Nokia and Orange France demonstrate optical network tomography for real-time infrastructure visibility

Nokia and Orange France have wrapped up a live trial demonstrating tomography, a technology designed to provide telecommunications operators with enhanced insight into the inner workings of their optical networks.

Tomography works by extracting and analysing information from existing optical equipment to identify potential issues affecting fibre links and wavelengths. Unlike conventional approaches, the method requires no separate monitoring infrastructure.

Throughout the trial period, the system successfully detected multiple categories of network problems, including fibre degradation, amplifier malfunctions and configuration mistakes.

Early detection of such issues enables operators to address them before they degrade customer experience or breach service-level agreements. The technology also promises to unlock better utilisation of existing network resources by providing detailed assessments of individual optical link health.

Christian Gacon, Vice President of Broadband Networks at Orange France, commented: "As network performance requirements become more stringent, operators need deeper visibility into the performance and condition of their transport infrastructures. With this successful trial, Orange is taking an important step toward the future of network operations. By using smart automation technology, we can better optimise the network and deliver more resilient services to our customers."

Guil Yazdi, VP Client Executive for Orange at Nokia, noted: "For many years, operators have had to rely on point measurements and manual investigations to understand what is happening inside their optical networks. This trial is an important milestone because it gives operators near-real-time visibility across optical links, helping them detect degradation, configuration issues and performance problems much earlier. Network tomography brings a new level of observability to optical infrastructure, helping operators simplify operations, make better use of existing network assets and prepare for the shift toward AI-native networks."