IP Library › Granted Patent US 12713164

Granted Patent B2

US 12713164 · App. 18/690,284 · Granted Aug 18, 2026

Submarine branching unit, and control method

Inventor: Andre Arashiro (Tokyo, JP)

Assignee: NEC CORPORATION

H04Q11/0005 H04B10/27 H04J14/0212 H04Q2011/0007

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Quick Facts

Patent No.: US 12713164
App. No.: 18/690,284
Granted: Aug 18, 2026
Kind: B2

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Abstract

An object of present disclosure is to provide a submarine branching unit, a control method, and a non-transitory computer readable medium capable of implementing path switching of optical cables by using a smaller number of optical switches. A submarine branching unit according to the present disclosure includes: first to third optical switches each including first to fourth terminals; and a control unit configured to control a connection of each of the first to third optical switches to a vertical connection or a horizontal connection based on a specified connection state, in which: the first terminal of the first optical switch is connected to an input of a first line of a first path; the second terminal of the first optical switch is connected to the first terminal of the third optical switch.

Claims (74)

1 . A submarine branching unit comprising:

at least one memory storing instructions;

first to third optical switches each comprising first to fourth terminals; and

at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to;

control a connection of each of the first to third optical switches to a vertical connection or a horizontal connection based on a specified connection state, wherein

the first terminal of the first optical switch is connected to an input of a first line of a first path,

the second terminal of the first optical switch is connected to the first terminal of the third optical switch,

the third terminal of the first optical switch is connected to an output of the first line of a second path,

the fourth terminal of the first optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the second optical switch,

the first terminal of the second optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the third optical switch,

the second terminal of the second optical switch is connected to an output of a second line of the first path,

the fourth terminal of the second optical switch is connected to an input of a first line of a third path,

the second terminal of the third optical switch is connected to an output of a second line of the third path, and

the fourth terminal of the third optical switch is connected to an input of a second line of the second path.

2 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 1 , wherein each of the first to third optical switches is a 2×2 optical switch.

3 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 1 , wherein

the vertical connection is a connection in which in each of the first to third optical switches, the first terminal is connected to the second terminal; the third terminal is connected to the fourth terminal; the first terminal is not connected to the third terminal; and the second terminal is not connected to the fourth terminal, and

the horizontal connection is a connection in which in each of the first to third optical switches, the first terminal is connected to the third terminal; the second terminal is connected to the fourth terminal; the first terminal is not connected to the second terminal; and the third terminal is not connected to the fourth terminal.

4 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to:

controls the connection of each of the first to third optical switches to the vertical connection when implementing a first state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; and the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path, and

controls the connection of each of the first to third optical switches to the horizontal connection when implementing a second state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; and the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path,

controls the connection of the first optical switch to the horizontal connection and controls each of the second and third optical switches to the vertical connection when implementing a third state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; and the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path,

controls the connection of each of the first and third optical switches to the vertical connection and controls the second optical switch to the horizontal connection when implementing a fourth state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; and the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path, and

controls the connection of each of the first and second optical switches to the vertical connection and controls the third optical switch to the horizontal connection when implementing a fifth state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; and the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path.

5 . A submarine branching unit comprising:

at least one memory storing instructions;

first to sixth optical switches each comprising first to fourth terminals; and

at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to;

control a connection of each of the first to sixth optical switches to a vertical connection or a horizontal connection based on a specified connection state, wherein

the first terminal of the first optical switch is connected to an input of a first line of a first path,

the second terminal of the first optical switch is connected to the first terminal of the third optical switch,

the third terminal of the first optical switch is connected to an output of the first line of a second path,

the fourth terminal of the first optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the second optical switch,

the first terminal of the second optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the third optical switch,

the second terminal of the second optical switch is connected to an output of a second line of the first path,

the fourth terminal of the second optical switch is connected to an input of a first line of a third path,

the second terminal of the third optical switch is connected to an output of a second line of the third path,

the fourth terminal of the third optical switch is connected to an input of a second line of the second path,

the first terminal of the fourth optical switch is connected to an output of the first line of the first path,

the second terminal of the fourth optical switch is connected to the first terminal of the sixth optical switch,

the third terminal of the fourth optical switch is connected to an input of the first line of the second path,

the fourth terminal of the fourth optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the fifth optical switch,

the first terminal of the fifth optical switch is connected to the third terminal of the sixth optical switch,

the second terminal of the fifth optical switch is connected to an input of the second line of the first path,

the fourth terminal of the fifth optical switch is connected to an output of the first line of the third path,

the second terminal of the sixth optical switch is connected to an input of the second line of the third path, and

the fourth terminal of the sixth optical switch is connected to an output of the second line of the second path.

6 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 5 , wherein each of the first to sixth optical switch is a 2×2 optical switch.

7 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 5 , wherein

the vertical connection is connections in which in each of the first to sixth optical switches, the first terminal is connected to the second terminal; the third terminal is connected to the fourth terminal; the first terminal is not connected to the third terminal; and the second terminal is not connected to the fourth terminal, and

the horizontal connection is connections in which in each of the first to sixth optical switches, the first terminal is connected to the third terminal; the second terminal is connected to the fourth terminal; the first terminal is not connected to the second terminal; and the third terminal is not connected to the fourth terminal.

8 . The submarine branching unit according to claim 5 , wherein the at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to:

controls the connection of each of the first to sixth optical switches to the vertical connection when implementing a first state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the second path; the input of the first line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the third path, and the input of the second line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the first path,

controls the connection of each of the first to sixth optical switches to the horizontal connection when implementing a second state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the second line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the third path; the input of the first line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the first path, and the input of the second line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the second path,

controls the connection of each of the first and fourth optical switches to the horizontal connection and controls each of the second, third, fifth and sixth optical switches to the vertical connection when implementing a third state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the second line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the second path; the input of the first line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the first path; and the input of the second line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the third path,

controls the connection of each of the first, third, fourth and sixth optical switches to the vertical connection and controls each of the second and fifth optical switches to the horizontal connection when implementing a fourth state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path, the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the second line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the third path; the input of the first line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the second path; and the input of the second line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the first path, and

controls the connection of each of the first, second, fourth and fifth optical switches to the vertical connection and controls each of the third and sixth optical switches to the horizontal connection when implementing a fifth state in which: the input of the first line of the first path is connected to the output of the second line of the first path; the input of the second line of the second path is connected to the output of the second line of the third path; the input of the first line of the third path is connected to the output of the first line of the second path; the input of the second line of the first path is connected to the output of the first line of the first path; the input of the first line of the second path is connected to the output of the first line of the third path; and the input of the second line of the third path is connected to the output of the second line of the second path.

9 . A method for controlling a submarine branching unit,

the submarine branching unit comprising first to third optical switches each comprising first to fourth terminals, in which