Patent ID: 6909850

Claim:
A method for establishing a connection between a receiver terminal and a transmitter terminal, located at a distance from each other, comprising the steps of: sending from said transmitter terminal toward said receiver terminal both a first tightly bundled lightwave carrying data signals and a second wider angle beacon lightwave to assist in receptive alignment of said first data signal lightwave; using an acquisition sensor and a receiving sensor at said receiver terminal to acquire said wider beacon lightwave and generate internal control signals to better align said receiving sensor to receive said data signals; using said receiving sensor to receive said data signals once proper alignment has been achieved; wherein light from said receiving sensor is conducted over a first lightwave fiber to a diplexer, and light is split off from this diplexer and conducted to a detector over a second lightwave fiber, which provides an additional signal for making acquisition easier; further wherein light, which arrives via the first lightwave fiber and the diplexer, is also conducted to an optical waveguide coupler, in which this light, and light from a local laser conducted through a third lightwave fiber, are mixed, wherein the mixed light is split into two parts, each of which reaches a further detector via respective further lightwave fiber for generating at least one error signal.