Patent ID: 8824893
Filing Date: 2014-09-02
Classification: H04B,H04J

Abstract:
1. An optical network unit for use in a protected passive optical access network having a meshed structure including at least two central nodes and a plurality of optical network units, the optical network unit comprising: (a) a western network port and an eastern network port adapted to receive a western or eastern optical network receive signal, respectively, and to output an eastern or western optical network transmit signal, respectively, the receive and transmit signals having a time division multiplex structure; (b) at least one local port adapted to receive a local transmit signal to be transmitted to the network and to output a local receive signal extracted from the western or eastern optical network receive signal; (c) a western and an eastern receiver unit adapted to receive the western or eastern optical network receive signal from the respective western or eastern network port, respectively, and to convert the respective received western or eastern optical network receive signal into an electrical network receive signal; (d) a western and an eastern transmitter unit adapted to receive a western or an eastern electrical network transmit signal, respectively, and to convert the respective received western or eastern electrical network transmit signal into the respective eastern or western optical network transmit signal, and (e) a control unit adapted to provide a selectable bidirectional communication between the at least one local port and an additional optical network unit via either the western or the eastern network port and to provide a pass-through communication between the western and eastern network ports by processing the electrical network receive signals and the local transmit signal and by creating the local receive signal and the western and eastern electrical network transmit signals in a format selectable as either a symmetric time division multiplex transmission scheme or an asymmetrical time division multiplex transmission scheme, the time division multiplex transmission scheme for the western electrical network receive and transmit signals being independently selectable from the time division multiplex transmission scheme for the eastern electrical network receive and transmit signals.