A fiber optic local area network (LAN) development project is proposed to provide fault tolerant, secure shipboard communications. The LAN will utilize Phoenix digital's fault tolerant, "self-healing" fiber optic communications technology, in conjunction with GTE'S birefringent wavelength division multiplexer (BWDM) technology. The BWDM allows multiple optical communication channels in a specific fiber transmission window to be sent over a single fiber, thus enabling different communication protocols to be encoded by wavelength and transmitted over the same physical network carrier. Subcarrier multiplexing will be used to provide a method for allocating voice channels to the network. While this technology has been developed for telecommunication applications by Gte-Corporation, Phoenix Digital has received a license to apply this advanced technology to military LAN communications. The project objectives will be to specify, design and build a working prototype model of an optical LAN to demonstrate how administrative voice, tactical voice, and control/data can be encoded and communicated over multiple optical wavelengths in a single optical conductor. New, heuristic techniques for providing high speed communication wrapback fault tolerance will also be included in the demonstration. The Phase I demonstration ill provide the proof of concept necessary to proceed with a Phase II implementation of a fault tolerant, broadband optical communication technology, compatible with Navy communication standards
