AUTOMATIC CONFIGURATION OF OPTICAL CROSS-CONNECTOR AT MANUAL CONNECTION

Abstract: An optical cross-connector for signal connection between fiber-optical wires, including a plurality of ports for connection of fiber-optical connectors. Signal connection means is arranged to connect optical signals from said connectors between said ports, and a contact sensor is arranged to register when fiber-optical connectors are connected to said ports. Said signal connection means is at that arranged to automatically establish a signal connection from a first registered connection connector to a second registered connection connector. The optical cross-connector can be set to a position for automatic configuration in pairs of point-to-point signal connections, for broadcasting signal connection, or to a position without automatic configuration.

Description: AUTOMATIC CONFIGURATION OF OPTICAL CROSS-CONNECTOR AT MANUAL CONNECTION Field of the invention The present invention relates to an optical cross- connector for fiber-optical tele and data communication systems, and a method for automatic configuration of the ports of said cross-connector. Background The development of fiber-optical transmission systems for digital traffic makes possible very high transmission speeds. Networks like SONET and SDH are intended for, for instance, tele and data communication, and offers transmission speeds of up to several Gbit/s. The advantages of optical networks compared with traditional electric networks are obvious, and SONET is for instance specified in the standard for broadband-ISDN (B-ISDN) . At use of complex optical networks it is advantageous to utilize so called optical cross-connectors, intended to reroute wavelength channels, or optical signals generally. An optical cross-connector is a network device intended for telecommunication carriers to change optical high-speed signals. They differ from a digital cross-connector in that it deals with multiple high speed signals which are changes m full and are not multiplexed together. Characteristic of the optical cross-connector is that it operates m the optical domain (physical layer), that is, it only deals with optical channels (bit streams) without manipulating in that included information or channel integrity. Even when the optical channel at import respective export is in the optical domain, the channel can locally in the cross- connector change to electrical form, however still as a retained channel. Two forms of optical cross-connectors thus are possible, the transparent one, or the opaque one. An optical cross-connector that is intended to reroute wavelength channels, or optical signals m general, is characterized in a number of m- and out-ports. There are indications that such optical cross-connectors m the future can have a large number of ports, up to 1 024 or more. At practical handling of these cross-connectors, manual connection of fiber-optical connectors for each out- and m-port, i.e. for each wavelength channel or optical signal generally, is needed. After this manual handling, which must be performed in a systematical and documented way, wanted cross-connection of m-ports to out-ports is made by means of software that handles the mangement of the optical cross-connector. Two operations consequently are needed; one manual part which must be documented and systematical (connect right connector to right port) and a terminal controlled part (via a management system make wanted cross-connections). Summary of the invention The present invention consequently aims at providing an optical cross-connector, and a method for configuration of this, which bridges the problems of known technology. More exactly it is an aim to provide a cross-connector for which the handling at connection and configuration of fiber-optical connectors is simplified. These aims are achieved by a device for signal connection between fiber-optical wires, including a plurality of ports for connection of fiber-optical connections, and which have signal connection means arranged to connect optical signals between said ports. Characteristic of the invention is that a contact sensor is arranged to register when fiber-optical connectors are connected to said ports. The signal connection means is at that arranged to automatically establish a signal connection from a first registered connected connector to a second registered connected connector. In one embodiment the optical cross-connector can be arranged to be set to automatically configure, in pairs, point-to-point signal connections between registered, connected connectors. The device also can be possible to set to a position for automatic configuration of broadcast signal connection from a registered, connected connector to other registered connected connectors. Said contact sensor can be an optical sensor, arranged to sense electromagnetic radiation from a connected fiber-optical connector. Detailed description of preferred embodiments The invention now will be described in detail with reference to the only Figure 1, which shows a preferred embodiment of an optical cross-connector according to the present invention. The operation with an manual part and a terminal-controlled part as has been described above is simplified according to the invention by an automatic configuration of the optical cross-connector that is shown in Figure 1. At connection of a fiber-optical connector to a port of the cross-connector, this is registered, either via detection of incoming electromagnetic radiation, or in another way, and cross-connection internally in the cross- connector then can be made directly at registration of next connected connector. By means of the figure a simple example can illustrate the invention. In Figure 1, the ports are described as two-way, but they can also be oneway. At the cross-connector 1, there is a selector 2, which can be set to the positions "no auto-configuration" NAC, "point-to-point" P-P, or "broadcast" BC . Say that the position "point-to-point" is used. To in-/out-port P3, represented by I for in and 0 for out, connector Cl is connected, which is registered as the first connected connector by a contact sensor S3 for the port P3. To in- /out-port PI then connector C2 is connected, which is registered by the contact sensor SI. When the selector 2 is set at P-P, the cross-connector then automatically internally connects m-/out-port Pi to m-/outport P3, via signal connection means 3. This point-to-point connection is now established by the autoconfiguration . Then C3 is connected to port P4, and C4 to port P7; the connections are registered by respective contact sensors and are then automatically interconnected by the signal connection means 3 of the cross-connector in the same way as before. This procedure can then go on until all m-/out-ports have been connected and formed pairs . If the selector 2 of the cross-connector is set m position "broadcast", the first connected connector, for instance Cl, is registered as the source which then are connected to all other connected ports, in the shown case C2, C3 and C4. This of course will only work m one direction. For cross-connections which are not of the simple type "point-to-point" or "broadcast", the position "no auto-configuration" shall be used, and the management/handling system is used in ordinary way. The invention is suited for use m optical networks which utilize optical cross-connectors for control of wavelength channels, or for cross-connection of optical signals between data communication switches. Another possible application is for broadcast of optical signals m cable-TV networks. More variants of the described embodiments are possible, and this patent application lay claims to all such variants, provided that they are within the scope of the appended patent claims.

Claims: PATENT CLAIMS 1. Device (1) for signal connection between fiber-optical wires, including a plurality of ports (P1-P8) for connection of fiber-optical connectors (C1-C4), and signal connection means (3) arranged to connect optical signals between said ports, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in a contact sensor (S3, SI) arranged to register when fiber-optical connectors (Cl, C2) are connected to said ports (P3, PI), and that said signal connection means (3) is arranged to automatically establish a signal connection from a first registered connected connector (Cl) to a second registered connected connector (C2). 2. The device for signal connection as claimed in patent claim 1, further including a selector (2) which can be set to a position for automatic configuration of point-to-point signal connections (P-P) in pairs between registered connected connectors. 3. The device for signal connection as claimed in patent claim 1, further including a selector (2) which can be set to a position for automatic configuration of broadcast signal connection (BC) from a registered connected connector to other registered connected connectors. 4. The device for signal connection as claimed in patent claim 2, or 3, where said selector (2) can be set to a position (NAC) in which no automatic configuration is performed. 5. The device for signal connection as claimed in any of the previous patent claims, where said ports are one-way, and said signal connection means is arranged to connect optical signals from in-ports to out-ports. 6. The device for signal connection as claimed in any of the patent claims 1-4, where said ports are two-way, and said signal connection means is arranged to connect optical signals between just any ports. 7. The device for signal connection as claimed m any of the previous patent claims, where said contact sensor is an optical sensor, adapted to sense electromagnetic radiation from a connected fiber-optical connector. 8. Method for configuration of optical cross-connectors, including the steps to: - manually connect a first (Cl) and a second (C2) fiber- optical connector to a first (P3) respective a second (PI) port of an optical cross-connector (1) ; automatically sense, by means of a contact sensor (SI, S3), the connection of the first fiber-optical connector to the first port, and the connection of the second fiber- optical connector to the second port: - register said connections chronologically; automatically connect optical signals form the first registered connection to the second registered connection via a signal connection means (3) . 9. The method as claimed in patent claim 8, where automatic connection of optical signals is performed m pairs point- to-point (P-P) between connected fiber-optical connectors. 10. The method as claimed in patent claim 8, where automatic connection of optical signals is performed by broadcasting (BR) from a first registered connected fiber- optical connector to later registered connected fiber- optical connectors. 11. The method as claimed m any of the patent claims 8-10, where a selector (2) in the cross-connector is set for - automatic configuration of signal connection from point- to-point (P-P) , or - automatic configuration of signal connection in broadcasting (BC) , or - no automatic configuration of signal connection (NAC) .

Inventors: LARSSON STEFAN, LARSSON, STEFAN
Applicants: LARSSON STEFAN, WHL WAVE AB, LARSSON, STEFAN
Application year: 2000
Main classification: G02B6
IPC codes: G02B6