The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 02, 2002
Filed:
Apr. 27, 1998
Daniel Y Al-Salameh, Marlboro, NJ (US);
William J. Gartner, Middletown, NJ (US);
Lucent Technologies Inc., Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Abstract
An optical communications system employs a plurality of optical nodes interconnected in a ring configuration by at least two optical transmission media, for example, optical fiber. The at least two optical transmission media, in this example, provide optical service transmission capacity and optical protection transmission capacity. Efficient restoration of optical communications between optical nodes in the ring, after an optical transmission media failure, is realized by employing a relatively simple and efficient optical switch matrix having a first number of possible switching states and, then, by utilizing only a second number of the switching states fewer than the first number to switch optically from the optical service transmission capacity of the failed or faulted optical transmission media to the optical protection transmission capacity of another optical transmission media. Optical switching states of the optical switch matrix are blocked that are not actively used for switching from the active optical service capacity of the faulted optical transmission media to the standby optical protection capacity of the other optical transmission media. Use of this relatively simple optical switch matrix allows for the bulk switching of the optical wavelengths as contrasted with the one-to-one switching of the optical wavelengths used in prior arrangements.