US Patent 11290184 Switchable dispersion compensating module

An optical fiber transmission system and method for using the system are provided. The system may include a span of transmission fiber for transmitting light signals through the optical fiber transmission system. The system may include a dispersion compensating module coupled to the span of transmission fiber. The system may include a switchable module including a set of selectable light signal paths, the set of selectable light signal paths including at least one path through a dispersion compensating element. The system may include a processor coupled to the switchable module for selectively monitoring the set of selectable light signal paths, where the processor is further configured to derive a metric based on the set of selectable light signal paths for controlling the dispersion compensating module.