The traffic concentration challenge in ATM PONs with a high splitting ratio

A MAC protocol proposed for the access arbitration of passive optical networks with high splitting ratios and a high number of customers is presented. The protocol handles constant bit rate (CBR) services based on the predictability of arrivals while the rest of the bursty services are serviced by means of a reservation mechanism which allows adaptation of the permits to the bursty arrival pattern of the traffic. The dynamic control at cell level which can exploit the multiplexing gain prospects of the system and maximize system utilization is the key feature of the protocol. The permit distribution algorithm is easy to implement and based on a simple permit programming method without wasting more processing resources than is warranted by the coarse level of detail of the available control information