Process for producing an optical fiber coupler
US5309536A · kind A · utility
Assignees
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 17, 1992 |
| Grant date | May 3, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 17, 2012 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02B6/2835
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
The first process for producing an optical fiber coupler includes a first step wherein at least one of the optical fibers to be used is stripped of the coating, a second step in which the bare portion of that optical fiber is heated for a predetermined time to diffuse the dopants, a third step wherein the other optical fibers which have not been heat-treated are stripped of their coating, a fourth step in which the bare portions of all the optical fibers are heated as they are brought into intimate contact, thereby forming a unitary portion, and a fifth step wherein the unitary portion is drawn via heating to form the coupling portion of an optical fiber coupler. The second process for producing an optical fiber coupler includes stripping the coating from at least one optical fiber, fixing the fiber so as to impart an axial stress thereto and then heating the bare portion of the stripped optical fiber thereby thinning the diameter of the heated portion, and then proceeding in the same manner as described with respect to the third through fifth steps of the first embodiment of the present invention. The processes according to the present invention enable a wide-band optical fiber co…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.