Integrated Routing and Wavelength Assignment in Optical Networks

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

In optical networks, the separation of routing and wavelength assignment processes often results in calculated routes that do not meet wavelength assignment constraints, leading to inefficiencies and potential congestion due to the need for multiple route calculations.

Innovation Solution

Integrating routing and wavelength assignment into a single process, where link attribute information is used to determine if a route meets predetermined constraints, allowing for wavelength conversion and optical path impairment validation to ensure connectivity and wavelength availability, and recursively calculating routes that meet these conditions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If routing and wavelength assignment are separated into two independent processes, then the routing process can calculate multiple routes independently, but the calculated routes may not meet wavelength assignment constraints, requiring multiple route recalculations and reducing efficiency

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveroute calculation efficiencyVSAvoidwavelength assignment feasibility
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the routing process and wavelength assignment process into a unified integrated process. The routing calculation now simultaneously considers wavelength availability and constraints, so that when routes are calculated, they already satisfy wavelength assignment requirements. This eliminates the need for separate wavelength assignment validation and multiple recalculations, resolving the contradiction between calculation efficiency and assignment feasibility.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Reliability

If multiple route calculations are performed to ensure wavelength assignment feasibility, then reliable working routes can be found, but the system requires multiple iterations and increases processing time

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvewavelength assignment feasibilityVSAvoidprocessing time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent performs preliminary wavelength availability checking during the route calculation phase itself. By pre-loading wavelength resource information and checking wavelength constraints while calculating routes (rather than after route calculation), the system ensures wavelength assignment feasibility is determined in advance, eliminating the need for iterative recalculations and reducing processing time.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Productivity

If wavelength assignment is performed after route calculation, then the routing process is simple and fast, but many calculated routes do not meet wavelength constraints leading to congestion

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveroute calculation speedVSAvoidnetwork congestion
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback mechanisms where wavelength availability information is continuously updated and fed back to the routing calculation process. When routes are calculated, the system checks wavelength constraints in real-time and adjusts route selection based on wavelength availability feedback, ensuring that selected routes are both fast to calculate and free from congestion caused by wavelength conflicts.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP2461629B1Route search and wavelength allocation method in an optical network and device thereof
Publication Date: 2021.06.30 ZTE CORP
  • EP2461629B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2461629B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2461629B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The present invention provides a method and device for routing and wavelength assignment in an optical network. The method comprises: a topology step in which a topology network of the optical network is obtained; a route calculation step in which at least one route in the topology network is calculated, a first node and a last node of the route being predetermined, and the at least one route being part of all routes from the first node to the last node; and a wavelength assignment determination step in which for each node on the route, it is determined whether link attribute information of the node meets a predetermined constraint condition, if the predetermined constraint condition is met, the route is selected as a working route, and the method ends; if the predetermined constraint condition is not met, the method returns to the route calculation step. In the present invention, after a route that meets the predetermined constraint condition is calculated, whether the route meets the wavelength assignment is determined, instead of performing the wavelength assignment at one time after a plurality of routes are calculated, thus increasing the hit rate of the available routes and reducing data amount generated by route calculation.