AUTOMATED NODE LEVEL FIBRE AUDIT

• US 20140112658A1
• Filed: 10/18/2012
• Published: 04/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ciena Corporation
• Original Assignee: Ciena Corporation
• Inventors: HURLEY, DANE, KOHLERT, SCOTT
• Granted Patent: US 9,660,755 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 398/28
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/07 Arrangements for monitoring or testing transmission systems; Arrangements for fault measurement of transmission systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/0731 Testing or characterisation of optical devices, e.g. amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/021 Reconfigurable arrangements, e.g. reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers [ROADM] or tunable optical add/drop multiplexers [TOADM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0212 using optical switches or wavelength selective switches [WSS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0217 Multi-degree architectures, e.g. having a connection degree greater than two
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0219 Modular or upgradable architectures
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 14/0227 Operation, administration, maintenance or provisioning [OAMP] of WDM networks, e.g. media access, routing or wavelength allocation

Abstract

A method of automated testing and evaluation of a node of a communications network, the method comprising: a management computer interacting with the node to discover fibre trails within the node that can be safely tested; and the management computer interacting with the node to test at least continuity of each identified fibre trail that can be safely tested

Claims

1. A method of automated testing and evaluation of a node of a communications network, the method comprising:

a management computer interacting with the node to discover fibre trails within the node that can be safely tested; and

the management computer interacting with the node to test at least continuity of each identified fibre trail that can be safely tested;

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed “

On-Demand”

.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed in accordance with a predetermined schedule.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein discovering fibre trails within the node that can be safely tested comprises deriving a map of fibre trails within the node that are not in use carrying active wavelengths.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein deriving a map of fibre trails within the node that are not in use carrying active wavelengths comprises:

obtaining information identifying each piece of equipment installed in the node;

for each identified piece of equipment, obtaining information identifying respective ports, photodiodes and Amplified Spontaneous Emission (ASE) sources;

identifying port trails of active wavelengths;

identifying dark photodiodes;

identifying ASE sources upstream of identified dark photodiodes; and

identifying, from among the ASE sources upstream of dark photodiodes, those ASE sources that can be safely turned on.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein dark photodiodes include any one or both of receivers and Optical Performance Monitoring (OPM) devices of the node that are not receiving light of an active wavelength.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein testing at least continuity of each identified fibre trail that can be safely tested comprises:

turning on a selected ASE source in an identified fibre trail, and

detecting light from the ASE source at a dark photodetector downstream of the selected ASE source.

8. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising software instructions implementing an automated testing and evaluation process, the software instructions comprising:

instructions for controlling a management computer to interact with the node to discover fibre trails within the node that can be safely tested; and

instructions for controlling the management computer to interact with the node to test at least continuity of each identified fibre trail that can be safely tested.

9. A management computer comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium including software instructions implementing an automated testing and evaluation process, the software instructions comprising:

instructions for controlling the management computer to interact with the node to discover fibre trails within the node that can be safely tested; and

instructions for controlling the management computer to interact with the node to test at least continuity of each identified fibre trail that can be safely tested.

10. The management computer of claim 9, wherein the management computer is a central management computer remote from the network node.

11. The management computer of claim 9, wherein the management computer is a management computer of the network node.