Distributed Switch Fabric for 50 ms Protection Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current transport network architectures face challenges in maintaining consistent 50 ms protection switching times, especially when dealing with multiple simultaneous protection switching events, which can lead to increased switching times and complexity, affecting network resilience and reliability.
Innovation Solution
A distributed switch fabric architecture is employed, comprising multiple protection switch fabrics and a central switch fabric, allowing for independent 50 ms protection switching times, supporting various protection switching methods like LAPS, UPSR, and BLSR, and reducing the burden on the central switch fabric by handling facility protection switching within the protection switch fabrics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a centralized switch fabric architecture is used to handle protection switching, then the network can support various protection switching methods (LAPS, UPSR, BLSR), but the protection switching time increases and becomes inconsistent when multiple simultaneous protection switching events occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the centralized switch fabric into multiple distributed protection switch fabrics, each handling specific protection switching tasks independently. This segmentation allows simultaneous protection switching events to be processed in parallel, maintaining consistent 50 ms switching times without the bottlenecks of a centralized architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a single-dimensional centralized switch fabric to a multi-dimensional distributed architecture where protection switch fabrics are organized in parallel dimensions. This dimensional change enables independent processing of multiple protection switching events simultaneously, resolving the time consistency issue.
2Reliability
If a centralized switch fabric handles all protection switching tasks, then network management is simplified, but the switching time increases and reliability decreases during multiple simultaneous protection events
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the protection switching functionality into multiple independent protection switch fabrics, the system can process multiple protection events simultaneously without time penalties, thereby improving reliability and reducing switching time loss.
Solution Approach 2:
Each protection switch fabric is self-sufficient and can independently handle protection switching events without requiring coordination with a central controller during switching operations, enabling autonomous fast switching that meets the 50 ms requirement even during simultaneous events.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the central switch fabric handles all switching operations, then network flexibility is reduced, but device complexity is also reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The distributed protection switch fabrics are designed with universal functionality to support multiple protection switching methods (LAPS, UPSR, BLSR) independently, eliminating the need for a complex centralized controller while maintaining full adaptability across different protection schemes.
Data Source
AI summary
A system supports 50 ms protection switching times independent of network architecture. The system includes multiple protection switch fabrics to perform facility protection switching for the signals and a central switch fabric to switch a subset of the signals in a non-facility protection switching manner among the protection switch fabrics. Linear and ring network configurations are supported by the system. The system has flexibility to perform Linear Automatic Protection Switching (LAPS), Unidirection Path Switched Ring (UPSR) protection switching, and Bidirectional Line Switched Ring (BLSR) protection switching without burdening the central switch fabric with unnecessary or redundant traffic.