Claims
- 1. A method for acquiring operating parameters in a communications system operable to transmit a data signal, the method comprising the steps of:
generating at least one operating parameter carrier having a frequency value in a vicinity of a null of a data spectrum of the data signal; modulating the at least one operating parameter carrier; summing the operating parameter carrier with the data signal; transmitting the summed signal; and recovering the at least one operating parameter carrier from the summed signal.
- 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the generating step generates at least another operating parameter carrier having another frequency value in the vicinity of the null of the data spectrum.
- 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications system comprises at least one optical channel.
- 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the at least one operating parameter carrier is a sinusoid.
- 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the data spectrum of the data signal comprises a plurality of nulls, the method comprising the further steps of:
generating at least another operating parameter carrier having a frequency value in another of the plurality of nulls; and summing the another operating parameter carrier with the data signal, wherein the recovering step recovers the another operating parameter carrier.
- 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the communications system comprises a wavelength division multiplexed communications system.
- 7. The method of claim 6 wherein the data spectrum is an RZ spectrum.
- 8. The method of claim 6 wherein the data spectrum is an NRZ spectrum.
- 9. The method of claim 8 wherein the demodulating step includes the further steps of:
transmitting RZ format data; and recovering NRZ format data from the RZ format data.
- 10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of bandwidth limiting the at least one operating parameter carrier.
- 11. The method of claim 1 wherein the demodulating step further includes the step of bandwidth filtering the summed signal.
- 12. A method for optical channel operating parameter acquisition in a communications system operable to transmit an NRZ data signal, comprising the steps of:
determining a spectrum for the NRZ data; generating a first sinusoidal operating parameter carrier having a frequency at a first null in the spectrum and a second sinusoidal operating parameter carrier having a frequency at a second null in the spectrum, the second null being successive to the first null in the spectrum; summing the first operating parameter carrier, the second operating parameter carrier and the NRZ data signal; transmitting the summed signal; and at a receiver, recovering the operating parameter carriers from the summed signal.
- 13. The method of claim 12 wherein the optical operating parameter carriers are modulated by NRZ operating parameter data, the method comprising the further steps of:
representing the NRZ operating parameter data in RZ format; modulating the first carrier with the RZ format data; and modulating the second carrier with the RZ format data, the recovering step including the step of processing the RZ format data to provide NRZ operating parameter data.
- 14. The method of claim 12 wherein the recovering step includes the step of bandwidth filtering the summed signal.
- 15. A communications system comprising:
a channel; a transmitter for transmitting a data signal, the data signal having a spectrum, the transmitter including:
an operating parameter carrier generator operable to provide an operating parameter carrier at a frequency having a value in a null of the spectrum; and a summer for summing the operating parameter carrier and the data signal, wherein the transmitter transmits the summed signal over the channel; and a receiver for receiving the summed signal, the receiver operable to recover the operating parameter carrier.
- 16. The communications system of claim 15 wherein the spectrum includes a plurality of nulls, the generator operable to provide another operating channel parameter carrier having a frequency in a successive one of the nulls.
- 17. The communications system of claim 16 wherein the operating channel parameter carriers are sinusoidal.
- 18. The communications system of claim 15 wherein the receiver includes a bandwidth filter for recovering the operating parameter carrier.
- 19. The communications system of claim 15 wherein the transmitter includes a filter for bandwidth limiting the summed signal.
- 20. The communications system of claim 15 wherein the channel includes an optical channel, the summer including an optocoupler.
- 21. The communications system of claim 20 wherein the communications system implements WDM.
- 22. The communications system of claim 21 wherein the data signal is an NRZ data signal.
- 23. The communications system of claim 22 wherein the spectrum includes a plurality of nulls, the generator operable to provide another operating channel parameter carrier having a frequency in a successive one of the nulls.
- 24. The communications system of claim 23 wherein the operating channel parameter carriers carry RZ format parameter data, the receiver further including a processor for providing NRZ format parameter data from the RZ parameter data.
- 25. The communications system of claim 15 wherein the operating parameter carrier is a sinusoid.
- 26. A communications system operable to transmit over an optical channel, comprising:
a transmitter for transmitting a data signal, the data signal having a spectrum, the transmitter including:
an operating parameter carrier generator operable to provide a first sinusoidal operating parameter carrier and a second sinusoidal operating parameter carrier, the first carrier having a frequency located in a null of the spectrum and the second carrier having a frequency located in a successive null in the spectrum, and a summer for summing the operating parameter carriers and the data signal, wherein the transmitter transmits the summed signal over the channel, the carriers being modulated by NRZ operating parameter data; and a receiver for receiving the summed signal, the receiver including:
a demodulator operable to recover the operating parameter carriers; and a processor for providing NRZ operating parameter data from the RZ operating parameter data.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______, entitled “System and Method for Generating NRZ Signals From RZ Signals in Communications Networks,” which is incorporated herein by reference.