Upstream fiber optic couplers and methods for power splitting passive optical networks

Abstract

A fiber optic coupler includes a housing that receives upstream optical signals from drop optical fibers that are optically coupled to optical network units in a power splitting passive optical network and provides an aggregate upstream optical signal to a trunk optical fiber that is optically coupled to an optical line terminal in the power splitting passive optical network, without having passed through a power splitter. At least one reflector and/or refractor in the housing is oriented to reflect and/or refract at least one upstream optical signal from at least one of the drop optical fibers, so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal for the trunk optical fiber. Various configurations of reflectors and/or refractors may be provided. Relative methods are also disclosed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A fiber optic coupler comprising:
 a housing that is configured to receive a respective plurality of upstream optical signals from a respective plurality of drop optical fibers that are optically coupled to a respective plurality of optical network units in a power splitting passive optical network and to provide an aggregate upstream optical signal to a trunk optical fiber that is optically coupled to an optical line terminal in the power splitting passive optical network; and
 at least one reflector and/or refractor in the housing that is oriented to reflect and/or refract at least one of the plurality of upstream optical signals from at least one of the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal that is provided to the trunk optical fiber, wherein the at least one reflector comprises a plurality of reflectors, a respective one of which is oriented to reflect a respective upstream optical signal from a respective one of the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal. 
   
     
     
         2 . A fiber optic coupler comprising:
 a housing that is configured to receive a respective plurality of upstream optical signals from a respective plurality of drop optical fibers that are optically coupled to a respective plurality of optical network units in a power splitting passive optical network and to provide an aggregate upstream optical signal to a trunk optical fiber that is optically coupled to an optical line terminal in the power splitting passive optical network; and
 at least one reflector and/or refractor in the housing that is oriented to reflect and/or refract at least one of the plurality of upstream optical signals from at least one of the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal that is provided to the trunk optical fiber, wherein the at least one reflector comprises a nonplanar reflector that is oriented to reflect the plurality of upstream optical signals from the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal; 
   wherein the nonplanar reflector comprises a curved and/or faceted reflector; and   wherein the curved and/or faceted reflector is curved and/or faceted in one or more nonparallel planes.   
     
     
         3 . A fiber optic coupler comprising:
 a housing that is configured to receive a respective plurality of upstream optical signals from a respective plurality of drop optical fibers that are optically coupled to a respective plurality of optical network units in a power splitting passive optical network and to provide an aggregate upstream optical signal to a trunk optical fiber that is optically coupled to an optical line terminal in the power splitting passive optical network; and
 at least one reflector and/or refractor in the housing that is oriented to reflect and/or refract at least one of the plurality of upstream optical signals from at least one of the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal that is provided to the trunk optical fiber, wherein the plurality of upstream optical signals is oriented to strike the at least one reflector and/or refractor in a planar array and/or in a three-dimensional array. 
   
     
     
         4 . A fiber optic coupler comprising:
 a housing that is configured to receive a respective plurality of upstream optical signals from a respective plurality of drop optical fibers that are optically coupled to a respective plurality of optical network units in a power splitting passive optical network and to provide an aggregate upstream optical signal to a trunk optical fiber that is optically coupled to an optical line terminal in the power splitting passive optical network; and
 at least one reflector and/or refractor in the housing that is oriented to reflect and/or refract at least one of the plurality of upstream optical signals from at least one of the plurality of drop optical fibers so as to produce the aggregate upstream optical signal that is provided to the trunk optical fiber, wherein at least one upstream optical signal from at least one drop optical fiber is optically coupled into the trunk optical fiber without reflecting from a reflector. 
   
     
     
         5 . A fiber optic coupler comprising:
 a housing that is configured to position a plurality of input optical fibers and a common output optical fiber in spaced-apart relation to one another to define an optical path between the common output optical fiber and the input optical fibers; and   at least one optical component in the optical path that is configured to steer and focus optical signals from the plurality of input optical fibers into a core of the common output optical fiber.   
     
     
         6 . A fiber optic coupler according to  claim 5  wherein the at least one optical component in the optical path is configured to reflect and/or refract the optical signals from the plurality of input optical fibers into the core of the common output optical fiber. 
     
     
         7 . A fiber optic coupler according to  claim 6 :
 wherein the plurality of input/output optical fibers comprises a plurality of drop optical fibers of a power splitting passive optical network and the common optical fiber comprises a trunk optical fiber in the power splitting passive optical network; and   wherein the at least one optical component in the optical path is configured to steer and focus a plurality of upstream optical signals from the drop optical fibers into a core of the trunk optical fiber to produce an aggregate upstream optical signal.