Page 268 - Optical Switching And Networking Handbook

11_200023_CH10/Bates 1/17/01 9:06 AM Page 253

The Future of Optical Networking (Where Is It All Heading?) 253

Corporate
Figure 10-13 Headquarters Location 1
Circuit-switched
nailed connections
Red
at the OC-192 or
OC-768 rate Optical
MUX Red OC-192 Location 2
Green Optical
Switch Green OC-768
Switch
Red Optical
Green
Blue
Blue Optical
Switch Location 3
Yellow
Yellow Blue OC-192
Optical
Switch
Yellow OC-192
Location 4

QoS a Reality!

Somewhere along the way to this magical world of unlimited band-
width on demand, we will also meet the monster that has been loom-
ing in the background of our network. The issue of quality of service
(QoS) has not been assured yet. Too often we have been relegated to
choosing the type of data we must send at a specific time or date.
This is because of the delay and latency in the networks. In the
future with the unlimited bandwidth, we shall see less dependency
on trying to handle the data and more independence in the type of
data. Real-time voice and video applications can once again be a real-
ity without concern. If we need more bandwidth, we can dial it up. If
we need to transfer a huge file between two points, we can dial up a
guaranteed throughput by dedicating a wavelength between the two
points for the duration of the connection. This is the best part of the
two converging network themes of packet and circuit switching com-