The
DirectLight IG optical switch delivers instrumentation
grade switching, VOA, and NIST-traceable calibrated
power meter functionality to users in the manufacturing
test automation area. Lucent has recently chosen
DirectLight for use in its manufacturing operations,
incorporated as part of a test automation station
for its optical networking products.
The value
of switching in manufacturing test is well known,
and used in practice for component, module, and
system-level test for some time. Switches efficiently
connect the ports of devices under test (DUTs),
to various pieces of test equipment and simulated
network impairments (such as fiber spools, polarization
controllers, etc.). Switches also enable 24/7
automation of test processes, permitting faster
testing, and the potential to remotely trouble-shoot
systems fully deployed into manufacturing environments
if a failure occurs.
To
date, the cost of optical switching has limited
the manufacturing engineer to choosing smaller
1xN switches. These smaller switches can be combined
to give a larger effective switch, albeit at significant
cost – a blocking matrix, with numerous connections
between the smaller switches resulting in significantly
higher losses, and the need to manage multiple
devices.
Parametric
and protocol-layer tests are made far more effective
through a cost-effective MxN optical matrix switch.
As a fully transparent connection tool, the DirectLight
product can be used for any of Lucent’s optical
networking products, regardless of line rate or
protocol. A single non-blocking DirectLight switch
can replace numerous separate switches, separate
VOAs, and separate power meter devices –
all with a single control interface. This eliminates
dozens of unnecessary connector losses, and amplifiers
that would otherwise be required to offset these
losses, thus improving the overall loss budget.
With
the built-in per-channel VOA and power meter,
reduction in up-front equipment costs with DirectLight
can be as much as 4 times lower. In addition to
the reduction in equipment costs, a single device
means far fewer components to spare and calibrate
– meaning lower life cycle costs, and less
downtime. For those situations where footprint
is critical, DirectLight can dramatically reduce
the space in a test set, where as much as half
a rack can be condensed to 2 rack units (3.5”).
