Open All-Photonic Network

Overview

Open APN (Open All-Photonic Network) is IOWN Global Forum's open architecture for disaggregated optical transport. It breaks today's packet-optical integrated ROADM-based systems into three distributed tiers: APN-S (Splitter) at Split Points for the first mile, APN-G (Gate) at Remote POPs, and APN-I (Interchange) at Core POPs. DWDM transceivers and transponders are moved from infrastructure provider equipment to customer premises equipment (CPE/APN-T), shifting those electronic components from infrastructure provider assets to customer facility assets.

This approach has two structural benefits. Economically, optical passive components remain usable across transceiver generations while the electronics (which must be upgraded with each transceiver generation) become the customer's responsibility — reducing infrastructure provider CAPEX while giving customers the value of current electronics in their own facilities. Topologically, Open APN transforms today's sparse, semi-static dark fiber network reaching only up to ~10 km from CPE into a dense, dynamic disaggregated network extending photonic infrastructure to small and medium-sized sites (capillarization).

Softwarization enables optical links to be created and managed by an SDN controller through a "network digital design" work item, making optical transport systems digitally visible and simulatable for automated planning, configuration, and optimization. Together with Deterministic Networking and Data-Centric Infrastructure, Open APN is one of three co-evolution layers in IOWN's infrastructure framework.