Broadband Telecommunications: HFC Access Network

Hybrid Fiber Coaxial Network Access Driver
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Hybrid Fiber Coaxial Network Access Drivers
Introduction
Hybrid Fiber Coaxial (HFC) is a technical term used to define a broadband network that combines optical fiber and coaxial fiber. HFC is used in the delivery of video, telephony and voice telephony, to offer interactive services through fiber and coaxial cables. On a global scale, HFC is used by cable operators to offer the above-listed services. Hybrid Fiber Coaxial is also referred to as Hybrid Fiber Coax.
The communication world is changing. Commercial entities and other communication consumers are dictating for quality multimedia content. To meet consumer demand, an efficient broadband network with the capability to transmit the highest bandwidth that correlates with quality is required. Hybrid Fiber Coaxial (HFC) networks provide the best option to deliver the highest quality of services to the consumer. Hybrid Fiber Coax bears some of the desirable characteristics that make it ideal for use in the present and future generations.
An HFC network receives a wide range of services such as radio signals, TV, internet, and telephony. From a central point, all the forms of signals received can be disseminated to various subscribers. The basic transmission blocks of an HFC network system include; Headend, Optical Transmission Networks, Coaxial trunk and line network and the In-building Broadband Networks (Chiddix, Vaughan, & Wolfe, 2016). The advent of the coaxial cable as a means of transport has increased the capacity to include multiple wavelengths, as well as increased reliability, considering that RF amplifiers that are prone to electrical faults have been direly replaced. Use of fiber cables as the physical form of transportation in Hybrid Fiber Coaxial increases the capability, reliability and cost efficiency in diversified communication. This paper discusses in details the interactive use of HFC, cost-effective approaches in the architecture of HFC and achievement of required picture quality to meet consumer demands.
Key Network Drivers for HFC
The key HFC network operators determine the technologies and service approaches that will be deployed to attain the best quality for terminal users. When examining critical network drivers, it is crucial to feature upstream, downstream network, servicing area, the distance of the cable as well as the type of cable that will be used. All these drivers determine the structural and material needs of the HFC network (Gagen & Pugh, 2014). Particular questions should be developed before laying down the network architecture.
The analysis should be performed on the forward path. Downstream transportation stands to be influenced by the environment, nature of the components and the architectural design. Passive networks like telephone networks that already exist in the locality are more likely to impact the quality of downstream transportation. For a two-way system approach, considerations should be focused on the return path. A critical feature of the HFC network is that consumer feedback can be received through the return path. To ensure that this function and several others are maintained, these considerations ought to be featured in decision making. Other network drivers for HFC include the content, cost and consumer preferences.
System Components
Fiber Optic Node
Key network drivers affect the nature of system components that will be used in the architecture. The first consideration is the fiber optic node. The fiber optic node functions as a trans-receiver. In a coaxial distribution system, the fiber optic node originates from the head-end, performing as the local head-end. The fiber optic node transforms all upstream signals into light and downstream light signals into RF energy. The number of amplifiers used in optic node affects the quality and system performance. The maximum number of amplifiers that should be placed on the fiber optic node should not exceed four.
Power Supply
The source of power for the network system is placed on the coaxial cables. A fuse is included to link Alternating Current (AC) to the coaxial system cable. There are usually two sources of power, one that supplies the node and another that feeds the coaxial amplifiers along the coaxial cable. Given that power interruptions are more likely to be experienced; the system is equipped with a standby power source. An inverter, coupled with batteries serves as the standby source of power. The role of the inverter is to convert DC power from the batteries to AC power for the system components. Depending on the capabilities of power standby cells and the amperage usage of the system components, almost 3 hours during a power outage can be sustained by the system (Koerner, 2013). There is need to determine the probability of power failure, so that the equivalent capacity of batteries is installed when laying down the system. A two-way HFC network will require more power supply. 110-150 VAC of power input is required for a typical HFC system to power the system components.
Mini Bridger
The mini bridger component of the HFC system network is also referred to as the line extender. Line extenders are typically coaxial cable amplifiers. The number of amplifiers that will be used depends the quality of the component as a key HFC network driver. The number of dedicated ports in the Local Head-end and the need for multiple coaxial feeds dictates the number of coaxial amplifiers that will be installed in the system. The liner extender may be split into multiple coaxial outputs depending on the number of receivers at the end terminal.
Coaxial Cables for the System
Coaxial cables are a prominent feature of the HFC network system. Coaxial cables vary in size and length. It is observed that large sized coaxial cables are more efficient than small sized cables. Hence, for forward and return HFC network, large sized coaxial cables should be utilized. The size of the cable impacts the cost and the design of the network. For a cost sensitive network design, it is crucial that a medium sized coaxial cable is utilized. Probable sizes that should be considered include .650, .750. Another consideration for coaxial cable is the amount of bandwidth that will be transferred. System performance will be boosted by refraining from the use of smaller cables.
Fixed Equalizers
The role of fixed equalizer is to attenuate low band of signals that are experienced because of nonlinear frequency loss that is experienced along the coaxial cable. Fixed equalizers are usually located towards the end of the cable so that they can prevent reverse slope of the signal levels, more likely to happen at the end of ...