Optical fiber bend sensor
US6389187B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 21, 2000 |
| Grant date | May 14, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 21, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01D5/3538
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An optical fiber bend sensor (10) measures the degree and orientation of bending present in a sensor length (30) portion of a fiber assembly (26). Within a multicored fiber (30, 32, 34), cores (62, 66) are grouped in non-coplanar pairs. An arrangement of optical elements (28, 36, 38) define within each core pair (62, 66) two optical paths (122, 124) which differ along the sensor length (30): one core (62) of a pair (62, 66) is included in the first path (122), and the other core (66) in the second path (124). A general bending of the sensor region (30) will lengthen one core (62, 66) with respect to the other. Interrogation of this length differential by means of interferometry generates interferograms from which the degree of bending in the plane of the core pair is extracted. Bend orientation can be deduced from data extracted from multiple core pairs.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.