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Lighting the Globe-what does it mean…technically…socially = Surprise Birthday candles?

2010-02-19T16:56:51Z

“Fiber-optic communication is a method of transmitting information from one place to another by sending pulses of light through an optical fiber. The light forms an electromagnetic carrier wave that is modulated to carry information. First developed in the 1970s, fiber-optic communication systems have revolutionized the telecommunications industry and have played a major role in the advent of the Information Age. Because of its advantages over electrical transmission, optical fibers have largely replaced copper wire communications in core networks in the developed world.” (Wikipedia definition) My career in the Telecommunications Industry began as a Field Service Engineer at Lynch Communications just as they were phasing out their B510 Open Wire Carrier Systems (the only things ‘glass’ back then were the insulators on the cross arms) and introducing the latest new ‘hot technology’ known as FDM (Frequency division Multiplexing) – B410/11 & B475 Carrier Systems complete with SF Signaling. It was a breathtaking leap forward in bandwidth (12 channels to 24 channels- 4KHz channels) as the SSB AM signal was applied to copper toll cables enabling the interconnection of Independent Telcos with the Bell System Central Offices for 100% end-end interoperability to the WECO N2/3 Systems! Now the Globe is wrapped in glass and we can experience 176 DWDM Lambdas worth of bandwidth (by the way, also a form of FDM – full circle anyone?) each running at 10G/40G/100G interconnected around our WORLD with FTTH bandwidth services (ie. Verizon’s FiOS) to our PC/HDTV/Cell Phones and PDA s approaching 20-40 Mb/s. Whew…….speed of light acceleration over 4 decades is pretty awesome. But……as our key strokes, text messages, video clips, and voices are able to circumvent the globe 5-7 times per second what have been and what will be the social implications? Does the Optical Network foundation supporting the iPhones, HD, Vcasts, Apps, yada-yada improve life on planet earth? Is mankind progressing? How do we measure this? Food for thought as our telecommunications industry now pushes fiber optic bandwidths toward our homes and businesses in this decade. Well, as I wing my way across the Pacific toward Honolulu my PC is not tethered to the Internet via WiFi (although some airlines do offer this now – Alaska Air is testing)……..but it’s likely to be common place in the next few years. So as my lithium ion battery slowly wanes and this blog is winding down I’ll be glad to sit back for a bit of time, visit with my wife about last Saturday’s surprise birthday party for me that my daughters orchestrated (stealth) via Internet E-vite invitations, texting, old picture scanning, typing, and screen shots and say to myself, ‘yes, life is pretty good on planet earth - technically & socially’ as we continue to light the Globe to improve global, national, regional, neighborhood, and family communications – hopefully improving and expanding human understanding. Guess you could say we’re all a bit more ‘enlightened’ now? - Jon Anderson

Content is Not King

2010-02-19T16:46:55Z

You may have heard the phrase "Content is King". This can be in reference to website content or more often media content ( TV shows or movies). Some very large companies must agree with that philosophy. Comcast agreed in December to purchase NBC. Comcast wants to own the content (although I'm sure they could get by without MSNBC ) You have recently seen squabbling between Cablevision and HGTV and the Food Network. Cablevision blacked-out those 2 channels from their 3 million subscribers when contract negotiations broke down. I also recall a few years ago that Comcast and The Big Ten Network couldn't come to terms. Sea Change is an idiom for a Broad Transformation drawn from a song in Shakespear's "The Tempest". I don't have to tell you the Sea is Changing. Newspapers are going bankrupt, cable companies are scrambling, telephone companies are offering video services, customers have choices (DVRs, HULU, AppleTV)... Why is the way we get our content changing? One word: Customers Customers are deciding how and when. It has always been and will always be: the Customer is King. - Jim Pilgrim

The Road Ahead

2010-01-18T18:48:05Z

I've got a cigar lit and a hot cup of coffee in my cup holder. Driving through Iowa like I've done a hundred times before. But this day in January I'm fighting my way through a thick blanket of fog. Its hard to see more than a few hundred yards ahead. Got my cruise set on 70 and I can't see what's over that next hill. Maybe a semi pulled over to the side of the road? Or one of those infamous Iowa State Troopers? I've got to believe this is the way many Communication providers feel these days. Is there a wireless carrrier up ahead looking to throw up some antennas on the street lights in my town trying to steal customers? Is that cable company doing node splits, or looking at RFoG or GPON? What new government rules and regulations are on the horizon? One thing I know for sure, at 70 mph that next hill is coming up fast. I better put this cigar out and pay attention to the road ahead. - Jim Pilgrim

Supply and Demand

2009-11-11T16:41:28Z

Supply and Demand is one of those solid economic laws that never waivers. Here we go again. Those of us that were in telecom in the 90s have seen this before. Fiber, electronics, worker shortages. I remember Qwest was so afraid they couldn't get product in a timely manner they placed a $40M blanket PO for product from the company I worked for at that time. The madness is starting again with Broadband Stimulus. We aren't there yet, but many I talk with in our industry can see it coming and are concerned about product shortages, finding enough people to do the work. We'll probably see some of our colleagues jumping to competing companies for the promise of riches. Higher demand with limited supply is bad enough. Throw limited time into the mix and that 3 headed monster is going to be an interesting ride. Government throwing billions of dollars at our industry is a good thing for all of us. Did we learn anything last time (90s)? I hope so. I hope you were watching cash-for-clunkers. Supply and Demand is never wrong, you better hold on with both hands. - Jim Pilgrim

How Much Speed Do You Need ?

2009-11-11T15:13:12Z

How much speed do you need? I only have a few vices. No drinking or gambling for me. I do like a good cigar, but my passion is fast cars and motorcycles. Do you think 6 motorcycles and 4 cars is enough? Ha! One of my rockets is a Yamaha VMax, 145 horsepower V4, 140 MPH in the quarter mile. Is that fast enough? Ya I think so. How much speed do you need to your house? Is 2.4 gb/s GPON with 1x32 splitters delivering(75mb/s) per house fast enough? We have all been fooled before, what you say? DS3?:) The only thing I know for sure is that we always under estimate. What speed we need will be determined by the services we want. (How many HD channels, DVRs, 3D HD, internet gaming) (Holograms, teleportation, ha, just kidding) Mark my words, a gig is coming to your house. When? Well that's another question. - Jim Pilgrim

The Perfect Carrier

2009-11-11T14:57:46Z

The Perfect Carrier It doesn't get any better than glass and light, right? Einstien theorized nothing can exceed the speed of light. Recently, some theoretical physicists are disputing that. Matched/paired atoms on opposite sides of the earth have been proven to react simultaneously when one or the other is stimulated. Instant communication, pretty cool, that's Quantum physics. Einstein called it "scary science". Niels Bohr and Albert disagreed on this "Principle of Indeterminacy". Anyway, sorry about my digression. Back to light and glass. It's as good as it gets right now, at least in our "practical" non- Quantum world. Time division multiplexing (TDM) has come a long way over the years. When I worked for US West in the mid 80s, we had many 135mb/s fiber terminals. It wasn't long and we were able to get that light to turn on and off at 2.4 gb/s. Now we are at 10 gig, 40 gig. Some scientists say we are getting near pegging the needle on TDM. Only can turn that light on and off so fast and still determine whether it's a one or a zero! Our future is in WDM. Scientists say there is no limit to how close we can space DWDM. 50ghz, 25ghz, 12.5ghz spacing , essentially double the bandwidth that can be carried on a single fiber. 40gb/s TDM on each of thousands of different wavelengths. - have started to hear rumblings about WDM-PON here in the US. It will probably migrate to a hybrid WDM PON sometime in the future when we need it. Glass and Light the Perfect Carrier to "carry" us into the future. -Jim Pilgrim

Set Picture ID-FTTH

2009-10-22T18:37:50Z

Have you set up your cell phone/PDA to identify calls from your loved ones with their respective pop up picture ID photos yet or are you a bit like me having viewed my cell phone as strictly a communications device and work tool? Having had mobile phone communications/cellular phone devices in my Telecom work vehicle or on my person ever since 1979 (remember IMTS with the TRANSCEIVER suitcase in the trunk and a rotary dial phone on the console?) I just recently got around to programming my wife’s picture into my Blackberry this past weekend! I suppose you’ll think I’m a bit slow. That is ok. I would agree with you however I’m really pleased to have discovered a small way to add social value to one of the most prolific social networking tools in the world! So as you Telecom Service providers announce your FTTH, Triple Plays, VoIP, new devices, and new services, be sure to emphasize and market ‘family features and values’ to your customers. You may find yourself successfully educating them and fostering your local brand loyalty as they embrace your new technology deployments! Advertising ways to impute traditional family social values is a great service often overlooked and inherently free! It’s the little things people (customers) appreciate! - Jon Anderson

Too Busy ?

2009-10-22T18:10:00Z

Almost everyone I have met with over the past few years say the same thing. “We are really busy, but it sure beats the alternative.” Those of us that have been in the telecom industry for more than 15 years have seen this before. The mid-to-late nineties were a crazy time in our industry too. We also survived the lean times shortly after the telecom bust in the early 2000s. I sometimes wonder, if not for some small decisions early in life, what I would be doing for a living. Telecom has been my career since I was 19, 1978 seems like a lifetime ago. If it wasn’t for my girl friend in college saying “You should apply at the phone company”, who knows what I would be doing? I’ll bet many of you have a similar story. How did you come to work in telecom? When I see the unemployment numbers come out every month, I count my blessings. I try everyday not to take for granted the good fortunes that come from working in an industry with such great people and opportunities. Too busy or too slow, we all would agree which is better, especially in the economic times we are in right now. Luck, Fate, or Blessing? I believe the latter. Now get to work! - Jon Anderson

Change is good

2009-09-25T14:26:08Z

We’ve all heard it said that ‘change is good for us’. When I was a youngster I remember my mother telling me that a spoon full of cod liver oil is ‘good for you’ ….but that didn’t help it go down any easier. We’ve also heard it said that if we aren’t careful we can get ‘stuck in a rut’ and that ‘a rut is just a grave with the ends kicked out’. I wonder if Judge Greene had all the changes we’ve seen in the market place in mind when he made his infamous Modified Final Judgment ruling on 01/01/1984……or if he would roll over in his grave if could see what’s resulted? While the whole world continues to engineer and create new capabilities through technology research and innovations at a rate that surely must be unsustainable, how many of the changes turn out to be good for all mankind and should we reflect and try to measure this metric or not? As we read and experience more ‘social networking’ what is the impact to our society, individuals’ and national identities? Have we created or solved social issues or should we care? In my 37 year telecommunications career I have certainly been a part of some really exciting changes. From displacement of Magneto phones, Common Battery, glass insulators on cross arms, Rotary Dial Offices, Touch Tone (DTMF), POT s (Plain Old Telephone Service), and now copper plant by fiber optics, most of our world is taking part in Fiber, Cellular, and Internet Services that include voice, data, and video along with RSS Feeds, Blue Tooth Linkage to our cars, Tweats & Twitters, FACEBOOKs, Link’d In, and who knows what’s next! While traveling this week I noticed that Alaska Airlines Magazine is now advertising airborne WiFi (field trialing now on Alaska Airlines)! My fellow Telecommunications industry friends, we can realistically expect rapid changes to continue/accelerate with announcements of WiMax, 3G/4G, LTE, FTTH-GPON, and soon 3D TV deployments! Maybe with the economy in the tank right now we can all take a deep breath for a few minutes to reflect, absorb, and hopefully conclude that at least for our Telecommunications Industry, “Change is good for us”! Twitter on! - Jon Anderson

The Collapsing of a Network

2009-09-25T14:22:26Z

Over the past 20 years we have seen a continuous collapse of network electronics from specialized functionality and rigid configuration rules into scalable multi service access and transport platforms. The result include economic benefits like reduced acquisition costs and ongoing operating expenses. But what about infrastructure? Too often it conforms to the old rules of fixed networks, services and little or no scalability. With the massive investment of fiber going in the ground it’s key to have connectivity for infrastructure that mirrors the scalable multi service attributes of the access and transport equipment platforms. It makes no sense to go backwards and have separate frames that are only capable of a one or two connectivity attributes. Fiber connectivity should have a unified platform much the same as a common backplane. One that’s capable of being configured for any network connectivity (patch, patch/splice, etc.), network type (PON, WDM, etc.), any service (triple play, Ethernet, etc.) and in any combination. It should also be scalable to maximize the service provider’s investment. This has never been more important than in today’s world of stimulus projects that run the gamut from connecting community anchors like municipal and healthcare facilities to FTTH. - Gordon Spray

Gift Horse

2009-09-25T14:11:58Z

“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” We’ve all heard that saying and it makes sense that when someone gives you something it could be considered rude to examine that gift too closely. Since it’s a gift, it’s free, right? I’ve been meeting with folks across the country and the hot topic over the past few months is the Broadband Stimulus Package. When are the rules coming? What will they look like? How can this benefit my company and my community? Now that the rules are out, a lot of Telephone Companies have been looking in a lot of horse’s mouths. They are seeing a great many Vet bills when they do. Prevailing Wages, Tax & USF implications, opening the books, Network sale restrictions all eat away at the gift (grant). Many companies are walking away. The least they could have done is worm her! Jim Pilgrim

CHEMICAL RESISTANCE

2009-08-28T15:48:46Z

When considering the realities of OSP cable, chemical resistance must be addressed. The world is a nasty place, and fuels, oils and other kinds of chemicals can enter an OSP enclosure despite the best efforts of service providers and their technicians. While inside-rated jumpers will degrade when exposed to such substances, cables meeting MIL-PRF 85045 are fully resistant.

Some telcos’ standard field practices include fogging a fiber distribution pedestal, cabinet or optical network terminal before opening it, to minimize the risk of subjecting technicians to wasps or bees that may have taken up residence inside. By using ruggedized cable, properly terminated to all connectors present, this step can be taken without fear of damage to fiber plant.

Minimal Cost Difference

Considering all the benefits of high-grade, ruggedized fiber interconnect cable, it would be easy to assume that there is a significant cost differential. The reality, however, is that this level of quality carries a minimal difference in price. OSP equipment typically must deliver a performance life of twenty years or more, which makes the small additional cost more than worth it over the long haul.

Commercial OSP standards are constantly being updated, and perhaps someday soon they will catch up with reality. Until then, it is well worth investing the time upfront to discover what methods and materials your OSP vendors are using in their cable products, as well as their other PON components. Fiber-To-The-Home deployment is accelerating, and the demands are high. With the right materials in place, you will achieve the level of reliability your customers expect.
- Johnny Hill

PEOPLE-PROOFING

2009-08-28T15:47:10Z

Environmental factors are just part of the practical hurdles not fully addressed by OSP standards. The number one cause of fiber optic network downtime is equipment damage resulting from human error, either through rough handling or improper cable routing. Even the best-designed fiber solutions can be easily compromised by routing and handling fiber circuits incorrectly.

While most technicians are both highly trained and diligent, interconnect cable must be able to withstand the real-world conditions presented by technicians who are rushed, inadequately trained or overly rough in their cabinet work. The key to preventing damage to fiber cores due to crushing, impact or overly tight bend radius is in the cable construction itself.

In riser-rated jumper cables, the typical construction over the core and 125μm cladding involves a secondary 250μm coating of acrylate, followed by a 900μm PVC buffer, Kevlar strength members, and finally, an outer jacket of 1.6, 2.0 or 3.0mm outside diameter PVC. The “loose tubing” inherent in such a design, combined with the inferior crush resistance of PVC, leaves such cable vulnerable to fiber breaks due to twisting or hard impact.

Again, this form of inside-rated cable, with its 250 micron diameter and 60 micron thickness, is insufficient for most OSP enclosure applications. To reduce risk of damage caused by handling or blunt force, ruggedized cabling that meets U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) military performance standards is a far better choice.

The DoD’s Military Performance (MIL-PRF) 85045 specifications strictly defines the characteristics that allow fiber optic cable to operate properly under a huge range of environmental and deployment conditions. The specification covers low temperature flexibility, crushing, barometric pressure, tensile loading, flammability, fungus resistance, fluid immersion, attenuation rate and many other factors.

To meet this demanding spec, an appropriate solution is to add a 500μm hard acrylate layer to the inner soft acrylate coating, followed by a 900μm, tight-buffered hard elastomeric material. Together, these layers will provide improved crush and impact resistance. An outer jacket of polyurethane significantly expands the operational temperature, while also increasing protection against cable aging due to temperature extremes. Polyurethane also offers the flexibility and anti-sag characteristics needed when cables are improperly deployed or installed at unusually low temperatures.

Ruggedized standards also serve to minimize problems arising in pre-terminated OSP assemblies. These assemblies must not only withstand environmental conditions like other distribution equipment, but they are also heavily handled. Ruggedization, in particular, is critical for upjacketing—the process where the 250um fibers of a ribbon or loose-tube OSP cable are furcated to 900um, 2mm, or 3mm—used in the legs of an assembly.
- Johnny Hill

FTTH-OSP Standards Lag Reality

2009-08-28T15:45:32Z

One of the continuing ironies of Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) interconnect cable products is that while a great deal of effort has been expended to develop optical components that perform well under harsh conditions, many of the materials and specifications essential to these products—despite the environmental, routing and physical handling demands found in FTTH enclosures—are better suited to indoor applications.

Outside Plant (OSP) equipment such as fiber distribution cabinets, pedestals and optical network terminals are subjected to a huge array of environmental challenges. These enclosures face attacks from lightning, pollution, rain and high winds; depending on the region they may also need to withstand floods, hurricanes, blizzards, earthquakes, forest fires and salt air. Rodent, wild animal and insect infestations are a concern as well.

Of course, rack-mounted splitters, jumpers and other enclosure componentry are subject to extreme intra-enclosure conditions caused by these environmental factors. Summertime temperatures inside a distribution cabinet can reach +180° F in some parts of the U.S., greatly affecting cable material, while humidity, condensation, corrosion, sand and dust can wreak havoc on connectors and hardware.

In response to these challenges, Telcordia Technologies, the USDA Rural Development Telecommunications Program, NEMA, and other standards organizations have instituted performance standards for Passive Optical Network (PON) interconnect cables. For example, Telcordia has a generic requirement defined for jumper cables used with pre-terminated multifiber assemblies in OSP environments; this requirement, GR-326, addresses signal performance across a protected route path with proper bend radius.

The trouble is that the real world does not always match such controlled specifications, especially under the temperature extremes found in OSP fiber distribution enclosures. Traditional riser-rated materials that are also rated for outdoor use react very differently at -20° F than they do at +70° F. The jacket becomes very stiff and memory-retentive, making it difficult to route a circuit because of its static state.

In addition, what happens if a jumper needs to be relocated or re-mated in the midst of an extreme cold snap? If the prescribed route path proves difficult due to the stiffness of the cable, the technician may take a shortcut to the desired adapter. This situation becomes a problem when temperatures begin to warm up and the cable “relaxes,” since the cable is not using the recommended route paths that are bend radius protected.

Inside-rated cable is designed to withstand temperatures of -4° F to +149° F, but it cannot meet an OSP ratings standard of -40° F to +185° F. Extreme high and low temperatures, as well as repeated thermal cycling, can possibly cause intermittent power loss. This scenario is often difficult to troubleshoot and causes a lot of frustration.
- Johnny Hill