Patent ID: 6128113
Filing Date: 2000-10-03
Classification: H04Q

Abstract:
An optical switch for switching optical signals among a plurality of communicating nodes, each node being connected to the switch by one or more corresponding fiber-optic cables containing optical fibers collectively carrying input wavelength-division-multiplexed (WDM) optical signals to the switch from the node and output WDM optical signals from the switch to the node, the switch comprising:for each cable containing fibers carrying output WDM signals from the switch, a multiplexing optical element optically coupled to such fibers, the multiplexing optical element being effective to generate the output WDM signals by concentrating beam segments directed to the multiplexing optical element onto the fibers to which it is coupled;for each cable containing fibers carrying input WDM signals to the switch, a demultiplexing optical element optically coupled to such fibers, each demultiplexing optical element being effective to form a corresponding optical beam from the input WDM signals carried by the fibers to which it is coupled, each optical beam being formed to include coplanar spatially-adjacent sets of optical rays, each set being produced from the input WDM signals from a particular optical fiber, each ray in each set being a corresponding different wavelength component of the input WDM signals from which the set is produced;for each optical beam formed by a demultiplexing optical element, a corresponding set of optical gates, each optical gate within each set being associated with a corresponding one of the multiplexing optical elements and being effective to select a contiguous group of optical rays in the formed optical beam to form a corresponding gated beam segment; andfor each optical gate, a corresponding optical shifting element effective to direct the gated beam segment formed by the optical gate to the multiplexing optical element with which the optical gate is associated.