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New technologies promote high reliability and long life for many fiber-optic applications
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center invites companies to license new technologies that can improve the quality and reliability of fiber-optic assemblies:
Long-term fiber-optic performance is an important issue in aerospace, military, and telecommunications and cable television applications where downtime must be minimized or eliminated or where the repair of failed parts is not practical or financially feasible. Goddard’s manufacturing devices for fiber-optic assemblies are ideal for an application requiring very high reliability and long life.
Benefits
This device strips coatings from optical fibers so that they may be assembled with other components. It fits over the cable or fiber end. The coated portion to be stripped protrudes from the fixture and is placed in a chemical bath. By protecting the portion of fiber that should remain coated, the fixture allows a precise length of fiber to be stripped, leaving a distinct, well-defined interface. The device is particularly useful for removing hard, thin coatings (e.g., polyimide coatings).
Alternative stripping techniques include mechanical stripping processes, which may nick or scratch extremely small and fragile optical fibers, resulting in latent defects and future failures. Hand-stripping techniques do not provide enough control to strip the fiber to precise, well-defined lengths of approximately 0.01 inches. Other stripping techniques including laser stripping may adversely affect fiber strength. Goddard’s patented chemical-stripping device helps remove fiber coatings at clearly defined lengths without nicking the optical fiber, providing precise optical fibers for high-reliability applications. Proper chemical stripping is proven to maintain good fiber strength. Patent NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has patented the Chemical Stripping Fixture (U.S. Patent No. 5,451,294). (Link opens new browser window.)
Benefits
This device helps remove injection bubbles and voids that can be introduced during termination processes. These bubbles and voids may cause performance degradation (due to non-uniform encapsulation stresses), fatigue-induced fractures in the field, or may lead to premature fiber breakage under environmental extremes. Goddard’s technology features a fixture that holds and seals a connector filled with liquid adhesive. The device holds the connector without clamping onto it, minimizing potential connector damage such as scratching or cracking. The fixture is then placed in a centrifuge. Spinning the filled connector in a centrifuge drives bubbles and voids out of the adhesive, making the connection ready for bonding.
Other means of removing bubbles from adhesives, such as the use of vacuum, present several disadvantages. In some cases, a vacuum may remove volatile components from the adhesive along with the bubbles, adversely affecting the chemistry of the adhesive and possibly making it unreliable. In addition, vacuum chambers used for this purpose can also be cumbersome, inefficient, time consuming, and costly. In contrast, Goddard’s Adhesive Bubble Remover is constructed with inexpensive, quality materials and has a simple-to-use design. Patent NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has patented the Adhesive Bubble Remover Method (U.S. Patent No. 6,287,404). (Link opens new browser window.)
Benefits
When retrofitted on a connector-polishing machine, this device controls and allows adjustment of the connector’s apex offset—that is, the difference between the apex of the spherical polish and the center of the fiber core. Controlling apex offset to less than 50 mm helps improve fiber-to-fiber contact, reduces insertion loss, and reduces reflectance over the operating environment. This device allows users to adjust apex offset in response to manufacturing variables that create “out-of-spec” conditions, a feature not available in today’s polishing machines.
This technology is part of NASA’s Innovative Partnerships Program Office, which seeks to transfer technology into and out of NASA to benefit the space program and U.S. industry. NASA invites companies to consider licensing these manufacturing device technologies for fiber-optic assemblies (GSC-13644 or GSC-13874) for commercial applications. For information and forms related to the technology licensing and partnering process, please visit the Licensing and Partnering page. (Link opens new browser window) If you are interested in more information or want to pursue transfer of this technology, please contact: Innovative Partnerships Program Office
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