Abstract:
According to the invention, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is disclosed. The system may include a central office and a first plurality of optical fibers. The central office may include a trunk line-out and a first optical line terminal. The first optical line may be in communication with the trunk line-out via at least a first optical line. The first optical line terminal may also include a first optical splitter, internal to the first optical line terminal, configured to split a first communication travelling across the first optical line into a first plurality of sub-communications. Each of the first plurality of optical fibers may receive one of the first plurality of sub-communications from the first optical line terminal and provides it to one of the plurality of customer premises.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates generally to Fiber-To-The-x (“FTTx”) telecommunication architectures. More specifically the invention relates to integration of management subsystems in FTTx telecommunication architectures. 
         [0002]    FTTx telecommunication architectures are systems which are wholly, or at least partly, established using fiber optic technology. In prior art systems, optical splitters, the last piece of hardware before termination of optical lines at a customer premises optical network terminal were widely distributed, increasing maintenance and configuration costs. 
         [0003]    The current invention provides solutions to these and other problems. 
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    In one embodiment, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is provided. The system may include a central office and a first plurality of optical fibers. The central office may include a trunk line-out and a first optical line terminal. The first optical line terminal may be in communication with the trunk line-out via at least a first optical line. The first optical line terminal may also include a first optical splitter, internal to the first optical line terminal, configured to split a first communication travelling across the first optical line into a first plurality of sub-communications. Each optical fiber in the first plurality of optical fibers may receive one of the first plurality of sub-communications from the first optical line terminal and provides it to one of the plurality of customer premises. 
         [0005]    In another embodiment, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is provided. The system may include a plurality of customer premises, a central office, and a first plurality of optical fibers. The central office may include a trunk line-out and a first optical line terminal. The first optical line terminal may be in communication with the trunk line-out via at least a first optical line. The first optical line terminal may also include a first optical splitter, internal to the first optical line terminal, configured to split a first communication travelling across the first optical line into a first plurality of sub-communications. Each optical fiber in the first plurality of optical fibers may receive one of the first plurality of sub-communications from the first optical line terminal and provides it to one of the plurality of customer premises. The system may also include a second optical line terminal. The second optical line terminal may be remote from the central office and in communication with the central office via at least a second optical line. The second optical line terminal may also include a second optical splitter, internal to the second optical line terminal, configured to split a second communication travelling across the second optical line into a second plurality of sub-communications. Each optical fiber in the second plurality of optical fibers may receive one of the second plurality of sub-communications from the second optical line terminal and provides it to one of the plurality of customer premises. 
         [0006]    In another embodiment, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is provided. The system may include a first means, a second means, and a third means. The first means may be for communicating with a wide area network. The second means may be for providing a first optical communication line in communication with the first means. The third means may be for splitting the first optical communication from the second means into a plurality of optical communication lines. The second means may include the third means, and each of the plurality of optical communication lines may provide telecommunication services to one of the plurality of customer premises. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]    The present invention is described in conjunction with the appended figures: 
           [0008]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an embodiment of the prior art for providing telecommunication services to customer premises; 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of an embodiment of the invention for providing telecommunication services to customer premises; 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is an axonometric view of an optical line terminal of the prior art; and 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is an axonometric view of an optical line terminal of the invention. 
       
    
    
       [0012]    In the appended figures, similar components and/or features may have the same numerical reference label. Further, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label by a letter that distinguishes among the similar components and/or features. If only the first numerical reference label is used in the specification, the description is applicable to any one of the similar components and/or features having the same first numerical reference label irrespective of the letter suffix. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0013]    The ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the disclosure. Rather, the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing one or more exemplary embodiments. It being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. 
         [0014]    Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, circuits, systems, networks, processes, and other elements in the invention may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail. In other instances, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments. 
         [0015]    Furthermore, embodiments of the invention may be implemented, at least in part, either manually or automatically. Manual or automatic implementations may be executed, or at least assisted, through the use of machines, hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, firmware, middleware or microcode, the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in a machine readable medium. A processor(s) may perform the necessary tasks. 
         [0016]    In one embodiment of the invention, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is provided. A prior art system is shown in  FIG. 1 , and an embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0017]    In  FIG. 1 , system  100  may include a central office (“CO”)  105  having a local optical line terminal (“OLT”)  110 . OLT  110  may be in communication with a trunk line-out at CO  105 . OLT  110  may be in communication with a remote optical splitter  115  via optical line  120 . Optical splitter  115  may be in communication with optical network terminals (“ONTs”)  125  via optical fibers  130 . 
         [0018]    An OLT  135 , remote from CO  105 , may be in communication with CO  105  via optical line  140 . Optical splitter  145  may be in communication with OLT  135  via optical line  150 . Optical splitter  145  may be in communication with ONTs  155  via optical fibers  160 . 
         [0019]    Splitters  115 ,  145  may be located remotely from CO  105 , and may, for example, be located locally to ONTs  125 ,  155 . Likewise, remote OLT  135  may also be located remotely from CO  105 , but locally to ONTs  125 ,  155 . ONTs  125 ,  155  may be located at customer premises and provide end-user telecommunication services thereto. 
         [0020]    In  FIG. 2 , system  200  may include a CO  205  having a local OLT  210 . OLT  210  may be in communication with a trunk line-out at CO  205 . OLT  210  may include an integrated optical splitter  215 . Integrated OLT  210 /optical splitter  215  may be in communication with ONTs  220  via optical fibers  225 . 
         [0021]    An OLT  230 , remote from CO  205 , may be in communication with CO  205  via optical line  235 . OLT  230  may include an integrated optical splitter. Integrated OLT  230 /optical splitter  240  may be in communication with ONTs  245  via optical fibers  250 . In some embodiments, services provided at ONTs  220  may be entirely configurable upstream from OLT  210 . 
         [0022]    Remote OLT  230  may be located remotely from CO  205 , but locally to ONTs  220 ,  245 . ONTs  220 ,  245  may be located at customer premises and provide end-user telecommunication services thereto. In some embodiments, services provided at ONTs  245  may be entirely configurable upstream from OLT  230 . In other embodiments, services provided at ONTs  245  may be entirely configurable upstream from CO  205  or further upstream. 
         [0023]    As can be seen by comparing  FIG. 1  with  FIG. 2 , longer runs of optical fibers  225  and  250  are used in the present embodiment over the prior art, but synergies are created by combining optical splitters  215 ,  240  with OLTs  210 ,  230 . Furthermore, new multi-fiber cabling and connecting of optical fibers to OLTs  210 ,  230 , as will be further described below in reference to  FIG. 4 , allow for many more ONTs  220 ,  245  to be physically connected to, and serviced by, each integrated OLT/splitter combination. While only three ONTs  220 ,  245  are shown connected to each integrated OLT/splitter, one skilled in the art will recognize that any number of ONTs  220 ,  245  may be in communication with each integrated OLT/splitter. 
         [0024]      FIG. 3  shows an axonometric view of an OLT  300  of the prior art.  FIG. 4  shows an axonometric view of an OLT  400  of the instant invention. 
         [0025]    Prior art OLT  300  may have an interface  310  configured to communicate, either directly, or indirectly, with a wide area network. Circuitry  320  may allow communication to travel between the wide area network and optical fibers  330 . OLT  300  may have indicators  340  which indicate the status of OLT  300 . Such indicators  340  may include: a power indicator; an activity indicator; and status indicators for each optical fiber port  350 . In this prior art embodiment, each of four optical fibers  330  is individually connected to OLT  300  via optical fiber ports  350 . 
         [0026]    OLT  400  of the instant invention may have an interface  410  configured to communicate, either directly, or indirectly, with a wide area network. Circuitry  420  may allow communication to travel between the wide area network and optical fibers  430 . 
         [0027]    OLT  300  may have indicators  440  which indicate the status of OLT  400 . Such indicators  440  may include: a power indicator; an activity indicator; and a status indicator with buttons capable of determining the status for each optical fiber port  450 . In this embodiment, all of the optical fibers  430  (thirty-two distinct optical fibers in this embodiment, less or more are possible in other embodiments) are collectively connected to OLT  400  via a multi-fiber cable and connector (in this example, a ribbon cable/connector) at optical fiber port  450 . 
         [0028]    In another embodiment of the invention, a system for providing telecommunication services to a plurality of customer premises is provided. The system may include a first means, a second means, and a third means. 
         [0029]    In some embodiments, the first means may be for communicating with a wide area network. The first means may include, merely by way of example, a trunk line-out, a CO, an OLT, and/or any other equivalent for communicating with a wide area network now available or existing in the future. 
         [0030]    In some embodiments, the second means may be for providing a first optical communication line in communication with the first means. The second means may include, merely by way of example, an OLT and/or any other equivalent for providing a first optical communication line in communication with the first means now available or existing in the future. 
         [0031]    In some embodiments, the third means may be for splitting the first optical communication from the second means into a first plurality of optical communication lines. The third means may include, merely by way of example, an optical splitter and/or any other equivalent for splitting the first optical communication from the second means into a first plurality of optical communication lines now available or existing in the future. 
         [0032]    In some embodiments, the second means may include the third means, and each of the plurality of optical communication lines may provide telecommunication services to one of the plurality of customer premises. 
         [0033]    In some embodiments, the system may include a fourth means and a fifth means. 
         [0034]    In some embodiments, the fourth means may be for providing a second optical communication line in communication with the first means. The fourth means may include, merely by way of example, an OLT and/or any other equivalent for providing a second optical communication line in communication with the first means now available or existing in the future. 
         [0035]    In some embodiments, the fifth means may be for splitting the second optical communication from the fourth means into a second plurality of optical communication lines. The fifth means may include, merely by way of example, an optical splitter and/or any other equivalent for splitting the second optical communication from the fourth means into a second plurality of optical communication lines now available or existing in the future. 
         [0036]    In some embodiments, the fourth means may include the fifth means, and each of the second plurality of optical communication lines may provide telecommunication services to one of the plurality of customer premises. In some embodiments, the fourth and fifth means may be remote from the first means, second means, and/or third means. 
         [0037]    The invention has now been described in detail for the purposes of clarity and understanding. However, it will be appreciated that certain changes and modifications may be practiced within the scope of the appended claims.