Canon beams up new ways to connect networks

“Connecting networks together is no longer just about fibre and cables. Now it can also be done with a laser beam.

The Edmonton Economic Development Corporation (EEDC) recently announced the installation of Canon’s Canobeam DT-130 solution that allows an organization to connect its network between its two locations across the street from one another.

Shane Gienow, director of IT for the EEDC, said his company thought about using fibre but felt the cost was too high and did not want be locked into a lease.

“With the [Canobeam] we buy the thing over a period of a few years, and then it is paid for and we own it outright,” said Gienow.

Another aspect he liked was the speed of the solution, which was equivalent to fibre.

The Canobeam DT-130 uses a line-of-sight beam of light to transmit data of up to 1.25 Gigabit connectivity via Free Space Optics.

‘The [Canobeam unit] is basically a lens slightly larger than a shoe box. The front of the housing has optical elements to control and guide the laser and focus the laser accordingly,” said Carlo Beltrano, manager broadcast and communication division for Canon.”

Full article: Canon beams up new ways to connect networks