US 11,902,720 B2
Method and apparatus for downstream timeslot scheduling in multi-rate passive optical networks
Doutje Van Veen, New Providence, NJ (US); Amitkumar Mahadevan, Edison, NJ (US); and Vincent Houtsma, New Providence, NJ (US)
Filed by Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy, Espoo (FI)
Filed on Mar. 1, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/683,870.
Prior Publication US 2023/0283933 A1, Sep. 7, 2023
Int. Cl. H04Q 11/00 (2006.01); H04B 10/27 (2013.01); H04J 3/16 (2006.01)
CPC H04Q 11/0062 (2013.01) [H04B 10/27 (2013.01); H04J 3/16 (2013.01); H04Q 2011/0064 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for scheduling user blocks in a downstream data transmission to a plurality of optical network units in a multi-rate time-division-multiplexed (TDM) passive optical network (PON), comprising:
identifying a downstream information rate used by each optical network unit in the plurality of optical network units; and
scheduling timeslots for user blocks based on the identified information rates in a manner that minimizes a transition in information rate between adjacent user blocks, the scheduling utilizing a two-part cycle, with a first part scheduling timeslots from a first information rate to a second information rate and a second, following part scheduling timeslots from the second information rate to the first information rate.