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Note: TOSLINK is a trademark of Toshiba Corp.
Raytela is a trademark of Toray Industries Inc.
Eska Premier is a trademark of Mitubishi Rayon Co. Ltd.
Sumiguide is a trademark of Sumitomo Electronic Industries Ltd.
TOSLINK
TM
is a data transmission device which uses optical
signals instead of electrical signals.
Its principal features are as follows:
Electromagnetic noise has no effect on the transmission line.
The transmission line does not radiate any electromagnetic
noise.
The device is as easy to handle as like a digital IC, and
connector assembly is easy.
Comparison of TOSLINK and photocoupler
TOSLINK
TM
Optical Transmission Device
The function ability of TOSLINK is similar to that of a photocoupler.
A photocoupler has light-emitting and light-receiving devices in one package.
It is used to transmit electrical signals in a circuit, for a very short distane.
TOSLINK can be imagined as follows: separate the emitting device from the
receiving device in the center of a photocoupler, then re-connect the two
devices using a long optical fiber cable.
Because optical fiber is used as the transmission line, it is possible to transmit
signals over long distances while isolating them using TOSLINK.
As a result, TOSLINK is also sometimes referred to as a long-distance
photocoupler.
Comparison of TOSLINK and photocoupler
Electrical and optical transmission system
Electrical data transmission systems consist of the following devices: a line driver
and line receiver to amplify electrical signals, a twisted-pair (or coaxial) cable as
the transmission line and electrical connectors linking the line driver and line
receiver to the electrical cable.
By contrast, TOSLINK consist of the following devices: a transmitting module
which converts electrical signals into optical ones, a receiving module which
reconverts optical signals into electrical ones, optical fiber cable as the
transmission line and optical connectors to link the transmitting and receiving
modules to the optical fiber cable.
In TOSLINK, a transmitting IC (LED driver) and LED are included in the
transmitting module, and a receiving IC (waveform-reshaping circuit) and
photodiode are included in the receiving module. The interface between
transmitting and receiving ICs is at the transistor-transistor logic (TTL) or emitter
coupled logic (ECL) levels. Because of this it is easy to make connections with
the other circuits.
Data transmission system
(a) Data transmission by electrical wire
Electrical input signal
Line
Tpair
orcable
Electrical
Electrical output signal
RLine
Electrical
(b) Data transmission using fiber-optic cables
Electrical input signal
TrModule
TrCircuit
Optical fiber
E/O converter
LED
RCircuit
Photodiode
O/E converter
Fiber-optic link
connector
Electrical output signal
Module
connector
V
CC
V
CC
Output
Input
(a)Photocoupler
V
CC
V
CC
Output
Input
(b)TOSLINK
Optical fiber
Optical transmitting module
Optical receiving module