# US 10,374,741 B2 · Optical multiplex level and optical channel layer server trails in wavelength switched optical networks > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,374,741 B2 - Document ID: US10374741B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/341,513 - Filed: 2016-11-02 - Published: 2017-03-16 - Granted: 2019-08-06 - Earliest claimed: 2014-01-27 - Assignees: Cisco Technology, Inc. - Applicants: Cisco Technology, Inc. - Inventors: David Bianchi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10374741B2 ## CPC - H04J 14/0212: {using optical switches or wavelength selective switches [WSS]} - H04B 10/27: Arrangements for networking - H04J 14/0202: {Arrangements therefor} - H04J 14/0256: {at the optical channel layer} - H04J 14/0261: {at the optical multiplex section layer} - H04J 14/0279: {WDM point-to-point architectures} - H04J: MULTIPLEX COMMUNICATION (transmission in general H04B; peculiar to transmission of digital information H04L5/00; systems for the simultaneous or sequential transmission of more than one television signal H04N7/08; in exchanges H04Q11/00; stereophonic systems H04S) - H04B: TRANSMISSION ## Abstract An optical network packet configured to transmit over an optical communication link from a first optical network having a first control plane to a second optical network having a second control plane is generated. Generating the optical network packet comprises generating the packet configured to be transmitted from the first optical network to the second optical network in the optical domain. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: receiving an optical signal at a network device in a first optical network having a first control plane; generating, from the optical signal, an optical network packet for transmission over an optical communication link from the first optical network to a second optical network in an Optical Channel Layer of an Optical Transport Network domain, wherein the optical network packet is generated without leaving the Optical Channel Layer and without performing optical-to-electrical conversion of the optical signal; and transmitting the optical network packet from the first optical network to the second optical network over the optical communication link in the optical domain. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein generating the optical network packet comprises generating the optical network packet without re-amplification, reshaping or retiming of the optical signal. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein generating the optical network packet comprises generating the optical network packet from the optical signal without leaving the Optical Multiplex Section of the Optical Transport Network domain. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein generating the optical network packet comprises generating the optical network packet without demultiplexing the optical signal. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the network device comprises a trail termination unit; and wherein: generating the optical network packet comprises generating the optical network packet at the trail termination unit from the optical signal; and transmitting the optical network packet comprises transmitting the optical network packet from the trail termination unit. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the optical signal comprises receiving a demultiplexed optical signal; and wherein generating the optical network packet comprises dropping an optical channel from the demultiplexed optical signal and generating the optical network packet without including data from the dropped optical channel. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the optical signal comprises receiving a multiplexed optical signal; and wherein generating the optical network packet comprises demultiplexing the multiplexed optical signal, dropping an optical channel from the optical signal, and generating the optical network packet without including data from the dropped optical channel. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the optical network packet comprises transmitting the optical network packet to a trail termination unit of a network device in the second optical network. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein generating the optical network packet comprises generating the optical network packet to be transmitted by a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein generating the optical network packet comprises generating a Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching packet. ### Claim 11 A method comprising: receiving, at a first trail termination unit, an optical network packet transmitted over an optical communication link from a second trail termination unit, wherein the first trail termination unit is arranged within a first optical network having a first control plane, and the second trail termination unit is arranged in a second optical network having a second control plane; and transmitting data contained in the optical network packet from the first trail termination unit into a data plane of the first optical network, wherein transmitting the data contained in the optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network comprises transmitting the data contained in the optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network without leaving the Optical Channel Layer of the Optical Transport Network domain and without performing optical-to-electrical conversion on the data contained in the optical network packet. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the optical network packet at the first trail termination unit comprises receiving a multiplexed optical signal. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein transmitting the data contained in the optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network comprises transmitting the data into the data plane of the first optical network without performing demultiplexing on the multiplexed optical signal. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein transmitting the data contained in optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network comprises demultiplexing the multiplexed optical signal and dropping an optical channel of the optical signal. ### Claim 15 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein transmitting the data contained in the optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network comprises transmitting the data contained in the optical network packet into the data plane of the first optical network without leaving the Optical Multiplex Section of the Optical Transport Network domain. ### Claim 16 An apparatus comprising: at least one input optical port; at least one output optical port; and a processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receive an optical signal via the at least one input optical port; generate, from the optical signal, an optical network packet for transmission over an optical communication link from a first optical network having a first control plane to a second optical network having a second control plane in an Optical Channel Layer of an Optical Transport Network domain, wherein the optical network packet is generated without leaving the Optical Channel Layer and without performing optical-to-electrical conversion of the optical signal; and cause the optical network packet to be transmitted via the at least one output optical port from the first optical network to the second optical network over the optical communication link in the optical domain. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer, wherein the processor is further configured to: cause the reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer to demultiplex the optical signal and drop an optical channel of the optical signal, and generate the optical network packet without data contained in the dropped optical channel. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to generate the optical network packet without re-amplification, reshaping or retiming of the optical signal. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to generate the optical network packet without leaving the Optical Multiplex Section of the Optical Transport Network domain. ### Claim 20 (depends on 16) The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to generate the optical network packet as a Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching packet.