International Journal of Engineering & Technology, 7 (4.

44) (2018) 105-109

International Journal of Engineering & Technology

Website: www.sciencepubco.com/index.php/IJET

Research paper

Feasibility Study of Fiber to the Home Networks for Optical

Fiber Loss and Attenuation
Edy Budiman1*, Haviluddin2, Masna Wati3, Medi Taruk4, Hario Jati Setyadi5, Herman Santoso Pakpahan6
1Universitas Mulawarman, Samarinda, Indonesia

*Corresponding author E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

The utilization of optical fiber cable as a data transmission medium has provided various benefits and advantages in terms of data transfer
and economically because it can reduce the use of many copper cables. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of Fiber
To The Home (FFTH) networks by measuring and analyzing power losses caused by attenuation along the fiber optic cable. Measuring
tools for attenuation use JDSU MTS-8000 while the power measurement uses Optical Power Meter. Feasibility specifications refer to
ITU-T G.984. recommendations. The analysis results show that of the 110 customers observed, the average value of Link Power Budget
is 20.58 dB, with an average power margin of 5.57dBm. If comparing the results of the ITU-T G.984 recommendation, it stated that was
accepted, still in accordance with the rules specifications. Feasibility studies of FTTH networks on the issue of power loss and attenua-
tion are needed in an effort to maintain the quality of service to customers. It also has a relationship with planning and developing system
installations in the future.

Keywords: Optical; Fiber; Attenuation; FTTH; Networks.

the quality issues of FTTH networks using GPON technology,

1. Introduction such as [4], [5]. In Indonesia, the design and development of
FTTH must meet recommendations [6-8] and in accordance with
The need for communication services with fast information trans- the standards by ITU-T. G.984.x. Along with the increase and
mission, better signal quality, and safer security factors make growth use of fiber optic cable as a data transmission medium, it
technology must be developed and updated. To achieve high- also often occurs information loss factors caused by losses that
speed information transmission, a large bandwidth is needed. In- occur along the fiber optic cable, one of these losses is the power
ternet service providers (ISPs) are constantly pursuing requests for lost due to attenuation that produces power changes from an opti-
higher bandwidth and data throughput. Over time ISPs, have mi- cal transmitter to reach the optical receiver.
grated their services from UTP networks to Optical networks. ISP This study was motivated by the frequent occurrence of disruption
is the power to accommodate increased bandwidth requirements in one STO at the study site. Several times in each month there is
because new services used on a global scale tend to gradually a report of service interruptions and does not reach the customer
require more bandwidth [1]. [9-14], where the results of measurements in the field with an
The use of Fiber to The Home (FTTH) networks that use Fiber OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer) gauge show the
Optics as a transmission medium can meet the needs of residential results of the link power budget above 28dB. This is beyond the
customers to find a faster network connection for broadband ser- standard for the Link Power Budget, this is what triggers the arri-
vices [2]. This thirst for speed has surpassed even the latest predic- val of optical signals to Optical Network Terminal (ONT) devices
tions, driven in part by downloading or channeling more, and in the customer's home. If the total attenuation is not in accord-
more video content over the Web, the success of unexpected high ance with the standard, the guarantee of the quality of services
definition television, and the increasingly popular exchange of provided by the ISP will not be in accordance with the customer's
photography, video and audio content. New uses that support expectations.
greater bandwidth occur on an ongoing basis and many service The issue of optical power attenuation and also has a relationship
providers plan networks capable of 50 Mb / s, 100 Mb / s, or high- with the planning of the installation of fiber optic cable communi-
er, per customer [2]. With technology that continues to grow and cation systems. When the system experiences interruption along
end users who demand faster internet speeds, optical fiber tech- fiber optic cable, in this case, it occurs in one of the Internet Ser-
nology is the best choice [3]. vice Providers (ISPs) in Indonesia, from attenuation and power
Gigabyte Passive Optical Networks (GPON) is a network technol- data that occurs at the ISP, then conducts research to analyze the
ogy, which relies on optical cables to convey information. With performance of fiber optic communication systems caused by
one optical fiber capable of supporting multiple users because the attenuation and strength along fiber optic cable.
use of passive optical splitters makes GPON have the advantage of The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of Fiber
reducing equipment, meeting areas with high density and support- To The Home (FFTH) networks by measuring and analyzing
ing triple play services; voice, date and IP video with the level of power losses caused by attenuation along the fiber optic cable.
public demand [3]. GPON has been seen as an important part of Measuring tools for attenuation use JDSU MTS-8000 while the
many FTTH strategies. Several studies have been conducted on power measurement uses Optical Power Meter. Feasibility specifi-
Copyright © 2018 Authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted
use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
106 International Journal of Engineering & Technology

cations refer to ITU-T G.984.2 recommendations. Feasibility stud- To measure the power level using 2 units. The first unit that func-
ies of FTTH networks on the issue of power loss and attenuation tions as a transient is to use an optical Light Source and the second
are needed in an effort to maintain the quality of service to cus- unit functions as a receiver using an Optical Power Meter. A typi-
tomers. It also has a relationship with planning and developing cal optical power meter consists of a calibrated sensor, measuring
system installations in the future. amplifier and display. This sensor consists mainly of photodiodes
selected for the right range of wavelengths and power levels. On
2. Materials and Methods the display unit, optical power is measured and the wavelength is
displayed. Calibrated electric meters using a calibration standard
can be tracked like the NIST standard. Optical power meters are
2.1. Design Network Architecture and Measuring Tools combined with different test functions such as Optical Light
Source (OLS), When combined with a light source, the instrument
Fig. 1, the network architectural design of Link Power Budget is usually called an Optical Loss Test Set.
measurements from Optical Line Terminal (OLT) to Optical
Network Terminal/Unit (ONT/ONU) terminals subscribers. 2.2. Data Collection Methods

Data collection techniques use field measurement methods. Data

is collected from the Optical Line Terminal of the total user popu-
lation. The population of the customer's internet number is cur-
rently taken from the user node. The number of samples is shown
in Table 1.
Table 1: Number of consumers based on Optical Distribution Network
(ODN)
Optical Distribution Network (ODN) Number of Customers
ODC-FAA 9
ODC-FAB 26
Fig. 1: The network architectural design of Link Power Budget meas- ODC-FB 9
urements ODC-FC 7
ODP-FE 6
In general, The FTTH networks divided into 4 segments of cables ODC-FF 13
in addition to active traps like OLT and ONU/ONT, i.e. ODP-FG 12
1. Segment A: Feeder cable ODC-FJ 2
2. Segment B: Distribution cable ODC-FK 4
3. Segment C: Drop cable ODC-FL 2
4. Segment D: Home wiring (Indoor cable). ODC-FM 38
Measuring instrument for attenuation using JDSU MTS-8000 ODC-FT 11
while measuring power using Optical Power Meter in Fig. 2. ODC-FU 4
ODC-FV 3
ODC-FW 3
ODC-FX 4
Total 153
The customer data is collected and analyzed to ensure that the
internet is equipped with registration numbers and internet num-
bers are installed correctly in the customer's home. In the Table 1,
there is 16 distribution of optical networks for networks service to
customers which are Outdoor devices in fiber optic access net-
works. Optical Distribution Cabinet (ODC) functions as a place to
install a single-mode optical network connection, which can con-
tain connectors, splicing, or splitters and is equipped with fiber
management space with a certain capacity in GPON, for telecom-
munication relations. ODC functions as a termination place be-
tween feeder cables and distribution cables. In ODC there are
central or splitters which are divided into Optical Distribution
Fig. 2: JDSU MTS-8000 Point (ODP) or service distribution boxes to customers, their func-
tion as the termination point of the optical drop cable towards the
One function of this tool is to measure attenuation due to events customer and the distribution point, the distribution cable becomes
that occur along fiber optic cables, this measuring instrument several optical drop lines using a splitter.
works based on the time domain, which is the reflected light cap-
tured when the laser is fired into fiber optic cables to identify the
core characteristics of optical fibre characterization. In measuring 3. Network Quality Parameters for FTTH
fibre attenuation, the point-to-point relationship measures from
end to original to end and end the original. The items that can be The link power budget is calculated as a requirement for the link
measured in this tool are the attenuation coefficient, reflection, that we design the power beyond the threshold of the required
and error point, based on the distance function. JDSU MTS-8000 power. To calculate the link power budget can be calculated by the
is a highly integrated test platform for all phases of the fiber net- equation [15-16]:
work life cycle, it provides field service technicians with the high-
est level of performance and upgradeability. More than 40 applica- α tot = L.αfiber + Nc.αc + Ns. αs + Sp (1)
tion modules are supported for multimode and single mode. Very
lightweight compact platform. Generates performance-proof re-
ports. Perform full fiber characterization measurements. JDSU The equation for the power margin calculation is:
MTS-8000 Scalable Optical Test Platform without additional tools
and easy to use without the need for training when used.
International Journal of Engineering & Technology 107

M = (Pt – Pr) - α total - SM (2) Table 3: Customer Data Analysis

Status ONU
Optical Terminal Box (OTB) Total
Good Offline Fallout
ODC-FAA 5 1 3 9
Where: ODC-FAB 22 2 2 26
Pt : Output power (dBm) ODC-FB 6 3 9
Pr : Maximum power sensitivity (dBm) ODC-FC 4 1 2 7
SM : Safety margin ODP-FE 4 2 6
α tot : Total attenuation (dB) ODC-FF 11 2 13
L : Fiber Length (Km) ODP-FG 8 2 2 12
αc : Connector attenuation ODC-FJ 1 1 2
αs : Attenuation of the connection ODC-FK 4 4
fiber α : fiber attenuation (dB/Km) ODC-FL 2 2
Ns : Number of connections ODC-FM 25 2 11 38
Nc : Number of connectors ODC-FT 11 11
Sp : attenuation Splitter (dB) ODC-FU 4 4
ODC-FV 3 3
ODC-FW 2 1 3
Analysis of measurement data that has been obtained will be ad-
ODC-FX 4 4
justed with the recommendations of ITU [6-8]. Table 2 presents
Total 110 9 34 153
the recommendations ITU for specification of GPON.
From the results of field observations based on customer data
Table 2: Specification of GPON recommendation ITU-T. G.984.2 [6-8] registered at the central office, there are obstacles when taking
Items Target Description measurements, some ODC cannot be measured (offline and fallout)
Full Services (19/100 Base-T, so that the number of customers that can be measured only 110
Service performance and QOS
Voice, Leased lines) users.
Down 1244.16, or 2488.32 Mbit/s.
bit rate of the OLT to ONU signal Up 155.52, 622.08, 1244.16, or
2488.32 Mbit/s
4.2. Feasibility Analysis of Measurement Results
Maximum Physical distance (OLT
Max 20 km and Max 10 km Attenuation calculation results through equation (1), with a con-
to ONT)
Downstream: 1480 - 1500 nm stant value for wavelength 1310 nm, Standard attenuation 0.35 dB
Operating Wavelengths for fiber cable, 1:32 splitter attenuation (17.63 dB), connector
Upstream: 1260 - 1360 nm
Down: 1244, 2488 attenuation 0.25 dB / item with a number of connections 5 (con-
Transmission rate (Mbps)
Up: 155, 622, 1244, 2488 nection attenuation 0.1), then the total attenuation value (power
Max. Number of splitters per ONT 128 budget) is presented in Fig. 3, and Table 4.
Class A: 5-20 dB
Attenuation range Class B: 10-25 dB For examples of the calculation of total attenuation at the ODC-FJ
Class C: 15-30 dB
optical terminal box using equation (1) as follows:
Split ration Up to 64
Research on GPON performance analysis from Link Power Budg- α tot = (3.2 x 0.35) + (5 x 0.25) + (5 x 0.1) + (7.25 + 10.38)
et and QoS Trafficking was previously carried out by A Ubaidillah,
et al. [17]. From the results of his observations indicate that the = 1.12 + 1.25 + 0.5 + 17.63
GPON link power budget system is in good condition. Meet the = 20.5 dB
ITU-T G984 Class B standard. Whereas the traffic performance
observations show that the customer network resource utility in The calculation result of the Link Power Budget with the closest
the observed area is not optimal. M. El-Ghazali Hamza and K. distance of 0.9 Km with a total attenuation of 19.70 dB. The far-
Bashir Bugaje [18], this study proposes a simulation of the stand- thest distance of 6.5 Km with an attenuation value of around 21.66
ard fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) GPON to provide reliable con- dB, the average immersion value of 110 optical terminal boxes is
nections for 64 customers, using Optisystem over a distance of 20.58 dB. Based on the standardization of ITU-T G.984.2 recom-
50km. Medi Taruk. Et al. Comparison of TCP variants in Long mendations. For Class A: 5-20 dB, Class B: 10-25 dB, and Class
Term Evolution (LTE) [19], Hammadi, A. et al. [20], Have shown C: 15-30 28 dB [6-8], with Maximum fibre distance between S/R
a study to analyze worse levels of commitment for different sepa- and R/S points is 20 Km. So that when compared with the average
rate ratios per PON with respect to different network loads. Has total attenuation value obtained from the measured result against
demonstrated and justified the limitations of the specifications of the recommendation standard of ITU-T G.984.x, it is still appro-
the transmission distance from PON links to not exceeding 20km. priate (accepted) with the benchmark.

4. Results and Discussion

4.1. Customer Data Analysis

Before calculating the Link Power Budget parameters, then

validate the data of internet customer installation. The sub-
scriber data is verified and validated to find out that the
existing internet registration number and internet number
are installed in the customer's home well. The result of
complete customer data analysis can be seen in Table 3.
108 International Journal of Engineering & Technology

Table 5: Summary of the Power Margin calculation results

Optical Safety Margin
Pt Pr Attenuation
Terminal Margin Power
(dBm) (dBm) Total (dB)
Box (SM) (dBm)
ODC-FAA 5 -29 20,05 8 6,21
ODC-FAB 5 -29 21,18 8 5,07
ODC-FB 5 -29 20,83 8 5,42
ODC-FC 5 -29 20,6 8 5,65
ODP-FE 5 -29 20,12 8 4,72
ODC-FF 5 -29 20,68 8 5,58
ODP-FG 5 -29 21,01 8 5,24
ODC-FJ 5 -29 20,5 8 5,75
ODC-FM 5 -29 20,35 8 5,90
ODC-FT 5 -29 21,04 8 5,21
ODC-FU 5 -29 20,58 8 5,67
ODC-FV 5 -29 20,29 8 5,96
ODC-FW 5 -29 20,73 8 5,52
ODC-FX 5 -29 20,09 8 6,16
Average (dBm) 5,57

Fig. 3. The Link Power Budget Graph

Table 4: Summary of the Link Power Budget calculation results

Attenuation Attenuation
Average Fiber
Optical Terminal Box Splitter Total
Length (Km)
(dB) (dB)
ODC-FAA 1,900 17,63 20,05
ODC-FAB 5,150 17,63 21,18
ODC-FB 4,133 17,63 20,83
ODC-FC 3,475 17,63 20,60 Fig. 4. The Link Power Budget and Margin Power Graph
ODP-FE 2,100 17,63 20,12
ODC-FF 3,700 17,63 20,68 Based on the results of measurements and calculations in Table 4
ODP-FG 4,648 17,63 21,01 and Table 5, evaluation analysis that of the 110 customers (optical
ODC-FJ 3,200 17,63 20,50 box terminals) observed in the field, the average value of the link
ODC-FM 2,772 17,63 20,35 power budget (total attenuation) is around 20.58 dB, with the
ODC-FT 4,745 17,63 21,04 power margin average of 5.57dBm. if compare the results of cal-
ODC-FU 3,425 17,63 20,58 culations with ITU-T G.984 recommendation benchmarks that
ODC-FV 2,600 17,63 20,29 require Attenuation ranges for Class A: 5-20 dB, Class B: 10-25
ODC-FW 3,850 17,63 20,73
dB, and Class C: 15-30 dB with Maximum Physical Distance
ODC-FX 2,025 17,63 20,09
(OLT to ONT) 20 Km, stating that it is still within the limits of the
Average(dB) 20.58
applicable standard.
Power margin, power budget margin generally includes aging of
the fiber, aging of the transmitter and receiver components, addi- In addition to analyzing the calculation of the link power budget
tional devices, incidental twisting and bending of the fiber, addi- and power margin manually based on data, the researcher also
tional splices, etc. The margin is needed to compensate for link conducted monitoring to find out the records of FTTH network
degradation, which is within the range of 3 to 10 dB [21]. Based disturbances at STO. And the results of the monitoring that was
on the calculation of the total attenuation that is present then the several times in the month of the month getting reports of service
value of power margin can be calculated based on equation (2). disruptions did not reach the customer. These disorders are found
The Link power margin calculation results summarized in Table 5 such as the problem of bending fibre optics (micro-bending).
and the total Link Power Budget and margin power graphs are
presented in Fig. 4. From interviews to field technical teams related to the implemen-
tation of FTTH networks that were not in accordance with the
established standards revealed that. There are still frequent incom-
patibilities with standards, but are minimized. there are several
factors that cause the FTTH network to be disrupted or not accord-
ing to the standard, for example, the cable breaks, it could also be
because the tree collapsed which made the existing device dam-
International Journal of Engineering & Technology 109

aged There is a bend in the cable, also other factors. But when the [14] Budiman E., Hairah, U., and Saudek, A., Mobile Networks for Mo-
installation takes place the FTTH network is made as safe as pos- bile Learning Tools, Journal of Telecommunication, Electronic and
sible and according to the standard but not released in the future Computer Engineering, vol. 10 (1-4), 2018, pp. 47-52.
[15] Keiser, G., FTTX concepts and applications, John Wiley & Sons,
there are many network disturbances that occur. Because of that, it
vol 91, p.196, 2006.
is necessary to periodically monitor the attenuation stabilization [16] Farmer J, Lane B, Bourg K, Wang W.: FTTx Networks: Technolo-
received by the customer whether it has been set by the standard. gy Implementation and Operation, 1st edn, Morgan Kaufmann, p.51,
(2016).
[17] Ubaidillah, A., and R. Alfita. "Link Power Budget and Traffict QoS
5. Conclusion Performance Analysis of Gygabit Passive Optical Network." In
Journal of Physics: Conference Series, vol. 953, no. 1, p. 012129.
Along with the increase and development of the use of fibre optic IOP Publishing, 2018.
cables as data transmission media, often the loss of information [18] M. El-Ghazali Hamza and K. Bashir Bugaje, "Enhancement of Gi-
caused by losses that occur along fibre optic cables, attenuation, gabit Passive Optical Highspeed Network using Fiber-To-The-
and optical power problems also has a relationship with planning. Home," 2018 International Conference on Computer, Control,
Electrical, and Electronics Engineering (ICCCEEE), Khartoum,
To ensure and maintain the quality of services on the Fibre To The
Sudan, 2018, pp. 1-4. doi: 10.1109/ICCCEEE.2018.8515851.
Home network with GPON technology. It is necessary to periodi- [19] M. Taruk, E. Budiman, Haviluddin and H. J. Setyadi, "Comparison
cally monitor the attenuation stabilization received by the custom- of TCP variants in Long Term Evolution (LTE)," 2017 5th Interna-
er whether it has been set to standard through field measurements tional Conference on Electrical, Electronics and Information Engi-
along the optical cable. neering (ICEEIE), Malang, 2017, pp. 131-134.
doi: 10.1109/ICEEIE.2017.8328776.
[20] Hammadi, A., Talwar, R. and Singh, H., 2017. A Case Study on the
Acknowledgement Architecture, Design, Implementation and Testing of Fiber to the
Home (FTTH) Green Network in Kuwait.
Thank you to the head of Information and Communication Tech- [21] Zhu, A, Fiber Link Power Budget: How to Make It Right? Posted
nology Department, Universitas Mulawarman East Kalimantan, on June 9, 2017, available at: http://www.fiber-optic-transceiver-
Head of Informatics Engineering Study Program which has sup- module.com/fiber-link-power-budget-calculation.html.
ported this research.

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