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US 10,097,303 B2Granted
Methods and apparatus for using an embedded optical signal source within an optical node to locate problematic optical spans
OwnerKimon Papakos, Mark E. Boduchinventors
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Abstract
Example embodiments and methods of the present invention relate to utilizing optical transmitters and optical receivers embedded within reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexers of optical nodes to identify problematic optical spans within an optical network.
Claims17
A method of identifying problematic optical spans, comprising:
- identifying optical paths between network nodes;
- testing identified optical paths between network nodes;
- identifying degraded optical paths between network nodes based upon testing;
- counting occurrences of each optical span within the degraded optical paths between network nodes to create a total for each optical span;
- and
- comparing optical spans using the total for each optical span,
- wherein testing identified optical paths between network nodes comprises:
- tuning the output of an optical transmitter embedded within a first reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack of a first optical node to a wavelength within a band of wavelengths;
- generating a test signal over the wavelength;
- forwarding the wavelength to an optical path;
- receiving the wavelength from the optical path at a second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack of a second optical node;
- and
- recording a performance of the test signal at the second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack using an optical receiver embedded within the second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack.
10 more elements
A method of identifying problematic optical spans, comprising:
- identifying optical paths between network nodes;
- testing identified optical paths between network nodes;
- identifying nondegraded optical paths between network nodes based upon testing;
- counting occurrences of each optical span within the nondegraded optical paths between network nodes to create a total for each optical span;
- and
- comparing optical spans using the total for each optical span,
- wherein testing identified optical paths between network nodes comprises:
- tuning the output of an optical transmitter embedded within a first reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack of a first optical node to a wavelength within a band of wavelengths;
- generating a test signal over the wavelength;
- forwarding the wavelength to an optical path;
- receiving the wavelength from the optical path at a second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack of a second optical node;
- and
- recording a performance of the test signal at the second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack using an optical receiver embedded within the second reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer circuit pack.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.