Full service access networks: experimental realization and performance

This paper describes how an experimental full services access network has been constructed at BT Labs and presents views on how its performance could be improved to meet the reliability and traffic loading requirements expected in real applications such as fiber to the business and fiber to the cabinet. The experimental network included: asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) switch, an ATM passive optical network (PON), very high speed digital subscriber loop (VDSL) customer drop and ATM forum 25 Mbit/s customer network. The design and realization of the VDSL customer drop, the signaling system and the interfaces between the system elements formed a major part of the design and construction work at BT Labs. The ability to cope with varying service demand and achieving the necessary quality of service are important requirements for roll-out systems. This paper describes how these requirements could be met in the design of future proprietary equipment.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.