According to an example, nodes request access to a shared resource in a prioritized optical arbitration system. Each node attempts to extract a wavelength corresponding to a priority level selected by the node from a waveguide. A node is granted access to the resource according to priority level, and is to extract from the waveguide the corresponding wavelength.

Method and multiport free-space wavelength division multiplexing (“WDM”) device capable of handling multiple optical signals carried in multiple wavelengths (“λ.sub.n”) using a relay lens are disclosed. The WDM device includes an optical filter, collimator, optical relay, and a relay optical filter. The optical filter is able to receive an optical beam containing multiple λ.sub.n and subsequently extract a first wavelength (“λ.sub.1”) from λ.sub.n. A second optical beam is formed by the remaining of λ.sub.n. The collimator, in one example, receives λ.sub.1 from the optical filter. Upon receiving the second optical beam, the optical relay collimates the second optical beam with minimal loss due to light divergence. The relay optical filter, in one aspect, is configured to receive the collimated second optical beam and redirects the collimated second optical beam to a predefined intended orientation.

Tuning an optical network unit (ONU) to an appropriate communication wavelength may be performed by initiating an activation procedure responsive to receiving a wavelength configuration message, and identifying an instruction in the wavelength configuration message to modify a present wavelength used by the network unit to a different wavelength. The process may also provide assigning an optical network unit identifier (ONU-ID) to the network unit, modifying the present wavelength to the different wavelength, and transmitting subsequent data messages from the network unit at the different wavelength.

In an optical communication abnormality-recovery system and method, when an abnormality occurs in transmission and reception of one wavelength of an optical line terminal of a PON system, an optical network unit that is performing communication at a certain wavelength switches the wavelength for performing the communication to another backup wavelength that is instructed in advance. The optical line terminal also performs switching so that the communication is performed using the same backup wavelength as in the optical network unit.

An optoelectronic switch comprising: a first plurality of detector remodulators (DRMs) (C3, D1), each DRM having an integer number M of optical inputs and an integer number N of optical outputs; a second plurality of DRMs (C7, D5), each DRM having N optical inputs and M optical outputs; a passive optical switch fabric (C4+C5+C6, D2+D3+D4) connecting the N optical outputs of each of the first plurality of DRMs with the N optical inputs of each of the second plurality of DRMs, the path of an optical signal through the optical switch fabric depending upon its wavelength; wherein each DRM (C3, D1) of the first plurality of DRMs is configured to act as a tunable wavelength converter to select the desired path of an optical signal through the optical switch fabric (C4+C5+C6, D2+D3+D4); and wherein each of the first plurality of DRMs (C3, D1) includes a concentrator, the concentrator configured to aggregate optical signals received from any of the M inputs of that DRM and to buffer them according to the one of the plurality of second DRMs (C7, D5) that includes their destination port.

An ONU receiving an optical signal from an OLT including PON controllers includes: an optical receiver to convert, into an electric signal, an optical signal having a single optical wavelength set out of plural optical wavelengths; and a control frame extractor to extract and hold wavelength correspondence information indicating correspondence between MAC addresses of the PON controllers received from the OLT and the optical wavelengths. The control frame extractor, when receiving a wavelength switching request, extracts the optical wavelength after wavelength switching instructed in the wavelength switching request, obtains a setting address of the MAC address of the PON controller to which the ONU itself should be connected after the wavelength switching based on the extracted optical wavelength after the wavelength switching and the wavelength correspondence information, and determines whether a malfunction occurs based on a transmission source MAC address stored in a received control frame and the setting address.

A light signal multiplexer and a light signal demultiplexer corresponding to the light signal multiplexer. The light signal multiplexer may include a reflector and a filter, in which the reflector is disposed on a plurality of input light paths to allow a plurality of light signals input along the input light paths to be reflected toward the filter disposed on at least one output light path, and the filter is disposed to allow the light signals reflected toward the filter to be reflected along the at least one output light path, and thus the light signal multiplexer may individually set the input light paths for the light signals.

Systems and methods for performing wavelength conflict detection are provided. These are to detect situations in optical networks where two instances of the same wavelength channel have been added. Wavelength conflict detection is performed for each of a plurality of possible wavelength channels that could be present in an optical signal, each wavelength channel that is present modulated by a pilot tone signal with a respective pilot tone frequency, the pilot tone signal carrying M-ary pilot tone data, M=2.sup.n, n≧1, with a respective one of M different sequences being used to represent each of M possible data values over a data value period. Conflict detection for each wavelength channel involves performing correlation peak detection using each of the M different sequences to determine correlation peaks for each of the M different sequences, and, based on the determined correlation peaks, determining whether multiple instances of the wavelength channel are present in the optical signal.

Processing a received optical signal in an optical communication network includes equalizing a received optical signal to provide an equalized signal, demodulating the equalized signal according to an m-ary modulation format to provide a demodulated signal, decoding the demodulated signal according to an inner code to provide an inner-decoded signal, and decoding the inner-decoded signal according to an outer code. Other aspects include other features such as equalizing an optical channel including storing channel characteristics for the optical channel associated with a client, loading the stored channel characteristics during a waiting period between bursts on the channel, and equalizing a received burst from the client using the loaded channel characteristics.

This invention relates to provisioning wavelength-selective switches and reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexers to minimize the bandwidth narrowing effect from the optical filters. Novel architectures and methods are disclosed that can significantly reduce bandwidth-narrowing on channels in a reconfigurable WDM network where a large number of optical filter elements are cascaded. Instead of blocking unused channels as in the prior art, unused channels are selectively provisioned depending on the state of their adjacent channels. Unused adjacent channels of an active channel are provisioned to follow the same path as the active channels. As each channels is deployed, the channel frequency is selected so as to minimize bandwidth narrowing.