Hybrid universal broadband telecommunications using small radio cells interconnected by free-space optical links

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A telecommunications apparatus comprising:

a communications switch;

a first transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating externally to the apparatus by electromagnetic signals having a first frequency;

a second, optical, transceiver, also electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating externally to the apparatus, by optical signals of a second frequency higher than is the first frequency, over a plurality of free-space optical links; and

a controller

for causing the communications switch to route telecommunications traffic between the first transceiver and the second transceiver, and, further,

for causing the second, optical, transceivers to route an optical signal received upon some one of the plurality of free-space optical links to another one of the plurality of free-space optical links, serving thus as an optical signal repeater;

wherein wireless telecommunication signals are routed between a first-frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum and a second-frequency optical portion of the electromagnetic spectrum; and

wherein second-frequency optical wireless telecommunications signals are routed between free-space optical paths.

2. The telecommunications apparatus according to claim 1 situated in a wireless telecommunications mesh network of a multiplicity of equivalent apparatus

wherein the first transceiver and the second transceivers of each apparatus are co-located within a single home or business out of many homes and businesses, each with an associated apparatus, within a region within which the collective apparatus are telecommunicatively interconnected in a mesh network;

wherein wireless telecommunications at the first frequency are local at a home or a business to an associated first transceiver locally situated at the home or the business;

wherein wireless free-space optical telecommunications at the second frequency are between physically proximately located second, optical, transceivers each located at a different associated home or business; and

wherein wireless telecommunications are not only locally routed between a local first transceiver and a local second transceiver, but are also regionally routed between second transceivers at different home and business locations, and along a plurality of free-space optical paths.

3. A telecommunications method comprising:

first-telecommunicating a local omnidirectional first-frequency first signal by use of an omnidirectional first-frequency first wireless transceiver;

second-telecommunicating a plurality of local directional second signals of a second frequency, higher than is the first frequency, by use of an associated plurality of directional second-frequency second wireless transceivers;

converting between (i) the first signal, as is telecommunicated with the first wireless transceiver, and (i) some particular one of the second signals, as is associated with a particular second wireless transceiver, in accordance with a protocol for telecommunicating along a chosen directional path; while

cross-communicating between the second transceivers so that all second signals directionally telecommunicated by use of any one of the second transceivers are subsequently further telecommunicated by use of another one of the second transceivers so as to advance further each second signal, as well as the converted first signal, along a chosen directional path in accordance with the protocol;

wherein, although both the first-telecommunicating and the second-telecommunicating are both of local signals, the omnidirectional first-frequency first signal is immediately converted to a second-frequency directional second signal, and is only then directionally telecommunicated and cross-communicated, while the directionally telecommunicated second-frequency signals are always directionally telecommunicated, along the chosen directional path.

4. The telecommunications method according to claim 3 wherein the first-telecommunicating of the local omnidirectional first-frequency first signal by use of the omnidirectional first-frequency first wireless transceiver comprises;

first-telecommunicating a local omnidirectional radio signal by use of an omnidirectional radio wireless transceiver.

5. The telecommunications method according to claim 3 wherein the second-telecommunicating of the plurality of local directional second signals of the second frequency by use of the associated plurality of directional second-frequency second wireless transceivers comprises:

second-telecommunicating a plurality of local directional free-space optical signals by use of the associated plurality of directional free-space optical transceivers.

6. The telecommunications method according to claim 3 wherein the second-telecommunicating of the plurality of local directional second signals of the second frequency by use of the associated plurality of directional second-frequency second wireless transceivers comprises:

second-telecommunicating a plurality of local directional free-space millimeter-wavelength radio by use of the associated plurality of directional millimeter-wavelength radio transceivers.

7. The telecommunications method according to claim 3 wherein the second-telecommunicating of the plurality of local directional second signals of the second frequency by use of the associated plurality of directional second-frequency second wireless transceivers comprises:

second-telecommunicating both (i) a plurality of local directional free-space optical signals by use of the associated plurality of directional free-space optical transceivers and (ii) a plurality of local directional free-space millimeter-wavelength radio by use of the associated plurality of directional millimeter-wavelength radio transceivers.

8. A telecommunications apparatus comprising:

a communications switch;

a broadband radio first transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating omnidirectionally externally to the apparatus in a local area by broadband radio in a first, radio, portion of the electromagnetic spectrum;

a second transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating directionally externally to the apparatus across free-space optical links to distant points outside the local area by broadband optical signals in a second, optical, portion of the electromagnetic spectrum; and

a controller for causing the communications switch to first-route telecommunications traffic between the broadband radio first transceiver and the broadband optical second transceiver.

9. The telecommunications apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the optical transceiver comprises:

a plurality of optical receivers each receiving free-space optical telecommunications signals over a different-direction free-space optical path; and

a plurality of optical transmitters each transmitting free-space optical telecommunications signals over a different-direction free-space optical path;

wherein free-space optical telecommunications may be maintained over a plurality of different-direction free-space optical paths.

10. The telecommunications apparatus according to claim 9

wherein the controller is further causing the communications switch to second-route telecommunications traffic from the optical receivers to the optical transmitters;

wherein wireless telecommunications are not only first-routed between the first portion of the electromagnetic spectrum and a free space optical portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, but are also second-routed between free-space optical paths.

11. A telecommunications method for and upon a communications mesh network of arrayed nodes, the method comprising:

wirelessly locally radio telecommunicating to a radio transceiver at each node by radio;

wirelessly locally directionally optically free-space telecommunicating between each of a plurality of optical transceivers, co-located with each other and with the radio transceiver at each node, by a plurality of directional free-space optical signals to a plurality of nearby nodes; and

first-routing, at each node, telecommunications to and from the radio transceiver and a selected one of the plurality of optical receivers that is so selected in accordance with a protocol for telecommunicating along a chosen path upon the mesh; while

second-routing, at each node, telecommunications received at one or more of the plurality of local directional optical transceivers to another one or ones of the plurality of local directional optical transceivers so to establish and maintain optical telecommunications along a path upon the mesh that is chosen in accordance with the protocol;

wherein, by the radio telecommunicating and the optical telecommunicating, and by the first-routing and the second-routing, telecommunications transpires (i) omnidirectionally at each node by radio, and (ii) directionally between nodes upon the path upon the mesh by optics.

12. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the wirelessly locally radio telecommunicating is by broadband radio in a broadband radio transceiver.

13. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the wirelessly locally radio telecommunicating is in accordance with Asynchronous Transfer Mode protocol.

14. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the wirelessly locally optically free-space telecommunicating is in accordance with Asynchronous Transfer Mode protocol.

15. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the protocol for the telecommunicating along a chosen path upon the mesh is developed at a node, called an end-office, that is common to all paths.

16. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the protocol for the telecommunicating is implemented at (i) the node, called an end-office, that is common to all paths, and at (ii) all nodes along the path upon the mesh that is chosen in accordance with the protocol.

17. The telecommunications method according to claim 11

wherein the protocol for the telecommunicating is implemented collectively at (i) the node, called an end-office, that is common to all paths, and at (ii) all the arrayed nodes of the mesh, including both those nodes that are along the path upon the mesh that is chosen in accordance with the protocol and those nodes that are not along this path;

wherein arrayed nodes of the mesh that are not along the path do not become involved in actively implementing the communications protocol until, and unless, the path changes, as will be the case when and if the wirelessly locally radio telecommunicating by the radio transceiver changes to a new node, at which time even then only those nodes that are newly along a new path upon the mesh that is chosen in accordance with the protocol will become involved;

wherein the protocol for the telecommunicating is kept upon all the arrayed nodes of the entire mesh, but is at any one time actively implemented by only those nodes that are along a telecommunications path.

18. A telecommunications apparatus, called a base station, located within a multi-hop free-space optical telecommunications mesh consisting of a large number of identical base stations geographically dispersed, each base station of the mesh comprising:

a communications switch;

a first transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating locally externally to the base station;

a plurality of optical transceivers, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly directionally telecommunicating externally to the base station by an associated free-space directional optical link; and

a controller for causing the communications switch to route (i) telecommunications traffic telecommunicated with the first transceiver to one of the plurality of optical transceivers, and (ii) also optical telecommunications traffic received at one directional optical transceiver to another directional optical transceiver for further free-optical optical transmission, all to the consistent purpose and end that telecommunications traffic to and from the first transceiver should be routed through a selected co-located directional optical transceiver and then through the further directional optical transceivers of whatsoever number of other base stations as are required until reaching a particular base station called an end office;

wherein radio and free-space optical communications upon the mesh support telecommunications between, on the one hand, (i) a first transceiver of a base station and, on the other hand, (ii) a particular base station called the end office.

19. The base station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 18 wherein the first transceiver comprises:

a radio transceiver for wirelessly telecommunicating locally externally to the base station by radio.

20. The base station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 18

wherein the controller is causing the communications switch to route (ii) optical telecommunications traffic received at one directional optical transceiver to another directional optical transceiver for further free-space optical transmission through the further directional optical transceivers of whatsoever number of other base stations as are required until reaching a selected optical transceiver of a particular base station called an end office;

wherein radio and free-space optical communications upon the mesh support telecommunications between, on the one hand, (i) a first transceiver of a base station and, on the other hand, (ii) a optical transceiver of the particular base station called the end office.

21. The base-station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 20 located within a radio and multi-hop free-space optical telecommunications mesh of a large number of identical base stations geographically distributed wherein the particular base station called the end office comprises:

an end-office communications switch;

a connection between the end-office switch and a communications backbone external to the system to which backbone other end-offices also connect;

a plurality of end-office transceivers, electrically connected to the end-office communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating externally to the end-office in order to (i) receive across free-space telecommunications links the telecommunications traffic received by all the radio transceivers of all the base stations, and (ii) transmit across the free-space telecommunications links telecommunications traffic received from the communications backbone to a particular radio transceiver of a particular base station; and

a controller for causing the end-office communications switch to route communications traffic between, on the one hand, the wired connection to the external communications backbone and, on the other hand, the plurality of end-office transceivers;

wherein both (i) radio, and (ii) free-space telecommunications across free-space telecommunications links, are bi-directional between the end-office and each radio transceiver of all base stations.

22. The base-station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 21 wherein the end office's plurality of transceivers comprise:

optical transceivers for wirelessly optically telecommunicating externally to the end-office in order to (i) receive across the free-space optical telecommunications links the telecommunications traffic received by all the radio transceivers of all the base stations, and (ii) transmit telecommunications traffic received from the communications backbone across the free-space optical telecommunications links to a particular radio transceiver of a particular base station;

wherein the controller is causing the end-office communications switch to route communications traffic between, on the one hand, the wired connection to the external communications backbone and, on the other hand, the plurality of end-office optical transceivers;

wherein both (i) radio, and (ii) free-space optical telecommunications, are bi-directional between the end-office and each radio transceiver of all base stations.

23. The base-station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 21 wherein the end office's plurality of transceivers comprise:

millimeter wavelength radio transceivers for wirelessly millimeter radio telecommunicating externally to the end-office in order to (i) receive across the free-space millimeter radio telecommunications links the telecommunications traffic received by all the radio transceivers of all the base stations, and (ii) transmit telecommunications traffic received from the communications backbone across the free-space millimeter radio telecommunications links to a particular radio transceiver of a particular base station;

wherein the controller is causing the end-office communications switch to route communications traffic between, on the one hand, the wired connection to the external communications backbone and, on the other hand, the plurality of end-office millimeter radio transceivers;

wherein both (i) radio, and (ii) free-space millimeter radio telecommunications, are bi-directional between the end-office and each radio transceiver of all base stations.

24. A communications system comprising:

an end-office having

a communications switch,

a hardwired connection between the switch and a communications backbone external to the system to which communications backbone other end-offices also connect,

a plurality of optical transceivers, electrically connected to the communications switch, for telecommunicating externally to the end-office optically through free space, and

a controller for causing the communications switch to route communications traffic between (i) the hardwired connection to the external communications backbone and (ii) the plurality of optical transceivers; and

a multi-hop mesh of optically-free-space multi-hop telecommunicating base stations each having

a communications switch,

a plurality of optical transceivers, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating externally to the base station by and in multiple hops over and upon multiple free-space optical links, and

a controller for causing the communications switch to route received optical communications traffic from a receiving to a transmitting optical transceiver to the purpose and the end that multi-hop telecommunications traffic at any individual base station will be free-space optically communicated, one hop to the next, thorough whatsoever number of base stations is required until telecommunicatively connecting to the end office and to the communications backbone;

wherein free-space optical communications upon the mesh are variably routed multi-hop from one base station to another.

25. The communications system according to claim 24 wherein the multi-hop mesh further comprises:

optically-free-space multi-hop telecommunicating base stations that are additionally radio-telecommunicating, each of these radio-telecommunicating and optically-free-space multi-hop telecommunicating base stations further having, in addition to its communications switch, its plurality of optical transceivers, and its controller, a radio transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly communicating by radio externally to the base stations;

wherein the controller is further causing the switch to route communications traffic between the radio transceiver and the plurality of optical transceivers.

26. A communications system comprising:

an end-office having

a communications switch,

a hardwired connection between the switch and a communications backbone external to the system to which communications backbone other end-offices also connect,

a plurality of optical transceivers, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating externally to the end-office optically through free space, and

a controller for causing the communications switch to route communications traffic between (i) its hardwired connection to the external communications backbone and (ii) its plurality of optical transceivers; and

a multi-hop mesh network of free-space multi-hop-optically-communicating base stations each having

a communications switch,

a radio transceiver, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly telecommunicating by radio locally externally to the base station,

a plurality of optical transceivers, electrically connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly communicating regionally externally to the base station by multi-hop free-space optical links, and

a controller for causing the communications switch (i) to route telecommunications traffic between the radio transceiver and the optical transceivers, and also (ii) to route any received multi-hop optical communications traffic from a receiving to a transmitting optical transceiver, to the purpose and the end that (i) local telecommunications traffic at the radio transceiver is free-space optically communicated step-wise multi-hop regionally through the optical transceivers of whatsoever number of base stations are required to and from the end office, and upon the communications backbone, while (ii) optical communications of other base stations are passed from a receiving to a sending optical transceiver in order that multi-hop optical communications may be realized upon the mesh network;

wherein radio telecommunications local to one base station are free-space multi-hop optically telecommunicated upon the mesh network until ultimately communicatively interconnecting to the communications backbone.

27. A communications method comprising:

bi-directionally wire/cable-communicating information between a communications switch at a particular, end-office, site and a hardwired connection to a communications backbone which backbone is external to the end-office site and to which other end-office sites also connect;

end-office-wire/cable-switching the information between the end-office communications switch and a selected one of a plurality of wireless first transceivers, co-located at the end office with and electrically wire/cable connected to the communications switch, where the selected one of the plurality of wireless first transceivers at the end office is so selected in accordance with the information telecommunicated;

first wirelessly-telecommunicating the information through the selected one of the plurality of wireless first transceivers into free space, and onto a mesh of a multiplicity of free-space wireless communication transceivers;

further first wirelessly-telecommunicating the information upon successive links in free space upon the mesh, and through successive selected ones of the multiplicity of wireless first transceivers as are each located at a geographically separated mesh node, the successive selections of which ones of the wireless first transceivers are invoked for telecommunication upon the mesh, and the direction of the telecommunication of the information upon the mesh, all being in accordance with the information, until a mesh telecommunications linkage is ultimately made with a wireless first transceiver at a particular selected, base station, mesh node;

base-station-wire/cable-switching, in a switch at the selected base station mesh node that wire/cable connected to the wireless first transceiver at this selected base station mesh node, the information between the wireless first transceiver at this selected base-station node and a wireless second transceiver that is co-located at this selected base-station node along with the first transceiver; and

second wirelessly-telecommunicating the information with and through the second transceiver to a telecommunicating device in the local geographical region of the selected base-station node;

wherein communications and telecommunications have transpired by, inter alia, wire/cable-communicating at the end-office, first wirelessly-telecommunicating over free-space mesh network links between the end-office and the selected base station node, and second wirelessly-telecommunicating at the selected base station node to the telecommunicating device.

28. The communications method according to claim 27

wherein the end-office-switching of the information is between the end-office communications switch and a selected one of a plurality of directional optical first transceivers;

wherein the wirelessly-optically-telecommunicating of the information is through the selected one of a plurality of directional optical first transceivers into free space, and onto a mesh of a multiplicity of free-space directional optical telecommunication first transceivers;

wherein the further wirelessly-telecommunicating of the information is optically in free space upon the mesh through successive selected ones of the multiplicity of directional optical telecommunication first transceivers;

wherein the base-station switching, in a switch at the selected base station node, is of the information between the optical first transceiver at this selected base-station node and a radio second transceiver that is co-located at this selected base-station node along with the optical first transceiver; and

wherein the wirelessly-telecommunicating of the information is from the radio second transceiver to a radio-telecommunicating device in the local geographical region of the selected base-station node.

29. A telecommunications apparatus, called a station, located within a multi-hop free-space optical telecommunications mesh consisting of a large number of stations geographically dispersed, each station of the mesh comprising:

a communications switch;

a collector, communicatively connected to the communications switch, for communicating locally at the base station with at least one communication device;

a plurality of optical transceivers, communicatively connected to the communications switch, for wirelessly directionally telecommuncating externally to the station to and from a like optical transceiver of another station by and across an associated free-space directional optical link; and

a controller for causing the communications switch to route (i) communications traffic communicated through the collector to and from one of the local plurality of optical transceivers, and (ii) also optical telecommunications traffic between local optical transceivers, all to the consistent purpose and end that communications traffic to and from the collector is routed through a selected co-located directional optical transceiver, and then through the further directional optical transceivers of whatsoever number of other stations as are required, until reaching a particular station called an end office;

wherein free-space directional optical communication upon the multi-hop free-space optical telecommunications mesh enables communications between, on the one hand, (i) the communication devices of the station and, on the other hand, (ii) a particular station called the end office.

30. The base station telecommunications apparatus according to claim 29 wherein the collector comprises:

a radio transceiver for wirelessly telecommunicating by radio locally at the base station with a multiplicity of radio-communicating devices.

31. A telecommunications mesh network system for communicatively interconnecting (i) a multiplicity of broadband communication devices at each of a multiplicity of locations, and (ii) a broadband communications backbone, the system comprising:

a mesh network of a plurality of directional free-space optically telecommunicating optical transceivers located at each of a multiplicity of geographically distributed sites called stations;

a communicative connection at a one station between the local plurality of optical transceivers and the broadband communications backbone;

a collection means at each station for collecting the local broadband communications traffic of the multiplicity of broadband communications devices located locally at the station;

control means (i) for communicating the collected local broadband communications traffic at the station upon a selected, directionally-free-space-telecommunicating, one of the local optical transceivers, and, further, (ii) for establishing virtual communication paths upon the mesh network directionally between ones, and successive ones, of selected optical transceivers at selected ones of the multiplicity of stations, so that the collected local broadband communications traffic is communicated to a selected local optical transceiver, and directionally upon free-space optical links between successive transceivers at successive stations, until the entire broadband communication traffic of the devices at each of a multiplicity of locations is communicatively connected to the broadband communications backbone at the one station.

32. The telecommunications mesh network system according to claim 31 wherein the collection means comprises:

a radio transceiver for collecting the local broadband radio telecommunication traffic of a multiplicity of broadband radio-telecommunicating devices located locally at the station.

33. A method of communicatively interconnecting (i) a multiplicity of broadband communication devices at each of a multiplicity of locations, upon (ii) a telecommunications mesh network, with (iii) a broadband communications backbone, the method comprising:

collecting at each of a multiplicity of locations, called stations, local broadband communications traffic of at least one locally-located broadband communication device;

providing at one location, called an end office, a hard-wired communication connection between (i) each of a local plurality of optical transceivers at the location and (ii) the broadband communications backbone;

locally communicating via a hard-wired channel at each of the stations the locally-collected broadband communications traffic to a particular one of a local plurality of directional free-space optically telecommunicating optical transceivers that is selected in accordance with a then-existing path upon the communications mesh network to the end-office; and

optically free-space directionally telecommunicating between the selected one optical transceiver, and upon particular additional ones of the optical transceivers which are located at a plurality of the stations and that are also selected in accordance with the then-existing path, and an optical transceiver local to the end office, and onto the broadband communications backbone;

wherein, while locally-collected broadband communications at a station is hard-wired to a local optical transceiver, and while the optical transceivers of the end office are also hard-wired to the broadband communications backbone, telecommunications upon the mesh network is multi-hop along a free-space optical path.

34. The telecommunications method according to claim 33 wherein the collecting comprises:

collecting by radio the local broadband radio telecommunications traffic of a multiplicity of broadband radio-telecommunicating devices located locally at the station.