Abstract: Apparatus providing at least one subscriber with subscriber service signals, telephone line signals and/or broadband signals, from one of at least two providers of such signals, including a connector for terminating at least one subscriber premises line, connectors for terminating incoming service lines from at least two providers of subscriber service signals and for permitting either provider of subscriber service signals to connect its incoming service line to the subscriber premises line and for permitting either provider to disconnect from the subscriber premises line the incoming service line of the other provider previously connected to the subscriber premises line and thereafter connect its incoming service line to the subscriber premises line.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
September 22, 1997
Date of Patent:
October 23, 2001
Assignee:
Antec Corporation
Inventors:
David S. Stehlin, Anthony L. Nieves, Stanley Krawiec, Avraham Tuvy
Abstract: A method for transmitting broadcast and narrowcast services in a system having a headend, a hub connected the headend, and a plurality of nodes connected to the hub. Instead of transmitting the signals directly from the headend to each node, the signals are transmitted from the headend to the hub. The signals transmitted from the headend to the hub include both broadcast services to be transmitted to each node and narrowcast services to be transmitted only to predetermined targeted nodes. The broadcast and narrowcast services are transmitted by optical signal beams operating at different wavelengths. Subscribers can transmit signals to the headend, via each node, on the reverse channel. The reverse channel information from subscribers is combined at each respective node into a single wavelength for each node. The narrowcast services are added at the headend instead of at the hub.