EP0171246A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Optical fibre splicing
Assignee: Balfour Beatty PLC
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Filing: 1985-07-29
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2005-07-29
Abstract
Abstract Apparatus for locally abstracting light from the core of a buffer coated optical fibre, especially a buffer coated single mode optical fibre, suitable for use when monitoring the fusion splicing of optical fibres comprises a body 31 of perspex having at least three faces, an arcuate contact face 32 adapted to bear against a smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre F, an exit face 33 through which light entering the body through the contact face can emerge and a reflecting face 34 which will reflect light entering the body through the contact face in a direction towards the exit face. Light emerging from the smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre and passing through the contact face 32 into the body 31 will be directed and reflected towards the exit face 33 from where it can pass into a light detector P.
Inventors
- 👤 Sanjiv Saha
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-08 03:24
CPC Classifications
G; G02; G02B; G02B6/00; G02B6/24; G02B6/26; G02B6/255; G02B6/2555; G01; G01M; G01M11/00; G01M11/30; G01M11/35; G02B6/2551; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S359/00; Y10S359/90
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 13
Claim 1
Independent Claim
208 words
Apparatus for extracting light from the core of an optical fibre through the cladding and buffer coating thereof, characterised in that the apparatus comprises a body (31) which is made of a substantially rigid transparent material and which has at least three faces, a first or contact face (32) which is of substantially arcuate shape and which is adapted to bear against a smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre F, a second or exit face (33) through which light emerging from the optical fibre and into the body can pass and a third or reflecting face (34) which will reflect light entering the body through said contact face in a direction towards said exit face, the shapes of said contact, reflecting and exit faces and the positions of the reflecting and exit faces relative to the contact face being such that at least a major proportion of light passing from the core of a smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre against which said body bears, through the cladding and buffer coating of the optical fibre and through the smoothly curved contact face into the body will be directed and reflected towards said exit face from where it can pass into a light detector (P).
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
208 words
Apparatus for extracting light from the core of an optical fibre through the cladding and buffer coating thereof, characterised in that the apparatus comprises a body (31) which is made of a substantially rigid transparent material and which has at least three faces, a first or contact face (32) which is of substantially arcuate shape and which is adapted to bear against a smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre F, a second or exit face (33) through which light emerging from the optical fibre and into the body can pass and a third or reflecting face (34) which will reflect light entering the body through said contact face in a direction towards said exit face, the shapes of said contact, reflecting and exit faces and the positions of the reflecting and exit faces relative to the contact face being such that at least a major proportion of light passing from the core of a smoothly curved length of buffer coated optical fibre against which said body bears, through the cladding and buffer coating of the optical fibre and through the smoothly curved contact face into the body will be directed and reflected towards said exit face from where it can pass into a light detector (P).
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, characterised in that the smoothly curved contact face (32) of the substantially rigid body has a radius of curvature in the range of 3 to 10mm.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
41 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the smoothly curved contact face (32) is of such an arcuate length that it subtends an angle at its centre of curvature lying within the range of 60 to 120°.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
31 words
Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the smoothly curved contact face (32) of the substantially rigid body has a radius of curvature of 4.5mm.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
29 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claim 4, characterised in that the smoothly curved contact face (32) subtends an angle at its centre of curvature in the range 80 to 90°.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
23 words
Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the reflecting face (34) is of smoothly curved arcuate shape.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
49 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claims 2 and 3, characterised in that the reflecting face (34) is of smoothly curved arcuate shape and has a radius of curvature in the range 5 to 10mm and subtends an angle at its centre of curvature lying within the range 50 to 60°.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
25 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claim 7, characterised in that the smoothly curved contact and reflecting faces (32 and 34) are contiguous one with the other.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
22 words
Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the exit face (33) is of substantially planar form.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
20 words
Apparatus as claimed in Claim 9, characterised in that the exit face (33) is contiguous with the reflecting face (34).
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
30 words
ll. Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the substantially rigid body (31) is made of perspex or other substantially rigid transparent plastics material.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
168 words
A method of effecting local extraction of light from a buffer coated optical fibre using apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the method comprises effecting a smooth curve in a part of the length of the buffer coated optical fibre (F) and placing the smoothly curved contact face (32) of the substantially rigid body (31) of the apparatus into facial contact with the smoothly curved length of optical fibre so that the optical fibre and the smoothly curved contact face are in interfacial contact throughout the length of the smoothly curved contact face, and directing light passing from the core of the optical fibre through the cladding and buffer coating of the optical fibre and through the smoothly curved contact face of the substantially rigid body into the body towards said exit face (33), and also towards said reflecting face (34) from where it is reflected towards said exit face, and through said exit face to a light detecting device (P).
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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