Switching Protocol for Optical Packet Data Communication

The figure illustrates aspects of a proposed switching protocol for optical packet data communication that would serve as an alternative to the older store-and-forward and header-first protocols. In both older protocols, it is necessary to store a single header from each packet of data during the relatively long optical-switching time (typically tens of milliseconds) needed to set up optical input and output paths within each node. In the store-and-forward protocol, there is also a need for electronic storage of the data proper at each node during the setup time. Furthermore, typical implementations of both older protocols have depended on electronic control circuitry between nodes to set up the optical paths between nodes.