Signal processing apparatus and optical network

Abstract

Provided are a signal processing apparatus and an optical network, which relate to the field of optical communications. The signal processing apparatus can reduce the transmission loss of an optical network. The signal processing apparatus comprises: a control circuit and a first optical splitter. The first optical splitter comprises a common port and a plurality of branch ports, wherein the common port of the first optical splitter is used for connecting to a first optical line terminal, a first branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical splitter is used for connecting to a first optical network unit, and a second branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical splitter is used for connecting to a second optical network unit. The control circuit sends a first control signal to the first optical splitter in order to control the first optical splitter to make the common port communicate with the first branch port; and the control circuit sends a second control signal to the first optical splitter in order to control the first optical splitter to make the common port communicate with the second branch port. The embodiments of the present application are applied to the field of optical communications.

Description

Signal processing device and optical network

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on December 15, 2023, with application number 202311737313.0 and application name “A signal processing device and optical network”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of optical communications, and in particular to a signal processing device and an optical network. Background Art

[0003] Fiber-optic access technology refers to technologies that use optical fiber as a transmission medium to achieve signal transmission. For example, in a fiber-to-the-x (FTTx) network, optical fiber is used to transmit signals between the central office (such as a central control station) and users. Due to its advantages such as small size, low price, and long transmission distance, it is currently widely used in various scenarios. Fiber-optic access technology includes active optical access technology and passive optical access technology.

[0004] Specifically, a passive optical network (PON) is a typical point-to-multipoint (PTMP) network that includes an optical line terminal (OLT) at the central office, an optical network terminal (ONT) or optical network unit (ONU) at the user end, and an optical distribution network (ODN) connecting the OLT and the ONU (or ONT). Typically, a PON transmits signals through broadcast (downstream) and time division multiple access (TDMA) (upstream). Downstream signal broadcasting is achieved through the ODN, which is often implemented using a passive optical splitter (e.g., a 1:N passive optical splitter, where N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2). Since the downstream signal is split 1:N by the ODN, transmission loss cannot be ignored.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides a signal processing device and an optical network, wherein the signal processing device can reduce transmission loss of the optical network.

[0007] In a first aspect, a signal processing device is provided. Structurally, the signal processing device includes: a control circuit and a first optical distributor; the first optical distributor includes a common port and multiple branch ports; wherein the common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a first OLT, a first branch port among the multiple branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a first ONU, and a second branch port among the multiple branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a second ONU. Functionally, the control circuit is configured to send a first control signal to the first optical distributor; the first optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the first optical distributor with the first branch port of the first optical distributor in response to the first control signal; the control circuit is further configured to send a second control signal to the first optical distributor; the first optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the first optical distributor with the second branch port of the first optical distributor in response to the second control signal.

[0008] Then, through the above solution, the optical distributor can connect the common port with the first branch port, or switch to connecting the common port with the second branch port, in response to the control signal sent by the control circuit. Specifically, taking the downstream direction as an example, the optical distributor receives the optical signal transmitted by the first OLT through the common port. Furthermore, in response to the first control signal sent by the control circuit, the optical distributor outputs the optical signal received by the common port to the first ONU through the first branch port connected to the common port within a period of time; in response to the second control signal sent by the control circuit, the optical distributor outputs the optical signal received by the common port to the second ONU through the second branch port connected to the common port within another period of time. In one possible implementation, the optical distributor also includes more branch ports, and any branch port is used to connect to the ONU. In this way, the optical distributor can output the optical signal received by the common port to the ONU connected to the branch port through a branch port connected to the common port within a certain time period. It is not difficult to understand that the control signal (including the first control signal and the second control signal) sent by the control circuit can be generated by the OLT, or generated by other devices or apparatuses, and then transmitted to the control circuit through the OLT. This application does not limit this. Then, the above scheme does not need to split the optical signal transmitted by the OLT, and can output all the optical signals received from the OLT to the ONU through a branch port connected to the public port in different time periods, and at this time the other branch ports of the optical distributor are disconnected from their public ports, so that the OLT and the ONU can achieve point-to-point transmission, greatly reducing transmission loss. In addition, in the upstream direction, within a certain time period, the above scheme can receive the optical signal output by the ONU connected to the branch port through a branch port, and then transmit the optical signal to the OLT through the public port connected to the branch port, and at this time the other branch ports of the optical distributor are disconnected from their public ports. Then, through the above scheme, rogue ONUs can be avoided during the upstream transmission of the signal, thereby effectively improving the transmission quality.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the signal processing device further includes a receiving circuit, which is connected to the first OLT. Functionally, the receiving circuit is configured to receive a first optical signal transmitted by the first OLT, the first optical signal carrying port allocation information. The receiving circuit is further configured to obtain the port allocation information from the first optical signal and transmit the port allocation information to the control circuit. The control circuit is specifically configured to generate a first control signal and a second control signal based on the port allocation information.

[0010] Then, in the above scheme, the control circuit can be connected to the OLT through the receiving circuit. Specifically, the receiving circuit receives the optical signal (first optical signal) transmitted by the OLT, obtains the port allocation information therefrom and sends it to the control circuit; the control circuit generates a control signal according to the port allocation information. Based on the above scheme, the port configuration information can be obtained based on the optical signal transmitted by the OLT, and the control circuit can be connected to the OLT through the receiving circuit and receive the port allocation information for generating control information. Among them, the receiving circuit can be an ONU or an ONT, or it can be other devices or equipment that can realize its function, and this application does not limit this. Usually, communication networks mostly use optical fibers as transmission media, and realize communication by transmitting optical signals through optical fibers. Then, through the above scheme, the signal processing device provided by this application can be compatible with the architecture of the existing communication network, and the compatibility of the scheme is higher, which effectively reduces the complexity of the communication network and the deployment cost.

[0011] In one possible implementation, the signal processing device further includes a transmitting circuit; the transmitting circuit is configured to connect to the first OLT. Functionally, the first optical distributor is further configured to transmit detection results of optical signals at the plurality of branch ports to the control circuit; the control circuit is further configured to transmit port status information to the transmitting circuit based on the detection results; and the transmitting circuit is further configured to transmit the port status information to the first OLT.

[0012] Then, the above solution can send the port status information of the optical distributor to the OLT via the transmitting circuit. Specifically, the optical distributor sends the detection results of the optical signals of multiple branch ports to the control circuit, and the control circuit sends the port status information to the transmitting circuit based on the detection results; wherein, the port status information is used to indicate the status of the multiple branch ports. For example, the port status information can indicate whether the connection between a branch port and the common port is abnormal. For another example, the port status information can also indicate whether a branch port transmits an optical signal within the time period indicated by the port allocation information. In one possible implementation, the detection results sent by the optical distributor to the control circuit can be parameters of the optical signals detected at each branch port of the optical distributor (e.g., the power or intensity of the optical signal). Optionally, a detection circuit (e.g., a photoelectric conversion circuit including a photodiode (PD)) provided at each branch port of the optical distributor detects the optical signals of the branch ports to obtain detection results of the optical signals of the multiple branch ports of the optical distributor. It should be noted that the aforementioned transmitting circuit and the receiving circuit included in the signal processing device described in other solutions of this application can be independent circuits or integrated into a transceiver circuit with transceiver functions. Therefore, through the above solution, the OLT can promptly understand the connectivity status of multiple branch ports included in the optical distributor based on the received port status information, so as to adjust the signal transmission between the OLT and the ONU, thereby improving transmission quality.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the first optical distributor is specifically configured to connect the common port with the first branch port in a first time slot in response to a first control signal; and to connect the common port with the second branch port in a second time slot indicated by the port allocation information in response to a second control signal.

[0014] Then, through the above solution, the optical distributor can, based on the control signal, connect the common port with the first branch port during the indicated first time slot, and connect the common port with the second branch port during the indicated second time slot. Typically, the optical distributor includes multiple branch ports. In one possible implementation, the port allocation information includes time slot indication information for instructing the optical distributor to connect the common port with the branch port. Thus, based on the time slot indication information, the optical distributor can connect the common port with a branch port within a certain time period (e.g., within the allocated time slot of a branch port). Specifically, taking the downstream direction as an example, the optical distributor receives an optical signal through the common port. Furthermore, based on the time slot indication information included in the control signal, the optical distributor outputs the received optical signal through the first branch port connected to the common port during the corresponding time period (e.g., the first time slot); and outputs the received optical signal through the second branch port connected to the common port during another time period (e.g., the second time slot). Optionally, the port allocation information can include multiple time slot indication information, where any time slot indication information only indicates one time slot (e.g., the first time slot or the second time slot). Alternatively, the port allocation information may further include time slot indication information, which may indicate multiple time slots (e.g., a first time slot and a second time slot), although this application does not limit this. With the above solution, the optical splitter can connect the common port to a branch port within the indicated time slot based on the time slot indication information included in the control signal, so that the optical signal transmitted by the OLT can be transmitted to the connected ONU via a branch port within the time slot, and the OLT is disconnected from other ONUs within the time slot, thereby effectively reducing transmission loss.

[0015] In one possible implementation, the common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first OLT through a first combiner / splitter device; the first combiner / splitter device includes a common port, a first branch port, and a second branch port; wherein, the common port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first OLT, the first branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the common port of the first optical distributor, and the second branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the receiving circuit.

[0016] Then, in the above scheme, the optical signal transmitted by the OLT can be transmitted to the optical distributor and the receiving circuit respectively through the combining and splitting device. Specifically, the combining and splitting device receives the optical signal transmitted by the OLT through the common port, transmits the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the optical distributor through the first branch port, and transmits the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the receiving circuit through the second branch port. Among them, the receiving circuit can obtain the port allocation information from the received optical signal and send it to the control circuit, and the control circuit generates and sends the control signal. Furthermore, the optical distributor can control its common port to be connected with the corresponding branch port to transmit the optical signal according to the received control signal. In a possible implementation method, the combining and splitting device can also split the optical signal received from the OLT. The specific method or steps of its splitting are not limited in this application. Then, the above scheme can transmit the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the receiving circuit and the optical distributor respectively, and the optical distributor can be controlled by the port allocation information obtained by the receiving circuit, so that the time spent on connecting its common port with the branch port is shortened, thereby ensuring the transmission quality.

[0017] In a possible implementation, the splitting ratio of the first branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is greater than the splitting ratio of the second branch port of the first combiner / splitter device.

[0018] Then, in the above scheme, through the combining and splitting device, a portion of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT with a larger proportion can be transmitted to the optical distributor, and another portion of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT with a smaller proportion can be transmitted to the receiving circuit. Optionally, the combining and splitting device can transmit 1% of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the optical distributor according to a splitting ratio of 1:99, and transmit 99% of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the receiving circuit. In this way, the control signal sent by the control circuit is obtained based on an optical signal with a lower optical power (for example, a proportion of 1%) transmitted by the OLT; in response to the control signal, the optical splitter can output another optical signal with a higher optical power (for example, a proportion of 99%) transmitted by the OLT through a branch port. Then, through the combining and splitting device, the above scheme can split the optical signal transmitted by the OLT according to a certain splitting ratio, into a portion of the optical signal with a larger proportion and another portion of the optical signal with a smaller proportion. Among them, the portion of the optical signal with a smaller proportion can be used to generate a control signal, and then the transmission of the other portion of the optical signal with a larger proportion is controlled by the control signal.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the first combining and decomposing device includes an optical switch or a combiner / decomplexer.

[0020] Then, in the above solution, the optical signal transmitted by the OLT can be split by an optical switch or a combiner / demultiplexer, so that the optical signal can be transmitted to the optical distributor and the receiving circuit respectively. Of course, the combiner / demultiplexer device can also be other devices or apparatuses that can achieve its functions, and this application does not limit this.

[0021] In one possible implementation, structurally, the above-mentioned signal processing device also includes: a second optical distributor; the common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first OLT through the second combiner / splitter device; the common port of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the first OLT through the second combiner / splitter device; wherein, the common port of the second combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first OLT; the first branch port of the second combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the common port of the first optical distributor; the second branch port of the second combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the common port of the second optical distributor; the first branch port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first branch port of the third combiner / splitter device; the first branch port of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the second branch port of the third combiner / splitter device; the second branch port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first branch port of the fourth combiner / splitter device; the second branch port of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the second branch port of the fourth combiner / splitter device; the common port of the third combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first ONU; and the common port of the fourth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the second ONU. Functionally, the control circuit is further configured to send a third control signal to the second optical distributor; the second optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the second optical distributor with the first branch port of the second optical distributor in response to the third control signal; the control circuit is further configured to send a fourth control signal to the second optical distributor; the second optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the second optical distributor with the second branch port of the second optical distributor in response to the fourth control signal; the common port of the second combiner / splitter device and the first branch port of the second combiner / splitter device are used to transmit optical signals of the first band; the common port of the second combiner / splitter device and the second branch port of the second combiner / splitter device are used to transmit optical signals of the second band; the first band and the second band do not intersect.

[0022] Then, in the above solution, the second combiner / splitter device can split the optical signal transmitted by the OLT into two non-intersecting optical signals in wavelength bands, and then transmit the optical signal of one wavelength band (the first wavelength band) to the ONU through the first optical distributor and the third combiner / splitter device, and transmit the optical signal of the other wavelength band (the second wavelength band) to the ONU through the second optical distributor and the fourth combiner / splitter device. Specifically, the optical signal output by the OLT will be split into two non-intersecting optical signals in wavelength bands (i.e., the first wavelength band and the second wavelength band) by the second combiner / splitter device. The optical signal of the first wavelength band is transmitted to the first optical distributor through the first branch port of the second combiner / splitter device, and the optical signal of the second wavelength band is transmitted to the second optical distributor through the second branch port of the second combiner / splitter device. Furthermore, the first optical distributor transmits the optical signal of the first wavelength band to the ONU (the first ONU) through the third combiner / splitter device connected to its first branch port; the first optical distributor transmits the optical signal of the first wavelength band to the ONU (the second ONU) through the fourth combiner / splitter device connected to its second branch port. In one possible implementation, the above-mentioned first-band optical signal can be an optical signal transmitted by the OLT in the downstream direction, and the second-band optical signal can be an optical signal transmitted by the OLT in the upstream direction. The optical signal transmission process in the upstream direction (i.e., the transmission process of the optical signal in the second band) can refer to the above process and will not be repeated here. In this way, an optical distributor can realize signal transmission between the OLT and the ONU in one direction (for example, the upstream direction or the downstream direction). Of course, the optical signal in the first band can also be a part of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT, and the optical signal in the second band can also be another part of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT. This is not limited in this application. Then, through the above scheme, the optical signal transmission between the OLT and any ONU (or ONT) can be controlled in different directions (upstream direction, downstream direction), thereby adapting to different scenario requirements.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the first optical distributor includes an optical switch.

[0024] In a possible implementation, the second optical distributor includes an optical switch.

[0025] Then, the first optical distributor can be implemented by turning off the switch, and / or the second optical distributor can be implemented by turning off the switch. Optionally, the optical switch includes one common port and at least N (N is greater than or equal to 4) branch ports, that is, the optical switch has a 1:N architecture, wherein the delay of the optical switch performing port configuration (i.e., connecting the common port to a branch port) does not exceed 10 milliseconds (ms). Because the delay of performing port configuration is the port unavailability time of the optical switch, if the port unavailability time of the optical switch is too high, it will reduce the availability and usability of the signal processing device. Furthermore, the delay of the control module (e.g., control circuit) that controls the optical switch to implement port configuration also needs to be less than 10ms to ensure that it matches the delay requirement of the optical switch port configuration (no more than 10ms). In other examples, the optical switch is a waveguide optical switch, for example, it can be an optical switch structure and network composed of a waveguide structure prepared based on a common semiconductor process platform such as silicon, silicon nitride, silicon dioxide, lithium niobate, etc. Typically, the optical fibers connected to the common port and branch port of an optical switch are single-mode fibers, not non-polarization-maintaining fibers, so the optical switch needs to be polarization-independent. In addition, when the response of the optical switch itself has polarization-sensitive characteristics, a polarization controller needs to be connected before the optical switch to counteract the time-varying polarization state in the optical fiber. The polarization controller can be integrated on a chip with the optical switch based on the same semiconductor material platform, or it can be implemented by connecting a discrete controller to the optical fiber. The above examples are only possible implementation methods of the optical switch, and this application does not limit the specific structure, device structure, etc. of the optical switch.

[0026] In a possible implementation, the second combining and decomposing device includes an optical switch or a combiner / decomplexer.

[0027] In a possible implementation, the third combining and decomposing device includes an optical switch or a combiner / decomplexer.

[0028] In a possible implementation, the fourth combining and decomposing device includes an optical switch or a combiner / decomplexer.

[0029] It should be noted that the aforementioned combining and splitting devices (including the first combining and splitting device, the second combining and splitting device, the third combining and splitting device, and the fourth combining and splitting device) can be integrated on-chip (i.e., integrated into an integrated circuit inside the chip), or the aforementioned combining and splitting devices can be integrated off-chip (i.e., integrated into an integrated circuit outside the chip), for example, integrated into an external device. This application does not limit the implementation method, product form, etc. of the aforementioned combining and splitting devices.

[0030] In a second aspect, an optical network is provided, comprising: a first OLT, a first ONU, a second ONU, and the signal processing device as described in the first aspect.

[0031] In a possible implementation, the optical network further includes: a second combining and splitting device, a third combining and splitting device, and a fourth combining and splitting device.

[0032] In one possible implementation, the above-mentioned optical network also includes: a second OLT and a fifth combining and splitting device; wherein the first branch port of the fifth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the first OLT; the second branch port of the fifth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the second OLT; and the common port of the fifth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the signal processing device.

[0033] Then, in the above scheme, the combining and splitting device can respectively receive the optical signals transmitted by the two OLTs through the two branch ports, and then combine them into one optical signal to transmit to the signal processing device. Specifically, the fifth combining and splitting device receives the optical signal transmitted by the first OLT through the first branch port, and the fifth combining and splitting device receives the optical signal transmitted by the second OLT through the second branch port, and outputs the received optical signal to the signal processing device through the common port. In one possible implementation, the optical network can also include more combining and splitting devices for connecting more OLTs. In one possible implementation, the combining and splitting device can also include more branch ports, so as to achieve connection with more OLTs. Then, the above scheme can enable the signal processing device to be connected to more OLTs by increasing the number of combined and splitting devices deployed, so that the signal processing device provided by the present application can adapt to more application scenarios, and the deployment scheme of the optical network is also more flexible.

[0034] In one possible implementation, the above-mentioned optical network also includes: a ranging device and a sixth combining and splitting device; wherein, the first branch port of the sixth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the first OLT; the second branch port of the sixth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the ranging device; and the common port of the sixth combining and splitting device is used to connect to the signal processing device.

[0035] Then, in the above scheme, the combining and splitting device is connected to the OLT and the ranging device respectively through the branch ports. Specifically, the sixth combining and splitting device can receive the optical signal transmitted by the first OLT through the first branch port, and the fifth combining and splitting device can receive the optical signal transmitted by the ranging device through the second branch port, and output the received optical signal to the signal processing device through the common port. For example, the ranging device can be implemented by an optical time domain reflectometer. Of course, the ranging device can also be implemented by other possible devices or devices, and this application does not limit this. In one possible implementation method, the combining and splitting device can also include more branch ports, so as to achieve connection with more communication devices or equipment. Then, the above scheme enables the signal processing device to be connected with more devices or equipment by increasing the deployed combining and splitting devices, thereby further enriching the application scenarios of the signal processing device.

[0036] In a third aspect, a signal processing method is provided. The signal processing method includes: sending a first control signal to a first optical distributor; in response to the first control signal, connecting a common port of the first optical distributor to a first branch port of the first optical distributor; sending a second control signal to the first optical distributor; in response to the second control signal, connecting the common port of the first optical distributor to a second branch port of the first optical distributor.

[0037] In a possible implementation, a first optical signal sent by a first OLT is received, the first optical signal carrying port allocation information; the port allocation information is acquired from the first optical signal; and a first control signal and a second control signal are generated according to the port allocation information.

[0038] In one possible implementation, in response to a first control signal, the common port of the first optical distributor is connected to the first branch port of the first optical distributor within a first time slot indicated by the port allocation information; and in response to a second control signal, the common port of the first optical distributor is connected to the second branch port of the first optical distributor within a second time slot indicated by the port allocation information.

[0039] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method in the above-mentioned second aspect and third aspect can refer to the technical effects brought about by different design methods in the above-mentioned first aspect, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a passive optical fiber network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a passive optical splitter provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a passive optical fiber network provided in another embodiment of the present application;

[0043] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a signal processing device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a signal processing device provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0045] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of a signal transmission provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of signal transmission provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in another embodiment of the present application;

[0049] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of signal transmission provided in yet another embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in accordance with another embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of signal transmission provided in yet another embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in accordance with another embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in accordance with another embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of a communication network provided in another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0057] This application will present various aspects, embodiments or features around a system that may include multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It should be understood and appreciated that each system may include additional devices, components, modules, etc., and / or may not include all the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In addition, a combination of these schemes may also be used. It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete way.

[0058] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0059] Fiber-optic access technology uses optical fiber as a transmission medium for signal transmission, including active optical access and passive optical access. In fiber-to-the-x (FTTx) networks, optical fiber is used to transmit signals between the central office (e.g., a central control station) and users. Due to its advantages such as small size, low price, and long transmission distance, it is currently widely used in various scenarios.

[0060] A passive optical network (PON) is a typical point-to-multipoint (PTMP) network, comprising an optical line terminal (OLT) located at the central office, an optical network terminal (ONT) or optical network unit (ONU) located at the user end, and an optical distribution network (ODN) connecting the OLT and the ONU. For example, as shown in FIG1 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a passive optical fiber network. For ease of explanation, the passive optical fiber network shown in FIG1 is represented as PON 10. As shown in FIG1 , PON 10 includes: OLT 101, ODN 102, and ONU 103, wherein the OLT is generally arranged on the network side (for example, it can be a central control station at the central office), and the ONU 103 includes one or more ONUs.

[0061] In the embodiments of the present application, the user side is described using an ONU as an example. It is readily understood that an ONT or ONU is typically located at different locations on the user side (also referred to as the terminal side). The ONT and ONU perform similar functions and are typically considered components of the ONU. For ease of explanation, in the PON 10 shown in FIG1 , the user side is described using only the ONU 103 as an example, and this should not be used to limit the types and number of devices included in the PON.

[0062] In the downstream direction, the PON typically transmits signals via broadcast. The ODN is typically implemented using a passive optical splitter (e.g., a 1:N passive optical splitter). Specifically, the OLT 101 at the central office outputs an optical signal, which is transmitted along an optical fiber to the ODN 102. The passive optical splitter ODN 102 transmits the optical signal to multiple ONUs in the ONU 103. Based on the received optical signal and the logical identifier assigned by the OLT 101, each ONU in the ONU 103 selectively receives data frames addressed to it from the received optical signal and discards data frames addressed to other ONUs through a physical layer judgment.

[0063] In the upstream direction, the PON typically transmits signals using time division multiple access (TDMA). Specifically, each ONU in ONU 103 outputs optical signals in a predetermined order within its assigned time slot, based on the timestamp assigned by OLT 101. The optical signals are then transmitted along the optical fiber to ODN 102, and then to OLT 101.

[0064] With the continuous development of related technologies, PON has evolved from gigabit-capable passive optical networks (GPON) to 10 gigabit-capable passive optical networks (XGPON), and then to the current 50 gigabit-capable passive optical networks (50GPON), with the potential for 100GPON and even 200GPON in the future. PON transmission rates and bandwidth have continued to increase. However, this has placed higher demands on PON link budgets (including power) and transmission latency.

[0065] It should be noted that an ODN typically includes one or more optical splitters (multiple optical splitters are provided) to achieve multi-level splitting of optical signals. Of course, in other examples, the optical splitter may also include more or fewer output ports. The architecture shown in Figure 1 is used as an example here. The embodiments of this application do not limit the number of optical splitters included in the ODN, nor do they limit the number of output ports of each optical splitter.

[0066] Generally speaking, the ODN in a PON is usually implemented by a passive optical splitter. For example, as shown in FIG2 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a possible passive optical splitter. Among them, a passive optical splitter (also called an optical splitter) is a passive device that can realize the branching and combining of optical energy by receiving optical signals without the need for external energy. Among them, the optical splitter can distribute the optical energy (for example, optical power, light intensity) transmitted in an optical fiber to two or more optical fibers according to a predetermined ratio, or combine the optical energy transmitted in multiple optical fibers into one optical fiber.

[0067] Specifically, as shown in Figure 2, the passive optical splitter is a 1:N optical splitter, comprising a common port and N branch ports. The passive optical splitter can receive an optical signal transmitted by an optical fiber through the common port and distribute the energy (e.g., optical power) of the optical signal proportionally to N optical fibers through the N branch ports, thereby transmitting the optical signal separately through the N optical fibers. Alternatively, the passive optical splitter can receive optical signals transmitted by N optical fibers through the N branch ports and transmit the received optical signal to a single optical fiber through the common port for transmission.

[0068] However, due to the properties of their manufacturing materials, passive optical splitters inevitably have intrinsic loss, which results in high losses during optical signal transmission. For example, if the ODN of a passive optical splitter is 1:8, its intrinsic loss is typically 9dB. If the ODN of a passive optical splitter is 1:16, its intrinsic loss is typically 14dB. Specifically, taking a passive optical splitter with a 1:8 ODN as an example, the optical signal power received by any ONU on the user side connected to the ODN is only 1 / 8 of the optical signal power output by the OLT. It is not difficult to understand that the same loss exists in both the upstream and downstream directions.

[0069] On the other hand, because the PON uses TDMA in the upstream direction, the OLT needs to periodically open a window to ensure timely detection of newly connected ONUs. This means that the OLT must stop upstream signal transmission at regular intervals to allow newly connected ONUs to complete registration and ranging procedures. Typically, the OLT's windowing period is 250 microseconds (μs). This results in periodic (250 μs) delays in upstream signal transmission, resulting in wasted time slots in the upstream direction of the PON and reduced PON network bandwidth.

[0070] Because the PON uses TDMA for upstream signal transmission, each ONU transmits optical signals in its assigned time slot in a sequential order. However, in some cases, if an ONU transmits an optical signal in a time slot other than its own, it can conflict with other ONUs transmitting in the same time slot, disrupting normal communication for those other ONUs or even all ONUs. An ONU that transmits optical signals in a time slot other than its own is called a rogue ONU.

[0071] As mentioned above, the inherent loss of passive optical splitters prevents further increases in PON transmission rates and may hinder further expansion of PON user base. Furthermore, PON signal transmission suffers from periodic delays. Furthermore, there is still no effective way to prevent rogue ONUs.

[0072] Based on the above problems, wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology is usually used to achieve improvements, that is, by increasing the deployment of one or more WDMs to achieve improvements to the above problems. For example, as shown in Figure 3, an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a passive optical fiber network. For ease of explanation, the passive optical fiber network shown in Figure 3 is represented as PON 20. In conjunction with Figure 1, PON 20 is a WDM-based PON network, including: OLT 201, ODN 202, three wavelength division multiplexers WDM (represented as WDM 202-1, WDM 202-2 and WDM 202-3 in Figure 3) and multiple ONUs (represented as ONU-11 to ONU-nm in Figure 3).

[0073] Of course, Figure 3 is only a schematic diagram of a possible passive optical network and should not be used to limit the types and number of devices included in the passive optical network. For example, one or more of the multiple ONUs in Figure 3 can also be implemented by an ONT.

[0074] Specifically, PON 20 no longer uses broadcasting when transmitting signals in the downstream direction. As shown in Figure 3 , in the downstream direction, OLT 201 outputs optical signals comprising multiple different wavelengths (e.g., including λ11, λ12, and λnm). These optical signals are simultaneously transmitted to different ONUs (ONU-11 to ONU-nm) via 1:N wavelength division multiplexers (WDMs 202-1, 202-2, and 202-3), allowing any ONU to receive an optical signal at a specific wavelength. Similarly, in the upstream direction, ONU-11 to ONU-nm simultaneously output optical signals at specific wavelengths (including λ'11 to λ'nm). These signals are then combined via WDMs (WDMs 202-1, 202-2, and 202-3) and transmitted to OLT 201.

[0075] In the downstream direction, this solution can simultaneously transmit optical signals of different wavelengths to different ONUs, effectively reducing transmission losses. Since the upstream signal transmission process is similar to the downstream process, losses are also effectively reduced. Furthermore, because multiple ONUs communicate with the OLT using optical signals of specific wavelengths, no single ONU needs to share time slots with other ONUs, significantly increasing the PON's transmission rate and bandwidth.

[0076] However, because WDM transmission is unidirectional, this solution requires deploying separate optical fibers for both the upstream and downstream directions, which adds significant cost to the communications network. Furthermore, the OLT requires a transmitter capable of outputting optical signals of specific wavelengths, and the ONU requires devices or components capable of transmitting and receiving these signals, significantly increasing costs. Furthermore, this solution also requires a control system to maintain stable control of optical signals of different wavelengths, further adding to costs.

[0077] Based on the above problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a signal processing device that can reduce the transmission loss of an optical network. For example, with reference to FIG4 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a signal processing device, wherein the signal processing device is an active optical distribution network (AODN). For ease of explanation, the signal processing device is labeled as AODN 402. As shown in FIG4 , AODN 402 includes: a control circuit 402-1 and an optical distributor 402-2; wherein the optical distributor 402-2 includes a common port and multiple branch ports (e.g., a first branch port and a second branch port). Specifically, as shown in FIG4 , the common port of the optical distributor 402-2 is connected to the OLT 401 via an optical-to-electrical composite cable, the first branch port of the optical distributor 402-2 is connected to the ONU 403-1, and the second branch port of the optical distributor 402-2 is connected to the ONU 403-2.

[0078] It should be noted that the AODN can be connected to the OLT via a variety of connection media, such as the optical-electrical composite cable shown in FIG4 . In other examples, the AODN can also be connected to the OLT via optical fiber. In this case, the control circuit also needs to be connected to the OLT via optical fiber.

[0079] For ease of explanation, the signal processing device shown in FIG. 4 is used as an example, and the connection relationships, etc., of the signal processing devices provided in the embodiments of this application should not be limited by this. For example, the signal processing device may also include more ONUs connected to the branch ports of the optical distributor. In one possible implementation, the ONU may also include a transmission container (T-CONT) module for carrying services in the upstream direction. The T-CONT module can be used to identify its own ID and control the ONU to transmit optical signals in the allocated time slot in the upstream direction.

[0080] Based on the above structure, the device can functionally achieve the following: control circuit 402-1 sends a first control signal to optical splitter 402-2. In response to the first control signal, optical splitter 402-2 connects the common port of optical splitter 402-2 to the first branch port of optical splitter 402-2. Control circuit 402-1 sends a second control signal to optical splitter 402-2. In response to the second control signal, optical splitter 402-2 connects the common port of optical splitter 402-2 to the second branch port of optical splitter 402-2.

[0081] Specifically, taking the downstream direction as an example, OLT 401 outputs an optical signal, and the common port of optical distributor 402-2 receives the optical signal transmitted by OLT 401. Based on a first control signal, optical distributor 402-2 outputs the received optical signal to ONU 403-1 via a first branch port connected to the common port during one time period. Based on a second control signal, optical distributor 402-2 outputs the received optical signal to ONU 403-2 via a second branch port connected to the common port during another time period. In this way, in different time periods, the optical signal output by OLT 401 can be transmitted to a corresponding ONU via a certain branch port, thus achieving point-to-point transmission between the OLT and any ONU in the downstream direction.

[0082] In the upstream direction, optical distributor 402-2 receives the optical signal transmitted by ONU 403-1 through the first branch port, and outputs the received optical signal to OLT 401 through the common port in one time period according to the first control signal. Optical distributor 402-2 receives the optical signal transmitted by ONU 403-2 through the second branch port, and outputs the received optical signal to OLT 401 through the common port in another time period according to the second control signal. In this way, different ONUs are connected to the OLT in different time periods and transmit optical signals to OLT 401, that is, any ONU and the OLT achieve point-to-point transmission in the upstream direction.

[0083] Based on the above, the above solution eliminates the need to split the optical signal output by the OLT. Instead, it can output the optical signal received from the OLT to a specific ONU (connected to the branch port) via a branch port connected to the public port during different time periods, significantly reducing transmission losses. Furthermore, since different ONUs connect to the OLT via a branch port connected to the public port during different time periods, while all other branch ports are disconnected from their public ports, the optical signals output by different ONUs can be transmitted to the OLT during different time periods, thus preventing the occurrence of rogue ONUs and effectively improving transmission quality.

[0084] As you can imagine, the OLT is typically connected to the optical distribution network (ODN) via optical fiber, and the deployed fiber is often quite long, for example, 10 km. Therefore, the aforementioned signal processing device (AODN) can be deployed close to end users, such as at the entrance of a corporate campus, residential complex, or apartment building. This minimizes fiber usage in the communication network, reduces costs, and mitigates construction risks.

[0085] Based on the architecture shown in FIG4 , and illustratively with reference to FIG5 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a signal processing device. Based on the architecture shown in FIG4 , and with reference to FIG5 , AODN 402 further includes a receiving circuit 402 - 3 , wherein receiving circuit 402 - 3 is configured to connect to OLT 401 .

[0086] It is easy to understand that Figure 5 is merely a schematic diagram of the structure of the signal processing device provided by this application. For example, the combiner / splitter device 404 in Figure 5 can also be deployed within the signal processing device. For another example, the combiner / splitter device 404 can also multiplex other devices or devices in the communication network to achieve its functions, which is not limited by this application. In one possible implementation, the optical distributor 402-2 can also include more branch ports for connecting more ONUs.

[0087] In one possible implementation, as shown in FIG5 , the common port of optical distributor 402-2 is connected to OLT 401 via a combiner / splitter device 404. Combiner / splitter device 404 includes a common port, a first branch port, and a second branch port. The common port of combiner / splitter device 404 is used to connect to OLT 401, the first branch port of combiner / splitter device 404 is used to connect to the common port of optical distributor 402-2, and the second branch port of combiner / splitter device 404 is used to connect to receiving circuit 402-3.

[0088] Specifically, taking the downstream direction as an example, OLT 401 outputs an optical signal, which is transmitted by combiner / splitter device 404 to optical distributor 402-2 and receiver circuit 402-3, respectively. Receiver circuit 402-3 receives the optical signal sent by OLT 401 and obtains the port assignment information carried by the optical signal. Receiver circuit 402-3 transmits the port assignment information to control circuit 402-1. Control circuit 402-1 generates a control signal based on the port assignment information and outputs it to optical distributor 402-2. In response to the control signal generated by control circuit 402-1, optical distributor 402-2 connects the common port with the first branch port during the indicated first timeslot, i.e., connects OLT 401 with ONU 403-1 during the first timeslot. It also connects the common port with the second branch port during the indicated second timeslot, i.e., connects OLT 401 with ONU 403-2 during the second timeslot.

[0089] Optionally, as shown in FIG5 , AODN 402 further includes a transmitting circuit 402-4, wherein transmitting circuit 402-4 is configured to connect to OLT 401. Optical distributor 402-2 is further configured to transmit detection results of optical signals at multiple branch ports to control circuit 402-1. These detection results may be parameters (including optical power and optical intensity) of the optical signals detected at each branch port. Typically, a detection circuit (e.g., a photoelectric conversion circuit including a PD) provided at each branch port in optical distributor 402-2 detects the optical signals at the branch ports, thereby obtaining the parameters of the optical signals at each branch port and thereby obtaining the detection results. Control circuit 402-1 is further configured to transmit port status information to transmitting circuit 402-4 based on the detection results. This port status information indicates the connectivity status of the multiple branch ports with the common port. For example, if the optical power at a branch port is detected and it is determined that the optical power (which is too low or even zero) does not reach a reference value, it can be determined that there is an abnormality in the connectivity between the branch port and the common port. For another example, by detecting the light intensity at a branch port, it can be determined whether the branch port is transmitting an optical signal within the time period indicated by the port allocation information. Transmitting circuit 402-4 is also used to send port status information to OLT 401. It should be noted that the receiving circuit 402-3 and transmitting circuit 402-4 can be independent circuits or integrated into a transceiver circuit with transceiver functions.

[0090] Optionally, the splitting ratio of the first branch port of the combiner / splitter device 404 is greater than the splitting ratio of the second branch port of the combiner / splitter device 404. For example, the combiner / splitter device may transmit an optical signal with an optical power accounting for 1% of the optical power of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the optical distributor according to a splitting ratio of 1:99, and transmit an optical signal with an optical power accounting for 99% of the optical power of the optical signal transmitted by the OLT to the receiving circuit.

[0091] Optionally, the receiving circuit 402-3 is an ONU. Of course, the receiving circuit 402-3 can also be implemented by other devices or apparatuses that can achieve its functions. This application does not limit the device type, product form, etc. of the receiving circuit.

[0092] Optionally, the combiner / splitter device 404 includes an optical switch or a combiner / splitter. For example, the combiner / splitter device 404 may be a passive unequal-splitting optical filter. Of course, the combiner / splitter device 404 may also be implemented by other devices or components capable of performing its functions. This application does not limit the device type of the combiner / splitter device 404.

[0093] Optionally, optical distributor 402-2 includes an optical switch. Because control circuit 402-1 needs to control the optical switches in optical distributor 402-2 to connect corresponding ports, power must be supplied to control circuit 402-1. Controlling any optical switch in optical distributor 402-2 requires at least one switching controller and one operating bias point controller to connect corresponding branch ports. In other words, control circuit 402-1 must include at least two output power supplies to ensure the proper operation of the switching controller and the operating bias point controller, thereby controlling the optical distributor. Therefore, power must be supplied to control circuit 402-1 in AODN 402 via a power supply (PW).

[0094] Optionally, as shown in FIG5 , the power supply device PW can provide power to the control circuit 402-1 by drawing power locally or remotely from the OLT. Of course, the power supply device PW can also provide power to the control circuit 402-1 from the ONU, but this application does not limit this. In other examples, the power supply problem of the control circuit 402-1 can also be solved using low-cost solutions such as batteries. For example, in scenarios where the switching speed and switching frequency of the port connectivity of the optical distributor 402-2 are not required to be high, the control circuit 402-1 can be powered by a battery.

[0095] In one possible implementation, as shown in Figure 5 , the port allocation information carried by the optical signal is generated by a dynamic bandwidth assignment (DBA) device. This DBA device can be connected to the OLT or integrated within the OLT, though this application does not limit this. This DBA device enables dynamic allocation of upstream bandwidth within extremely short (microsecond or millisecond) time intervals, for example, dynamically allocating timeslots to any ONU.

[0096] Optionally, the port allocation information includes time slot indication information. For example, the port configuration information may include time slot indication information for indicating multiple time slots (e.g., a first time slot and a second time slot). In other examples, the port configuration information may also include multiple time slot indication information for indicating a time slot (e.g., a first time slot or a second time slot), which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0097] Based on the architecture shown in Figure 5 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of signal transmission, as shown in Figure 6 , where the horizontal axis represents distance and the vertical axis represents time.

[0098] Specifically, as shown in Figure 6 , during time slot δt1, optical distributor 402-2 in AODN 402 connects the common port to the first branch port, and OLT 401 transmits an optical signal in the downstream direction to ONU 403-1. The optical signal is transmitted to ONU 403-1 via AODN 402. Similarly, during time slot δt1, ONU 403-1 transmits an optical signal in the upstream direction to OLT 401, which is transmitted to OLT 401 via AODN 402. When time slot δt1 ends, OLT 401 transmits an optical signal in the downstream direction to AODN 402, transmitting the optical signal carrying port allocation information to AODN 402. Specifically, the receiving circuit 402-3 obtains the port allocation information from the optical signal received from the OLT 401 and sends the port allocation information to the control circuit 402-1. The control circuit 402-1 sends a control signal to the optical distributor 402-2. The optical distributor 402-2 connects the common port to the second branch port according to the control signal. The time t sw . t sw Then, in time slot δt2, OLT 401 sends an optical signal in the downstream direction to ONU 403-2; and in time slot δt2, ONU 403-2 sends an optical signal in the upstream direction to OLT 401. Typically, to meet the time slot requirements for branch port polling, the optical splitter is configured so that the time required to switch between branch ports is less than 1 μs.

[0099] It should be noted that the wavelength ranges occupied by optical signals transmitted in the upstream direction and those in the downstream direction are generally different. Generally speaking, the carrier wavelength of optical signals in the downstream direction is 1490 nanometers (nm), and the carrier wavelength of optical signals in the upstream direction is 1310 nm. Optionally, the optical signals transmitted between the OLT and the ONU may also include service information, registration information, etc., which are not limited here.

[0100] Based on the architecture shown in Figures 4 and 5, the signal processing device provided in this application can also be deployed in a communication network in a serial manner, that is, by cascading (hierarchically connecting) multiple AODNs to achieve networking of more users, so that the transmission distance of the communication network can be further extended.

[0101] For example, with reference to FIG7 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. As shown in FIG7 , the communication network includes: an OLT 401, a primary AODN (AODN 402) directly connected to the OLT, an ONU 403-1, a secondary AODN (AODN 405) connected to a branch port of the AODN 402, and multiple ONUs (including ONUs 403-1 to 403-N and ONUs 406-1 to 406-N).

[0102] Specifically, the primary AODN (i.e., AODN 402) includes a common port for connecting to OLT 401 and multiple branch ports for connecting to ONUs (including ONUs 403-1 through 403-N). At least one of the multiple branch ports of the primary AODN (AODN 402) is connected to the common port of the secondary AODN (AODN 405). AODN 405 includes a common port and multiple branch ports for connecting to ONUs (including ONUs 406-1 through 406-N). The secondary AODN (AODN 405) assigns the primary AODN (AODN 402) to one of its multiple time slots and then divides the time slot into multiple sub-time slots. It is readily apparent that the internal structures of AODN 402 and AODN 405 can be illustrated with reference to Figures 4 and 5 and will not be further described here. The control circuitry within AODN 405 can be powered locally, remotely, or through other possible means, which is not limited by the application.

[0103] Specifically, as shown in Figure 7 , OLT 401 outputs an optical signal in the downstream direction, which carries port allocation information. This optical signal is transmitted to AODN 402, which then transmits it to AODN 405, which is connected to its branch port. Based on the port allocation information carried in the optical signal, AODN 405 connects its common port to the corresponding branch port within a corresponding time period, enabling rapid connectivity between OLT 401 and the secondary ONUs (ONU 406-1 and ONU 406-2).

[0104] Based on the architecture shown in FIG7 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of signal transmission, exemplarily with reference to FIG8 , wherein the horizontal axis represents distance and the vertical axis represents time.

[0105] Specifically, as shown in FIG8 , in time slot δt1, OLT 401 transmits signals to ONU 403-1 through AODN 402. After time slot δt1 ends, optical splitter 402-2 in AODN 402 connects its common port to another branch port (connected to the common port of AODN 405), which takes time tsw1 . t sw1 After that, OLT 401 outputs an optical signal carrying the port allocation information of AODN 405, which is transmitted to AODN 405 through AODN 402. AODN 405 takes time t sw2 The configuration is completed, that is, the AODN 405 connects its common port to its corresponding branch port (connected to the ONU 406-1). sw2 After that, in the time slot δt2, ONU 406-1 communicates with OLT 401. After the time slot δt2 ends, OLT 401 continues to output the optical signal carrying the port allocation information of AODN 405. AODN 405 takes time t sw3 The configuration is completed, that is, ODN 405 connects its common port to its corresponding branch port (connected to ONU 406-2). sw3 Afterwards, in time slot δt3, ONU 406-2 communicates with OLT 401.

[0106] It is easy to understand that, in conjunction with FIG7 , since the distance between AODN 405 and OLT 401 is greater than the distance between AODN 402 and OLT 401, t sw1 <t sw2 Similarly, the distance between ONU 406-1 and OLT 401 is the same as the distance between ONU 406-2 and OLT 401, so t sw2 and t sw3 same.

[0107] Then, by cascading the signal processing device provided by the present application (ie, hierarchically connecting multiple AODNs), the transmission distance of the communication network can be increased, so that the communication network can achieve networking of more users.

[0108] Based on the architecture shown in Figure 7 , an OLT can also be deployed between two cascaded AODNs to amplify the optical signal transmitted by the primary OLT (e.g., OLT 401) during transmission. For example, with reference to Figure 9 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. Based on the architecture shown in Figure 7 and in conjunction with Figure 9 , the communication network also includes an OLT 407, one port of which is connected to AODN 402, and another port of which is connected to AODN 405.

[0109] Based on the architecture shown in FIG9 , illustratively, with reference to FIG10 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of signal transmission. The horizontal axis represents distance, and the vertical axis represents time. Specifically, referring to FIG9 and FIG10 , taking the downstream direction as an example, the optical signal output by OLT 401 is transmitted to OLT 407 via AODN 402, and OLT 407 receives the optical signal output by OLT 401. OLT 407 converts the received optical signal into an electrical signal and amplifies it. OLT 407 then converts the converted electrical signal back into an optical signal (after amplification) through photoelectric conversion. Through AODN 405, the optical signal is transmitted to different branch ports in different time slots. The signal transmission process in the upstream direction is similar to that in the downstream direction and will not be described in detail here.

[0110] The above solution can relay and amplify the optical signal transmitted by the primary OLT during optical signal transmission through the secondary OLT deployed between the two AODNs, alleviating communication network losses and further increasing the transmission distance of the communication network, enabling the communication network to support longer transmission distances and allow more users to access it. It is not difficult to understand that due to the corresponding conversion of optical signals during transmission (optical signal-electrical signal-optical signal), there is an additional conversion delay, which reduces the utilization of time slots.

[0111] Based on the architecture shown in Figures 4 and 5, a distance measuring device for distance measurement can also be deployed on the network side to measure the distance of newly connected ONUs. For example, with reference to Figure 11, an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. Based on the architecture shown in Figures 4 and 5, in combination with Figure 11, the communication network further includes: a distance measuring device 408 and a combiner / splitter device 409; wherein the first branch port of the combiner / splitter device 409 is used to connect to the OLT 401; the second branch port of the combiner / splitter device 409 is used to connect to the distance measuring device 408; and the common port of the combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the AODN 402.

[0112] It is easy to understand that, for ease of explanation, the architecture of the communication network shown in FIG. 11 is used as an example here, and the number and type of devices included in the communication network should not be limited by this. In one possible implementation, the distance measuring device 408 can be an optical artificial intelligence (OAI) card. Of course, the distance measuring device can also be implemented by other devices or equipment capable of performing distance measurement functions. For example, the distance measuring device can also be an optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR). In addition, the distance measuring device can be an independent device or integrated into other devices. For example, the distance measuring device 408 can be integrated into the OLT 401. This application does not limit the device type, product form, etc. of the distance measuring device.

[0113] Based on the architecture shown in FIG11 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of signal transmission, exemplarily referring to FIG12 , wherein the horizontal axis represents distance and the vertical axis represents time.

[0114] Specifically, as shown in Figures 11 and 12 , during ranging, OLT 401 does not output an optical signal. Ranging device 408 transmits an optical signal carrying the AODN's port allocation information, controlling AODN 402 to perform port configuration. Specifically, AODN 402 connects its common port to the corresponding branch port (connected to ONU 403-1) (refer to other embodiments of this application and will not be repeated here). After AODN 402's port configuration is complete, ranging device 408 performs ranging. Ranging device 408 transmits an optical signal for ranging (also called a ranging signal) and begins timing until the ranging signal is reflected back to the ranging device, which stops timing. This takes a time δt1. The process for ranging device 408 to perform ranging on ONU 403-2 is similar and will not be repeated here. Ranging device 408 performs ranging on ONU 403-2 for a time δt2. Generally speaking, the wavelength of the ranging signal differs from the wavelength of the optical signal output by OLT 401.

[0115] Since the refractive index of optical fiber is generally known, the transmission speed of light in the fiber can be calculated. By measuring the time delay (e.g., δt1 and δt2) of the ranging signal transmitted and reflected back to the ranging device, the distance (denoted as L1 and L2) between the ONUs (ONU 403-1 and ONU 403-2) on the opposite side (i.e., the user side) and the network side (ranging device 408) can be accurately calculated. Furthermore, based on the measured distances, OLT 401 can control AODN 402 to switch the connected branch ports and synchronize the start and end times of output signals from devices on both sides (network side and user side).

[0116] In one possible implementation, the combiner / splitter device 409 in Figure 11 can also be a 2x1 optical switch. In this way, when performing ranging, the optical switch only needs to be switched to the ranging device 408 side, allowing the optical signal output by the ranging device 408 to be transmitted, while the optical signal output by the OLT 401 will not be transmitted. Therefore, the wavelength of the ranging signal output by the ranging device 408 can be the same as the wavelength of the optical signal output by the OLT 401.

[0117] Typically, optical iris technology is used for distance measurement. This approach involves sending optical signals of different wavelengths from the network side. Different optical network units (ONUs) on the user side are equipped with fiber grating (FBG) or similar structures with different periods. This ensures that when the optical signals of different wavelengths are transmitted to each ONU, they are reflected by the different ONUs, forming a port ID (identification) on the network side that corresponds to the ONU's FBG structure. ONUs are distinguished by the port ID, and the distance between each ONU and the network side is determined by measuring the time delay between each wavelength's optical signal being transmitted and reflected back to the network side.

[0118] The embodiment of the present application can then perform directional testing on the ONU connected to each port, i.e., only one ONU is measured during ranging. Therefore, the above solution can achieve ranging without relying on multi-wavelength colored light (including optical signals of different wavelengths), effectively reducing ranging costs.

[0119] Based on the architectures shown in Figures 4 and 5 , the signal processing device (AODN) provided in this application may also include multiple optical splitters for separately controlling the transmission of optical signals in the upstream direction or the downstream direction. For example, with reference to Figure 13 , an embodiment of this application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. As shown in Figure 13 , the communication network includes: an OLT 401, an AODN, ONU 1, ONU 2, a combiner / splitter device 410, a combiner / splitter device 411, and a combiner / splitter device 412. The AODN includes a control circuit.

[0120] Of course, in a possible implementation, as shown in FIG13 , the AODN (see FIG4 or FIG5 ) may include multiple optical distributors, such as optical distributor 1 and optical distributor 2. Optical distributor 1 and optical distributor 2 may also be optical switches.

[0121] For ease of explanation, only the architecture shown in Figure 13 is used as an example here, and it should not be used to limit the number of devices included in the communication network. For example, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner and splitter devices 410, combiner and splitter devices 411, and combiner and splitter devices 412 can be deployed in the signal processing device AODN. In a possible implementation, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner and splitter devices 410, combiner and splitter devices 411, and combiner and splitter devices 412 can also reuse other devices or devices in the communication network to achieve their functions, such as multiplexing the combiner and splitter devices already deployed in the communication network. Optionally, the user side of the communication network can also include more combiner and splitter devices (the common port is connected to the ONU), so that the AODN can be connected to more ONUs. Of course, the user side of the communication network can also include more ONUs.

[0122] As shown in Figure 13 , the common port of optical splitter 1 is connected to OLT 401 via a combiner / splitter device 410, and the common port of optical splitter 2 is used to connect to OLT 401 via a combiner / splitter device 410. The common port of combiner / splitter device 410 is used to connect to OLT 401, and the first branch port of combiner / splitter device 410 is used to connect to the common port of optical splitter 1; the second branch port of combiner / splitter device 410 is used to connect to the common port of optical splitter 2. The first branch port of optical splitter 1 is used to connect to the first branch port of combiner / splitter device 411, and the second branch port of optical splitter 1 is used to connect to the first branch port of combiner / splitter device 412. The first branch port of optical splitter 2 is used to connect to the second branch port of combiner / splitter device 411, and the second branch port of combiner / splitter device 2 is used to connect to the second branch port of combiner / splitter device 412. The common port of combiner / splitter device 411 is used to connect to ONU 1; the common port of combiner / splitter device 412 is used to connect to ONU 2.

[0123] Specifically, the control circuit sends control signals to optical splitter 1 and optical splitter 2. In response to the control signals, optical splitter 1 connects its common port with its first branch port in a first time slot (connecting OLT 401 with ONU 1), and connects its common port with its second branch port in a second time slot (connecting OLT 401 with ONU 2). In response to the control signals, optical splitter 2 connects its common port with its first branch port in a third time slot (connecting OLT 401 with ONU 1), and connects its common port with its second branch port in a fourth time slot (connecting OLT 401 with ONU 2).

[0124] Optionally, the common port of the combiner / splitter device 410 and the first branch port of the combiner / splitter device 410 are used to transmit optical signals of the first wavelength band, and the common port of the combiner / splitter device 410 and the second branch port of the combiner / splitter device 410 are used to transmit optical signals of the second wavelength band, and the first wavelength band and the second wavelength band do not intersect. In one possible implementation, the optical signal of the first wavelength band transmitted between the common port of the combiner / splitter device 410 and the first branch port of the combiner / splitter device 410 is a downlink optical signal (transmitted in the downlink direction), and the optical signal of the second wavelength band transmitted between the common port of the combiner / splitter device 410 and the second branch port of the combiner / splitter device 410 is an uplink optical signal (transmitted in the uplink direction). Of course, the above-mentioned optical signals of the first wavelength band and the optical signals of the second wavelength band can also be other possible types of optical signals, which are not limited in this application.

[0125] Specifically, as shown in Figure 13 , in the downstream direction, the downstream optical signal output by OLT 401 is transmitted by combiner / splitter device 410 to optical distributor 1. In the first time slot, the downstream optical signal is transmitted through optical distributor 1 and combiner / splitter device 411 to ONU 1. The combiner / splitter device then transmits the signal to ONU 2 in the second time slot. In the upstream direction, ONU 1 outputs an upstream optical signal to OLT 401 in the first time slot. The signal is transmitted to optical distributor 1 via combiner / splitter device 411 and then to OLT 401 via combiner / splitter device 410. ONU 2 outputs an upstream optical signal to OLT 401 in the second time slot. The signal is transmitted to optical distributor 2 via combiner / splitter device 412 and then to OLT 401 via combiner / splitter device 410.

[0126] In one possible implementation, the user-side ONU can control the control circuit in the AODN, which in turn controls the optical splitter. This enables one or more user-side ONUs to actively output upstream optical signals, thus achieving active upstreaming.

[0127] The above embodiment can control the transmission of optical signals in both the upstream and downstream directions, enabling point-to-multipoint communication in the communication network. This fully utilizes the communication capacity of the communication system and expands the operating range of the optical distributor (e.g., the wavelength range of the transmitted optical signals). Furthermore, it can reduce the complexity of the device and reduce link loss.

[0128] Based on the architectures shown in Figures 4 and 5 , multiple OLTs can also be deployed on the network side of the communication network to adapt to different scenario requirements. For example, with reference to Figure 14 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. As shown in Figure 14 , the communication network includes: an OLT 401, an AODN, multiple ONUs (including ONU 1 to ONU N), an OLT 413, and a combiner / splitter device 414.

[0129] The first branch port of the combiner / splitter device 414 is connected to the OLT 401, the second branch port of the combiner / splitter device 414 is connected to the OLT 413, and the common port of the combiner / splitter device 414 is connected to the AODN. The AODN is connected to N ONUs via multiple branch ports of the optical splitter, which will not be described in detail here.

[0130] For ease of explanation, the architecture shown in FIG. 14 is used as an example, and should not be construed as limiting the number of devices included in the communication network. For example, the aforementioned combiner / splitter device 414 may be deployed within the signal processing device AODN. In one possible implementation, the aforementioned combiner / splitter device 414 may also reuse other devices or apparatuses in the communication network to implement its functionality, such as by reusing a combiner / splitter device already deployed in the communication network.

[0131] Specifically, as shown in Figure 14, taking the downstream direction as an example, the optical signals output by OLT 401 and OLT 413 are combined by combiner / splitter device 414 and simultaneously transmitted to the AODN. Furthermore, the optical signals are transmitted to corresponding ONUs among the multiple ONUs within corresponding time slots. For example, the optical signals output by OLT 401 and OLT 413 are transmitted to ONU 1 via the AODN within the first time slot, to ONU 2 via the AODN within the second time slot, and to ONU N via AODN 402 within the Nth time slot. The signal transmission process in the upstream direction can be referred to in the other embodiments described above and will not be further described here.

[0132] Then, in the case where a communication network includes multiple OLTs, the embodiments of the present application can achieve point-to-point communication between multiple OLTs and any ONU through the deployed AODN, thereby effectively reducing the complexity of the communication network and reducing transmission loss.

[0133] Based on the architectures shown in Figures 13 and 14 , the optical splitter in the AODN can also be implemented using one or more optical switches. For example, referring to Figure 15 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. As shown in Figure 15 , the communication network includes: an OLT 401, an AODN, a combiner / splitter device 410, a combiner / splitter device 411, a combiner / splitter device 412, an OLT 413, and a combiner / splitter device 414. In one possible implementation, the AODN includes a control circuit, an optical splitter 1, and an optical splitter 2.

[0134] One side of the AODN is connected to two OLTs (OLT 401 and OLT 413) via a combiner / splitter device 410 and a combiner / splitter device 414. The other side of the AODN is connected to one or more ONUs via one or more combiner / splitter devices. For example, the other side of the AODN is connected to ONU 1 via combiner / splitter device 411 and to ONU 2 via combiner / splitter device 412. The specific connection relationships among OLT 401, OLT 413, combiner / splitter device 410, combiner / splitter device 414, AODN, combiner / splitter device 411, and combiner / splitter device 412 can be found in the above-described embodiments of the present application and will not be further described here.

[0135] For ease of explanation, the architecture shown in FIG15 is used as an example, and this does not limit the number of devices included in the communication network. For example, one or more of the aforementioned combiner / splitter device 410, combiner / splitter device 411, combiner / splitter device 412, and combiner / splitter device 414 can be deployed in the signal processing device AODN. In one possible implementation, one or more of the aforementioned combiner / splitter device 410, combiner / splitter device 411, combiner / splitter device 412, and combiner / splitter device 414 can also multiplex other devices or devices in the communication network to achieve their functions, such as multiplexing combiner / splitter devices already deployed in the communication network. Specifically, as shown in FIG15 , in the downstream direction, OLT 401 and OLT 413 output optical signals. After being combined by combiner / splitter device 414 on the network side, the optical signals are simultaneously transmitted to combiner / splitter device 410. After being split by combiner / splitter device 410, the optical signals are transmitted to AODN. Optical splitter 1 in the AODN performs port configuration based on the control signal output by the control circuit. It transmits the received optical signal to ONU 1 via user-side combiner / splitter device 411 and to ONU 2 via user-side combiner / splitter device 412, thereby achieving signal transmission in the downstream direction. In the upstream direction, the optical signal output by ONU 1 is transmitted to optical splitter 2 in the AODN via user-side combiner / splitter device 411, then to combiner / splitter device 414 via combiner / splitter device 410, and ultimately to OLT 401 and OLT 413, respectively. The optical signal output by ONU 2 is transmitted to optical splitter 2 in the AODN via user-side combiner / splitter device 412, then to combiner / splitter device 414 via combiner / splitter device 410, and ultimately to OLT 401 and OLT 413, respectively.

[0136] Therefore, the embodiments of the present application can adapt to scenarios including multiple OLTs, and simultaneously control signal transmission in the upstream direction and the downstream direction respectively through multiple optical distributors in the AODN.

[0137] It should be noted that the splitting method shown in FIG15 is only one possible splitting method in the present application. The present application does not limit the implementation method, splitting method, splitting ratio, etc. of the combiner / splitter devices (including combiner / splitter devices 410, combiner / splitter devices 411, combiner / splitter devices 412, and combiner / splitter devices 414). In other examples, the optical distributor in the AODN may also include one or more optical switches.

[0138] Based on the architecture shown in FIG15 , and with reference to FIG16 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. As shown in FIG16 , the communication network includes: an OLT 401, an AODN, a combiner / splitter device 410, an OLT 413, a combiner / splitter device 414, a combiner / splitter device 415, a combiner / splitter device 416, multiple combiner / splitter devices (combiner / splitter device 1 to combiner / splitter device M), and multiple ONUs (including ONU 1 to ONU M). Optionally, the AODN includes a control circuit, an optical splitter 1, and an optical splitter 2, and each optical splitter 1 and 2 includes two optical switches, namely, optical switch 1 to optical switch 4. Optical switch 1 is connected to combiner / splitter devices 1 to combiner / splitter device N, respectively; optical switch 2 is connected to combiner / splitter devices 1 to combiner / splitter device N, respectively; optical switch 3 is connected to combiner / splitter devices N+1 to combiner / splitter device M, respectively; and optical switch 4 is connected to combiner / splitter devices N+1 to combiner / splitter device M.

[0139] For ease of explanation, only the architecture shown in FIG16 is used as an example here, and this should not be used to limit the number of devices included in the communication network. For example, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner / splitter device 410, combiner / splitter device 414, combiner / splitter device 415, combiner / splitter device 416, and multiple combiner / splitter devices (combiner / splitter device 1 to combiner / splitter device M) can be deployed in the signal processing device AODN. In a possible implementation, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner / splitter device 410, combiner / splitter device 414, combiner / splitter device 415, combiner / splitter device 416, and multiple combiner / splitter devices (combiner / splitter device 1 to combiner / splitter device M) can also reuse other devices or devices in the communication network to realize their functions, such as multiplexing combiner / splitter devices already deployed in the communication network.

[0140] Specifically, as shown in Figure 16 , in the downstream direction, OLT 401 and OLT 413 each output optical signals to a combiner / splitter device 414 on the network side. Combiner / splitter device 414 combines the optical signals and transmits them to combiner / splitter device 410. Combiner / splitter device 410 receives the optical signals, splits them, and transmits them to combiner / splitter device 415. Combiner / splitter device 415 further splits the optical signals, transmitting the optical signals output by OLT 401 to optical switch 1 in optical distributor 1, and the optical signals output by OLT 413 to optical switch 3 in optical distributor 2. Furthermore, optical switch 1 transmits the received optical signals to combiner / splitter devices 1 to N, which in turn transmit them to ONUs 1 to N, respectively. Optical switch 3 transmits the received optical signals to combiner / splitter devices N+1 to M, and then transmits them to ONUs N+1 to M, respectively. In this way, the optical signal output by OLT 401 can be transmitted to different ONUs (ONU 1 to ONU N) through optical switch 1, and the optical signal output by OLT 413 can be transmitted to different ONUs (ONU N+1 to ONU M) through optical switch 3.

[0141] In the upstream direction, the optical signals output by ONUs 1 to N are respectively transmitted through combiner / splitter devices 1 to N to optical switch 2, and then from switch 2 to combiner / splitter device 416. Combiner / splitter device 416 transmits the received optical signals to combiner / splitter device 410, which then transmits them to combiner / splitter device 414, and then to OLT 401. The optical signals output by ONUs N+1 to M are respectively transmitted through combiner / splitter devices N+1 to M to optical switch 4, and then from switch 4 to combiner / splitter device 416. Combiner / splitter device 416 transmits the received optical signals to combiner / splitter device 410, which then transmits them to combiner / splitter device 414, and then to OLT 413.

[0142] The above embodiment enables optical signals output by multiple OLTs to be transmitted separately to different ONUs, and optical signals output by different ONUs to be transmitted simultaneously to the OLT. In other words, in scenarios involving multiple OLTs, the above embodiment enables point-to-multipoint signal transmission between any OLT and multiple ONUs in both the downstream and upstream directions.

[0143] Of course, the communication network architecture in the above-mentioned embodiments of the present application can also be compatible with the architecture of a traditional passive communication network. For example, referring to FIG17 , an embodiment of the present application provides a schematic diagram of a communication network. In this communication network, at least one of the multiple OLTs is used to connect to the AODN, and the remaining OLTs can achieve signal transmission through the connected traditional passive network. With reference to FIG17 , the communication network includes: OLT 401, AODN, a combiner / splitter device 410, OLT 413, a combiner / splitter device 414, a combiner / splitter device 415, a combiner / splitter device 416, a passive optical splitter, multiple combiner / splitter devices (combiner / splitter device 1 to combiner / splitter device M), and multiple ONUs (including ONU 1 to ONU M). Among them, the AODN includes two optical splitters, namely optical splitter 1 and optical splitter 2.

[0144] For ease of explanation, only the communication network shown in FIG17 is taken as an example here, and the present application does not limit the implementation method, splitting method, splitting ratio, etc. of the combiner and splitter device. For example, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner and splitter device 410, combiner and splitter device 414, combiner and splitter device 415, combiner and splitter device 416 and multiple combiner and splitter devices (combiner and splitter device 1 to combiner and splitter device M) can be deployed in the signal processing device AODN. In a possible implementation, one or more of the above-mentioned combiner and splitter device 410, combiner and splitter device 414, combiner and splitter device 415, combiner and splitter device 416 and multiple combiner and splitter devices (combiner and splitter device 1 to combiner and splitter device M) can also reuse other devices or devices in the communication network to realize their functions, such as multiplexing the combiner and splitter devices already deployed in the communication network.

[0145] Specifically, as shown in Figure 17 , in the downstream direction, the optical signals output by OLT 401 and OLT 413 are combined by network-side combiner / splitter device 414 and transmitted to combiner / splitter device 410. Combiner / splitter device 410 then splits the optical signals, transmitting the optical signals output by OLT 401 to the AODN and the optical signals output by OLT 413 to combiner / splitter device 416. The AODN receives the optical signals output by OLT 401 and, using control signals output by the control circuit, controls optical distributor 1 to configure the ports. Specifically, optical distributor 1 transmits the received optical signals to ONU 1 via combiner / splitter device 1 on the user side, and to ONU 2 via combiner / splitter device 2 on the user side. Similarly, optical distributor 1 transmits the received optical signals to ONU N via combiner / splitter device N on the user side. The signal transmission process in the upstream direction of the AODN can refer to the above transmission process and will not be repeated here. At the same time, combiner / splitter device 416 receives the optical signal output by OLT 413 and transmits it to the passive optical splitter. The passive optical splitter transmits the received optical signal to combiner / splitter devices N+1 and M, respectively. Combiner / splitter device N+1 on the user side transmits the received optical signal to ONU N+1, and so on. Combiner / splitter device M on the user side transmits the received optical signal to ONU M.

[0146] It should be noted that, in the upstream direction, the multiple ONUs (including ONU N+1 to ONU M) included in the passive communication network architecture sequentially output optical signals to the passive optical splitter within their corresponding allocated time slots. Specifically, in the first time slot, the passive optical splitter transmits the optical signal output by a certain ONU (e.g., ONU N+1) to the combiner / splitter device 416, which then transmits the optical signal to the combiner / splitter device 410, which then transmits the optical signal to the combiner / splitter device 414 through the combiner / splitter device 410, and finally transmits the optical signal to the OLT 413. The signal transmission from ONU N+2 to ONU M in the upstream direction can refer to the above-described transmission process and will not be repeated here.

[0147] In this way, the above solution can transmit optical signals output by different OLTs through both active and passive communication networks. That is, the architecture of the active communication network in the above embodiment is compatible with the architecture of traditional passive communication networks. This solution can thus enhance the compatibility of signal processing devices and reduce equipment deployment, thereby effectively lowering the deployment cost of the communication network.

[0148] Based on the above architecture, illustratively, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method. The communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below. It should be noted that the architecture shown in Figure 4 is used as an example to illustrate the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application through the control circuit 402-1 and the optical distributor 402-2, and this does not limit the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application. The communication method is applied to a signal processing device, including steps 501 to 504, which are specifically described as follows:

[0149] Step 501: The control circuit sends a first control signal to the optical distributor.

[0150] 4 , the control circuit 402 - 1 sends a first control signal to the optical distributor 402 - 2 .

[0151] In a possible implementation, the control circuit receives port allocation information carried by an optical signal output by the OLT, and generates a first control signal according to the port allocation information.

[0152] Step 502: Connect the common port of the optical distributor to the first branch port of the optical distributor.

[0153] 4 , the common port of optical splitter 402-2 is connected to the first branch port of optical splitter 402-2. Specifically, according to the first control signal, optical splitter 402-2 outputs the optical signal transmitted by OLT 401, received at its common port, to ONU 403-1 via the first branch port connected to the common port in the first time slot.

[0154] Step 503: The control circuit sends a second control signal to the optical distributor.

[0155] 4 , the control circuit 402 - 1 sends a second control signal to the optical distributor 402 - 2 .

[0156] In a possible implementation, the control circuit receives port allocation information carried by an optical signal output by the OLT, and generates a second control signal according to the port allocation information.

[0157] Step 504: Connect the common port of the optical distributor to the second branch port of the optical distributor.

[0158] 4 , the common port of optical distributor 402-2 is connected to the second branch port of optical distributor 402-2. Specifically, according to the second control signal, optical distributor 402-2 outputs the optical signal transmitted by OLT 401, received at its common port, to ONU 403-2 via the second branch port connected to the common port in the second time slot.

[0159] Then, the embodiment of the present application can connect the OLT with different ONUs through different branch ports in different time periods, and then output the optical signal output by the OLT to different ONUs in different time periods, thereby reducing the transmission loss of the communication network.

[0160] It should be noted that one or more combining and splitting devices in the above embodiments of the present application (such as combining and splitting device 401 and combining and splitting device 414) can be integrated on-chip (i.e., integrated into an integrated circuit inside the chip) or off-chip (i.e., integrated into an integrated circuit outside the chip), for example, integrated into a certain external device. In one possible implementation, one or more combining and splitting devices in the above embodiments of the present application can be implemented by a demultiplexer / multiplexer (also called de(mux)). The embodiments of the present application do not limit the implementation method, product form, etc. of the combining and splitting devices.

[0161] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid state disk (SSD)). In an embodiment of the present application, the computer may include the device described above.

[0162] Although the present application is described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, in the process of implementing the claimed application, those skilled in the art can understand and implement other changes to the disclosed embodiments by reviewing the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude multiple situations. A single processor or other unit can implement several functions listed in the claims. Certain measures are recorded in different dependent claims, but this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

[0163] Although the present application has been described with reference to specific features and embodiments thereof, it is apparent that various modifications and combinations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, this specification and the drawings are merely illustrative of the present application as defined by the appended claims and are deemed to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Thus, the present application is intended to include such modifications and variations as fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A signal processing device, characterized in that: include: A control circuit and a first optical distributor; The first optical distributor comprises a common port and a plurality of branch ports; the common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a first optical line terminal, a first branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a first optical network unit, and a second branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to a second optical network unit; The control circuit is configured to send a first control signal to the first optical distributor; The first optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the first optical distributor to the first branch port of the first optical distributor in response to the first control signal; The control circuit is further configured to send a second control signal to the first optical distributor; The first optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the first optical distributor to the second branch port of the first optical distributor in response to the second control signal.

2. The signal processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that The signal processing device further includes: a receiving circuit; the receiving circuit is used to connect to the first optical line terminal; The receiving circuit is configured to receive a first optical signal sent by the first optical line terminal, wherein the first optical signal carries port allocation information; The receiving circuit is further configured to obtain the port allocation information from the first optical signal and send the port allocation information to the control circuit; The control circuit is specifically configured to generate the first control signal and the second control signal according to the port allocation information.

3. The signal processing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The signal processing device further includes: a sending circuit; the sending circuit is used to connect to the first optical line terminal; The first optical distributor is further used to send the detection result of the optical signals of the multiple branch ports to the control circuit; The control circuit is further configured to send port status information to the first optical line terminal through the sending circuit according to the detection result.

4. The signal processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The first optical distributor is configured to connect the common port with the first branch port in a first time slot in response to the first control signal; and to connect the common port with the second branch port in a second time slot indicated by the port allocation information in response to the second control signal.

5. The signal processing device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first optical line terminal through the first combining and splitting device; The first combiner / splitter device includes a common port, a first branch port, and a second branch port; wherein the common port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first optical line terminal, the first branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the common port of the first optical distributor, and the second branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the receiving circuit.

6. The signal processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The splitting ratio of the first branch port of the first combiner / splitter device is greater than the splitting ratio of the second branch port of the first combiner / splitter device.

7. The signal processing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The first combining and demultiplexing device comprises an optical switch or a combiner / demultiplexer.

8. The signal processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The signal processing device also includes a second optical distributor; The second optical distributor comprises a common port and a plurality of branch ports; the common port of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the first optical line terminal through the second combiner / splitter device; the first branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the first branch port of the third combiner / splitter device; the second branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the second optical distributor is used to connect to the first branch port of the fourth combiner / splitter device; The first optical distributor comprises a common port and a plurality of branch ports; the common port of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the first optical line terminal through the second combining and splitting device; the first branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the second branch port of the third combining and splitting device; the second branch port among the plurality of branch ports of the first optical distributor is used to connect to the second branch port of the third combining and splitting device; connected to the second branch port of the fourth combining and splitting device; The common port of the third combining and de-combining device is used to connect to the first optical network unit; The common port of the fourth combining and de-splitting device is used to connect to the second optical network unit; The control circuit is further configured to send a third control signal to the second optical distributor; The second optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the second optical distributor to the first branch port of the second optical distributor in response to the third control signal; The control circuit is further configured to send a fourth control signal to the second optical distributor; The second optical distributor is configured to connect the common port of the second optical distributor to the second branch port of the second optical distributor in response to the fourth control signal.

9. The signal processing device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The common port of the second combiner / splitter device and the first branch port of the second combiner / splitter device are used to transmit optical signals of the first wavelength band; the common port of the second combiner / splitter device and the second branch port of the second combiner / splitter device are used to transmit optical signals of the second wavelength band; The first waveband and the second waveband do not intersect.

10. The signal processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The first optical distributor includes an optical switch.

11. The signal processing device according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that: The second optical distributor includes an optical switch.

12. An optical network, characterized in that: The optical network comprises: a first optical line terminal, a first optical network unit, a second optical network unit and a signal processing device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7.

13. An optical network, characterized in that: The optical network comprises: a first optical line terminal, a second combining and splitting device, a third combining and splitting device, a fourth combining and splitting device, a first optical network unit, a second optical network unit and a signal processing device as claimed in claim 8 or 9.

14. The optical network according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that: The optical network also includes a second optical line terminal and a fifth combining and splitting device; The first branch port of the fifth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first optical line terminal; the second branch port of the fifth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the second optical line terminal; and the common port of the fifth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the signal processing device.

15. The optical network according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that: The optical network also includes a distance measuring device and a sixth combining and splitting device; The first branch port of the sixth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the first optical line terminal; the second branch port of the sixth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the distance measuring device; and the common port of the sixth combiner / splitter device is used to connect to the signal processing device.

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