Patent ID: 7149433

Claim:
A digital optical network bypass for a pre-existing in-line optical amplifier in an optical span of an optical transport network comprising: an digital optical regenerator bypass that provides a bypass for a first WDM signal on the optical span intentionaly destined for processing by the pre-existing in-line optical amplifier and where all channel signals in the WDM signal bypassing the pre-existing in-line optical amplifier in the optical span are to be regenerated; the digital optical regenerator bypass comprising: a first optical switch at an input span side of the pre-existing in-line optical amplifier that provides for bypass of the first WDM signal from the optical span to the digital regenerator optical bypass; a monolithic receiver photonic integrated (RxPIC) chip that has a decombiner with an input to receive the bypassed first WDM signal and demultiplexes the first WDM signal into a plurality of first wavelength channel signals on a plurality of waveguide outputs from the decombiner and a plurallity of photodetectors that receive a respective waveguide output and together provide outputs of a pluralilty of first electrical channel signals; an electronic channel signal regenerator that receives the first electircal channel signals and regenerates them into second electrical channel signals; a monolithic transmitter photonic integrated (TxPIC) that has a plurality of modulated sources to convert the second electrical channel signals into second wavelength channel signals on a plurality of waveguide outputs from the modulated sources and a combiner that receives the second wavelength channel signals and multiplexes them into a second WDM signal provided on an output from the first combiner; and a second optical switch at an output span side of the pre-existing in-line optical amplifier that receives the second WDM signal from the combiner output and rejoins the second WDM signal onto the optical span on an output span side of the pre-existing in-line optical amplifier.