Architecture for signal distribution in wireless data network
First Claim
1. A distribution network for coupling wireless local area network signals between an internetworking device and a plurality of remotely located access points, to provide wireless local area network service within a geographic coverage area composed of microcells, the distribution network making use of available optical transport cabling of a fiber optic network, comprising:
- (a) a plurality of cable access points, each deployed within a respective one of the microcells, the cable access points each further comprising;
i) a wireless local area network access point, for receiving wireless local area network (WLAN) signals from computing equipment located within the respective microcell, and converting the WLAN signals to local area network compatible signals;
ii) an access point remote optical converter, for receiving the local area network compatible signals from the wireless local area network access point and converting the local area network signals to optical frequency signals for transmission over the available optical transport cabling.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A simple and low cost architecture for a distribution network is provided for coupling wireless local area network (“wireless LAN”) signals between geographically distributed access points and centrally located internetworking devices. The distribution network eliminates complexities involved with the deployment of such systems in the past, which have typically required the computer network-compatible wiring to be extended to each access point directly from an internetworking device such as a repeater, bridge, router, or gateway. The distribution network makes it economically efficient to deploy wireless local area networking equipment in locations where wired network infrastructure is not readily available. In particular, any convenient existing physical wiring, such as may be provided by the existing optical transport cabling of a fiber optic network, is used as a physical layer transport medium to carry the wireless local area network signals between the access points and centrally located network hub equipment.
130 Citations
7 Claims
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1. A distribution network for coupling wireless local area network signals between an internetworking device and a plurality of remotely located access points, to provide wireless local area network service within a geographic coverage area composed of microcells, the distribution network making use of available optical transport cabling of a fiber optic network, comprising:
(a) a plurality of cable access points, each deployed within a respective one of the microcells, the cable access points each further comprising;
i) a wireless local area network access point, for receiving wireless local area network (WLAN) signals from computing equipment located within the respective microcell, and converting the WLAN signals to local area network compatible signals;
ii) an access point remote optical converter, for receiving the local area network compatible signals from the wireless local area network access point and converting the local area network signals to optical frequency signals for transmission over the available optical transport cabling. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A distribution network for coupling wireless local area network signals between an internetworking device and a plurality of remotely located access points, to provide wireless local area network service within a geographic coverage area composed of microcells, the distribution network making use of available optical transport cabling of a fiber optic network, comprising:
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(a) a plurality of access points, each deployed within a respective one of the microcells, the access points each further comprising;
i) an access point remote optical converter that converts the wireless local area network signals used within the respective microcells directly to optical signals for transmission over the optical transport cabling;
(b) a head end access point, comprising;
i) a head end frequency translation stage, for converting the optical signals from the optical transport cabling to wireless local area network transmission band signals; and
ii) a wireless local area network bridge, for receiving the wireless local area network transmission band signals and converting them to network compatible signals.
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Specification