Broadband Access: Wireline and Wireless - Alternatives for Internet Services

6Hybrid Fiber Access Technologies

6.1 Introduction and Background

The high bandwidth potential of fiber access networks make them attractive for carrying protocols and signal types that are normally transmitted over different types of media. This is especially true for PON, which is the most economical fiber access topology. This chapter addresses two such hybrid uses of PON. The first section discusses the evolution of the DOCSIS protocol to using PON instead of, or in addition to its traditional coaxial cable medium. The second section covers various technologies for transporting radio frequency signals over PON, both for television signals and for mobile radio signals. The opposite situation is emerging, with the new IEEE 802.3bn standards project for carrying the EPON protocol over a coaxial cable network. Unfortunately the project had not progressed enough to provide any description beyond some early technical agreements by the time this book was released for publication.

6.2 Evolution of DOCSIS (Data-Over-Cable Service Interface Specification) to Passive Optical Networks

6.2.1 Introduction and Background

Cable television companies, also known as Multiple System Operators (MSOs), use the DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) protocol to provide broadband access over their hybrid fiber-coaxial cable (HFC) networks. The DOCSIS protocol is discussed in detail in Chapter 11. While DOCSIS, especially DOCSIS 3, enables high bandwidth connections over coaxial ...