NEDG: Next-Generation Long-Reach Broadband Access Networks

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Our society is increasingly dependent on the Internet for instant access to information. Broadband access can have a very strong positive impact on society. The US is lagging behind in providing inexpensive broadband access to its citizens. Research is needed to develop next-generation broadband access technologies which will lead to new competitive services and applications. Novelty: This project is creating new knowledge on the design, deployment, and operation of the novel Long-Reach Broadband Access Network (LR-BAN) architecture, resource-allocation algorithms, and network evolution to accommodate traffic growth. Broader Impact: This project is enabling US researchers to lead the development of next-generation Broadband Access Networks. This comprehensive and integrated research and education project should enhance our nation's educational infrastructure through student training and influence the US telecom industry with its findings.Specifically, this project is investigating novel network architectures, protocols, and algorithms to design and efficiently operate next-generation broadband access networks that can provide extended coverage across local and metropolitan regions in telecom networks. The project is developing efficient methods for extending the coverage of today?s Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) networks from their 20-km limit to 100 km and beyond by exploiting wavelength-division multiplexing passive optical networks (WDM-PONs) to serve a large user base, leading to the Long-Reach Broadband Access Network (LR-BAN). The LR-BAN architecture can effectively decrease the number of Central Offices in a telecom operator's network and reduce its Operational Expenditure. This project is investigating various LR-BAN architectural options (such as ?ring-and-spur? architecture); methods to flexibly allocate bandwidth on demand to users with a diverse set of requirements (such as ?multi-thread polling?); and methods to evolve the network toward future reliable broadband applications and technologies.