Optical Switch Ships Carrier-Grade Modules and Subsystems.Business Editors & High-Tech Writers RICHARDSON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 26, 2001 Kaleidoscope kaleidoscope (kəlī`dəskōp), optical instrument that uses mirrors to produce changing symmetrical patterns. Invented by the Scottish physicist Sir David Brewster in 1816, the device is usually a hand-held tube, a few inches to as much and FiberKey Switching Products, in Addition to Microphotonics Services, Now Available for Sample and Volume Delivery Optical Switch, a provider of transparent optical switching products and microphotonics services for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), announced today the immediate availability of two carrier-grade optical switch product families. Named Kaleidoscope(TM) and FiberKey(TM), both families are fully transparent optical solutions that can significantly increase network bandwidth capacities and reduce network provisioning Network provisioning or Service mediation are terms referring to provisioning of the customer’s services to the network elements, mostly used in the telecommunication industry. , routing and recovery times. The performance and reliability of both product groups will be demonstrated in booth no. 2910 at the Optical Fiber Communications Conference in Anaheim, Calif., March 19-21, 2001. In addition to the FiberKey(TM) and Kaleidoscope(TM) product families, Optical Switch recently announced high volume interference lithography Interference lithography (or holographic lithography) is a technique for patterning regular arrays of fine features, without the use of complex optical systems or masks. Basic principle The basic principle is the same as in interferometry or holography. patterning services that offer sub-100 nm patterning for a wide range of telecommunications applications, such as distributed feedback lasers A type of diode laser that uses diffraction gratings rather than mirrors to create the resonance and oscillation in the cavity. It produces a finer range of wavelengths than a Fabry- Perot cavity. A distributed Bragg reflection laser is a similar technology that uses Bragg gratings. , fiber Bragg grating A short length of optical fiber that filters out a particular wavelength. Periodically spaced zones in the fiber core are altered to have different refractive indexes slightly higher than the core. phase masks and subwavelength structures. Optical Switch has also developed automated manufacturing processes that make its high performance products available in commercial quantities. "OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and demand for our products is immediate," said Gary Nabhan, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Optical Switch. "Positive results from our beta tests have resulted in revenue generating shipments, proving we are meeting OEMs' top priorities with real solutions." In advanced tests at 14 locations, representing customers in metro DWDM (Dense WDM) The term given to wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) when significantly more channels were being added. Since WDM is increasingly more "dense" all the time, both terms are used synonymously. See WDM. DWDM - wavelength division multiplexing , optical transport systems, network platforms and fiber optic infrastructure testing, both FiberKey(TM) and Kaleidoscope(TM) product families feature industry-leading switching speeds and low levels of insertion loss The amount of loss attributed to a particular device being used in (inserted into) the system. For example, a circuit added to filter out unwanted frequencies may reduce the output current by some amount. See injection loss. . Both offer reliability achieving Telcordia(TM) GR-1073 compliance and can be extensively customized for integration into a wide range of OEM designs. "What impresses me about Optical Switch is their market-driven approach," said Scott Clavenna, analyst at PointEast Research. "They are bringing solutions to market that address where the true demand is right now for transparent optical switching. OEMs and their carrier customers have an immediate need for reliable low port count applications, such as protection switching and infrastructure testing, most requiring port counts lower than 64x64." FiberKey(TM) Product Family Currently in advanced-stage beta testing (programming) beta testing - Testing a pre-release (potentially unreliable) version of a piece of software by making it available to selected users. This term derives from early 1960s terminology for product cycle checkpoints, first used at IBM but later standard throughout the with six companies, FiberKey(TM) optical switches are available in a variety of module configurations ranging from 1x2 through 8x8 port counts. The product family achieves simplicity of control and a compact size. For example, the 4x8 product achieves package dimensions of 35 mm x 30 mm x 9 mm. Its remarkably simple control interface has enabled customers to achieve operational board-level integration within five minutes of unpacking. The switching technology uses Frustrated Total Internal Reflection (FTIR FTIR Fourier Transform Infrared (spectroscopy) FTIR Frustrated Total Internal Reflection FTIR Fourier Transfer Ir ) to achieve rapid switching times and high reliability levels. FiberKey(TM) optical switches leverage a latching design across all ports, enabling it to protect multiple optical facilities in a single package and retain its state during power outage Noun 1. power outage - equipment failure resulting when the supply of power fails; "the ice storm caused a power outage" power failure equipment failure, breakdown - a cessation of normal operation; "there was a power breakdown" . This feature set, combined with compact size and low loss metrics, makes FiberKey(TM) optical switches ideal for use in demanding protection-switching applications. For example, the 4x8 configuration offers fully synchronized syn·chro·nize v. syn·chro·nized, syn·chro·niz·ing, syn·chro·niz·es v.intr. 1. To occur at the same time; be simultaneous. 2. To operate in unison. v.tr. 1. protection of four facilities and is achieved with an insertion loss of less than 0.6 dB on each channel. Kaleidoscope(TM) Product Family In advanced-stage beta testing with eight companies, Kaleidoscope(TM) optical switches are available in 1x12 to 1x128 module configurations and 16x16 to 32x32 matrix configurations. All Kaleidoscope(TM) products leverage free-space conformal con·for·mal adj. 1. Mathematics Designating or specifying a mapping of a surface or region upon another surface so that all angles between intersecting curves remain unchanged. 2. optics technology for high precision and performance. Praised by customers for its high repeatability, the Kaleidoscope(TM) switch will return to any previous channel with a consistent accuracy within a margin of .03 dB. In addition, the Kaleidoscope(TM) switch offers a high level of optical precision and integrated remote management making it well suited for automated optical add/drop multiplexing and testing of fiber optic infrastructure. Customer Support Optical Switch provides system engineering services to its customers to support specific projects. These services include custom design, assembly and testing to enable customers to rapidly integrate Optical Switch technology into their own systems. About Optical Switch Optical Switch designs and manufactures optical switching modules and subsystems integrated into OEM customers' high-performance, carrier-grade switching products. The company's Kaleidoscope(TM) and FiberKey(TM) switch families, produced in its two U.S. manufacturing facilities, offer industry leading repeatability and low levels of insertion loss. A wide range of microphotonics contract patterning services are also available. As an experienced high volume manufacturing organization, Optical Switch uses advanced supply chain management techniques to ensure virtual vertical integration for on-time fulfillment and ease of implementation. For more information call 469/330-1400 or visit the Optical Switch Web site at www.opticalswitch.com. FiberKey and Kaleidoscope are trademarks of Optical Switch Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. |
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