Cable television system with digital reverse path architecture

摘要

A cable television system (100) includes forward and reverse paths. Reverse path circuitry within an optical node (400) of the system (100) receives reverse analog electrical signals from subscriber equipment (140) and generates therefrom a multiplexed reverse digital optical signal. The reverse digital optical signal is transmitted over a fiber optic cable 420 to a cable television hub (430), the reverse path portion of which includes no active circuitry. The hub (430) multiplexes the reverse digital optical signal with other reverse digital optical signals from other nodes to generate one or more forwarded digital optical signals at a hub output, wherein generation of the one or more forwarded digital optical signals requires only passive devices in the reverse path of the hub (430). The hub (430) is coupled to headend equipment (460) by one or more fiber optic cables (445, 450), and the headend equipment (460) receives the one or more forwarded digital optical signals and recovers therefrom the reverse analog electrical signals provided to the optical node (400).