AFL (Spartanburg, SC), an international manufacturer of fiber-optic cable, accessories and equipment, announced it has received 12 U.S. patents over the past quarter for technology and product developments in fiber-optic cabling, fusion splicing, test equipment and connectivity. As described by the manufacturer, the patents received are for the the following products and technologies:
Tactical Deployable Cables – The newly designed cable quadrupled fiber count for existing cable constructions, solving an issue that enabled increased fiber density, reduced cable weight and allowed for additional length of deployment reels.
Optical Fiber Bulkhead Splice Assemblies for Optical Transceiver Modules – This invention uses a mass fusion splice solution to allow production of a fixed fiber length on the Surface Mount Technology (SMT) line and adds the termination pigtail in packaging post-process.
Optical Fiber Furcation Assemblies – The invention is a user-friendly field installable fan-out kit/furcation assembly with a simple crimp and a cover with a slot and rail that allows the cover to be installed after assembly.
Fiber Optic Transition Assemblies – Designed for outside plant applications, this furcation assembly includes a spring member strain relief on both the transition and connector ends.
Communications Module Housing – This invention accepts both LGX® legacy and CGM modules. The foldable fiber management tray allows access to the connectors and makes removal of modules much more convenient.
Optical Connection Apparatus and Assemblies – This invention includes an adapter device that facilitates optical connections between an MPO/MTP connector and an optical power meter. This device can significantly improve the optical power/loss measurement accuracy on MPO cables and can fit both pinned and unpinned MPO connectors.
Laser Feedback Control Systems – This technology enables the use of multiple CO2 laser technologies for splicing and glass processing applications and stabilizes the laser output power.
Parallel Testing of Multiple Optical Fibers – The invention uses parallel instrument functions to test multiple fibers at the same time to save overall test time. For example, one of the instrument’s functions can be set up to test, such as cleaning the test jumper and fiber connector, while the other is performing a test so that the overall test time for the two fibers is shorter than testing each fiber in series.
Methods for characterizing an optical loss test set and determining optical loss – This method was specifically developed for AFL’s ROGUE® OLTS/Certification test equipment platform and significantly improves the optical loss measurement accuracy on fiber-optic networks.
Optical Fiber Temperature Control System – This invention is a second layer feedback that enables fiber temperature stabilization by direct IR radiation measurement. It can be used in the high-end LZM glass processing systems.
Optical Zooming for Fusion Splicers – The zooming system enables the viewing of Large Diameter Fibers (LDF) up to 2.3 mm and a high resolution system for observing the core and fiber structure for alignment. The system is used in all AFL laser splicer products.
Method for Making Bent Tip Fibers – This technology sweeps the arc to get a smooth bending curve. Used for medical laser blades, fiber to PCB receivers, and sensors.
Several foreign patents were also received, including optical connectivity products and technologies for Canada, and test equipment products and technologies in Europe.
For more information, visit www.AFLglobal.com.