JP7428015B2 - Pluggable optical module, pluggable optical module maintenance method, and pluggable optical module maintenance device - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a pluggable optical module, a pluggable optical module maintenance method, and a pluggable optical module maintenance apparatus.

In optical networks such as FTTH (Fiber To The Home) and CATV, a PON (Passive Optical Network) type optical transmission system is generally employed. A PON is composed of an OLT (Optical Line Terminal), which is an optical line terminal device provided on the communication carrier side, and an ONU (Optical Network Unit), which is an optical line terminal device provided on the subscriber side.

An example of the configuration of an ONU is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-159199 (Patent Document 1). According to Patent Document 1, an ONU includes an electrical/optical converter, an optical line terminal function section, a serial/parallel converter, and an interface module. The interface module has a serial IF (interface) section for inputting and outputting predetermined serial signals.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2009-159199

Conventionally, an ONU has had a configuration in which an optical transceiver and a host device are integrated. In the case of an ONU in which an optical transceiver and a host device are integrated, various interfaces can be mounted on the main body. However, in recent years, optical modules incorporating optical transceivers and controllers have been proposed. This optical module is configured to be insertable into and removed from a host device such as a switch (that is, pluggable). In the case of pluggable ONUs, size considerations constrain the interface modules that can be implemented.

Some ONUs in which an optical transceiver and a host device are integrated have a serial interface for accessing a CPU inside the ONU from outside the ONU. On the other hand, pluggable optical modules generally do not have such a serial interface.

In order to maintain the ONU, it may be necessary to access the CPU from the outside to obtain necessary information or update firmware. For example, it is conceivable that the ONU cannot be started in normal mode due to a problem when updating firmware remotely from the OLT. In the case of a conventional ONU in which an optical transceiver and a host device are integrated, the CPU of the ONU can be accessed from the equipment operating terminal (for example, a personal computer) by connecting the equipment operating terminal (for example, a personal computer) to the serial interface. However, since the pluggable optical module does not have a serial interface, the CPU inside the pluggable optical module cannot be accessed from the outside in the same way as a conventional ONU. Therefore, it is necessary to replace the memory (Flash ROM, etc.) in which the firmware is stored. Such work requires effort, time and cost.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a pluggable optical module that is easy to maintain, and a method and apparatus for maintaining the pluggable optical module.

The pluggable optical module of the present disclosure includes an optical connector, an electrical connector, and a rewritable memory that stores firmware, and is set to maintenance mode by inputting a predetermined signal to the electrical connector, and in the maintenance mode, the pluggable optical module has firmware. Clothing can be updated.

A method for maintaining a pluggable optical module according to the present disclosure is a method for maintaining a pluggable optical module including an optical connector, an electrical connector, and a rewritable memory storing firmware, the method comprising: The method includes the steps of connecting the pluggable optical module to an electrical connector of the maintenance device, performing a firmware check or downloading the firmware via the maintenance device, and removing the pluggable optical module from the maintenance device.

A pluggable optical module maintenance device according to the present disclosure is a pluggable optical module maintenance device including a memory storing firmware, an optical connector, and an electrical connector. The maintenance device has an electrical connector for connecting to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module and a predetermined signal for setting the maintenance mode to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module. and a circuit for giving.

According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a pluggable optical module that is easy to maintain, as well as a maintenance method and a maintenance device for the pluggable optical module.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a PON system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an example of the ONU shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing the internal configuration of the ONU shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the appearance of an ONU (pluggable optical module) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing the internal configuration of an ONU according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration for maintenance of a pluggable optical module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram for explaining startup in degraded mode. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the pin arrangement of an electrical connector according to the MSA standard. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing pin definitions according to the MSA standard. FIG. 10 is an internal block diagram of the maintenance device. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a series of operations at the time of starting the ONU. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process flow of a maintenance method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of firmware inspection or download processing.

[Description of embodiments of the present disclosure]
First, embodiments of the present disclosure will be listed and described.

(1) The pluggable optical module of the present disclosure includes an optical connector, an electrical connector, and a rewritable memory that stores firmware, and is set to maintenance mode by inputting a predetermined signal to the electrical connector, and maintenance Firmware can be updated in this mode.

According to the above, it is possible to realize a pluggable optical module that is easy to maintain. Generally, pluggable optical modules do not have a serial interface for accessing a CPU inside the pluggable optical module. According to the present disclosure, a pluggable optical module can be placed in maintenance mode using an electrical connector. This allows maintenance of the pluggable optical module.

(2) Preferably, the pluggable optical module further has a mode in which update firmware can be downloaded to the memory through the optical connector.

According to the above, the firmware of the pluggable optical module can be updated in a mode other than the maintenance mode (eg, normal operation mode).

(3) A method for maintaining a pluggable optical module according to the present disclosure is a method for maintaining a pluggable optical module including an optical connector, an electrical connector, and a rewritable memory storing firmware. The method includes the steps of connecting the connector to an electrical connector of the maintenance device, performing a firmware check or downloading the firmware via the maintenance device, and removing the pluggable optical module from the maintenance device.

According to the above, the maintenance of the pluggable optical module can be facilitated by the maintenance device connectable to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module.

(4) Preferably, the step of checking the firmware or downloading the firmware includes the step of applying a predetermined signal from the maintenance device to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module to set the pluggable module in maintenance mode; and rebooting the pluggable optical module by providing an instruction from the device via the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module.

According to the above, it is possible to easily maintain the firmware of the pluggable optical module.

(5) A pluggable optical module maintenance device of the present disclosure is a pluggable optical module maintenance device including a memory storing firmware, an optical connector, and an electrical connector, and the pluggable optical module is a pluggable optical module. The maintenance device has an electrical connector for connecting to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module and a predetermined part for setting the maintenance mode to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module. and a circuit for providing a signal.

According to the above, since the mode of the pluggable optical module can be easily set to the maintenance mode by the maintenance device connectable to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module, maintenance of the maintenance pluggable optical module can be facilitated.

[Details of embodiments of the present disclosure]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a PON system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In a typical PON system, subscriber lines include an optical transmission line connected to the OLT side, an optical transmission line connected to each ONU, an optical transmission line on the OLT side, and an optical transmission line on each ONU side. It consists of a connected optical splitter/combiner. As shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment, PON system 100 includes OLT 110 and one or more ONUs 120. The number of ONUs 120 is not particularly limited.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an example of the ONU shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the ONU 120A has, for example, a box-shaped housing. Although not shown in FIG. 2, the ONU 120A includes a connector for connecting an optical cable (referred to as an "optical connector") and a connector for exchanging signals between network devices (referred to as an "electrical connector"). ).

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing the internal configuration of ONU 120A shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the ONU 120A includes a photoelectric conversion unit (O/E) 121, a MAC/CPU 122, a user interface (user I/F) 123, a memory 124, and a serial interface (serial I/F) 125. Equipped with.

The photoelectric conversion unit 121 mutually converts an optical signal and an electrical signal. The photoelectric conversion unit 121 receives an optical signal transmitted from the OLT 110 (see FIG. 1), and converts the optical signal into an electrical signal. On the other hand, the photoelectric conversion unit 121 converts the electrical signal sent from the MAC/CPU 122 into an optical signal, and transmits the optical signal to the OLT 110. The photoelectric conversion unit 121 includes an optical connector for connection to an optical cable.

The MAC/CPU 122 is a block for realizing various functions required for the ONU, and is realized by an LSI. Although not limited to the following, the MAC/CPU 122 realizes, for example, a SERDES (serial-to-parallel conversion) function, a PCS (encoding and error correction) function, a DBA (dynamic band allocation during uplink data transmission) function, an encryption function, etc. do.

User I/F 123 serves as an interface between user equipment 10 and ONU 120. The user equipment 10 is, for example, a network device such as a router. User equipment 10 is connected to user I/F 123 by a cable.

Memory 124 stores firmware 126 for controlling ONU 120A. The memory 124 is, for example, a flash ROM, and stores information in a non-volatile manner.

Serial I/F 125 provides an interface for accessing MAC/CPU 122 from equipment external to ONU 120A. For example, an equipment operation terminal 20 such as a personal computer can be connected to the serial I/F 125.

In the normal mode of the ONU 120A, the firmware of the ONU 120A can be updated remotely from the OLT. However, if the firmware update fails or if the firmware is damaged for some reason, it may become impossible to start up in normal mode. In this case, the equipment operation terminal 20 accesses the MAC/CPU 122 via the serial I/F 125, so that the firmware can be updated again.

On the other hand, ONUs that are pluggable for various terminal devices have also been proposed. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the appearance of an ONU (pluggable optical module) 120 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 4(A) is a top view of the ONU 120, FIG. 4(B) is a left side view of the ONU 120, FIG. 4(C) is a bottom view of the ONU 120, and FIG. 4(D) is a top view of the ONU 120. It is a right view of ONU120.

As shown in FIGS. 4A to 4D, the form factor of the ONU 120 can be SFP (Small Form Factor Pluggable). When the form factor of ONU 120 follows SFP, the size of ONU 120 is 57 mm long x 14 mm wide x 10 mm high.

ONU 120 includes an optical connector 130A for connecting to an optical cable and an electrical connector 130B for connecting to a host device. The optical connector 130A is arranged at one end of the housing of the pluggable optical module. On the other hand, the electrical connector 130B is arranged at the other end of the housing of the pluggable optical module.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing the internal configuration of ONU 120 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 5, the ONU 120 includes a photoelectric conversion unit (O/E) 131, a MAC/CPU 132, a user interface (user I/F) 133, and a memory 134. The function of each block is the same as that of the corresponding block of ONU 120 shown in FIG. The photoelectric conversion unit 131 includes the optical connector 130A shown in FIG. User I/F 133 includes electrical connector 130B shown in FIG. 4.

ONU 120 is pluggable to switch 30. On the other hand, ONU 120 cannot mount a serial I/F due to size constraints. Therefore, another block is required to take over the function of the serial I/F.

In the normal mode of the ONU 120, the host IP function of the MAC/CPU 132 is turned off for security reasons. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, ONU 120 has a function to turn on the host IP function of MAC/CPU 132. By turning on the host IP function of the MAC/CPU 132, it becomes possible to access the MAC/CPU 132 from the user I/F. Therefore, maintenance work that is equivalent to or better than work via the serial I/F (see FIG. 3) becomes possible.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration for maintenance of a pluggable optical module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 6, maintenance device 40 is connected to the user I/F. The maintenance device 40 temporarily turns on the host IP function of the MAC/CPU 132. Equipment operation terminal 20 (for example, a personal computer) is connected to maintenance device 40 . Equipment operation terminal 20 accesses MAC/CPU 132 via maintenance device 40 and user I/F 133.

The memory 134 has a normal area 136 and a degenerate mode area 138. In the normal area 136, firmware for normal mode is written. Note that in the normal mode, the firmware of the ONU 120 can be updated remotely from the OLT. The ONU 120 updates the firmware by handshaking with the OLT, and notifies the OLT of the success or failure of the update.

In the degenerate mode area 138, degenerate mode firmware is written. The degenerate mode area 138 is a non-rewritable area. The degenerate mode firmware is firmware that allows the MAC/CPU 132 to operate only the minimum necessary functions (boot, IP host) for updating the normal mode firmware. By starting the MAC/CPU 132 in the degenerate mode, it becomes possible to access the MAC/CPU 132 from the outside (user I/F 133 side).

If updating the firmware for normal mode fails, ONU 120 may not be able to start in normal mode after rebooting. However, according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, the equipment operation terminal 20 can start the MAC/CPU 132 in a degraded mode. This enables maintenance work on the ONU 120. Therefore, it is possible to continue updating the firmware for normal mode. For example, update firmware may be sent from the equipment operation terminal 20 to the MAC/CPU 132, and the MAC/CPU 132 may write the firmware into the normal area 136. That is, the degenerate mode is a maintenance mode for maintaining the ONU 120.

From a security perspective, host IP functionality needs to be enabled only during ONU 120 maintenance. Unusual operations are performed to turn on host IP functionality.

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram for explaining startup in degraded mode. Referring to FIG. 7, user I/F 133 is an electrical connector and has multiple pins. FIG. 7 exemplarily shows pins 141 to 146.

When the ONU 120 is activated, the pulse signal 5 is input from the maintenance device 40 to a specific pin of the user I/F 133. The MAC/CPU 132 reads the firmware from the degenerate mode area 138 in response to the pulse signal 5 . This causes the ONU 120 to operate in degenerate mode. Note that if the pulse signal 5 is not input to the user I/F 133 at the time of starting the ONU 120, the ONU 120 starts in the normal mode. In this case, the MAC/CPU 132 reads the firmware from the normal area 136 of the memory 134.

In the example shown in FIG. 7, pulse signal 5 is input to pin 145. The pin 145 is set as a signal output pin when the ONU 120 operates in the normal mode. The pin 145 is set as a signal input pin only when the ONU 120 is started. The boot mode can be determined based on the voltage value of the pin 145 when the ONU 120 is started (such as when the power is turned on). When the boot mode is normal mode, pin 145 is set to an output pin. On the other hand, if the boot mode is the degenerate mode, pin 145 is set as an input pin.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the form factor of ONU 120 is SFP compliant. The pin arrangement of the SFP complies with the MSA standard. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the pin arrangement of an electrical connector according to the MSA standard. As shown in FIG. 8, the user I/F 133 (electrical connector) has a pin row 140A arranged on one side of the board and a pin row 140B arranged on the other side of the board. The pin row 140A includes ten pins 140 assigned from No. 1 to No. 10. The pin row 140B includes ten pins 140 assigned numbers 11 to 20. When connecting the user I/F 133 to the host-side connector, pins 1 to 20 contact the corresponding pins of the host-side connector in the order of ground, power, and signal.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing pin definitions according to the MSA standard. The definition shown in FIG. 9 is described in "SFF-8431 Specifications for Enhanced Small Form Factor Pluggable Module SFP+ Revision 4.1" (July 6, 2009). Note that "Contact" described in FIG. 9 corresponds to "pin" in the description of the embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, a pin used for outputting a signal in the normal mode is assigned to a pin for inputting the pulse signal 5. As shown in FIG. 9, for example, the second pin (Tx_Fault) is a pin for outputting a signal indicating that an error has occurred in data transmission. Assign the Tx_Fault pin to the pin for inputting pulse signal 5. Note that a design in which a pin of an integrated circuit functions as both an output and an input and connects the pin to another circuit can be implemented using a known technique.

FIG. 10 is an internal block diagram of the maintenance device 40. As shown in FIG. 10, the maintenance device 40 includes a connector 41, a connector 42, a signal generation circuit 43, and a signal generation button 44. The connector 41 is an electrical connector for connecting the maintenance device 40 to the electrical connector of the ONU 120 (pluggable optical module). Therefore, connector 41 is an SFP+ connector.

The connector 42 is an electrical connector for connection with the equipment operation terminal 20. The type of connector 42 can be determined depending on the connector that equipment operation terminal 20 has. Note that at least some terminals of the connector 41 are electrically connected to corresponding terminals of the connector 42. Thereby, the equipment operation terminal 20 can access the ONU 120 (pluggable optical module) via the maintenance device 40.

The signal generation circuit 43 generates the pulse signal 5 by operating the signal generation button 44 . The pulse signal 5 is a signal for allowing the electrical connector of the ONU 120 to access the pluggable optical module from the outside.

The signal generation button 44 is a button operated by the user of the maintenance device 40. The signal generation button 44 may be a button switch, for example.

The equipment operation terminal 20 provides the ONU 120 with update firmware for updating the firmware. The maintenance device 40 receives update firmware from the equipment operation terminal 20 via the connector 42 . The update firmware is sent from the maintenance device 40 to the ONU 120 via the connector 41.

The equipment operation terminal 20 can also check the version of firmware stored in the ONU 120. In this case, the equipment operation terminal 20 executes a process for reading firmware version information from the ONU 120. The version information is sent from the ONU 120 to the equipment operation terminal 20 via the connectors 41 and 42.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a series of operations when the ONU 120 is activated. Referring to FIG. 11, ONU 120 is powered on (time t1). The setting pin (pin 145 shown in FIG. 7) for setting the mode is in the default state, that is, the state of the input pin.

When the maintenance device 40 is connected to the ONU 120, the maintenance device 40 generates a pulse signal 5 (time t2). The mode of ONU 120 is determined according to the presence or absence of the pulse signal (time t3). When a pulse signal is generated at time t2, the mode of ONU 120 is degenerate mode. On the other hand, if no pulse signal is generated, the mode of the ONU 120 is the normal mode.

Next, the MAC/CPU 132 of the ONU 120 reads the firmware stored in the memory 134. In the case of the degraded mode, the MAC/CPU 132 reads firmware stored in the degraded mode area 138 of the memory 134. On the other hand, in the normal mode, the MAC/CPU 132 reads firmware stored in the normal area 136 of the memory 134. Subsequently, the MAC/CPU 132 executes boot processing (time t5).

Next, at time t11, activation of the application is started. During application startup, configuration pins remain input pins.

At time t12, the application is launched. After time t12, the state of the setting pin differs depending on the startup mode. When the startup mode is normal mode, the setting pin becomes an output pin. On the other hand, when the startup mode is the degenerate mode, the setting pin remains an input pin.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process flow of a maintenance method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. First, the target pluggable optical module (ONU 120) is inserted into the maintenance device 40. Thereby, the electrical connector of ONU 120 is connected to connector 41 of maintenance device 40 (step S11). According to the flow shown in FIG. 11, the application is started in degenerate mode.

In step S12, the equipment operation terminal 20 checks the firmware. For example, equipment operation terminal 20 may inspect firmware by checking the firmware version.

In step S12, the ONU 120 may download the update firmware from the equipment operation terminal 20 and write the update firmware to the normal area 136 of the memory 134.

When the firmware is inspected or downloaded in step S12, the target pluggable optical module (ONU 120) is removed from the connector 41 of the maintenance device 40 in step S13. This completes the maintenance of the ONU 120.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of firmware inspection or download processing. The flow shown in FIG. 13 corresponds to the detailed flow of the process in step S12. In step S21, a predetermined pulse signal 5 is applied from the maintenance device 40 to the pluggable optical module (ONU 120). The process in step S21 corresponds to the process at time t2 shown in FIG.

In step S22, the pluggable optical module (ONU 120) is shifted to degenerate mode. The processing in step S22 corresponds to the processing at times t4 and t5 shown in FIG.

Subsequently, in step S23, the firmware is checked or downloaded. As mentioned above, equipment operation terminal 20 may inspect the firmware by checking the firmware version. Alternatively, the ONU 120 may download the update firmware from the equipment operation terminal 20 and write the update firmware to the normal area 136 of the memory 134.

In step S24, the maintenance device 40 reboots the pluggable optical module (ONU 120). The signal to reboot the pluggable optical module may be generated by the equipment operating terminal 20. Maintenance device 40 receives a signal from equipment operation terminal 20 and provides the signal to MAC/CPU 132 of ONU 120 . This reboots the pluggable optical module.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, maintenance regarding firmware can be easily performed in a pluggable optical module that does not have a serial I/F.

The embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and should be considered not to be restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims rather than the embodiments described above, and it is intended that equivalent meanings to the claims and all changes within the scope are included.

5 Pulse signal 10 User equipment 20 Equipment operation terminal 30 Switch 40 Maintenance device 41, 42 Connector 43 Signal generation circuit 43A Power supply 43B, 43C Resistor 44 Signal generation button 100 PON system 121, 131 Photoelectric conversion unit 123, 133 User interface 124, 134 Memory 125 Serial interface 126 Firmware 130A Optical connector 130B Electrical connector 136 Normal area 138 Degenerate mode area 139 Pull-down resistor 140, 145 Pin 140A, 140B Pin row S11, S12, S13, S21, S22, S23, S24 Steps t1, t2 , t3, t4, t5, t11, t12 time

Claims (5)

A pluggable optical module,
optical connector,
electrical connector;
Equipped with a rewritable memory that stores firmware,
The electrical connector has a setting terminal that becomes an output terminal in normal mode,
When the pluggable optical module is activated, the setting terminal becomes an input terminal, and the pluggable optical module is set to maintenance mode by inputting a predetermined signal to the setting terminal from the outside, and in the maintenance mode, the firmware is A pluggable optical module that enables updates. A pluggable optical module,
optical connector,
electrical connectors that comply with MSA standards;
Equipped with a rewritable memory that stores firmware,
the pluggable optical module does not have a serial interface, the electrical connector has one of the output terminals defined by the MSA standard as a configuration terminal;
When the pluggable optical module is started, the setting terminal becomes an input terminal, and by inputting a predetermined signal to the setting terminal from the outside, the pluggable optical module is set to maintenance mode, and when the pluggable optical module is started, the predetermined signal is input. If there is no, the setting terminal becomes the output terminal,
In the maintenance mode, the setting terminal is maintained as the input terminal and a host IP function that enables IP communication is turned on, and when not in the maintenance mode, the host IP function is turned off,
A pluggable optical module in which the firmware can be updated via the IP communication while the host IP function is on . A method for maintaining a pluggable optical module, the pluggable optical module comprising an optical connector, an electrical connector, and a rewritable memory storing firmware,
connecting the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module to an electrical connector of a maintenance device;
A step of setting the pluggable optical module in maintenance mode by applying a predetermined signal to a setting terminal that becomes an output terminal in the normal mode among the electrical connectors of the pluggable optical module when starting the pluggable optical module. and,
performing inspection of the firmware or downloading the firmware via the maintenance device;
A method for maintaining a pluggable optical module, comprising the step of removing the pluggable optical module from the maintenance device. 4. The method for maintaining a pluggable optical module according to claim 3 , wherein applying the predetermined signal includes applying a pulse signal for a predetermined time after the pluggable optical module is powered on . A maintenance device for a pluggable optical module comprising a memory storing firmware, an optical connector, and an electrical connector, the pluggable optical module being able to operate in a normal mode and being accessible from the outside of the pluggable optical module. the electrical connector has a setting terminal that is an output terminal in the normal mode, and the maintenance device has a
an electrical connector for connecting to the electrical connector of the pluggable optical module;
A maintenance device for a pluggable optical module, comprising: a circuit for providing a predetermined signal for setting the maintenance mode to the setting terminal of the pluggable optical module.

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