Architectures and Bandwidth Allocation Schemes for Hybrid Wireless-Optical Networks

The combination of the most prestigious optical and wireless technologies for implementing a modern broadband integrated access network has been progressively gaining ground. By extending the network coverage in a cost-efficient way, hybrid wireless-optical networks are able to enclose a larger number of potential subscribers than standalone access architectures. Hence, they are capable of increasing revenue levels and facilitating commercial penetration to the telecom market. At the same time, hybrid wireless-optical networks pose an ambitious, alternative, and efficient solution to coping with new bandwidth-hungry user applications. Hybrid wireless-optical networks incorporate sophisticated modules, fabrics, and network entities to effectively provide adequate quality of service (QoS) provisioning. This survey endeavors to classify the main features of wireless-optical integration. We provide a comprehensive compilation of the latest architectures, integrated technologies, QoS features, and dynamic bandwidth allocation (DBA) schemes. In addition, new trends towards wireless-optical convergence are presented. Moreover, as the up-to-date hybrid network standards remain under development, since there is not yet an integrated standard for approving hybrid network access platforms, we accompany this survey with detailed challenges indicating potential avenues of future research.