Server: Microsoft-IIS/2.0 Date: Fri, 21 Nov 1997 02:13:02 GMT Content-Type: text/html Accept-Ranges: bytes Last-Modified: Mon, 16 Jun 1997 22:26:13 GMT Content-Length: 28922 AFC Insider -Spring 1997
Index:
industry trends
by Donald Green, CEO
inside AFC
by Carl Grivner, President
service first
by Donna Deibold, Documentation and Training Manager
any transport, any network, any servicetm
by Keith Russell, Applications Engineer
lab notebook
by John Webley, VP Advanced Development
technical tips
by Chris Roberts, Technical Assistance Engineer
may I take your order?
by Jim Staheli, Applications Engineer Manager
on the road
by Christine Corlett, Manager, Marketing Communications
did you know?
by Glenn Lillich, VP Sales and Marketing
industry trends   By Don Green,CEO

The telephone industry is wrestling with the challenge of increasing the volume of information that flows between subscribers connected to the public switched telephone network. Technology is becoming available to significantly boost the rate of information transmission. However, a number of obstacles still stand in the way of delivering universal high data rate services. Obstacles include agreements on interoperability standards for new services, the high cost of new services until volume deployment enables cost reductions, and the need to utilize legacy network infrastructures that telephone companies cannot afford to replace.

Several solutions have been proposed to enable telephone companies to support bandwidth intensive applications. Options include “xDSL,” which will work to some degree over existing copper facilities; SONET network architecture; and the development of a separate ATM data switching network. To date there is little agreement on how to standardize any of these solutions to ensure interoperability between carriers. This uncertainty raises the financial risks telephone companies face when selecting equipment for high bandwidth applications — will today’s equipment be obsolete when tomorrow’s technology arrives?

AFC has developed a solution to help telephone companies reduce the economic risks of selecting access equipment in today’s rapidly changing environment. AFC’s strategy is to provide a platform that will deliver currently available technologies and smoothly adapt to any future network requirements.

The main building block for this strategy is an enhanced Channel Bank Assembly (CBA) backplane for the UMC 1000. The new backplane supports 6.2 Gbps bandwidth, an increase of over 60 times the UMC’s 100 Mbps backplane. The backplane is designed for ATM cell connectivity, TDM time slot connectivity and a OC-x SONET connectivity. This “broadband-ready” CBA supports a family of plug-in modules that are being developed to cost-effectively support xDSL services and SONET and ATM network interfaces.

With the broadband-ready CBA, AFC customers will have a cost-effective solution for today’s subscriber demands with the security of knowing they can also handle tomorrow’s network requirements.

     
inside AFC   By Carl Grivner, President

AFC is committed to technology leadership in local loop access. As the pace of technological change accelerates, service providers need equipment that will support new standards in order to bring services to market quickly and cost-effectively. We’re continually enhancing the UMC 1000 product family to ensure that it gives you all the options you need to serve the evolving needs of your subscribers.

AFC recently started shipping a groundbreaking “broadband-ready” UMC 1000 Channel Bank Assembly (CBA). The UMC 1000 backplane now supports 6.2 Gbps, some 60 times its previous bandwidth, and is capable of delivering narrow band and broadband services anywhere in the network.

The “supercharged” UMC 1000 backplane will be able to support TDM, cell (ATM and Frame Relay) and SONET (OC-x) network connectivity–in addition to all of the narrow band transport and services that it has always supported. The addition of broadband support makes the UMC 1000 virtually future-proof, allowing you to deliver today’s and tomorrow’s services from the same network platform.

With broadband and narrow band support from the same terminal, the UMC 1000 is setting a new standard for local loop access equipment. That’s why we’re calling the UMC 1000 the world’s rst “3rd Generation Digital Loop Carrier (3GDLC).” It goes far beyond DLC and NGDLC capabilities, adding enough bandwidth to unclog the local loop bottleneck that exists in many applications while maintaining an attractive cost pro le for any line size.

For more information about the broadband-ready UMC 1000, contact AFC Applications Engineering at (707) 794-7500.

     
service first   By Donna Deibold,
Documentation and Training Manager

The AFC Documentation and Training group is developing new UMC 1000 training resources to specifically meet the needs of AFC’s growing number of customers. We are upgrading the existing training to include more “hands-on” exercises, and we have recently completed our first training video on UMC 1000 Remote Subscriber Cabinet (RSC) installation. Plans are underway for additional training videos, including:

• UMC 1000 General Overview
• UMC 1000 Craft Interface Operation and Maintenance
• UMC 1000 Test and Turn UpWe’re also working on a computer based UMC 1000 training program to be completed later this year.

In addition to UMC 1000 training, we’re designing training courses on telecomm- unications technologies and applications. These courses will be available to AFC employees and to our customers. A list of course titles being considered include:

• Telecommunications Networks Fundamentals
• Introduction to T1/T3/SONET Networks
• SONET Overview• Digital Telecommunications Fundamentals
• Introduction to Digital Networks• ISDN User-Network Interface
• Data Communications Fundamentals

Future issues of The AFC Insider will feature articles about training developments and upcoming classes. Feel free to offer your suggestions and comments about our training programs. You can reach me at (707)792-6184, or via email at donna.deibold@fibre.com. We’re looking forward to seeing you in the near future.

     
Any Network, Any Transport, Any Service   By Keith Russell,
AFC Applications Engineer

The Alaskan towns of Allakalet and Alatna are two miles apart but are separated by the Koyokuk River and the Arctic Circle. Prior to 1995, no telephone facilities existed on the Alatna side of the river. When they needed to make a phone call, residents of Alatna were forced to travel by canoe across the river.

“To be without telephone service in these remote areas is particularly difficult,” says Tom Ervin of Alaska Power and Telephone Company. “Phones are the only way for people to connect to many of the services they need.”

In 1995, flooding damaged both towns, destroying the Allakalet central office. At that point, neither town had phone service.

“As we were rebuilding the Allakalet power system, the leaders of Alatna approached us about bringing telephone service to their community,” says Ervin. We had no problem with Allakalet, but getting service across the river to Alatna would be expensive.”

“We serve a lot of customers in our region with UMC 1000 equipment,” says Ervin. “We looked at our options, and saw a way to use the UMC 1000 to serve parts of Allakalet and to reach Alatna.”

How did they do it?

“From a UMC 1000 in our Allakalet Central office, we connected a UMC 1000 T1 transceiver to a microwave radio antenna. Then we installed a UMC 48 line cabinet in Alatna, and hooked up another T1 out of that terminal to a radio antenna to create a T1 span between terminals. Now we can deliver phone service to Alatna from the Allakalet exchange.”

How has the system performed?

“Flawlessly,” according to Ervin. “The residents of Alatna are thrilled. Its a major contribution to the quality of life in their community. And the solution was extremely cost-effective. Original estimates for bringing service to Alatna were $250,000. The UMC 1000 solution cost about $70,000.”

     
lab notebook
  By John Webley, VP Advanced Developement

This Spring AFC released the broadband-ready UMC 1000 Channel Bank Assembly (CBA).

The addition of broadband support makes the UMC 1000 a truly “future-proof” platform. Let me tell you how it works.

The flexibility of the UMC 1000 is derived from its backplane. We’ve improved the UMC backplane to support 6.2 Gbps of bandwidth. Every card slot in the UMC CBA has access to this backplane, and bandwidth is allocated to the cards dynamically so that each card can seize all available bandwidth when active. Bandwidth is freed-up when the transceiver or service module is not in use.

The UMC 1000 broadband backplane features a 5.3 Gbps SONET bus, an 800 Mbps cell (ATM/Frame Relay) bus, and a 100 Mbps TDM bus. Both narrow band and broadband transport and service modules will plug into any CBA general purpose slots and will access the appropriate bus. Narrow band transport and service modules will access the TDM bus, ATM modules will access the cell bus, etc, enabling the UMC to deliver broadband and narrow band services anywhere in the network.

Broadband service and transport modules for the UMC 1000 are currently in development. In the future, you’ll see cards that offer xDSL service, ATM and SONET network connectivity, and more.

We’re excited about the new UMC 1000 backplane because it realizes our vision for the UMC 1000 as a flexible, cost-effective access system that is unrestricted by technological change and that allows telephone companies to economically deliver service to any subscriber area.

     
technical tips   By Chris Robertson, Technical Assistance Engineer

T1-XCVR and T1X-XCVR
So what’s the difference between the T1-XCVR and the T1X-XCVR?
Power. More specifically, the T1-XCVR is a line powering transceiver which regulates 60 mA at 130V. The unit is designed to drive multiple repeaters in a long copper route at a maximum distance of 36dB, or can be used to terminate a span line. Of course, some T1 spans do not require repeaters and may run only a short distance (655 feet or less). That's where the T1X is used. The T1X-XCVR is a non-line powering transceiver designed for applications where power and sealing current are not necessary. Examples of such applications would be short distances inside the central office to a DSX or to a customer premise.

T1A and T1AX
The T1A and T1AX are channel units that transmit (and receive) a T1 signal asynchronously. The T1A performs line powering, similar to the T1-XCVR. The T1AX is non-powering and drives DSX level signals up to 655 feet. T1A and T1AX channel units provide an intact T1 rate interface, transmitting and receiving 1.544 Mbps. They transmit T1 signals transparently as a data stream that is passed intact to its destination.

What are synchronous and asynchronous transmission?
Synchronous transmission means that a signal is divided into channels, which are identified by clocking signals included in the transmission. In the case of the T1 transceivers, the 1.544 Mbps T1 signal is divided into 24 channels, or timeslots, using some of the bandwidth for clock signals. Asynchronous transmission uses no clocking signal. T1A and T1AX channel units deliver the full 1.544 Mbps, typically for data applications

     
may I take your order?   By Jim Staheli, Applications Engineering Manager

The Universal Modular Carrier (UMC) System has proven to be extremely flexible. The UMC's ability to adapt to any network, utilize any transport and provide any service allows AFC customers to meet the needs of innumerable applications. In fact, the flexibility of the UMC allows it to be configured in so many different ways that we have developed tools to help AFC customers select the appropriate UMC elements for a specific application.

UMC 1000 Ordering Guide
One of these tools is the UMC 1000 Ordering Guide. The Ordering Guide is designed for network planners and design engineers to help them quickly navigate to the optimal UMC 1000 components for a specific application. The Ordering Guide contains detailed information about all UMC products available including:

• All UMC element prices, part numbers, names and descriptions.
• The basic capabilities of the UMC .
• A large number of functional application examples.
• UMC Channel Bank Assembly configurations—including the specific plug-ins for each application.

UMC 1000 Autoconfigurator
AFC Application Engineering has also created an electronic tool designed to make it easy to order UMC 1000 equipment. It’s called the UMC 1000 Autoconfigurator.

The Autoconfigurator requires ExcelTM (5.0 or later for Windows® or Macintosh®), and is available to help you design budgetary quotations and network applications. The program is simple to load and operate, and can be used to configure anything from point-to-point systems to 16 node networks. When you start the Autoconfigurator, it will prompt you with a few simple questions. You only need to:

• Select fiber, T1, coax, wireless or HDSL transport.
• Provision the UMC with any available analog and digital services.
• Configure AFC cabinets with the options you desire.

The program prints a detailed quotation of the network configuration just like the ones we generate for you here at AFC. Simply fax the printout to AFC to place your order. Soon you’ll be able to instantly email your quotation to AFC.

To obtain a complimentary Ordering Guide and/or Autoconfigurator please contact your AFC application engineering representative, or call 707-794-7500. When we send you an Autoconfigurator or Ordering Guide, we keep your name on a database so that you will always receive any related updates. Please feel free to send us any questions or comments you might have about your Ordering Guide or Autoconfigurator.

     
on the road   By Christine Corlett, Manager, Marketing Communications

Thanks for visiting AFC at Supercomm '97.

Supercomm '97 was a great success for AFC, and we'd like to thank everyone who joined us at the 5th Annual Insiders’ Breakfast to see the world's first 3rd Generation Digital Loop Carrier (3GDLC)TM in action.

If you visited our booth, you also saw our new Spread Spectrum Radio transceiver, 12 line remote subscriber cabinet, 48 line indoor remote subsriber cabinet, xDSL solutions and more at work. If you'd like more information about any of these products, contact your AFC sales representative or AFC Application Engineering at (707) 794-7500.

We had more people than ever visit our display this year, and we were awarded "Best of Show" for the appearance, content and staffing of our booth.

Thanks again, and see you next year!

     
did you know?   By Glenn Lillich, VP Sales and Marketing

Did you know that the UMC 1000 can interface with PairGain® HRU customer premise units? PairGain HRUs are commonly used to bring full or fractional T1 to businesses and other data-intensive applications to a customer premise.

With the UMC 1000, you can groom T1s to a PairGain HRU just like you groom T1s to other channel banks or other UMC terminals. T1 circuits can be groomed directly from a UMC 1000 Local Exchange Terminal in the Central Office to the HRU using the UMC T1 Transceiver (T1HD-XCVR) at the LET, eliminating the need for additional Central Office equipment which would otherwise be required.

The UMC 1000 delivers repeaterless T1 service to the HRU over two pairs of unconditioned copper wire up to 12,000 ft (3600 m) using 24 AWG wire. No bridged tap removal or binder group separation is required.

The ability to groom T1s to customer premise equipment is just one more example of the versatility and cost-effectiveness of the UMC platform.