Active optical combiner for CATV network

1. A device for preventing optical beat interference when relaying content between a head end and a plurality of subscribers remote from the head end, the device comprising:

(a) a unit operating as a splitter in a forward path direction and an active combiner in a reverse path direction,

(b) a multiplexer in the forward and reverse paths for receiving both forward path and reverse path signals;

(c) the reverse path including:

the active combiner having a plurality of ports for receiving respective optical signals from the plurality of subscribers, each port having a wavelength division multiplexer (WDM) for directing received upstream light to a detector at each port, the combiner for preventing optical beat interference (OBI) in the reverse path direction by converting each of the respective optical signals received from the plurality of subscribers in to electrical signals prior to combining the individual electrical signals to create a combined electrical signal, and amplifying the combined electrical signal; and

a transmitter that receives the amplified, combined electrical signal and converts it to a reverse path optical signal for reverse path transmission,

wherein in the reverse path the multiplexer multiplexes the reverse path optical signal with a forward path optical signal and in the forward path the multiplexer demultiplexes a received optical signal for splitting downstream on separate fiber links.

2. The device of claim 1 including a high pass filter applied to the combined electrical signal prior to amplifying said combined electrical signal.

3. The device of claim 2 where the combiner includes a plurality of photodetectors operating at a bias, and the high pass filter has an impedance characteristic set to minimize a drop in said bias when all photodetectors are simultaneously illuminated.

4. The device of claim 1 including an EDFA for amplifying forward path signals.

5. The device of claim 1 where the transmitter is capable of operating in burst mode where the transmitter is in a high power state during bursts of transmission and where the transmitter is in a low power state during periods of no transmission, and where the low power state is above the threshold of the laser transmitter.

6. The device of claim 5 where the transmitter may selectively be instructed to operate in continuous mode.

7. The device of claim 1 where the transmitter operates in continuous mode.

8. The device of claim 1 connected by a first fiber to a head end, and connected by a second fiber to a second device having a combined splitter/combiner unit, where the second said device is connected to an ONU by a third fiber, such that the third fiber relays reverse path signals from the ONU to the second said device, the second fiber relays reverse path signals from the second said device to said device, and the first fiber relays reverse path signals from the device to the head end.

9. An RFOG ONU for relaying content to a head end from at least one subscriber remote from the head end, the ONU comprising:

(a) a unit operable as a splitter in the forward direction and as an active combiner in a reverse direction to combine received electrical signals from the at least one subscriber, and amplifying the received electrical signals, the active combiner having a plurality of ports for receiving respective optical signals from the plurality of subscribers, each port having a wavelength division multiplexer (WDM) for directing received upstream light to a detector at each port, the splitter/combiner for preventing optical beat interference (OBI) in the reverse path direction by converting each of the respective optical signals received from the plurality of subscribers in to electrical signals prior to combining the individual electrical signals to create a combined electrical signal;

(b) a transmitter that converts the amplified electrical signal to a reverse path optical signal;

(c) a multiplexer that in the reverse path multiplexes the reverse path optical signal with a forward path optical signal and in the forward path demultiplexes a received optical signal for splitting downstream on separate fiber links; and

(d) a controller that monitors the RF power from at least one of said plurality of inputs to adjust the gain to the transmitter and the output power of the transmitter.

10. The ONU of claim 9 where the transmitter may operate in burst mode between a high power state and a low power state, the low power state greater than zero and less than the high power state.

11. The ONU of claim 9 where the transmitter may operate in continuous mode.

12. The ONU of claim 9 where the gain is increased to an amount that is proportional to an increase in output power.

13. The ONU of claim 12 where the gain is increased linearly over a time interval.

14. The ONU of claim 9 where the controller delays an increase in gain relative to an increase in output power.

15. The ONU of claim 9 where the controller increases the output power level faster than the controller increases the gain.

16. A method for relaying content between a head end and a plurality of subscribers remote from the head end, a splitter splitting forward path signals and an active combiner combining reverse path signals, the method comprising:

(a) amplifying a signal and then splitting the amplified signal to propagate along a forward path direction a plurality of forward path signals;

(b) receiving respective optical signals from each of the plurality of subscribers, and converting each of the respective optical signals received from the plurality of subscribers in to electrical signals prior to combining them to create a combined electrical signal;

(c) amplifying the combined electrical signal and converting the combined signal to an optical signal; and

(d) propagating the combined said optical signal along a reverse path direction.

17. The method of claim 16 where the fiber length between the head end and at least one of said plurality of subscribers is at least 25 km.

18. The method of claim 17 where the fiber length between the head end and at least one of said plurality of subscribers is at least approximately 40 km.

19. The method of claim 16 where the head end has at least one of: (a) only one transmit port; (b) only one receive port; and (c) only one WDM component.

20. The method of claim 16 where the combined optical signal is propagated along the reverse path direction using a transmitter operating in burst mode.

21. The method of claim 16 where the combined optical signal is propagated along the reverse path direction using a transmitter operating in continuous mode.

22. The method of claim 16 including the step of cycling from a low power state to a high power state when an optical signal is received from at least one of said plurality of subscribers.

23. The method of claim 16 including the step of relaying said content between at least one other device between said head end and said subscribers.