Optical switch fabric for individually switching optical paths for opotical signals between input and output ports
AssigneeAlcatel
InventorKurt Losch
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention relates to an optical switch fabric comprising at least one micro mirror array with tilting micro mirrors for individually switching optical paths for optical signals between input and output ports, especially fibres or waveguides gathered in at least one fibre arrays, comprising a beam splitter and a detector array, wherein the beam splitter is adjusted to partly reflect the optical signals reflecting from the mirrors of said at least one micro mirror array to said detector array and micro mirror control means, that are realised such, that a control signal is generated out of a feedback signal of said a detector array to correct the angular positions of the micro mirror and a method therefore.
Claims5
An optical switch fabric comprising two mirrors, at least one of said mirrors being a micro mirror array with tilting micro mirrors for individually switching optical paths for optical signals between input and output ports, especially between fibres or waveguides gathered in at least one fibre array, with two beam splitters and each one detector array associated, wherein the beam splitters are positioned such, that they partly reflect the optical signals, after being reflected by corresponding micro mirrors, to the associated detector array, with the following means for optimising the optical behaviour of the switch fabric:
- micro mirror control means for generating first feedback signals out of the corresponding detector array to correct the corresponding angular positions of said micro mirrors and
- alignment means for aligning the mirrors and the at least one fibre array to each other, comprising signal sending means for sending a control signal from one input fibre to one output fibre, detecting means for detecting each the intensity of said reflected parts of said control signal and for detecting the intensity of the remaining part not reflected by the beam splitters, that irradiates to said output fibre and control means to generate second feedback signals out from said detected intensities.
A method for controlling an optical switch fabric comprising two mirrors, at least one of said mirrors consisting of a micro mirror array with tilting micro mirrors for individually switching optical paths for optical signals between input and output ports, especially between fibres or waveguides gathered in at least one fibre array, with two beam splitters and each one detector array associated, wherein the beam splitters are positioned such, that they partly reflect the optical signals, after being reflected by corresponding micro mirrors, to the associated detector array, with the following means for optimising the optical behaviour of the switch fabric:
- generating first feedback signals out of the corresponding detector array to correct the corresponding angular positions of said micro mirrors and
- transmitting an optical control signal from an input fibre to an output fibre, detecting each the intensity of the reflected parts of said control signal by the beam splitters and the intensity of the remaining part not reflected by the beam splitters, and generating second feedback signals out from said detected intensities for aligning the mirrors and the at least one fibre array to each other.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.