Almost zero delay even with high image quality! What is the "optical switch" that revolutionizes data transmission? (modern business)

photo by gettyimages

----------Remote work has become widespread, and online meetings and meetings have become a daily routine, but I thought, "I'm not doing well compared to face-to-face." Many people are. The "pause" caused by the "delay" when the video is transmitted is the cause of the discomfort. You probably didn't anticipate this "corona disaster", but did you know that Japan is now at the top of the world in data transmission technology that is greatly useful in eliminating such delays? And the person at the forefront is a young man who has only been in his third year as a researcher. I don't like this, but the expedition's mind is on fire! ----------The "astonishing ingenuity" that changed the history of watches A Japanese invention caused a "global revolution"!

Relay image with "almost zero delay" even though it is 4K

Mr. Matsuura (person in the display) talking with almost zero delay from the Rinkai Fukutoshin Center, far away from Tsukuba City

When I zoomed in on the 4K video camera installed by the window, the Rainbow Bridge was clearly projected on the large display. Through the zigzag stiffening girders that stitch the upper and lower decks together, you can clearly see the cars passing inside. You can also see the new transportation Yurikamome running behind it. As expected, it is a 4K image. But this is no ordinary 4K footage. The video camera is in a room in the Tokyo Waterfront Center of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST). I am in the room. And what is used for video transmission is not the Internet, but a dedicated optical fiber line. This is a test bed for demonstrating AIST's optical fiber communication technology. "Relay broadcasts using 4K video are becoming commonplace, but in reality, 4K video is still not fully utilized," says Hiroyuki Matsuura of the Rinkai Fukutoshin Center. , speaks to me from the display. At the same time as being a researcher at AIST, he is also the representative of Hikari Path Communications Co., Ltd. The company was established in 2017 to implement AIST's optical fiber communication technology in society. “This is because data compression is performed in the middle of the transmission process so that the signal processing does not become overwhelmed. This demo does not require data compression because it is a dedicated fiber optic line. This is because a technology called Dynamic Optical Path Network, or DOPN for short, is used. Switching circuits are indispensable for communication networks, but conventional optical fiber communication uses electrical switches (electronic devices, electronic routers) for switching. The process of conversion into signals is inevitable. No matter how wide the bandwidth of the optical fiber used for transmission is, this switching becomes a bottleneck, and as the amount of data increases, compression becomes necessary. DOPN, on the other hand, is a network technology that enables communication using optical signals. Mr. Matsuura continued his explanation. “DOPN is particularly effective when transmitting large amounts of data such as video and audio.In addition to being ultra-wideband, it has the advantages of almost zero latency and ultra-low power consumption.In the future, telemedicine and distance education Or, as the demand for content distribution such as concerts and e-sports expands, conventional methods cannot avoid the issue of power consumption, which increases with the amount of data.In that case, DOPN will become an indispensable technology. We think.” As for near-zero latency, we were able to get a real sense of it in this demo as well. One of the things I feel inconvenient about video conferencing over the Internet is the distance between speakers when multiple people are talking. When I try to start the conversation, it is not uncommon for other people to start speaking and cover my voice. On the other hand, if you hesitate to say something so as not to cover it up, you may miss the opportunity to speak. Perhaps because there was no delay in this demo, I didn't feel that bad timing. From the display, Mr. Matsuura suggested that we try "rock-paper-scissors." And I was able to play rock-paper-scissors as if Mr. Matsuura was in front of me. If it was a regular remote meeting, this would not have been possible.

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