High confinement waveguide on an electro-optic substrate
Granted: July 8, 2014
Patent Number:
8774569
The invention relates to an optical device including a passive high confinement waveguide, such as of silicon-rich silicon nitride, on an electro-optic substrate, like lithium niobate, optically coupled to a waveguide in the electro-optic substrate. A wide range of electro-optic devices are enabled by this high confinement waveguide structure, including: directional couplers, compact tap couplers, folded electro-optic devices, electro-optic modulators including ring resonators,…
Electro-optic device
Granted: July 8, 2014
Patent Number:
8774565
An electro-optic device is disclosed, in which an RF signal electrode is used as a bias ground electrode. Thus, for Z-cut lithium niobate electro-optic crystals, there is no need to place a buried bias electrode under the RF signal electrode and over the optical waveguide. As a result, both optical and the RF wave propagation losses are reduced. In another embodiment, a buried bias electrode is placed over the optical waveguide between two buffer layers having a different electrical…
Align/notify compression scheme in a network diagnostic component
Granted: July 1, 2014
Patent Number:
8769152
The embodiments disclosed herein relate to a network diagnostic component or device that is placed in-line between a first and second node. The diagnostic component or device is used to compress pre-specified Dwords of a network data stream. For example, the first node may communicate with the second node using a network data stream that includes a first component and a pre-specified component. In some embodiments, the network data stream may be of the SAS/SATA protocol. The network…
MoCA quality index measurement system for qualifying home networks
Granted: June 24, 2014
Patent Number:
8762088
Systems and methods for quantifying the suitability of a coax network segment to support MoCA communications, comprising: transmitting a test signal associated with MoCA communications through the segment's first end; receiving the test signal through the segment's second end; determining a response function; determining a channel degradation reference based on the highest power level of the response function and a predetermined reference; calculating subcarrier degradation for each MoCA…
System and method for selective distribution of measurement device configuration in a loosely coupled autonomous system
Granted: June 24, 2014
Patent Number:
8762076
Probe configuration is achieved in a measurement system in which probes are given possible configuration data depending upon conditions in an area relevant to the area of the probe. The possible probe configurations include global boundaries, such as time, and each probe then, based upon the possible configurations, selects a configuration. In one embodiment, the probe may interact with a central processor to further define the probe configuration. In one embodiment, probes may…
Wavelength selective switch
Granted: June 24, 2014
Patent Number:
8761554
Provided is a wavelength selective switch, which includes: an input/output unit; a dispersive portion; a condensing optical system; and the deflection portion. The input/output unit has input/output ports. The dispersive portion disperses signal light incident from the input/output ports. The condensing optical system condenses a plurality of signal light beams dispersed by the dispersive portion. The deflection portion has a plurality of deflection elements. The deflection elements…
Multi-segment photovoltaic power converter with a center portion
Granted: June 3, 2014
Patent Number:
8742251
The invention provides a photovoltaic power converter that includes a plurality of spatially separated device segments supported by a substrate, wherein the device segments are arranged in a circular pattern wherein a first group of the device segments consisting of one or more of the device segments is centrally positioned and is surrounded by a second group of the device segments comprising at least two device segments and wherein two or more of the plurality of the device segments are…
Small form factor variable optical attenuator with cladding mode suppressing fiber
Granted: May 27, 2014
Patent Number:
8737778
The invention relates to an electro-static variable optical attenuator suitable for use in a small form factor pluggable module. A short cladding suppressing fiber, such as a double clad optical fiber, dissipates attenuated light coupled to the cladding to reduce modal interference in the output light, while also reducing PDL and WDL introduced by the off set attenuation mechanism.
Characterizing a frequency channel in an optical network
Granted: May 20, 2014
Patent Number:
8731400
A tunable optical filter is configured to take point measurements at a few optical frequencies per frequency channel of a DWDM optical network. The measurement frequencies are shifted by pre-determined amounts relative to the optical frequency channel being characterized. Since the spectral shape of the tunable optical filter is known, the center optical frequency, the modulation bandwidth, and the total optical power of the channel can be obtained from as few as three optical…
Interactive test device and a method of testing of a cable network
Granted: May 20, 2014
Patent Number:
8732604
A test device is disclosed having a display and a graphical user interface (GUI) that provides guidance to a user by displaying first and second icons for representing first and second actions to be taken by the test device upon selecting the first and the second icons, respectively, by the user. To provide the guidance to the user, the second icon has graphical features indicative of the current status of the first action. For cases where the first action is a test that failed, the…
Semiconductor light source having a reflector
Granted: May 20, 2014
Patent Number:
8727567
A reflector is mounted to an outer perimeter of a heat sink holding at least one edge-emitting semiconductor chip, for example a laser diode. The reflector has a shape suitable for gathering light emitted by the laser diodes and redirecting the light in an upward direction away from the heat sink. The reflector can be overmolded onto the heat sink. The reflector can operate by total internal reflection, so that no additional reflector coating step is required. Injection molding of the…
Apparatus for orienting magnetic flakes
Granted: May 20, 2014
Patent Number:
8726806
A printing apparatus includes a magnetic rotatable roller with a smooth even outer surface for aligning magnetic flakes in a carrier, such as an ink vehicle or a paint vehicle to create optically variable images in a high-speed, linear printing operation. Images can provide security features on high-value documents, such as bank notes. Magnetic flakes in the ink are aligned using magnetic portions of the roller, that can be formed by permanent magnets embedded in a non-magnetic roller…
Ingress noise localization in a cable network
Granted: May 13, 2014
Patent Number:
8724681
Ingress noise labeling tags are coupled into the signal path at various nodes of a cable network. The tags imprint a unique electric signature into a local ingress noise, making the noise identifiable at the headend of the network. In one embodiment, tags do not require external control signals to operate, the electrical response of the tags being determined by present and/or past magnitudes of the return path signal. Such tags can be made entirely passive, not requiring a control signal…
Test device and method of detecting an imbalance in a power level of a channel
Granted: May 6, 2014
Patent Number:
8718121
The present invention provides a test device and a method enabling automatic detection of an imbalance in a power level of a channel. The test device includes a tuner, a power-level measurement system, and an evaluation unit. According to the method, a test channel is selected from a plurality of channels, by means of the tuner. A power level of the test channel and a total power level of the plurality of channels are measured, by means of the power-level measurement system. A ratio of…
M×N wavelength selective switch (WSS)
Granted: April 22, 2014
Patent Number:
8705960
An M×N wavelength-selective switch (WSS) is provided. M input ports launch M input beams towards a wavelength-dispersing system, which disperses the M input beams into M×K sub-beams at K wavelength bands. A redirecting system redirects the M×K sub-beams towards a first 1×K switching array, which selects K sub-beams from the M×K sub-beams. The redirecting system blocks the (M?1)×K non-selected sub-beams, but re-images the K selected sub-beams onto a second 1×K switching array by…
Method for time aware inline remote mirroring
Granted: April 22, 2014
Patent Number:
8705395
A method of monitoring packet traffic is provided. The method includes: at a first access point, capturing portions of traffic packets passing therethrough separated by time intervals; encapsulating the portions of traffic packets thereby forming encapsulated packets and adding timestamps to the encapsulated packets so as to preserve the portions of traffic packets and information related to the time intervals; transmitting the encapsulated packets over a network; decapsulating the…
Reconfigurable optical amplifier
Granted: April 15, 2014
Patent Number:
8699125
A reconfigurable optical amplifier is formed of a plurality of optical switches and a plurality of fiber amplifier sections to provide a switchable amplifying network. A variable pump splitter provides pump light from an optical pump source to two or more fiber amplifier sections. The optical switches and variable pump splitters are formed in a planar lightwave circuit, which may further include pump WDM combiners, variable optical attenuators, tap couplers and other optical components,…
Tunable optical filter and spectrometer
Granted: April 15, 2014
Patent Number:
8699024
A tunable optical filter is disclosed having an input port, a beam translator for translating input and output optical beams, an element having optical power for collimating the translated beam, a reflective wavelength dispersive element, and an output port. The beam translator can include a tiltable MEMS mirror coupled to an angle-to-offset optical element. An output port can be extended into a plurality of egress ports, each receiving a fraction of the scanned optical spectrum. A…
Method of collecting BGP routing protocol messages
Granted: April 8, 2014
Patent Number:
8693350
BGP Route Recorder (BRR) captures and dumps Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) messages received from BGP peers. Passive links are established between the BRR and BGP peers. All incoming and outgoing BGP messages are recorded and timestamped. Rather than tear down BGP peering sessions when errors are encountered, error conditions are recorded, and the BRR may be configured to maintain links across selected BGP errors.
Frequency referencing for tunable lasers
Granted: April 8, 2014
Patent Number:
8693512
The invention relates to an apparatus and a method for referencing an optical frequency of a tunable laser. Light from a reference laser and the tunable laser is injected into a length of an optical waveguide from opposite ends thereof. When the optical frequency of the tunable laser is swept, SBS induced positive and negative peaks in the optical power of light transmitted through the waveguide are used to provide an accurate frequency change reference.