Corning Incorporated

Douglas Gregg Neilson

Robert Clark Moore

Pushkar Tandon

Bruce Warren Reding

Samir Khanna

Sumitava De

Gary Alan Cummings

Thomas A Pedersen

Massoud Rahiminejad

Keith Raymond Gaylo

Olus Naili Boratav

Bulent Kocatulum

Kiat Chyai Kang

Steven Michael Milillo

George Edward Berkey

Shawn Rachelle Markham

David Andrew Tucker

Johnnie Edward Watson

Daniel Arthur Nolet

Gautam Meda

John S Abbott

Kenneth James Kelmer

John E Watson

David T Marlowe

Robert A Novak

Jeffrey C Nelson

Derrick Baxter Biddix

Jennifer Nicole Subler

Donald Justin Sonnett

Provided herein is a method of and system for processing an optical fiber. The method includes the steps of drawing an optical fiber in a drawing direction along a process pathway through a coating chamber comprising an inlet and an outlet, and a coating liquid volume to coat the optical fiber; supplying the coating liquid through the inlet, the coating liquid exiting the coating chamber through the outlet; and recirculating to coating liquid exiting the coating chamber to the inlet.

Method of applying coating liquid to an optical fiber

An optical fiber coating apparatus that provides increased gyre stability and reduced gyre strength, thereby providing a more reliable coating application process during fiber drawing includes a cone-only coating die having a conical entrance portion with a tapered wall angled at a half angle &#x3b1;, wherein 2&#xb0;&#x2264;&#x3b1;&#x2264;25&#xb0;, and a cone height Lless than 2.2 mm, and a cylindrical portion having an inner diameter of d, wherein 0.1 mm&#x2264;d&#x2264;0.5 mm and a cylindrical height of L, wherein 0.05 mm&#x2264;L&#x2264;1.25 mm; a guide die having an optical fiber exit, the guide die disposed adjacent the cone-only coating die such that a wetted length (L) between the optical fiber exit of the guide die and the entrance of the cone-only coating die is from 1 mm to 5 mm; and a holder for holding the cone-only coating die and the guide die in a fixed relationship defining a coating chamber between the guide die and the cone-only coating die, the coating chamber having an inner radius Lfrom the optical fiber axis to an inner wall of the holder that is from 3 mm to 10 mm.

Optical fiber coating die with reduced wetted length

A method of applying a coating liquid to an optical fiber is described. An optical fiber is drawn through a guide die into a pressurized coating chamber and through the pressurized coating chamber to a sizing die. The pressurized coating chamber contains a coating liquid. The method includes directing coating liquid in a direction transverse to the processing pathway of the optical fiber in the pressurized coating chamber. The transverse flow of coating liquid counteracts detrimental effects associated with gyres that form in the pressurized coating chamber during the draw process. Benefits of the transverse flow include removal of bubbles, reduction in the temperature of the gyre, improved wetting, homogenization of the properties of the coating liquid in the pressurized coating chamber, and stabilization of the meniscus.

One embodiment of the disclosure relates to a fiber coating apparatus having a fiber entrance opening, a conical section with walls tapered at half angles between 2 and 25&#xb0; and height (also referred to as length herein) Lbetween 0.25 mm and 2 mm, and a cylindrical land portion of diameter dbetween 0.1 and 0.5 mm and height (length) Lbetween 0.05 and 1.25 mm.

Apparatus and method for applications of optical fiber coatings

In one embodiment, an optical fiber cooling system includes a first cooling tube oriented substantially in parallel with and spaced apart from a second cooling tube such that an optical fiber pathway is positioned between the first cooling tube and the second cooling tube. The first cooling tube includes a plurality of cooling fluid outlets positioned along an axial length of the first cooling tube which are oriented to direct a flow of cooling fluid across the optical fiber pathway towards the second cooling tube. The second cooling tube includes a plurality of cooling fluid outlets positioned along an axial length of the second cooling tube which are oriented to direct a flow of cooling fluid across the optical fiber pathway towards the first cooling tube.

Method for cooling optical fiber

This disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for controlling glass flow in, for example, a downdraw glass manufacturing process (e.g., the fusion downdraw process). The methods and apparatus are particularly well-suited for use in the manufacture of glass sheets such as the glass sheets used as substrates in display devices, e.g., liquid crystal displays (LCDs).

Glass flow management by thermal conditioning

Systems and methods for cooling optical fiber

Methods and apparatus for controlling glass flow in, for example, a downdraw glass manufacturing process (e.g., the fusion downdraw process) are provided. In certain aspects, the mass, thickness, and/or the temperature distribution of molten glass () on the surface of forming apparatus () is managed by: (A) constructing a stream-tube mapping between (i) regions (; FIG.A) of a cross-section of a conduit () that supplies molten glass () to the forming apparatus () and (ii) regions (; FIG.B) on the exterior surface of the forming apparatus (); (B) using the stream-tube mapping to select a temperature distribution for the cross-section that results in a desired mass, thickness, and/or temperature distribution of molten glass () on the surface of the forming apparatus (); and (C) heating and/or insulating the conduit () so as to produce a temperature distribution for the cross-section which equals or at least approximates the distribution selected in step (B).

Methods of fabricating glass sheets () are provided in which the sheets are cut from a glass ribbon () composed of a glass having a setting zone temperature range (SZTR). As the glass is drawn, it passes through the SZTR () and an across-the-ribbon temperature distribution is produced at least one longitudinal position along the ribbon to compensate for in-plane stress induced in the sheets () when flattened. Through such thermal compensation, glass sheets () are produced which exhibit controlled levels of distortion when cut into sub-pieces and thus are suitable for use as substrates in the manufacture of, for example, flat panel displays, e.g., LCD displays.

Temperature compensation for shape-induced in-plane stresses in glass substrates

The method of fabricating an optical waveguide fiber from a preform having a centerline aperture which includes reducing the pressure in the centerline aperture, then increasing the pressure in the centerline aperture to a pressure in order to improve uniformity, circularity, and/or symmetry around the centerline aperture region.

Method for fabricating a low polarization mode dispersion optical fiber

The fiber-coating concentricity of a coated optical fiber is controlled by non-axisymmetrically heating the coating material in the sizing die with respect to the z-axis along which the fiber is drawn. By controlling the temperature profile and thus the viscosity profile of the coating material, the amount of coating material applied to each azimuthal position of the fiber is controlled as it exits the sizing die. The apparatus that provides the desired temperature profile can also be employed to control the coating diameter.

Growing community of inventors

Wilmington, NC, United States of America

Douglas Gregg Neilson