Communicating with components in optical communication systems using voltage signal detection and signature analysis

1. A method for communicating with a component in an optical communication system, the method comprising:

modulating a voltage level across the component to provide at least one voltage signal representing information associated with the component;

acquiring voltage data from power feed equipment (PFE) in the optical communications system;

processing the voltage data to detect the at least one voltage signal in the voltage data and to analyze the at least one detected voltage signal to determine at least one best match between the at least one detected voltage signal and at least one of a plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures, the plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures being associated with indicators for providing the information associated with the at least one component in the optical communications system; and

recording the indicator associated with the at least one best match of the predetermined voltage signal signatures, wherein the indicator is indicative of the information communicated from the component,

wherein the optical communication system includes a plurality of stations, each of the stations including an element management system (EMS) and at least one of the stations including a network management system (NMS), and wherein the voltage data is acquired by sampling PFE voltage data in at least one of said plurality of stations using the EMS in said at least one of said plurality of stations, and wherein the PFE voltage data is logged by the NMS in at least one of the stations for said processing.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing a command to the component in the optical communication system, wherein the voltage level is modulated across the component to provide the voltage signal in response to an attempted execution of the command.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the information represented by the voltage signal includes an affirmative or negative response indicative of a successful or unsuccessful execution of the command.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising providing a query to the component in the optical communication system inquiring about a status of the component, wherein the voltage level is modulated across the component to provide the voltage signal in response to a determination of the status of the command.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the information represented by the voltage signal includes a current status of the component.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one component includes at least one branching unit in the optical communication system, and wherein the information includes an affirmative or negative response indicative of a successful or unsuccessful execution of a switching command.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein modulating the voltage level across the component includes generating at least one pulse in the voltage level by turning on and off an internal voltage drop in the component.

8. A method for performing automatic signature analysis of voltage data representing system voltage across at least a portion of an optical communication system, the system voltage including at least one voltage signal generated by modulating the voltage across at least one component in the optical communication system, the voltage signal representing information associated with the at least one component in the optical communication system, the method comprising:

logging voltage data acquired from power feed equipment (PFE) in the optical communication system; and

processing the voltage data to detect the at least one voltage signal in the voltage data and to analyze the at least one detected voltage signal to determine at least one best match between the at least one detected voltage signal and at least one of a plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures, the plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures being associated with indicators for providing the information associated with the at least one component in the optical communications system,

wherein the optical communication system includes a plurality of stations, each of the stations including an element management system (EMS) and at least one of the stations including a network management system (NMS), and wherein the voltage data is acquired by sampling PFE voltage data in at least one of said plurality of stations using the EMS in said at least one of said plurality of stations, and wherein the PFE voltage data is logged by the NMS in at least one of the stations for said processing.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein processing the voltage data includes processing the voltage data in said network management system (NMS).

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the information represented includes an affirmative or negative response indicative of successful or unsuccessful execution of a command.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the at least one component includes at least one branching unit in the optical communication system, and wherein the information represented includes an affirmative or negative response indicative of successful or unsuccessful execution of a switching command.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein processing the voltage data to detect the voltage signal includes validating and preprocessing the voltage data.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the voltage signal is generated by modulating the voltage with at least one pulse.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein processing the voltage data to detect the voltage signal includes preprocessing the voltage data to form square pulses.

15. A machine-readable medium whose contents, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform the method of claim 8 .

16. A machine-readable medium whose contents, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform the method of claim 13 .

17. An optical communications system comprising:

a plurality of stations coupled by optical transmission cable;

a plurality of components located along the optical transmission cable and remote from the stations, wherein at least one of the components is configured to modulate a voltage level across the component to provide a voltage signal representing information associated with the component;

at least one data acquisition system configured to acquire voltage data from power feed equipment (PFE) in the optical communications system; and

at least one automated signature analysis system configured to log the voltage data acquired from the PFE, to process the voltage data to detect the at least one voltage signal in the voltage data and to analyze the at least one detected voltage signal to determine at least one best match between the at least one detected voltage signal and at least one of a plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures, the plurality of predetermined voltage signal signatures being associated with indicators for providing the information associated with the at least one component in the optical communications system;

an element management system (EMS) located in a plurality of the stations, the element management system being configured to sample PFE voltage; and

a network management system (NMS) server located in at least one of the stations, the NMS server including the data acquisition system and the automated signature analysis system.

18. The optical communications system of claim 17 wherein the components include at least one branching unit.

19. The optical communications system of claim 17 wherein the at least one branching unit is configured to modulate a voltage level across the branching unit to provide a voltage signal in response to an attempted execution of a switching command.

20. The optical communications system of claim 17 wherein at least one of the stations includes the signature analysis system.