Patent ID: 6411410
Filing Date: 2002-06-25
Classification: H04B,H04J,H04L

Abstract:
A communications network including:an optical transmitter for generating a plurality of optical signals having different respective wavelengths, each said optical signal carrying data, and wavelength division-multiplexing the optical signals; and a plurality of optical receivers connected to the optical transmitter by way of a passive optical network for receiving the wavelength-division-multiplexed optical signals, each receiver having wavelength selection means operable in dependence upon control information sent from the transmitter to the receiver concerned by way of said passive optical network to select one of the optical signals of said plurality, and also having detection means for processing the selected optical signal to derive therefrom the data carried thereby, wherein the control information sent from said optical transmitter to said optical receivers causes at least two different optical receivers to select the same one of the optical signals at different times; and wherein said optical transmitter includes: a plurality of transmitter devices corresponding respectively to said optical signals, each transmitter device being connected to a transmission control means for receiving therefrom the data allocated by the transmissions control means to its corresponding optical signal and being operable to modulate its corresponding optical signal with the allocated data; and wavelength-division-multiplexing combiner means coupled to each of said transmitter device for wavelength-division-multiplexing said optical signals.