Abstract: A system, for identifying faults in a GPON that includes an OLT and a plurality of ONUs, including: a global error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting FEC-correctable errors, for each ONU, from a data stream from the GPON; and a CPU for extracting an ONU status, indicative of a faulty ONU, contingent on the errors from the global error-counter. A system, for identifying faults in a GPON that includes an OLT and a plurality of ONUs, including: a grant-start error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting grant-start errors, for each ONU, from a data stream from the GPON; a grant-end error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting grant-end errors for each ONU; and a CPU for extracting an ONU status, indicative of a faulty ONU, contingent on a parameter selected from the group consisting of the grant-start errors, the grant-end errors, and a combination thereof.

Abstract: A method for dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) in a passive optical network (PON) comprises the steps of: in a configuration stage, dividing a predetermined grant cycle into N parts, dividing by an optical line terminal (OLT) a plurality of optical network units (ONUs) into N ONU groups and in each cycle part, concurrently allocating grants to ONUs of one ONU group while having the ONUs of at least one other ONU group send reports and data to the OLT. In a preferred embodiment, the cycle is divided into two fixed half cycles.

Abstract: The present invention discloses methods for reducing power consumption in a PON while maintaining service continuity, the method including the steps of: providing an OLT operationally connected to at least one ONU; triggering a sleep request for at least one requesting ONU; upon receiving a sleep acknowledgement, activating a sleep mode for at least one requesting ONU according to a sleep period designated in the sleep request; and terminating the sleep mode according to the sleep period. Preferably, the sleep acknowledgement is transmitted from the OLT to the requesting ONU. Preferably, the sleep period is executed by a sleep command in the sleep acknowledgement. Preferably, the method further includes the step of: upon completion of the sleep period, transmitting buffered data traffic from the OLT to a sleeping ONU. Preferably, the step of transmitting is performed without the sleeping ONU being re-registered and without causing packet reordering.

Abstract: In a passive optical network, dynamic bandwidth allocation and queue management methods and algorithms, desgiend to avoid fragmentation loss, guarantee that a length of a grant issued by an OLT will match precisely the count for bytes to be transmitted to an ONU.

Abstract: A dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) processor comprises a DBA co-processor having DBA co-processor components and operative to perform and accelerate DBA functions, and a processing core logically coupled to the DBA co-processor through a processing bus and operative to configure and dynamically control all the DBA co-processor components and to run sections of algorithms that cannot be accelerated on the DBA co-processor. The DBA processor significantly accelerated the bandwidth allocation in a communications network such as an optical communications network or a fast wireless network. The DBA co-processor and the processing core may be integrated on a chip.

Abstract: In a passive optical network, dynamic bandwidth allocation and queue management methods and algorithms, designed to avoid fragmentation loss, guarantee that a length of a grant issued by an OLT will match precisely the count for bytes to be transmitted to an ONU. The methods include determining an ONU uplink transmission egress based on a three-stage test, and various embodiments of methods for ONU report 700 threshold setting.

Abstract: The present invention discloses devices and methods for improving data correlation using a multiple-correlation state-machine, the method including the steps of: (a) pre-processing a data frame having a plurality of symbol sets, wherein each symbol set demarks a respective frame field of the frame, to provide a threshold-compared hamming-distance indicator; (b) comparing the threshold-compared hamming-distance indicator with at least one multiple-correlation threshold to provide a threshold-compared multiple-correlation indicator; and (c) combining the threshold-compared hamming-distance indicator and the threshold-compared multiple-correlation indicator to determine a match/no-match comparison indicative of the respective frame field. In some embodiments, the step of combining includes forming a logical-AND of the threshold-compared hamming-distance indicator and the threshold-compared multiple-correlation indicator.

Abstract: Systems and methods for bandwidth doubling in an Ethernet passive optical network (EPON) enable an optical line terminal (OLT) to transmit downlink to at least one double rate optical network unit (ONU). The double rate transmission is preferably facilitated by use of single rate devices (OLT and ONU) functionally connected to provide the double rate capability. The methods include packet-by-packet multiplexing, bit-by-bit line code interleaving, doubling an inter-packet gap (IPG) length, defining windows of transmission for different transmission rates, using the 8B/10B code, removing the 8B/10B code from just the downlink transmission and symbol-by-symbol multiplexing is downlink transmissions from the double rate OLT.

Abstract: A system, for identifying faults in a GPON that includes an OLT and a plurality of ONUs, including: a global error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting FEC-correctable errors, for each ONU, from a data stream from the GPON; and a CPU for extracting an ONU status, indicative of a faulty ONU, contingent on the errors from the global error-counter. A system, for identifying faults in a GPON that includes an OLT and a plurality of ONUs, including: a grant-start error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting grant-start errors, for each ONU, from a data stream from the GPON; a grant-end error-counter, coupled to the OLT, for counting grant-end errors for each ONU; and a CPU for extracting an ONU status, indicative of a faulty ONU, contingent on a parameter selected from the group consisting of the grant-start errors, the grant-end errors, and a combination thereof.

Abstract: A method for registration of multiple entities belonging to a specific optical networks unit (ONU). In one embodiment, the multiple entity registration method comprises checking by an optical line terminal (OLT) if a registration request message (400) received from the specific ONU belongs to a certain grant (402), and based on the check result, registering an entity as either a first (408) or as an additional entity (404) of the specific ONU. In another embodiment, the method comprises checking by an OLT of a reserved value of a flags field (502) inside a registration request message (500), and based on the check result, registering an entity as either a first (508) or as an additional entity (504) of the specific ONU. The knowledge by an OLT that multiple entities belong to a specific ONU is used for grant optimization and packet data flow optimization.

Abstract: Systems and methods for bandwidth doubling in an Ethernet passive optical network (EPON) enable an optical line terminal (OLT) to transmit downlink to at least one double rate optical network unit (ONU). The double rate transmission is preferably facilitated by use of single rate devices (OLT and ONU) functionally connected to provide the double rate capability. The methods include packet-by-packet multiplexing, bit-by-bit line code interleaving, doubling an inter-packet gap (IPG) length, defining windows of transmission for different transmission rates, using the 8B/10B code, removing the 8B/10B code from just the downlink transmission and symbol-by-symbol multiplexing is downlink transmissions from the double rate OLT.

Abstract: A method for registration of multiple entities belonging to a specific optical networks unit (ONU). In one embodiment, the multiple entity registration method comprises checking by an optical line terminal (OLT) if a registration request message received from the specific ONU belongs to a certain grant, and based on the check result, registering an entity as either a first or as an additional entity of the specific ONU. In another embodiment, the method comprises checking by an OLT of a reserved value of a flags field inside a registration request message, and based on the check result, registering an entity as either a first or as an additional entity of the specific ONU. The knowledge by an OLT that multiple entities belong to a specific ONU is used for grant optimization and packet data flow optimization.

Abstract: A data encryption-decryption method includes the steps of receiving a data byte N and performing a triple-churning operation on byte N to obtain an encrypted byte N. Preferably, the triple-churning operation includes performing a first churning operation to obtain a first churned output, bit-wise XORing the first churned output with two values to obtain a first XOR result, performing a second churning operation on the first XOR result to obtain a second churned output, bit-wise XORing the second churned output with two values to obtain a second XOR result, and performing a third churning operation on the second XOR result to obtain encrypted byte N.

Abstract: In a passive optical network, dynamic bandwidth allocation and queue management methods and algorithms, designed to avoid fragmentation loss, guarantee that a length of a grant issued by an OLT will match precisely the count of bytes to be transmitted by an ONU. The methods include determining an ONU uplink transmission egress order based on a three-stage test, and various embodiments of methods for ONU report threshold setting.

Abstract: A dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) processor comprises a DBA co-processor having DBA co-processor components and operative to perform and accelerate DBA functions, and a processing core logically coupled to the DBA co-processor through a processing bus and operative to configure and dynamically control all the DBA co-processor components and to run sections of algorithms that cannot be accelerated on the DBA co-processor. The DBA processor significantly accelerated the bandwidth allocation in a communications network such as an optical communications network or a fast wireless network. The DBA co-processor and the processing core may be integrated on a chip.

Abstract: A method for dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) in a passive optical network (PON) comprises the steps of: in a configuration stage, dividing a predetermined grant cycle into N parts, dividing by an optical line terminal (OLT) a plurality of optical network units (ONUs) into N ONU groups and in each cycle part, concurrently allocating grants to ONUs of one ONU group while having the ONUs of at least one other ONU group send reports and data to the OLT. In a preferred embodiment, the cycle is divided into two fixed half cycles.

Abstract: A method of managing forward error correction (FEC) initialization and auto-negotiation in ethernet passive optical networks includes receiving FEC data from an optical network unit (ONU 105), and the optical line terminal (OLT 103) responds to the ONU with FEC data. Upon receiving data not forward error corrected from an ONU. The OLT responds with data not coded for FEC (203). Similarly, upon receiving forward error corrected data from the OLT, the ONU responds with forward error corrected data (503); and upon receiving data not forward error corrected from the OLT, the ONU responds with data not forward error corrected (203). The communications quality from the ONU is monitored (501), if the communications quality is not sufficient, the OLT transmits forward error corrected data to the ONU; otherwise, the OLT transmits non-FEC data to the ONU.

Abstract: Alignment-enabled secondary nodes of a DAMA network monitor the alignment of for-transmission data as it is received, and actively align the data frames into encoded blocks such that the number of blocks occupied by encoded data resulting from an unencoded datastream of a particular length is predictable rather than variable. In some embodiments, the network is an Ethernet passive optical network and the alignment includes aligning a XGMII word having a start control code to a first position in a 72 bit word input to a 66B/66B encoder, thereby encoding a start-of-frame (/S/) code to a first byte of an encoded first Ethernet 66b block.

Abstract: In a communication system in which data is transferred by packets, a ranging method in which a receiver, in a given ranging window, periodically compares received data with expected data to find a match. The periodic comparison includes searching for known preamble and/or delimiter sequences of ranging packets and involves timeouts for each search period. In case a match between the known sequences and received sequences is not found and the respective timeout is exceeded, the search and comparison process is restarted and continues until a global timeout is exceeded.

Abstract: A method for improving the bit error rate of Ethernet packets applies forward error correction (FEC) coding to transmitted packets. The FEC coding is systematic block coding, and is applied so that the coded packets can be interpreted by legacy network devices that are not capable of FEC decoding. The transmit and receive state machines of FEC-capable Ethernet nodes are modified to enable the nodes to encode and/or decode the packets with the FEC code, and to adapt the nodes' respective medium access layer (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) data rates.