Frequency Sub-band Coding for Optical Network Resource Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current optical architectures require dedicated transmitters and wavelengths for each node or node port, leading to inefficient use of network resources and bandwidth, and struggle with independent control of channel amplitude and performance characteristics, resulting in suboptimal delivery of narrowcast and broadcast transmissions.
Innovation Solution
The system digitizes broadcast and narrowcast signals, allowing them to be combined and transported over a single optical link using sub-band coding and lossless compression, enabling a single transmitter to serve multiple nodes and optimizing channel capacity by reducing bandwidth requirements and allowing per-channel customization of data rates and compression.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If dedicated transmitters and optical wavelengths are assigned to each node or node port, then signal delivery reliability is improved, but network resource efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal transmitter architecture where a single transmitter can serve multiple nodes and node ports by dynamically allocating optical wavelengths and sub-band frequencies. The transmitter is designed to handle both broadcast and narrowcast transmissions simultaneously, allowing one transmitter to perform the functions previously requiring multiple dedicated transmitters, thus improving network resource efficiency while maintaining signal delivery reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the optical spectrum into multiple sub-bands, with each sub-band assignable to different nodes or transmissions. This segmentation allows a single transmitter to deliver multiple narrowcast signals to different nodes simultaneously by assigning specific sub-bands to each node, eliminating the need for dedicated transmitters per node while ensuring reliable signal delivery through dedicated frequency allocation
2Reliability
If separate transport mechanisms are used for broadcast and narrowcast transmissions, then transmission quality is improved, but bandwidth utilization deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges broadcast and narrowcast transmission mechanisms into a unified optical transport system. Both broadcast and narrowcast signals are modulated onto the same optical carrier and transmitted over a single optical link. The transmitter allocates different sub-bands and time slots to broadcast and narrowcast traffic, achieving efficient bandwidth utilization while maintaining the quality requirements of both transmission types through dedicated resource allocation within the merged system
3Productivity
If a single transmitter serves multiple nodes, then network resource efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic resource allocation within the transmitter, where optical wavelengths, sub-band frequencies, and time slots are dynamically assigned to different nodes and transmission types based on real-time traffic demands. This dynamic capability allows a single transmitter to efficiently serve multiple nodes with varying requirements, improving network resource efficiency while the complexity is managed through software-controlled allocation rather than hardware duplication
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes in the optical signal domain by modulating different sub-bands and frequency components to carry different narrowcast and broadcast signals. The transmitter changes signal parameters such as frequency, amplitude, and phase to encode multiple data streams onto a single optical carrier, enabling one transmitter to serve multiple nodes efficiently. The complexity is offset by the elegance of parameter-based multiplexing rather than requiring complex hardware for each node
4Quantity of substance
If broadband companding is applied to compress data, then bitrate reduction is achieved, but noise interference increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the frequency spectrum into multiple sub-bands and applies independent companding to each sub-band rather than to the entire broadband signal. This sub-band companding approach reduces the noise impact on any single channel because the companding noise is confined to specific frequency ranges. Each node receives only the sub-bands assigned to it, isolating them from companding noise in other sub-bands, thus achieving bitrate reduction while minimizing noise interference
Data Source
AI summary
A transmitter, using frequency sub-band coding, can output a plurality of narrowcast and/or broadcast signals to a plurality of sub-groups or nodes along a single optical link. The transmitter can output the plurality of signals as multiple slices of spectrum, wherein each slice of spectrum is designated for a particular sub-group or node. The transmitter can further instruct each receiver or node as to which slice of spectrum to use and at which frequency to output the associated signal information to its intended subscribers. Thus, a single transmitter can feed narrowcast information to multiple nodes or receivers along a single optical link. In embodiments, channels can be monitored and manipulated on a channel-by-channel basis, and channels delivered using different network solutions can be combined.