Fiber optic display

Claim 1

In a fiber optic display of the type comprising an array of optical fibers arranged in a matrix having a plurality of rows, each row having a plurality of discrete optical fibers, wherein said array of optical fibers has first and second ends, the improvement comprising: a plurality of spacers, each spacer defining an array of parallel grooves on one side thereof, each of said grooves sized to receive a respective one of said optical fibers such that the grooves of each spacer receive the optical fibers of a respective one of the rows, each of said grooves separated by a land having a width such that adjacent optical fibers in each row are laterally separated from one another by a distance no less than the width of the respective land; said optical fibers secured in said grooves with no more than one optical fiber in each groove such that the grooves position the optical fibers precisely with respect to one another in each row; said spacers secured together in aligned registration to form a surface aligned with the first ends of the optical fibers; said surface positioned at an acute angle with respect to said grooves such that the first ends are elongated in a direction extending along the rows.