Method and apparatus for configuring a communication interface

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10560152-B2
Application number	US-201715652484-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 18, 2017
Priority date	Dec 4, 2014
Publication date	Feb 11, 2020
Grant date	Feb 11, 2020

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a system for exchanging electrical signals and guided electromagnetic waves between customer premises equipment and service provider equipment to provide uplink and/or downlink communication services. Other embodiments are disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
generating, by a coupler, first electromagnetic waves; and
inducing, by the coupler, according to the first electromagnetic waves, second electromagnetic waves that propagate along a boundary formed between a plurality of insulating surfaces of an inner bundle of twisted pair cables, the second electromagnetic waves propagating along the boundary formed between the plurality of insulating surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables without requiring an electrical return path.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the inner bundle of twisted pair cables comprises an unshielded bundle of twisted pair cables.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein additional electromagnetic waves induced by the coupler according to the first electromagnetic waves propagate along another boundary formed between another plurality of insulating surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving one or more communication signals that convey data, wherein the second electromagnetic waves convey in whole or in part the data, and wherein the second electromagnetic waves propagate partly on the plurality of insulating surfaces.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coupler induces the second electromagnetic waves in accordance with a multiple-input and multiple-output technique.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coupler induces the second electromagnetic waves by multiplexing via differing wave propagation modes.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the coupler comprises a plurality of launchers located at differing positions of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables, and wherein the generating comprises generating, by the plurality of launchers, the first electromagnetic waves.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second electromagnetic waves employ phase shift keying, frequency shift keying, quadrature amplitude modulation, amplitude modulation, multi-carrier modulation, frequency division multiplexing, time division multiplexing, code division multiplexing, multiplexing via differing wave propagation modes, or any combinations thereof.

9. A launcher, comprising:
a processing system including a processor; and
a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:
generating a first plurality of electromagnetic waves; and
inducing along a boundary formed between a plurality of insulating outer surfaces of an inner bundle of twisted pair cables, according to the first plurality of electromagnetic waves, a second plurality of electromagnetic waves, the second plurality of electromagnetic waves propagating along the boundary formed between the plurality of insulating outer surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables without requiring an electrical return path.

10. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein additional electromagnetic waves that are induced according to the first plurality of electromagnetic waves propagate along another boundary formed between another plurality of insulating outer surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables.

11. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the inner bundle of twisted pair cables is configured to provide the second plurality of electromagnetic waves to a receiver in accordance with a multiple-input and multiple-output technique.

12. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the launcher induces the second plurality of electromagnetic waves by multiplexing via differing wave propagation modes.

13. The launcher of claim 9 , further comprising a plurality of couplers located at differing positions of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables, wherein the inducing comprises inducing by the plurality of couplers along the boundary formed between the plurality of insulating outer surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables, according to the first plurality of electromagnetic waves, the second plurality of electromagnetic waves.

14. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the second plurality of electromagnetic waves employ phase shift keying, frequency shift keying, quadrature amplitude modulation, amplitude modulation, multi-carrier modulation, frequency division multiplexing, time division multiplexing, code division multiplexing, multiplexing via differing wave propagation modes, or any combinations thereof.

15. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the inner bundle of twisted pair cables comprises an unshielded bundle of twisted pair cables.

16. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise receiving one or more communication signals that convey data, and wherein the second plurality of electromagnetic waves conveys in whole or in part the data.

17. The launcher of claim 9 , wherein the launcher induces the second plurality of electromagnetic waves in accordance with a multiple-input and multiple-output technique.

18. A machine-readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processing system including a processor, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:
generating, by a coupler, first electromagnetic waves; and
inducing, by the coupler, according to the first electromagnetic waves, second electromagnetic waves that propagate along a boundary formed between a plurality of insulating outer surfaces of an inner bundle of twisted pair cables, the second electromagnetic waves propagating along the boundary formed between the plurality of insulating outer surfaces of the inner bundle of twisted pair cables without requiring an electrical return path.

19. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the inner bundle of twisted pair cables comprises an unshielded bundle of twisted pair cables.

20. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the operations further comprise receiving one or more communication signals that convey data, and wherein the second electromagnetic waves convey in whole or in part the data.

Assignees

• At & T Ip I Lp

Inventors

• Birk Martin
• Henry Paul Shala

Classifications

• H02J13/1311

  using the power network as support for the transmission · CPC title

• G01R31/08

  Locating faults in cables, transmission lines, or networks · CPC title

• H01P3/16

  Dielectric waveguides, i.e. without a longitudinal conductor · CPC title

• H04B3/56 Primary

  Circuits for coupling, blocking, or by-passing of signals · CPC title

• H04B3/02 Primary

  Details · CPC title