Network operating system with topology autodiscovery

• US 20020191241A1
• Filed: 06/06/2002
• Published: 12/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent USA, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Lim, Hock Gin, Craig, Robert George Alexander, Messerschmidt, Markus, Fortin, Guy Claude, Emery, Jeffrey Kenneth, Duan, Youxun, Beer, Paul Edward
• Granted Patent: US 7,747,165 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 398/9
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0227 Operation, administration, maintenance or provisioning [OAMP] of WDM networks, e.g. media access, routing or wavelength allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0228 Wavelength allocation for communications one-to-all, e.g. broadcasting wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0241 Wavelength allocation for communications one-to-one, e.g. unicasting wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0267 Optical signaling or routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0275 using an optical service channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0278 WDM optical network architectures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/50 Address allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0062 Network aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0069 using dedicated optical channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0079 Operation or maintenance aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0088 Signalling aspects

Abstract

The network operating system includes an embedded platform for controlling operation of an agile optical network at the physical layer level. At the module embedded level, each module (card-pack) is provided with an embedded controller EC that monitors and control operation of the optical modules. At the next level, each shelf is provided with a shelf processor SP that monitors and control operation of the ECs over a backplane network. All optical modules are connected over an optical trace channel to send/receive trace messages that can then be used to determine network connectivity. At the next, link management level, a network services controller NSC controls the SPs in a negotiated span of control, over a link network. The control is address-based; each NSC receives ranges of addresses for the entities in its control, and distributes these addresses to the SPs, which in turn distribute addresses to the ECs in their control. One of the SPs operates as a router on the link network to relay signaling and control to all entities based on their address. Each NSC constructs, from queried information, a network topology fragment for the embedded elements under its control. A distributed topology system (DTS) shares this topology information with neighboring NSC'"'"'s to build a complete network view, which can be used by all interested network applications.

Claims

1. An embedded platform for controlling operation of an agile optical network at the physical layer level, comprising:

a module level layer for monitoring and controlling operation of all optical modules that make-up said agile optical network;

a shelf level layer for controlling operation of said module level embedded layer and for collecting topology data regarding configuration of said module level embedded layer; and

a shelf network for connecting said shelf level embedded layer with said module level embedded layer.

2. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 1, wherein said module level layer comprises a plurality of modules organized on domains, and wherein said shelf level layer comprises a plurality of shelf processors, a domain being controlled by a shelf processor over a shelf network.

3. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 2, wherein said modules are serially connected over an optical trace channel OTC, said OTC for transporting a trace message with information about identity and connectivity of said modules.

4. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 2, wherein said trace message is a collection of identifiers updated by each module along an optical path with the respective module topology data.

5. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 4, wherein said collection of identifiers include the module type, placement, and interconnect order in said optical path.

6. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 2, wherein said shelf processor and said module in a domain are housed into a shelf, said shelf network being provided on the backplane of said shelf of equipment.

7. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 2, wherein said module comprises a standard card equipped with:

means for receiving an optical module that performs a specific operation on a WDM signal; and

a module embedded controller for identifying the optical module type when inserted into said means for receiving, validating the configuration of said module against module templates and updating said trace message accordingly.

8. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 7, wherein said standard card further comprises:

means for O-E and E-O converting said trace message; and

means for distributing control and signaling data between said module embedded controller and said shelf network and for distributing said converted trace message to and from said embedded controller.

9. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 1, wherein said module comprises a standard terminal card equipped with:

an optical terminal provided with physical layer processing means, for converting a forward user signal into a forward traffic signal and converting a reverse traffic signal into a reverse user signal; and

a module embedded controller for controlling operation of said optical terminal and said physical layer processing means, identifying the terminal type, validating the configuration of said module against module templates and updating a trace message accordingly.

10. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 5, wherein said embedded controller comprises a memory for storing a list of valid module templates.

11. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 2, wherein said SP comprises:

a shelf embedded controller for identifying the shelf type, validating the shelf configuration against a shelf template and updating said trace message accordingly;

a network processor for distributing addresses to each module in said respective embedded domain and routing signaling and control data pertinent to the modules in each respective shelf domain to/from said shelf embedded controller; and

an interface between said network processor and a link-level network.

13. A NOS as claimed in claim 10, wherein said link-layer network comprises a node network that connects said NSC with a SP at a node that houses said NSC.

14. A NOS as claimed in claim 13, wherein said link-layer network comprises an optical line network that connects said NSC with a SP of an optical line amplifier connected in a fiber link that emanates from said node.

15. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 12, wherein said NSC exchanges signaling and control data with all other NSCs of said agile optical network over an internal data network IDN based on an unique address on said IDN.

16. An embedded platform as claimed in claim 12, wherein each said link-layer network is connected to said IDN over a SP in said link-level network that operates as a virtual router to distribute said signaling and control data to a tandem virtual router on another link-level network, based on said internal address.

18. A control plane as claimed in claim 16, wherein said embedded processing platform comprises:

an embedded controller EC on each module of said agile optical network;

a shelf processor on each shelf of said network;

a shelf network for connecting all ECs in a shelf of equipment with a corresponding shelf processor,

wherein said ECs are serially connected over an optical topology channel OTC for enabling said link management platform to discover the current topology of said agile optical network.

19. A control plane as claimed in claim 18, wherein said OTC is a unidirectional channel, which is one of multiplexed with the traffic and provided on a separate fiber from the traffic.

20. A control plane as claimed in claim 17, wherein said DTS comprises interfaces with a plurality of network applications that request access to said MIB.

21. A control plane as claimed in claim 17, wherein said DTS organizes hierarchically all operation, administration and maintenance OAM information collected from said modules in said MIB based on said internal addresses.

22. A control plane as claimed in claim 17, wherein said DTS organizes hierarchically all module, shelf and network element templates in said MIB.

23. A control plane as claimed in claim 22, wherein a module template includes module identification data for all modules available in said agile optical network, a list with all valid interconnection between said modules, slot identification data and port identification data.

24. A control plane as claimed in claim 22, wherein a shelf template includes shelf, module, slot, port identification information and a list of valid interconnection between said modules

26. A method as claimed in claim 25, further comprising:

reporting the identity and connectivity of all modules in a trace message carried on an optical trace channel; and

processing said trace messages into module level topology data.

27. A method as claimed in claim 26, further comprising:

auto-determining the type of each shelf based on said trace message;

validating the configuration of said shelf against pre-stored shelf templates; and

providing shelf level topology data.

28. A method as claimed in claim 27 further comprising hierarchically storing said module level and shelf level topology data into a management information base based on said internal address.

29. A method as claimed in claim 28, further comprising providing a distributed topology system for accessing said topology data through application specific interfaces to allow a network application to access only network topology data of interest.

12. A network operating system NOS for an agile optical network, comprising:

an embedded platform organized on embedded domains under control of a shelf processor, for controlling operation of said agile optical network at the physical layer level;

a link management platform organized on spans of control SOCs under control of a network services controller NSC, for controlling operation of said agile optical network at the optical connection layer level; and

a link-layer network for connecting said SPs in a SOC with said NSC.

17. An optical layer control plane for an agile optical network of the type provided with a management information base MIB and with an internal signaling and control network, comprising:

an embedded processing platform for monitoring and controlling operation of one or more all shelves in said agile optical network at optical module granularity, and for collecting in said MIB topology data for all modules and shelves that make-up said agile optical network;

a link management platform for monitoring and controlling operation of all network elements of said agile optical network, and for collecting in said MIB topology data pertinent to said network elements;

means for hierarchically distributing a unique internal address on said internal signaling and control network to each said module, shelf and network element; and

a distributed topology system DTS for hierarchically organizing the topology data in said MIB to allow independent routing, switching and restoration functions for a connection.

25. A method of network topology autodiscovery for an optical agile network having a variety of interconnected modules, one or more modules making up a shelf, one or more shelves making up of a network element, comprising:

hierarchically assigning an internal address to each module, shelf and network element of said agile optical network; and

auto-determining the type of each module and validating the configuration of said module against pre-stored module templates.