the same advantages and effects as those described above regarding the main access device and its implementation in the first aspect.

[0036] According to a fourth aspect of this disclosure, a computer program including instructions is provided that, when executed by a processor of a main access device according to a first aspect of this disclosure, causes the processor to perform a method according to a third aspect of this disclosure or any implementation thereof.

[0037] All devices, elements, units, and modules described in this application can be implemented in software or hardware elements or any combination thereof. All steps performed by the various entities described in this application, and the functions described for performance by the various entities, are intended to indicate that the respective entities are suitable for or configured to perform the corresponding steps and functions. Although in the following detailed description of specific embodiments, a particular function or step to be performed by an external entity is not reflected in the detailed description of the specific element of the entity performing that particular step or function, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these methods and functions can be implemented in the corresponding software or hardware elements or any combination thereof. Attached Figure Description

[0038] The above aspects and implementations will be described in the following detailed description of specific embodiments, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0039] Figure 1 A main access device according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown;

[0040] Figure 2 An optical communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0041] Figure 3 A main access device according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown;

[0042] Figure 4 A main access device according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown;

[0043] Figure 5 An optical communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0044] Figure 6 An optical communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0045] Figure 7 An optical communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown; and

[0046] Figure 8 An exemplary flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0047] Illustrative embodiments of a main access device, an optical communication system, and a corresponding method for operating the main access device for an indoor optical network are described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although this description provides detailed examples of possible implementations, these details are intended to be exemplary and do not limit the scope of this application.

[0048] Furthermore, embodiments / examples may refer to other embodiments / examples. For instance, any descriptions mentioned in one embodiment / example, including but not limited to terminology, elements, processes, explanations, and / or technical advantages, are applicable to other embodiments / examples.

[0049] Figure 1 A master access device 100 for an indoor optical network 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0050] The main access device 100 may include processing circuitry (not shown) configured to perform, implement, or initiate various operations of the main access device 100 as described herein. The processing circuitry may include hardware and software. Hardware may include analog circuitry, digital circuitry, or both. Digital circuitry may include components such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), or multi-purpose processors. The main access device 100 may also include memory circuitry storing one or more instructions executable by a processor or processing circuitry (particularly under software control). For example, the memory circuitry may include a non-transitory storage medium storing executable software code that, when executed by a processor or processing circuitry, causes the main access device 100 to perform various operations. In one embodiment, the processing circuitry includes one or more processors and non-transitory memory connected to one or more processors. The non-transitory memory may carry executable program code that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the main access device 100 to perform, implement, or initiate the operations or methods described herein.

[0051] The indoor optical network 10 includes one or more slave access devices 200, 200' optically coupled to the master access device 100. Although Figure 1 Only two slave access devices 200, 200' are shown, but the indoor optical network 10 proposed in this disclosure may include other slave access devices. In some implementations, all slave access devices are identical or operate in parallel.

[0052] The primary access device 100 includes one or more optical amplifiers 101, each configured to amplify a downlink optical signal or an uplink optical signal. The single optical amplifier block 101 shown in the figure is merely an example and does not limit the actual number of optical amplifiers in this embodiment. The primary access device 100 also includes an optical splitter / combiner module 102, configured to split the amplified downlink optical signal into one or more split optical signals, and / or combine one or more uplink optical signals from one or more access devices 200, 200' into a combined uplink optical signal. The combined uplink optical signal is the uplink optical signal to be amplified; for example, the combined uplink optical signal will be amplified by one or more optical amplifiers 101.

[0053] The primary access device 100 or its optical splitter / combiner module 102 can also be configured to transmit one or more split optical signals to one or more secondary access devices 200, 200'. In some implementations, the primary access device 100 or its optical splitter / combiner module 102 may include a module for transmitting optical signals (e.g., a transmitter or transmitting module). Similarly, the primary access device 100 or its optical splitter / combiner module 102 may include a module for receiving one or more uplink optical signals from one or more secondary access devices 200, 200' (e.g., a receiver or receiving module).

[0054] This disclosure proposes a primary access device for passive networks, such as an MFU or an optically transparent MFU. This disclosure proposes using an OEO (Optical Oriented Array) within the MFU to create a transparent optical path between the external access network and the home's internal FTTR (Fiber to the Reach) network. This effectively creates a direct, all-optical path from the network operator's OLT (at the central office) to the WiFi access point (AP) in the home network, where there is no OEO conversion or active traffic routing (such as...). Figure 2 (As shown). Then, the network operator can directly manage all WiFi access points connected to the same FTTR network.

[0055] Figure 2 An all-optical connection between one or more PONs using an optically transparent MFU and an FTTR home network is illustrated according to an embodiment of this disclosure. Figure 2 The MFU can be Figure 1 The main access device 100 is shown. It can be seen that the MFU only uses optical amplifiers (i.e., one or more optical amplifiers 101) and passive optical components (e.g., splitter / combiner module 102). There is no OEO conversion in the MFU, which also means that no OLT is used. Therefore, the functions of the MFU can be managed and controlled using a simple ONU (not shown).

[0056] In this disclosure, different OA (Optical Amplification) technologies can be used in the proposed MFU. For example, SOA (Optical Amplification) can be used to amplify the four bands required for G-PON and XGS-PON transmission: 1260 nm to 1280 nm, 1290 nm to 1330 nm, 1480 nm to 1500 nm, and 1575 nm to 1579 nm. Doped fiber or doped waveguide amplifiers can also be used for amplification in the C-band (by erbium doping) or in the O-band (by praseodymium doping).

[0057] This disclosure applies directly to PON networks and FTTR home networks connected to them. In some implementations, a direct extension of the PON network is created within the home network, such as... Figure 2 As shown. The PON OLT will be located at the network operator's central office. The PON network can be based on G-PON or XGS-PON, or a combination of both. The ODN fiber optic infrastructure will connect the OLT to an optically transparent MFU, such as the main access device 100. The MFU will then distribute the PON signal to the SFU via fiber optic cable, such as one or more slave access devices 200, 200' that may contain ONUs and WiFi APs. The ONU of the SFU can be a G-PON ONU or an XGS-PON ONU.

[0058] Figure 3 An example schematic diagram of a main access device 100 according to this disclosure is shown. This optically transparent MFU can be used for G-PON or XGS-PON. In one implementation, when the PON is G-PON, only the G-PON signal is amplified and transmitted through the MFU using an SOA as an optical amplifier. In another implementation, when the PON is XGS-PON, only the XGS-PON signal is amplified and transmitted through the MFU using an SOA as an optical amplifier.

[0059] Optionally, one or more optical amplifiers 101 include a first downlink optical amplifier 1011 configured to amplify a first downlink optical signal from a first PON. Optionally, the first PON may be a G-PON or an XGS-PON.

[0060] Optionally, one or more optical amplifiers 101 may further include a first uplink optical amplifier 1013 configured to amplify the first uplink optical signal.

[0061] The first downlink optical amplifier 1011 and / or the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 can be an SOA. The SOA has different amplification bands optimized for each of the uplink and downlink optical signals. The first downlink optical amplifier 1011 and / or the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 can also be implemented using other types of optical amplifiers.

[0062] The optical splitter provides fiber optic connections to the SFU, such as one or more slave access devices 200, 200'. One output of the optical splitter / combiner module 102 is connected to an ONU, which can be a G-PON ONU or an XGS-PON ONU. In one implementation, if the ONU of the master access device 100 is a G-PON ONU, the first downlink optical signal can be at 1490 nm and the first uplink optical signal can be at 1310 nm. In another implementation, if the ONU of the master access device 100 is an XGS-PON ONU, the first downlink optical signal can be at 1577 nm and the first uplink optical signal can be at 1270 nm. The first downlink optical amplifier 1011 and the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 are configured to operate at corresponding amplification bands optimized for each optical signal.

[0063] The ONU within the MFU can provide data connectivity to the APs within the MFU, and can also provide connectivity to the management and control units of the APs and MFU. The management and control units also receive information from the PON management system.

[0064] The management and control units in the MFU can control the gain of the OAs and optionally also provide timing information to the fast OA bias control in the uplink direction. The fast OA bias control can be used to enable one or more OAs in the uplink direction only when one ONU in the home network is transmitting, in order to avoid noise accumulation.

[0065] In other words, according to the embodiments of this disclosure, the main access device 100 also includes a first control module 105, such as a fast OA bias control, which is configured to control whether the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 is turned on or off.

[0066] The main access device 100 also includes a second control module 106, such as a management and control unit for the MFU, which is configured to control the gain of each of one or more optical amplifiers 101. The second control module 106 can also be considered to include the ONU of the MFU.

[0067] Specifically, the optical splitter / combiner module 102 is also configured to provide the split optical signal to the second control module 106 (e.g., to the ONU).

[0068] Optionally, the second control module 106 can also be configured to control the gain of each of one or more optical amplifiers 101 based on the loss of the optical splitter / combiner module 102.

[0069] Optionally, the second control module 106 may also be configured to provide the first control module 105 with one or more transmission timing information from the access devices 200, 200'.

[0070] Accordingly, the first control module 105 is also configured to turn the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 on or off based on the transmission timing information received from the second control module 106.

[0071] Optionally, the primary access device 100 may also include an optical detector 107. The optical detector 107 is configured to detect the presence of an uplink optical signal from one or more secondary access devices 200, 200'.

[0072] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the photodetector 107 is further configured to provide detection results to the first control module 105. Optionally, the first control module 105 is further configured to turn the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 on or off based on the detection results.

[0073] Other OAs can be implemented in the MFU to amplify more than one optical signal in two directions (i.e., uplink and downlink).

[0074] Figure 4 Another example schematic diagram of a primary access device 100 according to this disclosure is shown. In this example, there are two downlink signals and two uplink signals, which are at four different wavelengths. Figure 4 The main access device 100 can be based on Figure 3 The main access device is 100.

[0075] This schematic diagram demonstrates an optically transparent MFU for both G-PON and XGS-PON. Four independent SOA (Optical Array of Optical Amplifiers) are used here to amplify the optical signals in both directions. Each SOA has a different amplification band optimized for each of the four signals.

[0076] In this embodiment, one or more optical amplifiers 101 further include a second downlink optical amplifier 1012, which is configured to amplify a second downlink optical signal from a second PON, wherein the second PON is different from the first PON (the source of the first downlink optical signal).

[0077] Additionally, one or more optical amplifiers 101 may include a second uplink optical amplifier 1014 configured to amplify the second uplink optical signal.

[0078] An optical multiplexer can be used to split and combine two downlink signals and two uplink signals. Another optical multiplexer can be used to re-combine the four signals before they enter an optical splitter (e.g., optical splitter / combiner module 102), which provides routing to the SFU, i.e., one or more fiber optic connections from access devices 200, 200'.

[0079] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the main access device further includes: a first Mux / Demux module 103 configured to split the received optical stream into a first downlink optical signal and a second downlink optical signal; and a second Mux / Demux module 104 configured to combine the amplified first downlink optical signal and the amplified second downlink optical signal into an amplified optical stream.

[0080] Possibly, the first Mux / Demux module 103 is also configured to combine the amplified first uplink optical signal and the amplified second uplink optical signal into an amplified uplink optical stream, and output the amplified uplink optical stream to the first PON and / or the second PON.

[0081] Figure 4 The optical amplifiers shown (e.g., 1011, 1012, 1013, and 1014) can be implemented using an SOA. However, other types of optical amplifiers can also be used in the proposed MFU. For example, the XGS-PON downlink at 1577 nm can utilize an erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) or an erbium-doped waveguide amplifier (EDWA). In the uplink band near 1270 nm and 1300 nm, a praseodymium-doped fiber amplifier (PDFA) can be used. In this example, the first downlink optical amplifier 1011 can be implemented using an EDFA or an EDWA, and the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 and the second uplink optical amplifier 1014 can be implemented using a PDFA. The remainder of the MFU is as follows: Figure 4 The ones shown have the same structure.

[0082] One output of the optical splitter / combiner module 102 is connected to an ONU, which can be a G-PON ONU or an XGS-PON ONU. The ONU inside the MFU can be used to provide data connectivity to the APs inside the MFU, or to provide connectivity to the management and control unit of the MFU.

[0083] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the first control module 105 is also configured to control whether the second uplink optical amplifier 1014 is turned on or off.

[0084] Optionally, the first control module 105 is also configured to activate the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 and / or the second uplink optical amplifier 1014 only when any one of the one or more slave access devices 200, 200' is sending to the master access device 100.

[0085] Specifically, the first control module 105 can be configured to turn on or off the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 and / or the second uplink optical amplifier 1014 based on the transmission timing information received from the second control module 106.

[0086] As discussed in the above embodiments, the primary access device 100 may further include a photodetector 107, which detects the presence of uplink optical signals from one or more secondary access devices 200, 200' and provides the detection result to the first control module 105. Optionally, the first control module 105 is further configured to turn on or off the first uplink optical amplifier 1013 and / or the second uplink optical amplifier 1014 based on the detection result.

[0087] In this embodiment, the second Mux / Demux module 104 is further configured to split the combined uplink optical signal (e.g., the combined uplink optical signal from the optical splitter / combiner module 102) into a first uplink optical signal and a second uplink optical signal.

[0088] Figure 5 An optical communication system 1 is shown, comprising one or more PONs and one or more indoor optical networks 10, wherein each indoor optical network 10 includes, for example, Figures 1 to 4 One of the main access devices 100 is shown, and includes one or more slave access devices 200, 200' optically coupled to the main access device 100.

[0089] According to embodiments of this disclosure, using OA in an MFU can increase the link budget of G-PON and XGS-PON systems to support additional optical splitters in the MFU, currently up to a factor of x8. OA has been shown to provide advantages in the ODN backbone prior to splitters, but has never been used as a midpoint extender as proposed in this disclosure.

[0090] Figure 6 Examples of splitting ratios for the proposed MFU implementations in PON ODN and FTTR are shown. In some implementations, an MFU with an OA can support the maximum link budget of Class E2 in the XGS-PON standard, which typically corresponds to a splitting ratio of 1x64 in the ODN. The overall branching of the new PON+FTTR network increases to 64x8=512 endpoints, which can be filled with G-PON ONUs or XGS-PON ONUs.

[0091] For example, in one implementation of downlink XGS-PON for Class E2, the data rate is 10 Gb / s NRZ (9.95328 Gb / s), the transmitter extinction ratio (ER) is 8.2 dB, and the minimum receiver sensitivity is -28 dBm (using APD). On the FTTR network side, a maximum insertion loss (IL) of 18 dB and a length of 200 m are considered. Inside the optically transparent MFU, an OA with a gain of 20 dB and a noise figure of 8 dB (worst-case SOA) and a 20 nm Rx optical filter are used. It is understandable that when using a transparent MFU, the bit error rate (BER) at the SFU receiver is improved as a function of the power at the MFU input. This means that the extension of PON to FTTR networks can be achieved using a standard PON ONU.

[0092] Following this disclosure, standardized ONUs can still be used in WiFi APs. In the downlink, the ONU Rx includes a 20 nm optical filter that limits amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) noise in the OA. In FTTR networks, the OA gain needs to be 0 dB to 2 dB higher than the losses of the splitter and fiber connections (to compensate for power and sensitivity losses) but less than 4 dB (to avoid Rx overload). As discussed in the embodiments above, OA gain control can be easily achieved by measuring the power before or after the FTTR splitter (e.g., optical splitter / combiner module 102).

[0093] Another important issue to address is the noise addition (or funnel effect) generated by the OA in the uplink. ASE from the OA is added at the optical splitter, therefore, they are not commonly used as intermediate-stage ODN amplification or amplification splitters. The solution proposed in this disclosure uses an SOA that can be quickly turned on / off to avoid noise when the FTTR ONU is not transmitting.

[0094] In some implementations, the ASE noise generated by the MFU's OA (Optical Access Component) adds to and reduces the optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) at the ODN optical splitter even when it is not transmitting. For example, the OSNR degrades by 15 dB for a 32-splitter and by 18 dB for a 64-splitter. To avoid the OSNR penalty at OLT, OA can only be gated when the MFU is transmitting a signal uplink.

[0095] Figure 7This demonstrates gating the OA gain to suppress noise accumulation when the connected SFU is not transmitting. This minimizes the OSNR cost of a single OA, considering the power and loss values ​​in the PON and FTTR standards.

[0096] Because FTTR networks are relatively short (e.g., up to 200 m), ONUs within the same home network are all located at the same distance, simplifying the timing of power-on / off activation. The precise timing required to power on / off the OA can be determined by listening to the transmission authorization granted to the AP-ONU within the MFU, allowing for accurate control of OA power-on and power-off. Alternatively, one of the unused splitter ports can be connected to a photodetector (e.g., such as...). Figure 3 or Figure 4 The photodetector 107 shown is, for example, a photodetector, which is connected to the fast feedforward bias control of the OA (e.g., as shown). Figure 3 or Figure 4 The first control module 105 shown.

[0097] Figure 8 A method 800 according to a third aspect of this disclosure is illustrated, particularly operating a master access device 100 for an indoor optical network 10. Specifically, the indoor optical network 10 includes one or more slave access devices 200, 200' optically coupled to the master access device 100. In a particular embodiment, method 800 is performed by... Figures 1 to 5 The method is performed by the primary access device 100 shown in one of the methods. Method 800 includes step 801: amplifying a downlink optical signal and / or amplifying an uplink optical signal. Method 800 further includes step 802: splitting the amplified downlink optical signal into one or more split optical signals; and step 803: transmitting the one or more split optical signals to one or more slave access devices 200, 200'. Method 800 may also include step 804: combining one or more uplink optical signals from one or more slave access devices 200, 200' into a combined uplink optical signal, wherein the combined uplink optical signal is the uplink optical signal to be amplified.

[0098] Optionally, the primary access device 100 can determine the losses of the splitter and fiber optic connection. Possibly, method 800 may further include step 805: controlling the gain of the downlink optical signal such that the gain of the downlink optical signal is 0 dB to 2 dB higher than the losses of the splitter and fiber optic connection. Method 800 may further include step 806: quickly turning on the gain in the uplink direction when an optical signal from the secondary access device is present, or otherwise turning off the gain to avoid noise accumulation.

[0099] In summary, embodiments of this disclosure propose an MFU or optically transparent MFU at the edge boundary between the PON access network and the FTTR home network. Optical signals are directly linked to the OLT at the central office and the ONU of the SFU, thereby simplifying network management and allowing for easier WiFi AP coordination.

[0100] Embodiments of this disclosure propose using an OA (Optical Optical Amplifier) ​​to amplify the optical link in the MFU (Medium-Operating Unit) and using an optical splitter to route the signal to the SFU (Small-Level Unit). This eliminates OEO (Optical-to-Electronic) conversion and electrical traffic routing in the MFU, reducing power consumption. It also simplifies the MFU and eliminates the need for expensive OLT (Optical Line Transceiver) transceivers.

[0101] Furthermore, the OA (Optical Oscillator) in an MFU can be based on different technologies covering different transmission bands, each with its own advantages and disadvantages, such as SOA (Optical Oscillator), erbium- or praseodymium-doped fiber, or doped waveguide. By using the most suitable OA for a specific wavelength, all generations of PON systems can be supported through this concept. For example, an MFU can simultaneously amplify and support both G-PON and XGS-PON systems.

[0102] Uplink OAs can be gated (SOAs can be easily gated uplink) so that they are only activated when uplink signals from the home network are transmitted. This limits noise accumulation, which would otherwise cause the network to malfunction. The ONU in the MFU is used to detect authorized transmission signals from ONUs in the home network.

[0103] This disclosure has been described in conjunction with various embodiments as examples and implementations. However, based on a study of the drawings, this disclosure, and the independent claims, those skilled in the art will be able to understand and implement other variations when practicing the claimed embodiments of the disclosure. In the claims and the specification, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single element or other unit may fulfill the function of several entities or items recited in the claims. The recitation of certain measures in dissimilar dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used in advantageous implementations. Furthermore, the word "coupled" means that elements may be directly connected together or coupled through one or more intermediate elements. Moreover, this disclosure relates to other aspects of this disclosure as well.

[0104] Although this disclosure has been shown and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent changes and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding this specification and the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, while specific features of this disclosure may be disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such features may be combined with one or more other features of other implementations that are desirable and advantageous for any given or particular application.

[0105] Furthermore, any method according to embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented in a computer program having code modules that, when run by a processing module, cause the processing module to perform the steps of the method. The computer program is included in a computer-readable medium of the computer program product. The computer-readable medium can substantially include any memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), flash memory, electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), or hard disk drive.

[0106] Furthermore, those skilled in the art recognize that embodiments of the main access device 100 or optical communication system 1 include the necessary communication capabilities in the form of functions, modules, units, and components for performing the solution. Examples of other such modules, units, components, and functions include: processors, memory, buffers, control logic, encoders, decoders, rate matchers, rate-reducing matchers, mapping units, multipliers, decision units, selection units, switches, interleavers, deinterleavers, modulators, demodulators, inputs, outputs, antennas, amplifiers, receiving units, transmitting units, DSPs, trellis-coded modulation (TCM) encoders, TCM decoders, power supply units, power feeders, communication interfaces, communication protocols, etc., which are appropriately arranged together to perform the solution.

[0107] Specifically, one or more processors of the main access device 100 may include, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a processing unit, processing circuitry, a processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a microprocessor, or one or more instances of other processing logic capable of interpreting and executing instructions. The term "processor" can therefore refer to processing circuitry comprising multiple processing circuits, such as any, some, or all of the items listed above. The processing circuitry may also perform data processing functions for inputting, outputting, and processing data, including data buffering and device control functions such as call processing control, user interface control, etc.

Claims

1. A main access device (100) for an indoor optical network, wherein, The indoor optical network includes one or more slave access devices (200, 200') optically coupled to the master access device (100), and wherein the master access device (100) includes: One or more optical amplifiers (101), each optical amplifier being configured to: amplify a downlink optical signal or amplify an uplink optical signal; and An optical splitter / combiner module (102) is configured to: The amplified downlink optical signal is split into one or more split optical signals, and the one or more split optical signals are sent to the one or more slave access devices (200, 200'), and / or One or more uplink optical signals from one or more access devices (200, 200') are combined into a combined uplink optical signal, wherein the combined uplink optical signal is an uplink optical signal to be amplified.

2. The main access device (100) according to claim 1, wherein, The one or more optical amplifiers (101) include a first downlink optical amplifier (1011), which is configured to: Amplify the first downlink optical signal from the first passive optical network.

3. The main access device (100) according to claim 2, wherein, The one or more optical amplifiers (101) further include a second downlink optical amplifier (1012), the second downlink optical amplifier (1012) being configured to: Amplify the second downlink optical signal from the second passive optical network, wherein the second passive optical network is different from the first passive optical network.

4. The main access device (100) according to claim 3 further includes: A first multiplexer / demultiplexer (Mux / Demux) module (103) is configured to split the received optical stream into a first downlink optical signal and a second downlink optical signal; and The second Mux / Demux module (104) is configured to combine the amplified first downlink optical signal and the amplified second downlink optical signal into an amplified optical flow.

5. The main access device (100) according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein, The one or more optical amplifiers (101) further include a first uplink optical amplifier (1013), the first uplink optical amplifier (1013) being configured to: Amplify the first uplink optical signal.

6. The main access device (100) according to claim 5, wherein, The one or more optical amplifiers (101) further include a second uplink optical amplifier (1014), the second uplink optical amplifier (1014) being configured to: Amplify the second uplink optical signal.

7. The main access device (100) according to claim 6, wherein, The first Mux / Demux module (103) is also configured to: The amplified first uplink optical signal and the amplified second uplink optical signal are combined into an amplified uplink optical stream, and The amplified uplink optical flow is output to the first passive optical network and / or the second passive optical network.

8. The main access device (100) according to any one of claims 5 to 7, further comprising a first control module (105), the first control module (105) being configured to: Control whether to turn the first uplink optical amplifier (1013) and / or the second uplink optical amplifier (1014) on or off.

9. The main access device (100) according to claim 8, wherein, The first control module (105) is also configured to: The first uplink optical amplifier (1013) and / or the second uplink optical amplifier (1014) are activated only when any of the one or more slave access devices (200, 200') is transmitting to the master access device (100).

10. The main access device (100) according to any one of claims 68 to 9, wherein, The second Mux / Demux module (104) is also configured to: The uplink optical signal of the combined path is split into the first uplink optical signal and the second uplink optical signal.

11. The main access device (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising a second control module (106), the second control module (106) being configured to: Control the gain of each of the one or more optical amplifiers (101).

12. The main access device (100) according to claim 11, wherein, The second control module (106) is also configured to: The gain of each optical amplifier in the one or more optical amplifiers (101) is controlled based on the loss of the optical splitter / combiner module (102).

13. The main access device (100) according to claim 11 or 12, wherein, The optical splitter / combiner module (102) is also configured to: Provide the split optical signal to the second control module (106).

14. The main access device (100) according to claims 11 to 13 and any one of claims 8 or 9, wherein, The second control module (106) is also configured to: The first control module (105) provides the transmission timing information of the one or more access devices (200, 200').

15. The main access device (100) according to claim 14, wherein, The first control module (105) is also configured to: Based on the transmission timing information received from the second control module (106), the first uplink optical amplifier (1013) and / or the second uplink optical amplifier (1014) are turned on or off.

16. The primary access device (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 13 further includes a photodetector (107), the photodetector (107) being configured to: Detect the presence of uplink optical signals from the one or more access devices (200, 200').

17. The main access device (100) according to claim 16, 8 or 9, wherein, The photodetector (107) is also configured to: Provide the detection result to the first control module (105), and The first control module (105) is also configured to: Based on the detection results, the first uplink optical amplifier (1013) and / or the second uplink optical amplifier (1014) are turned on or off.

18. An optical communication system (1) comprising one or more passive optical networks and one or more indoor optical networks (10), wherein, Each indoor optical network (10) includes a master access device (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 17, and includes one or more slave access devices (200, 200') optically coupled to the master access device (100).

19. A method for operating a main access device (100) for an indoor optical network (10), wherein, The indoor optical network (10) includes one or more slave access devices (200, 200') optically coupled to the master access device (100), and wherein the method includes: Amplify the downlink optical signal and / or amplify the uplink optical signal; The amplified downlink optical signal is split into one or more split optical signals, and the one or more split optical signals are sent to the one or more slave access devices (200, 200'); and / or One or more uplink optical signals from one or more access devices (200, 200') are combined into a combined uplink optical signal, wherein the combined uplink optical signal is an uplink optical signal to be amplified.

20. A computer program comprising instructions that, when executed by a computer, such as a processor of a main access device (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 18, cause the computer to perform the method according to claim 19.

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