US Patent 7835642 Optical transceiver module end of life indication

An optoelectronic device that uses microcode to perform an end of life calculation for a laser in the optoelectronic device is disclosed. In particular, the optoelectronic device senses environmental and operational parameters under changing conditions during device operation. The optoelectronic device then calculates the end of life for the laser based one on or more of the sensed environmental and/or operational parameters. The calculation can be done in real time and using digital logic. The calculation can further provide a result in a format which is useful to a host system with which the device is connected.