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Content archived on 2024-05-07

Pan-European lightwave core and access network

Objective

Main Objective

The overall objective of project PELICAN is to demonstrate the feasibility of an end-to-end, managed, large-scale photonic network, including transport and access.
To this end, project PELICAN will integrate, in a single Pan-European field trial, several optical networking test-beds implemented in three on-going ACTS projects. These projects are :

-OPEN (AC066), which demonstrated the feasibility of an optical Pan-European backbone network in which Wavelength-Division-Multiplexing (WDM) is fully exploited for both transmission and routing;

-MEPHISTO (AC209), whose objective is to extend the principles of the Telecommunication Management Network (TMN) to manage WDM photonic backbone networks; and

-PLANET (AC050), which investigates the concept of ATM SuperPON (Passive Optical Network) access networks.

Technical Approach

To meet this goal, the project has been organised in 4 work-packages.
WP0 will be responsible for the project management and liaison with the ACTS horizontal projects.
WP1 The definition and specifications of the field trial and its evaluation will be carried out in WP1. In particular, the following tasks will be realised:

-Definition of the field trial in terms of network topology, infrastructure, services, and specifications of the equipment, components, and management systems.

-Feasibility assessment of the field trial through modelling and laboratory experiments.

-Laboratory integration of the equipment and of the management systems prior to the field installation.

-Evaluation of the field trial.

-Demonstration of advanced services in collaboration with the service providing projects.
WP2 is dedicated to the adaptation of the OPEN (transport) and PLANET (SuperPON) hardware according to the specifications.

-On the access side, the SuperPON will be equipped with a dynamic Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol in the upstream direction. This protocol will provide a significant gain in the statistical multiplexing and thus will allow a more efficient sharing of the available bandwidth between multiple end-users. Combined with the flexibility of ATM, it will create new opportunities for providing multimedia services to small business and residential customers.

-On the transport side, the wavelength cross-connects will be upgraded in size (higher connectivity) and/or in bit-rate granularity (demonstration of routing at 10 Gbit/s). In addition, new, lower complexity optical nodes will be assembled. Network elements, including the optical amplifiers, will integrate the hardware necessary for the OA&M and network management functions as defined within MEPHISTO.
WP3 The adaptation of the management systems of both the core and access networks to the field trial specifications will be performed in WP3.

-On the SuperPON side, the control messages will be transported via an ATM VP/VC channel directly on the system infrastructure, thus eliminating the need for an external data communication network.

-On the transport side, TMN-compatible performance monitoring facilities will be added to the agent developed for all the optical nodes. Management applications (configuration, fault, and performance) developed within MEPHISTO will also be adapted to the new field trial requirements. Finally, agents will be integrated with the hardware equipment and interoperability with the managers will be verified.

Summary of Trial

The main outcome of the PELICAN project will be a trans-border field trial built on the OPEN, MEPHISTO and PLANET test-beds. This integrated trial will consist of managed transport and access networks as follows:
A managed optical transport network, interconnecting French and Belgian cities by means of high-capacity optical fibre links cross-connected through transparent photonic nodes. This network, built upon an existing fibre infrastructure (G.652 fibre), will heavily rely on the use of WDM for both transmission and routing. Two network partitions of different topologies will be considered and managed according to the OA&M concepts developed within project MEPHISTO:

-a meshed backbone network composed of wavelength cross-connects, with or without wavelength conversion (from the OPEN project); the channel rate in this core network will be 2.5 and 10 Gbit/s;

-a two-fibre unidirectional ring regional network composed of three fully reconfigurable Wavelength Add-Drop Multiplexers (from the MEPHISTO project). Each ring section will support four wavelength channels at a rate of 2.5 Gbit/s. A centrally-managed optical access network, of the SuperPON type, in a Fibre-To-The-Building (FTTB) configuration. The PON will bridge a distance of 100 km and support a large splitting factor (2000), though only a limited number of subscribers will actually be connected. The bi-directional transfer mode will rely on TDM transmission in the 1550 nm window and at a bit rate of 2.5 Gbit/s in the downstream direction, and on TDMA transmission at 1300 nm and at 311 Mbit/s in the upstream direction.
Applications (such as ATM and IP/ATM, etc.) and services (such as interactive multimedia, distant learning interactive, collaborative work, etc.) identified during the definition phase of the field trial will be demonstrated over the PELICAN infrastructure.

Physical topology of project PELICAN field trial
Expected Achievements

-Inter-working of an optical WDM transport network with an optical full-service access network

-Comparison of different optical technologies, and evaluation of their reliability in a field environment

-Demonstration of various types of advanced optical network elements and of their inter-networking

-Field demonstration of a TMN-compatible management system for WDM transport networks

-Demonstration of an efficient dynamic MAC protocol for access networks

-Demonstration of a centrally managed SuperPON network.

Expected Impact

The expected outcomes of the PELICAN project are many-fold:

-Definition of a strategy to exploit wavelength in a photonic backbone network; introduction and evolution path

-Definition of interfaces and requirements for network elements and management systems

-Validation of the concept and feasibility of a robust and flexible end-to-end, large-scale, photonic network

-Acquisition of know-how on network operation engineering based on field constraints

-Contribution to the demonstration of "European Information Infrastructures and Services"

Main contributions to the programme objectives:
Main deliverables
Integrated field trials of PLANET, OPEN and MEPHISTO
Contribution to the programme
Experience for future pan-European end-to-end optical networks
Key Issues

Other than the issues already addressed by the projects on which the PELICAN project is building, the following issues will be investigated :

-Transmission characteristics in photonic transport networks supporting several different channel rates

-Functional architecture of an end-to-end photonic network

-Network management and control issues, including compatibility with lower electronic layer (SDH) management systems

-Signalling in photonic transport networks

-Demonstration of performance management in photonic transport networks

-Compatibility and applicability of TMN concepts to optical access networks

-Management inter-operability of optical transport and access networks

Topic(s)

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Call for proposal

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Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinator

Alcatel Alsthom Recherche
EU contribution
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Address
Route De Nozay
91460 Marcoussis
France

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Total cost

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Participants (8)

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