Ultra-low latency multi-protocol optical routers for the next generation internet
First Claim
1. An optical router comprising:
- (a) an optical wavelength router having an input and output;
(b) an input optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output, said converter stage being tunable;
(c) an output optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output;
(d) wherein said output of said input wavelength converter stage is connected to said input of said wavelength router, (e) wherein said input of said output wavelength converter stage is connected to said output of said wavelength router;
(f) wherein said optical router is configured for contention resolution by time, space or wavelength domain switching, or a combination thereof, by tuning of said input optical wavelength converter stage; and
(g) wherein optical signals remain in optical form throughout switching, forwarding and transport by said optical router;
(h) a programmable data processor; and
(i) programming executable on said data processor for resolving switching conflicts by carrying out the operations of;
(i) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(ii) determining the preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(iii) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(iv) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(v) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(vi) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An ultra-low latency optical router with a peta-bit-per-second total aggregate switching bandwidth, that will scale to a total connectivity of 1000 by 1000, and beyond by modular upgrades, that utilizes advanced optical technologies to achieve such high capacity with two to three orders of magnitude less volume and power requirements than the electrical router counter part, that serves as a universal engine to other optical routers being developed by vendors and researchers today, that can function in the context of circuit-switching, flow-switching, burst-switching, and packet-switching, that uses advanced wavelength conversion technology to effectively achieve three methods of contention resolution in the router: deflection in wavelength, deflection in space, and buffering in time, and that interfaces a local network to the Supernet.
208 Citations
17 Claims
-
1. An optical router comprising:
-
(a) an optical wavelength router having an input and output;
(b) an input optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output, said converter stage being tunable;
(c) an output optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output;
(d) wherein said output of said input wavelength converter stage is connected to said input of said wavelength router, (e) wherein said input of said output wavelength converter stage is connected to said output of said wavelength router;
(f) wherein said optical router is configured for contention resolution by time, space or wavelength domain switching, or a combination thereof, by tuning of said input optical wavelength converter stage; and
(g) wherein optical signals remain in optical form throughout switching, forwarding and transport by said optical router;
(h) a programmable data processor; and
(i) programming executable on said data processor for resolving switching conflicts by carrying out the operations of;
(i) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(ii) determining the preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(iii) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(iv) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(v) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(vi) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
-
-
4. An optical router comprising:
-
(a) an input port;
(b) a first plurality of tunable optical wavelength converters having inputs connected to said input port;
(c) an output port;
(d) a second plurality of optical wavelength converters having outputs connected to said output port; and
(e) an optical wavelength router connected between said first plurality of wavelength converters and said second plurality of wavelength converters;
(f) wherein said optical router is configured for contention resolution by time, space or wavelength domain switching, or a combination thereof, by tuning of a converter in said first plurality of tunable optical wavelength converters; and
(g) wherein optical signals remain in optical form throughout switching, forwarding and transport by said optical router;
(h) a programmable data processor; and
(i) programming executable on said date processor for resolving switching conflicts by carrying out the operations of;
(i) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(ii) determining a preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(iii) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(iv) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(v) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(vi) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6)
-
-
7. A method for resolving switching conflicts in an all-optical router, comprising:
-
(a) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(b) determining a preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(c) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(d) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(e) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(f) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path;
(g) wherein said optical router comprises (i) an optical wavelength router having an input and output;
(ii) an input optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output, said converter stage being tunable; and
(iii) an output optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output;
(iv) wherein said output of said input wavelength converter stage is connected to said input of said wavelength router;
(v) wherein said input of said output wavelength converter stage is connected to said output of said wavelength router;
(vi) wherein said optical router is configured for contention resolution by time, space or wavelength domain switching, or a combination thereof, by tuning of said input optical wavelength converter stage; and
(vii) wherein optical input data remains in optical form throughout switching, forwarding and transport by said optical router. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
-
-
10. A method for resolving switching conflicts in an optical router, comprising:
-
(a) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(b) determining a preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(c) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(d) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(e) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path;
(f) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path, (g) if the wavelength of the packet cannot be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path at step (f), determining if any wavelength is free on a loop back port;
(h) if a wavelength is free on the loop back port, determining if wavelength conversion is needed;
(i) if wavelength conversion is needed, converting the wavelength, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (c) through (f); and
(j) if wavelength conversion is not needed, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (c) through (f). - View Dependent Claims (11)
-
-
12. An optical router, comprising:
-
(a) an optical wavelength router having an input and output;
(b) an input optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output, said converter stage being tunable; and
(c) an output optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output;
(d) wherein said output of said input wavelength converter stage is connected to said input of said wavelength router;
(e) wherein said input of said output wavelength converter stage is connected to said output of said wavelength router;
(f) wherein tuning said input wavelength converter stage can achieve time, space or wavelength domain switching;
(g) a programmable data processor; and
(h) programming executable on said data processor for resolving switching conflicts by carrying out the operations of;
(i) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(ii) determining the preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(iii) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(iv) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(v) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path;
(vi) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path;
(vii) if the wavelength of the packet cannot be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path at step (vi), determining if any wavelength is free on a loop back port;
(viii) determining if wavelength conversion is needed;
(ix) if wavelength conversion is needed, converting the wavelength, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (iii) through (vi); and
(x) if wavelength conversion is not needed, repeating steps (iii) through (vi). - View Dependent Claims (13)
-
-
14. An optical router, comprising:
-
(a) an input port;
(b) a first plurality of tunable optical wavelength converters having inputs connected to said input port;
(c) an output port;
(d) a second plurality of fixed optical wavelength converters having outputs connected to said output port;
(e) an optical wavelength router connected between said first plurality of wavelength converters and said second plurality of wavelength converters;
(f) wherein tuning a converter in said first plurality of tunable optical wavelength converters can achieve time, space or wavelength domain switching;
(g) a programmable data processor; and
(h) programming executable on said data processor for resolving switching conflicts by carrying out the operations of;
(i) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(ii) determining a preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(iii) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(iv) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(v) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(vi) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path;
(vii) if the wavelength of the packet cannot be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path at step (vi), determining if any wavelength is free on a loop back port;
(viii) if a wavelength is free on the loop back port, determining if wavelength conversion is needed;
(ix) if wavelength conversion is needed, converting the wavelength, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (iii) through (vi); and
(x) if wavelength conversion is not needed, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (iii) through (vi). - View Dependent Claims (15)
-
-
16. A method for resolving switching conflicts in an optical router, comprising:
-
(a) receiving a data packet having an optical wavelength and a destination;
(b) determining a preferred path to the destination from a routing table;
(c) testing the packet to determine if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(d) routing the packet on the preferred path if the wavelength is available on the preferred path;
(e) if the wavelength was not available on the preferred path, determining if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path; and
(f) if the wavelength can be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path, converting the wavelength and routing the packet on the preferred path;
(g) if the wavelength of the packet cannot be converted to a wavelength available on the preferred path at step (f), determining if any wavelength is free on a loop back port;
(h) if a wavelength is free on the loop back port, determining if wavelength conversion is needed;
(i) if wavelength conversion is needed, converting the wavelength, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (c) through (f); and
(j) if wavelength conversion is not needed, sending the packet on the loop back port, and repeating steps (c) through (f);
wherein said optical router comprises (i) an optical wavelength router having an input and output;
(ii) an input optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output, said converter stage being tunable; and
(iii) an output optical wavelength converter stage having an input and an output;
(iv) wherein said output of said input wavelength converter stage is connected to said input of said wavelength router;
(v) wherein said input of said output wavelength converter stage is connected to said output of said wavelength router; and
(vi) wherein tuning said input wavelength converter stage can achieve time, space or wavelength domain switching. - View Dependent Claims (17)
-
Specification