Communication system and method with optical banding

A communication method comprising:

• interconnecting plural nodes by an optical transmission medium that carries at least first, second and third bands of optical channels along a shared physical path;
• at each even node, dropping the first and second bands and passively transmitting the third band, wherein the first band connects each node with each adjacent node and wherein the second band connects each even node with other even nodes;
• and
• at each odd node, dropping the first and third bands and passively transmitting the second band, wherein the first band connects each node with each a adjacent node and wherein the third band connects each odd node with other odd nodes.

A communication system comprising:

• plural nodes;
• an optical transmission medium for interconnecting the plural nodes in a ring network, wherein the optical transmission medium carries at least three bands A, B and C of optical channels along a shared common path;
• a first device at each of a first set of the plural nodes having a first input and a first output coupled to the optical transmission medium for receiving and transmitting the bands A, B and C of optical channels, a second output for dropping two bands A and B and a second input for adding two bands A and B, the device passively transmitting band C from the first input to the first output;
• a second device at each of a second set of the plural nodes having a first input and a first output coupled to the optical transmission medium for receiving and transmitting the bands A, B and C of optical channels, a second output for dropping two bands B and C and a second input for adding two bands B and C, the device passively transmitting other bands;
• wherein a pair of nodes from the first set of plural nodes can communicate directly using band A and a pair of nodes from the second set of plural nodes can communicate directly using band C and each node can communicate directly with adjacent nodes using band B.

A communication method in an optical node in a ring optical network, comprising:

• receiving at least three bands of optical channels from the ring optical network at a first input;
• passively transmitting a first band that connects neighboring nodes to the optical node from the first input to a first output;
• dropping a second and third band from the first input, wherein the second band connects each node in the ring optical network and wherein the third band connects one or more non-adjacent nodes to the optical node;
• and
• adding the second and third band to the first output.