Apparatus and method of managing POTS lines in a PON network

• US 20070263782A1
• Filed: 02/10/2006
• Published: 11/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tellabs Petaluma, Inc. (Infinera Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Tellabs Petaluma, Inc. (Infinera Corp.)
• Inventors: Bernard, Marc, Atkinson, Douglas, Conklin, Thomas, Fernandez, Raul, Stock, John
• Granted Patent: US 7,599,623 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/56.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0067 Provisions for optical access or distribution networks, e.g. Gigabit Ethernet Passive Optical Network (GE-PON), ATM-based Passive Optical Network (A-PON), PON-Ring
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0079 Operation or maintenance aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0081 Fault tolerance; Redundancy; Recovery; Reconfigurability
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2011/0088 Signalling aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1301 Optical transmission, optical switches

Abstract

An apparatus or corresponding method of managing Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) lines in a Passive Optical Network (PON) to prevent an alarm system from generating an alarm during a software upgrade or maintenance of an Optical Network Terminal (ONT), Optical Line Terminal (OLT), or PON while maintaining the effectiveness of the alarm system. The ONT may store data related to a POTS line in nonvolatile memory. The ONT may activate the POTS line based on the data from the nonvolatile memory in an event of interruption in communications with an OLT prior to reestablishing communications with the OLT. The interruption in communications may be caused by an ONT reboot to complete an installation of a software upgrade. The ONT may energize the POTS line with a voltage in response to activating the POTS line to prevent the alarm system from generating the alarm.

Claims

1. A method of managing Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) lines in a Passive Optical Network (PON), the method comprising:

storing data related to a POTS line in memory in a first PON system; and

activating the POTS line based on the data from the memory in an event of interruption in communications between the first PON system and a second PON system prior to reestablishing communications between the first PON system and the second PON system.

2. The method according to claim 1 further including energizing the POTS line with a voltage based on the data prior to reestablishing communications between the first PON system and the second PON system in response to activating the POTS line, wherein energizing the POTS line based on the data prior to reestablishing communications prevents an alarm system coupled to the POTS line from generating an alarm.

3. The method according to claim 1 further including rebooting the first PON system, including the POTS line and memory, the rebooting causing the interruption in communications between the first PON system and the second PON system.

4. The method according to claim 3 wherein rebooting the first PON system includes upgrading software in the first PON system or the second PON system.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the data includes configuration data used to configure the POTS lines to operate as loop start or ground start on a per POTS line basis, and further including activating the applicable configured POTS analog interface on a per POTS line basis.

6. The method according to claim 1 further including:

setting a timer value in the data that specifies a length of time the first PON system maintains a line voltage on the POTS line during the interruption in communications with the second PON system, including during an interruption caused by a reboot of the second PON system;

triggering a timer in an event of interruption in communications between the first PON system and the second PON system; and

removing the line voltage from the POTS line in an event the communications remain interrupted after the timer value is exceeded.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein setting the timer value includes setting a fixed timer value.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein setting the fixed timer value includes setting the fixed timer value to between about 1.5 and 3 minutes.

9. The method according to claim 6 wherein setting the timer value includes setting a configurable timer value.

10. The method according to claim 6 further including configuring the timer value to be:

(i) a first value during times communications between the first PON system and the second PON system are expected to be uninterrupted and (ii) a second value during times communications between the first PON system and the second PON system are expected to be interrupted.

11. The method according to claim 6 wherein setting the timer value includes setting the timer value to a value known to be sufficient to allow the first PON system to reestablish communications with the second PON system, but not so long as to ineffectuate an alarm system coupled to the first PON system via the POTS line.

12. The method according to claim 6 further including:

setting a timer value to less than about 30 seconds;

observing a state of light used for communications on a communications path between the first PON system and the second PON system;

triggering a timer using the timer value in an event of a loss of light on the communications path; and

setting the timer value to a longer value in cases where loss of light is expected to occur.

13. The method according to claim 1 further including transmitting POTS line configuration data from the second PON system to the first PON system.

14. The method according to claim 1 further including using BPON or GPON protocols to communicate between the first PON system and the second PON system.

15. The method according to claim 1 wherein the memory is nonvolatile memory.

16. A Passive Optical Network (PON) comprising:

a first PON system including at least one Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) line;

memory operatively coupled to or configured to store data in the first PON system, the first PON system configured to store data related to the at least one POTS line in the memory; and

a second PON system operatively coupled to the first PON system, the first PON system further configured to activate the at least one POTS line based on the data from the memory in an event of interruption in communications with the second PON system prior to reestablishing communications between the first PON system and the second PON system.

17. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the first PON system is further configured to energize the at least one POTS line with a voltage based on the data prior to reestablishing communications with the second PON system in response to activating the at least one POTS line to prevent an alarm system coupled to the POTS line from generating an alarm.

18. The PON according to claim 16 wherein a reboot of the first PON system, including the at least one POTS line and memory, causes the interruption of communications between the first PON system and the second PON system.

19. The PON according to claim 18 wherein the reboot of the first PON system includes an upgrade to software in the first PON system or the second PON system.

20. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the data includes configuration data used to configure the at least one POTS line to operate as loop start or ground start on a per POTS line basis, the first PON system further configured to activate the applicable configured POTS analog interface on a per POTS line basis.

21. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the data includes a timer value that specifies a length of time the first PON system maintains a line voltage on the at least one POTS line during the interruption in communications with the second PON system, including during an interruption caused by a reboot of the second PON system, and the first PON system includes a timer that is triggered in an event of interruption in communications between the first PON system and the second PON system, the first PON system configured to remove the line voltage from the at least one POTS line in an event the communications remain interrupted after the timer value is exceeded.

22. The PON according to claim 21 further comprising an alarm system operatively coupled to the first PON system via the at least one POTS line and configured to generate an alarm in an event the communications remain interrupted after the timer value is exceeded.

23. The PON according to claim 21 wherein the timer value is a fixed value.

24. The PON according to claim 23 wherein the fixed value is between about 1.5 and 3 minutes.

25. The PON according to claim 21 wherein the timer value is a configurable value.

26. The PON according to claim 25 wherein the timer value is configured to be:

(i) a first value during times communications between the first PON system and the second PON system are expected to be uninterrupted and (ii) a second value during times communications between the first PON system and the second PON system are expected to be interrupted.

27. The PON according to claim 21 wherein the timer value is known to be sufficient to allow the first PON system to reestablish communications with the second PON system, but not so long as to ineffectuate an alarm system operatively coupled to the first PON system via the at least one POTS line.

28. The PON according to claim 21 wherein the timer value is less than about 30 seconds, further comprising a light sensor operatively coupled to the first PON system and configured to observe a state of light used for communications on a communications path between the first PON system and the second PON system, the first PON system configured to trigger the timer using the timer value in an event of a loss of light on the communications path.

29. The PON according to claim 28 wherein the timer value is a longer value in cases where loss of light is expected to occur.

30. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the first PON system includes the memory.

31. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the memory is nonvolatile memory.

32. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the second PON system is configured to transmit Operations, Maintenance, and Control Interface (OMCI) data to the first PON system.

33. The PON according to claim 16 wherein the first PON system and the second PON system are configured to communicate using BPON or GPON protocols.