BEIJING – Telecom equipment vendor Huawei announced that it had tested the industry’s first prototype of a 40G passive optical network (PON). The 40G PON system was jointly tested and certified by Huawei and the China Telecom Beijing Research Institute earlier this month.

The system uses wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology that allows a 40 Gbps downstream transmission rate and a 10 Gbps upstream rate, with no change to legacy GPON/XGPON optical distribution networks. The system also supports a 1:512 optical splitting ratio (much higher than current split ratios) and a transmission reach of 20 kilometers (lower than some GPON systems today).

For the most part, telecom operators are not looking to deploy 40G or even 10G PONs today; rather, they want to make sure that the networks they install today have a roadmap for future upgrades. Huawei says its 40G PON system will enable operators to integrate future upgrade and evolution initiatives with their existing GPON deployment plans, offering them more control over the total cost of operation throughout the entire life cycle.

“As telecom operators worldwide rush to implement optical fiber deployment strategies, a key question is how to build sustainable optical access networks that can evolve and grow into the future,” says You Yiyong, president of Huawei’s access network product line. “Huawei continually strives for customer-oriented innovation in the optical access sector and to provide telecom operators worldwide with premium products and future-proof solutions that help them increase their return on investment and grow in a fast changing world. The launch of the first 40G PON prototype is testament to this commitment.”

“Huawei’s 40G PON system is highly compatible with existing GPON and XGPON systems and its transmission convergence layer maximally leverages existing GPON and XGPON structures,” says Dr. Frank J. Effenberger, Huawei’s chief optical access technology expert. “We are pleased to note that Huawei’s solution has gained wide-ranging support from international standardization organizations like FSAN and ITU-T.”

Huawei’s SingleFAN solution and related offerings now serve over one-third of the world’s broadband users.

Share