“PASSIVE HFC” NETWORK

 

The platform solution developed by C-cation commonly known as the "Passive HFC" Network restructures the CATV network into a “cell” architecture, as modeled after cellular telephony, covering passive sections of the CATV network.  This architecture is derived from our patent entitled “Method and Apparatus for Supporting Two-Way Telecommunications on CATV Networks”, bearing US Patent No. 5,642,155.

This patented scheme is based on the premise that all “passive” components in the cable plant are able to support two-way traffic with much larger bandwidth than offered by active components, e.g., amplifiers.  By utilizing the “passive” sections of the CATV network, the restrictions resulting from the sub-split scheme universally deployed by the cable industry, i.e., a large block of bandwidth for downstream traffic and a small portion for upstream traffic, are eliminated.

Recognizing that even with the seemingly abundant bandwidth offered by the CATV network, a bandwidth limitation will be encountered when a fair number of users take up broadband services, the concept behind cellular telephony is introduced into the CATV network.  To allow for the reuse of the bandwidth, the CATV network is restructured into cell-like communities, each called a Multiple Services Hub (MSH).  Through reuse of the frequency bands for multimedia communications in each of these MSHs, the bandwidth limitation of a coaxial plant is avoided.  Meanwhile in each of these MSHs, multi­ple services can be independently and flexibly deployed.  The current implementation of a MSH can support up to 250 subscribers.  The actual number of subscrib­ers to be supported in a MSH depends on the CATV network topology and its design. This architecture lays the foundation for growth, and is the only solution on the market for universal interactive broadband services.

In order to make this solution universal, a novel HxC  (Hybrid variable Coax) architecture is introduced.  While a coaxial network is utilized in the local distribution of multimedia signals, the platform technology has a standards-based connection to the WAN.  This makes it compatible with any existing transmission facility available for that installation, e.g. CATV, fiber, wireless, satellite, leased line, etc.  In essence, this architecture leverages on the most prominent resource of the CATV network, the coaxial portion of the access loop while taking advantage of the available telecom facilities.  The resulting HxC architecture is economical and can be integrated into existing networks without the costly upgrades necessitated by the traditional approaches.  It can support cable operators with various stages of infrastructure development and/or integration of various services and technologies.  The following diagram illustrates an example for restructuring a CATV network into MSHs.