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DAILY NEWS AND INFORMATION
FOR THE GLOBAL GRID COMMUNITY / SEPTEMBER 8, 2003: VOL. 2 NO. 36
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Systems/Enterprise:
CALIENT NETWORKS LAUNCHES PX
SWITCHING SUBSYSTEM
Calient Networks, a leading provider of intelligent photonic switching
systems, has launched its new PX photonic switching subsystem for use in
software reconfigurable patch panels, automated system testing, automated
manufacturing testing, grid computing and pre-deployment network staging.
The company's PX is being adopted by a growing list of U.S. customers,
including major carriers, Montana State University and multiple national
optical research institutions. Calient developed the PX on request from
carriers, original equipment manufacturers, government agencies and research
labs for a basic switch core version of its award-winning DiamondWave PXC
system.
Calient's PX is a non-blocking switch core, available in configurations
from
32 by 32 ports up to 256 by 256 ports for as little as $800 list price per
port. It provides fully automated, any-to-any connectivity between network
elements and test equipment without manual re-cabling or reconfiguration.
"Virtually all tier-one network operators and research teams have photonic
switching on their roadmaps, but current market dynamics compel them to adopt
photonics 'one bite at a time'," stated Calient Networks co-founder and CEO
Charles Corbalis. "It's often the case that they simply need to build an
institutional learning curve about photonic networking. Available optical
switches are generally too small, too expensive, and so inflexible that they
discourage widespread use."
Montana State University's Gilhousen Telecommunications Program in Bozeman
implemented a pre-commercial version of Calient's PX through the Photonic
Technology Access Program (PTAP), funded by NSF and DARPA. Says Richard S.
Wolff, Gilhousen Telecommunications Program chair, "Our team will use the PX
to explore the effects of switch dynamics on end-to-end performance in
all-optical networks, in applications as diverse as neuroscience
visualization, solar physics, agricultural science and NSF-funded grid
computing. In addition, we will use the PX in our optical communications labs
to enable students to get a better grasp of emerging optical systems."
Wolff continued, "Calient's PX product is ideal for our applications
because
it is transparent and non-blocking. The DiamondWave PXC is already proving
itself in grid environments such as the NSF OptIPuter network, demonstrating
that dynamic optical networks are a key component to enable the lambda
networks of the future. Calient is the clear leader in this space."
The 32 by 32 PX switch core has also been purchased by a tier-one carrier
as
a
software reconfigurable patch panel, to enable rapid set-up and automated
reconfiguration of lightpaths, switches and other network elements in lab and
pre-deployment environments.
A second research institute is preparing to deploy PX capabilities in
support
of its federally-funded all-optical networking, computational research and
wavelength switching programs. "With our leading solutions, the largest
knowledge base and longest runtime in this space, Calient Networks is leading
the charge to make adoption of photonic switching as easy and affordable as
possible," emphasized Corbalis. "We intend to expand our lead across the
breadth of photonic switching applications."
The PX is bit-rate independent and protocol transparent, with a wavelength
range from 1260 nm to 1625 nm, and simple management interfaces including TL1
Command Line Interface and RPC for remote machine-to-machine interfaces. It
supports single-mode fiber (SMF) and has built-in input and output power
detection as well as a self-recovery mechanism in the event of power
failure.
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