A steerable optical transmit and receive terminal includes a MEMS-based N1 optical switch network. Each optical switch in the optical switch network uses an electrostatic MEMS structure to selectively position a translatable optical grating close to or far from an optical waveguide. In the close (ON) position, light couples between the translatable optical grating and the optical waveguide, whereas in the far (OFF) position, no appreciable light couples between the translatable optical grating and the optical waveguide. The translatable optical grating is disposed at or near a surface of the optical switch network. Thus, the translatable optical grating emits light into, or receives light from, free space. The steerable optical transmit and receive terminal also includes a lens and can steer a free space optical beam in a direction determined by which port of the N1 optical switch network is ON.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe large scale steerable optical switched arrays that may be fabricated on a common substrate including many thousands or more emitters that may be arranged in a curved pattern at the focal plane of a lens thereby allowing the directional control of emitted light and selective reception of reflected light suitable for use in imaging, ranging, and sensing applications including accident avoidance.

An optical fiber cable unit has an optical fiber cable obtained by binding a plurality of optical fibers and transmits a laser beam using transmission paths having the optical fibers, respectively. The optical fiber cable unit includes: an input-side connection unit that inputs the laser beam to the optical fibers; a one-end-side connection unit fixed to one end of the optical fiber cable and connected to the input-side connection unit; an other-end-side connection unit fixed to the other end of the optical fiber cable; and an output-side connection unit to which the other-end-side connection unit is connected and in which the laser beam from the optical fibers is output. The input-side connection unit has a switching mechanism that switches the transmission paths for transmitting the laser beam.

An RF transmit signal is modulated onto an optical carrier to form a transmit modulated optical carrier (TMOC). The TMOC is split into N transmit modulated optical subcarriers (TMOS). Each TMOS is respectively processed in one of N transmit optical channels (TOCs). In each TOC, RF antenna beam steering operations are performed by optical tuning the TMOS to selectively control a phase difference between the optical carrier and the optical sideband. A different selected phase difference can be applied in each TOC. The TMOS from each of the N TOCs is then processed to obtain N RF signals for driving an antenna array. In the receive direction, M received RF signals from M antenna elements are modulated respectively onto M optical subcarriers to form M receive modulated optical subcarriers (RMOS). RF antenna beam steering operations are performed by optical tuning the RMOS.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe large scale steerable optical switched arrays that may be fabricated on a common substrate including many thousands or more emitters that may be arranged in a curved pattern at the focal plane of a lens thereby allowing the directional control of emitted light and selective reception of reflected light suitable for use in imaging, ranging, and sensing applications including accident avoidance.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe large scale steerable optical switched arrays that may be fabricated on a common substrate including many thousands or more emitters that may be arranged in a curved pattern at the focal plane of a lens thereby allowing the directional control of emitted light and selective reception of reflected light suitable for use in imaging, ranging, and sensing applications including accident avoidance.

This patent document discloses, among others, wavelength-selective switches (WSS) for redirecting optical WDM signals or channels based on a combination of spatially separating light in different optical polarizations in an optical birefringent material and using diffractive optics for separating light at different optical WDM wavelengths into spatially separated optical beam to perform wavelength-selective optical switching in optical WDM applications. Notably, the optics for processing the optical WDM signals in the disclosed optical WSS devices is designed to provide scalable optical WSS devices where different WDM signals share optical components to reduce designed optical components for different WDM signals.

An optical fiber cable unit has an optical fiber cable obtained by binding a plurality of optical fibers and transmits a laser beam using transmission paths having the optical fibers, respectively. The optical fiber cable unit includes: an input-side connection unit that inputs the laser beam to the optical fibers; a one-end-side connection unit fixed to one end of the optical fiber cable and connected to the input-side connection unit; an other-end-side connection unit fixed to the other end of the optical fiber cable; and an output-side connection unit to which the other-end-side connection unit is connected and in which the laser beam from the optical fibers is output. The input-side connection unit has a switching mechanism that switches the transmission paths for transmitting the laser beam.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe large scale steerable optical switched arrays that may be fabricated on a common substrate including many thousands or more emitters that may be arranged in a curved pattern at the focal plane of a lens thereby allowing the directional control of emitted light and selective reception of reflected light suitable for use in imaging, ranging, and sensing applications including accident avoidance.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe large scale steerable optical switched arrays that may be fabricated on a common substrate including many thousands or more emitters that may be arranged in a curved pattern at the focal plane of a lens thereby allowing the directional control of emitted light and selective reception of reflected light suitable for use in imaging, ranging, and sensing applications including accident avoidance.