Part IV: METROPOLITAN, CORE, AND STORAGE AREA NETWORKS
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NEXT-GENERATION INTEGRATED METROPOLITAN-ACCESS NETWORK: TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION AND WIRELESS CONVERGENCE
Since the past decade, broadband access networks have undergone significant changes. Fiber optics is reaching to homes, and wireless data access networks are becoming ubiquitous. As emerging multimedia applications continue to demand for larger bandwidth, the evolution of broadband access networks is expected to remain. As a result, next-generation metropolitan area networks must be able to support the architectural changes and growing traffic demands of emerging broadband access infrastructures. The integration between metropolitan and access networks is becoming a promising solution for future networks to accommodate these challenges. This chapter exploits future integrated metropolitan-access network architectures that can seamlessly support high-bandwidth, pervasive applications to come.
In this chapter, we first review important recent developments in metropolitan and access networks. With this foundation, the integration of metropolitan and optical access networks is discussed in some detail, with focus on the trade-offs between integrated and nonintegrated metro-access solutions. We then examine the convergence of optical and wireless access networks as a solution to overcome the bandwidth and coverage limitations of current broadband access networks. ...
