Effective distribution of high bandwidth to the last mile

Abstract

Since the mid 1990s, Internet is revolutionizing the way business is conducted around the globe. Bandwidthintensive graphics, video and audio applications are becoming more popular and the desire for fast access to information places a huge demand on high bandwidth in metro networks. The primary bottleneck in the quest for delivering high bandwidth to the customers is the last mile. The last-mile of today primarily relies on infrastructures that were not designed for the transport of digital data. The current infrastructure of twisted pair is very close to its upper limits. As a result, consumers are unable to enjoy the full potential of the Internet and generally do not have access to enhanced services such as enriched multimedia services, converged voice, video, and data services and high-speed Web browsing. This thesis assesses a broad spectrum of wired and wireless last mile technologies available - Optical Fiber Technology, Digital Subscriber Lines, Free Space Optics, Wireless Local Loop, Wireless LAN and Cellular Technology. Besides discussing the basic concepts and principles, it highlights the current limitations of these technologies for last mile implementation. An innovative and state-of-the-art methodology for linking building with optical fiber to achieve high bandwidth through sewer systems is presented.