Patent · US Expired

Optical switching device

US4498730A · kind A · utility

89Cited by
6References
48Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateApr 22, 1981
Grant dateFeb 12, 1985
Priority date
Expiry dateApr 22, 2001

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG02B6/3594
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

Respective end faces of two or more optical waveguides (23 to 29) are connected on one end face of a focussing rod lens (20) and a reflection means (21) having a reflection plane tilted with a specified angle (.alpha.) to the normal plane to the lens axis is disposed behind the other end face of the focussing rod lens (20) and angle of reflection plane of the reflection means (21) is varied by rotating the reflection means (21) around the lens axis (203) or by means of a piezo-electric driving device (30), thereby attaining selective switching of the waveguides (from 23 to selected one of 24 or 29) or varying the amount of rays to be transmitted through the waveguides (23 and 24 of FIG. 4), or thereby modulating the rays. By utilizing a semitransparent filter forming another tilted reflection plane, the amount of attenuation for different wavelength or connection of the waveguides are controlled separately.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.