Evaulation_Engineering_March_2020 - 25

OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS TEST

TEST KEEPS PACE
WITH FIBER
DEPLOYMENTS
By Rick Nelson, Contributing Technical Editor
	

Optical technology innovations extend from photonics integrated circuit wafer-level test to field-test applications and the cloud-based ecosystem.
Effective optical test has implications for
f ields including edge computing,
4 0 0 G/8 0 0 G Et he r ne t , a nd 5 G .
Instrumentation extends from handheld
optical-fiber multimeters to real-time and
sampling oscilloscopes. OFC, The Optical
Net work ing and Communication
Conference & Exhibition, scheduled for
March 8-12 in San Diego, will provide an
opportunity to delve into these and other
topics. Two companies who will participate in the event have highlighted their
recent optical-test product introductions
and previewed their plans for OFC.
Speaking for EXFO, Olivier TremblayLavoie, portfolio marketing leader at
the company, said, "Through 2019, we
launched a series of new test solutions as
well as improvements in terms of features
and options both into our lab and field
optical testing portfolios. I would especially highlight three specific aspects of
our solution which are a direct reflection
of EXFO's DNA."
First, Optical Explorer, released June
2019, is a handheld solution that evaluates the quality of fiber links in seconds,
he said, adding that it closes the gap
between traditional troubleshooting
methodologies based on a power meter
and VFL (visual fault locator) and methodologies based on more advanced test

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equipment, such as optical time-domain
reflectometers (OTDRs), which require
more expertise.
Tremblay-Lavoie said the accelerating pace of fiber deployments is causing
a major transformation in approaches to
testing. "Optical Explorer has been designed from the ground up to tackle the
challenges ahead and simplify testing,"
he said. "Optical Explorer allows streamlined procedures that reduce delays and
escalation costs in the field while freeing
up expert technicians to focus on more
relevant tasks."
He described Optical Explorer as "...the
industry's first optical fiber multimeter
(OFM), a new purpose-built category of
tools empowering frontline techs to effectively carry out installation, activation,
and repair operations. Optical Explorer
speeds up link health verification with
embedded fault tracking-all in one
single-ended test that's quick and easy."
Optical Explorer has been designed
from the start to equip large crews of
frontline technicians to cope with the
increasing volume of fiber being rolled
out, he said. "It is optimized for utmost
user experience, being highly intuitive
and easy to use for any technician regardless of experience in fiber optics or other
technologies (such as copper or DSL)," he
added. It is designed to reduce total cost
of ownership (TCO) throughout the product life cycle by cutting all hidden costs."
Second, he cited Optical Wave Expert,

which combines a DWDM (dense wavelength division multiplexing) channel
checker and OTDR functionality. "The
Optical Wave Expert integrates channel power validation and reflectometry
characterization on a single port," he said.
"This means that technicians can automatically identify faulty channels and follow through with fault location by leveraging intelligent OTDR capabilities. The
integration of channel checker and OTDR
capabilities on a single port means less
unnecessary manipulation of the optical
fiber and improved field efficiency. This
translates into faster mean-time-to-repair
and makes the trial and error approach-
which can disable nodes-obsolete." He
described the tool as suitable for MSOs
(multiple system operators) working in
converged fiber architectures having to
deploy DWDM networks in the context
of fiber-deep (the effort to drive optical
technology as close as possible to the
customer) and remote-PHY architectures.
Last, he cited Optical Power Expert
and a general expansion of the company's
ecosystem of cloud-connected essential
optical test equipment. "A power meter
represents one of the most basic tools
to any fiber technician," he said. "With
the release of the Optical Power Expert,
we proposed an updated version of our
best-selling power meters, while adding
Bluetooth connectivity, a wide touchscreen, and best-in-class optical performances. This state-of-the-art test device
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