An Optical Routing System for Tomorrow's Television Studio Centers

Abstract

The problems of routing the many different video formats that may be used in future television studio centers lead the authors to propose a multiplexed digital routing system in which signals from all sources can be distributed to all destinations. In this system digital video signals at 243 Mbits/sec are combined by electrical time-division multiplexing, giving a 2 Gbit/sec signal, which modulates a laser. A number of these signals are combined by wavelength-division multiplexing for transmission on a single optical fiber. The application of the proposed system to a large studio center is described, distributing signals from 128 sources to 128 destinations. Routing of ancillary signals such as sound, remote control, and talkback is also considered.