Providing digital data services in optical fiber-based distributed radio frequency (rf) communications systems, and related components and methods

Abstract

Optical fiber-based distributed communications systems that provide and support both RF communication services and digital data services are disclosed herein. The RF communication services and digital data services can be distributed over optical fiber to client devices, such as remote antenna units for example. In certain embodiments, digital data services can be distributed over optical fiber separate from optical fiber distributing RF communication services. In other embodiments, digital data services can be distributed over common optical fiber with RF communication services. For example, digital data services can be distributed over common optical fiber with RF communication services at different wavelengths through wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) and/or at different frequencies through frequency-division multiplexing (FDM). Power distributed in the optical fiber-based distributed communications system to provide power to remote antenna units can also be accessed to provide power to digital data service components.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for distributing radio frequency (RF) communications and digital data services (DDS) to at least one remote antenna unit (RAU), comprising:
 receiving, at a head-end unit (HEU), at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal;   converting, at the HEU, the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal into at least one downlink optical RF communications signal to be communicated over at least one communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving, at the HEU, at least one uplink optical RF communications signal over at least one communications uplink from the at least one RAU;   converting the at least one uplink optical RF communications signal into at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal;   receiving at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS;   converting the at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS to at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS;   providing the at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS over at least one second communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving at least one uplink optical digital signal over at least one second communications uplink from the at least one RAU;   converting the at least one uplink optical digital signal to at least one uplink electrical digital signal; and   distributing at least one of the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal and at least one of the at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS over a common optical fiber,   wherein the at least one communications downlink and the at least one communications uplink include at least one optical fiber.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising wave-division multiplexing, using at least one wave-division multiplexer (WDM) the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal and the at least one downlink optical digital signal at different wavelengths over at least one optical fiber communications downlink. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising:
 separating, using at least one wave-division de-multiplexer (WDD) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal from the at least one downlink optical digital signal received over the at least one communications downlink; and   wave-division multiplexing, using at least one wave-division multiplexer (WDM) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one uplink optical RF communications signal and the at least one uplink optical digital signal at different wavelengths over the at least one communications uplink.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising separating, using at least one wave-division de-multiplexer (WDD), the at least one uplink optical RF communications signal from the at least one uplink optical digital signal received over the at least one communications uplink. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising frequency-division multiplexing, using at least one frequency-division multiplexer (FDM), the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal and at least one downlink electrical signal at different frequencies over the at least one communications downlink. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising separating, using at least one frequency-division de-multiplexer (FDD) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal from the at least one downlink electrical signal from the at least one communications downlink. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising frequency-division multiplexing, using at least one frequency-division multiplexer (FDM) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal and the at least one uplink electrical digital signal at different frequencies from the at least one communications uplink. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising separating, using at least one frequency-division de-multiplexer (FDD), the at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal from the at least one uplink electrical digital signal from the at least one communications uplink. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 2  wherein the at least one communications downlink and the at least one communications uplink include at least one optical fiber, and wherein at least one of the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal and at least one of the at least one downlink optical digital signal are distributed over a common optical fiber at different wavelengths. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8  wherein the at least one communications downlink and the at least one communications uplink include at least one optical fiber, and wherein the method further comprises distributing at least one of the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal and at least one of the at least one downlink optical digital signal over a common optical fiber at different frequencies. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 2  further comprising:
 receiving at least one second uplink optical digital signal over the at least one second communications uplink from at least one media controller (MC); and 
 converting the at least one second uplink optical digital signal to at least one second uplink electrical digital signal. 
 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 2  wherein the at least one DDS is comprised from the group consisting of Ethernet, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), and Long Term Evolution (LTE). 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  wherein a DDS controller is configured to receive the at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS from a digital data services switch. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein a DDS controller performs the steps of:
 receiving at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS;   converting the at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS to at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS;   providing the at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS over at least one second communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving at least one uplink optical digital signal over at least one second communications uplink from the at least one RAU; and   converting the at least one uplink optical digital signal to at least one uplink electrical digital signal.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one RAU comprises a plurality of remote antenna units. 
     
     
         16 . A method for distributing radio frequency (RF) communications and digital data services (DDS) to at least one remote antenna unit (RAU), comprising:
 receiving, at a head-end unit (HEU), at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal;   converting at the HEU, the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal into at least one downlink optical RF communications signal to be communicated over at least one communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving, at the HEU, at least one uplink optical RF communications signal over at least one communications uplink from the at least one RAU; and   converting, at the HEU, the at least one uplink optical RF communications signal into at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal;   receiving at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS;   converting the at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS to at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS;   providing the at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS over at least one second communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving at least one uplink optical digital signal over at least one second communications uplink from the at least one RAU; and   converting the at least one uplink optical digital signal to at least one uplink electrical digital signal; and   frequency-division multiplexing the at least one downlink optical RF communications signal and the at least one downlink optical digital signal at different frequencies over a common optical fiber in at least one optical fiber communications downlink.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising separating, using at least one frequency-division de-multiplexer (FDD) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal from the at least one downlink electrical signal from the at least one communications downlink. 
     
     
         18 . The distributed antenna system of  claim 17 , further comprising:
 frequency-division multiplexing, using at least one frequency-division multiplexer (FDM) associated with the at least one RAU, the at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal and the at least one uplink electrical digital signal at different frequencies from the at least one communications uplink; and   separating, using at least one frequency-division de-multiplexer (FDD), the at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal from the at least one uplink electrical digital signal from the at least one communications uplink.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the at least one RAU comprises a plurality of remote antenna units. 
     
     
         20 . A method for distributing radio frequency (RF) communications and digital data services (DDS) to at least one remote antenna unit (RAU), comprising:
 receiving, at a head-end unit (HEU, at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal;   converting, at the HEU, the at least one downlink electrical RF communications signal into at least one downlink optical RF communications signal to be communicated over at least one communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving, at the HEU, at least one uplink optical RF communications signal over at least one communications uplink from the at least one RAU; and   converting, at the HEU, the at least one uplink optical RF communications signal into at least one uplink electrical RF communications signal;   receiving at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS;   converting the at least one downlink electrical signal containing at least one DDS to at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS;   providing the at least one downlink optical digital signal containing at least one DDS over at least one second communications downlink to the at least one RAU;   receiving at least one uplink optical digital signal over at least one second communications uplink from the at least one RAU;   converting the at least one uplink optical digital signal to at least one uplink electrical digital signal;   converting, in an optical-to-electrical (O/E) converter in each RAU of the at least one RAU, received downlink optical RF communications signals to downlink electrical RF communications signals;   providing, the downlink electrical RF communications signals to at least one first port;   converting, in an electrical-to-optical (E/O) converter in each RAU of the at least one RAU, uplink electrical RF communications signals received from the at least one first port to uplink optical RF communication signals;   converting, using a DDS interface coupled to at least one second port, downlink optical digital signals into downlink electrical digital signals to provide to the at least one second port; and   converting, using the DDS interface, uplink electrical digital signals received from the at least one second port into uplink optical digital signals.   
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , further comprising receiving electrical power at a power interface in the DDS interface and providing the electrical power to the at least one second port, and wherein the at least one second port is configured to support Power-over-Ethernet (PoE). 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , further comprising receiving the electrical power at the DDS interface from an electrical power line provided in at least one array cable. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 20 , further comprising receiving power at a power interface in the DDS interface and providing the electrical power to the at least one second port, wherein the electrical power received at the second port is configured to power at least one device supporting digital data services connected to the second port and also connected to the at least one RAU. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 20  further comprising:
 reporting functionality data from a media converter associated with at least one RAU to the HEU over the at least one second communications uplink to the HEU, 
 and 
 providing, via the HEU, control and management of the media converter based on the functionality data. 
 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the at least one communications downlink and the at least one communications uplink are the same optical fiber. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein the at least one communications downlink and the at least one communications uplink comprise separate, different optical fibers.