National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

Inter Energy Co., Ltd.

Dainichiseika Color & Chemicals Mfg. Co., Ltd.

Dainichiseika Color & Chemical

Hirobumi Watanabe

Norio Tanaka

Ichiro Ueno

Takashi Hiraga

Noritaka Yamamoto

Shigeru Takarada

Shiro Futaki

Noriyasu Shiga

An optical path switching type optical signal transmission/reception apparatus includes a one-to-seven compatible optically controlled optical path switching apparatusthat is connected to a host optical signal transmission/reception apparatusvia an optical fiber, a total of seven subordinate optical communication adaptersconnected via optical fibers, user side devicesconnected to respective subordinate optical communication adapters via an electric circuit, an optical transmission/reception control circuit provided in each of the total of seven subordinate user side optical communication adapters, and including an uplink optical signal transmission mechanism, a downlink optical signal reception mechanism, a control light source that can generate control light to drive the optical path switching apparatus, in which a wavelength of the generated control light is different from a wavelength of signal light, and an optical communication oriented transmission/reception mechanism using the wavelength of the control light source, optical pathstodedicated to the control light to connect the optical path switching apparatusto the seven user side optical communication adapters, and a reflection-type star coupler.

Optical path switching signal transmission/reception apparatus and corresponding method

An optical-path-switching apparatus according to the present invention includes a reducing optical system capable of guiding signal light and control light along the direction of gravity into a thermal-lens-forming optical element having an incidence plane positioned to be perpendicular to the direction of gravity in such a way as to differentiate respective convergence points in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis. The apparatus further includes a light-receiving unit configured to converge or condense straight-traveling signal light in the absence of irradiation with the control light and signal light whose optical path has been switched due to irradiation with the control light using the same optical element. Further, the apparatus includes a wedge-type prism provided at a passing position of the optical-path-switched signal light to increase the distance between the optical axis of the optical-path-changed signal light and the optical axis of the straight-traveling signal light.

Optical-path-switching apparatus and light signal optical-path-switching method

Growing community of inventors

Kawasaki, Japan

Hirobumi Watanabe