Filterless Optical Network Architecture for Time-Varying Traffic
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional optical networks, especially submarine networks, face limitations in flexibility and resource optimization due to static configurations and the need for numerous optical components, leading to high costs and power consumption, as well as challenges in reconfiguring wavelengths to adapt to time-varying traffic patterns.
Innovation Solution
A filterless optical network architecture that uses passive broadcast-and-select nodes and coherent transceivers to dynamically adjust transceivers and wavelengths based on time-varying traffic patterns, minimizing the number of components needed and enabling efficient resource sharing without active switching.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If CDCG-ROADMs are deployed to achieve complete flexibility in wavelength connectivity, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase due to large number of optical components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the filtering function from traditional ROADMs and relocates it to edge nodes. By using filterless broadcast-and-select architecture with coherent transceivers at edge nodes, the complex optical filtering components are removed from intermediate nodes, achieving wavelength flexibility without requiring large numbers of optical components at each node.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical/optical filtering components with electronic signal processing at coherent receivers. Instead of using physical filters and switches to select wavelengths, the system uses coherent detection with digital signal processing to filter and select wavelengths electronically, eliminating the need for complex optical filtering hardware.
2Adaptability or versatility
If RBUs with WSS technologies are deployed to enable reconfiguration, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional filtering components and control complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes WSS and other active filtering components from branching units entirely. By extracting these components and replacing them with passive optical splitting and coherent detection at edge nodes, the system achieves reconfiguration capability without introducing control complexity associated with active optical switching devices.
3Device complexity
If fixed BUs with pre-determined wavelength arrangement are used in submarine networks, then device complexity is reduced, but adaptability deteriorates due to limited flexibility in wavelength reconfiguration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamic wavelength selection capability to previously static fixed BU architectures. By combining passive optical splitting with tunable coherent transceivers at edge nodes, the system enables wavelengths to be dynamically reconfigured based on traffic demands while maintaining the simplicity of passive optical infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables edge nodes to autonomously select and tune their received wavelengths based on local traffic demands without requiring centralized control or complex coordination. Each coherent transceiver independently performs wavelength selection and signal processing, making the network self-configuring and adaptable to changing traffic patterns.
4Adaptability or versatility
If additional filtering components are added to RBUs for reconfiguration, then adaptability is improved, but power consumption increases due to additional amplifiers for insertion loss compensation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes active filtering components that cause insertion losses from the network. By using passive optical splitting followed by coherent detection with electronic signal processing, the system eliminates the need for additional amplifiers to compensate for filtering losses, thereby reducing power consumption while maintaining reconfiguration capability.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods of network resource optimization based on time-varying traffic in an optical network with a filterless architecture include determining traffic variations based on the time-varying traffic in the optical network; and adjusting one or more of transceivers and wavelengths between nodes in the optical network based on the traffic variations and using the filterless architecture. The adjusting minimizes the number of the transceivers and the wavelengths based on the traffic variations and the time-varying traffic. The optical network can geographically span multiple time zones, contributing to the time-varying traffic.