Amphenol Corporation

Eric Walter

Donald W Duda

Wenzong Chen

David G Mead

Eric J Repta

Albert Brunsting

Thomas Clifford Olson

A variable attenuator includes a rotatable actuator and cam arrangement arranged to vary a length of an air gap between ends of fibers in a transmission line. The cam arrangement includes a cylindrically shaped cam member having an end surface cut to fit a curve representing normalized attenuation-to-gap-length data, the cam follower(s) being fitted in a sliding member that holds the end of the optical fiber and moves it relative to a fixed end of another fiber connector member. The cam surface includes multiple identical cam surface sections extending less than 180&deg; around the cam to define movement of the cam follower(s) and the sliding member between a maximum position and a minimum position. The cam surface sections may be connected by ramps that permit a pair of cam followers to move from the maximum position to the minimum position and back in a continuous path that allows an actuator to be turned beyond the maximum and minimum positions and automatically reset without damage to any of the components of the attenuator.

Variable optical attenuator having a linear response

An adhesiveless fiber optic connector includes a collet mechanism having cable gripping fingers for initially gripping a fiber buffer upon movement of the collet into a body of the connector, and which is subsequently secured within the connector by crimping, includes keying tabs which cooperate with slots in the main body of the connector for retaining the collet within the connector prior to termination, and for preventing rotation of the collet during termination, the keying tabs being pushed out of the slots during termination to adhere to the main body of the connector following crimping. An apparatus for facilitating termination of a fiber optic cable to such an adhesiveless connector includes a transport mechanism to which the fiber buffer is clipped, and a guiding mechanism in the form of separable jaws for the exposed fiber, as well as a crimp mechanism and fiber cutting and polishing apparatus. The apparatus can be used to carry out a method involving the steps of preparing the fiber cable for termination, capturing a bare fiber in a guiding mechanism, securing the fiber buffer to a transporting mechanism, and transporting the cable so that the cable is guided by the guiding mechanism into the collet, after which the transporting mechanism is used to push the collet into the connector and force keys of the collet out of their slots and grip the fiber buffer.

Adhesiveless fiber optic connector, and an apparatus and method for

A strain relief system for a fiber optic connector includes a boot made up of two halves, the halves being fitted together by press-fit pins supported by a flange which also serves increase the rigidity of the boot. The boot is held in place on the cable by using internal ribs at an distal from the connector. The force required to make the ribs hold the boot in place is provided by stretching a standard elastomeric boot over the outer diameter of the section containing the ribs. The system further incorporates a support clip at the connector end to assist the two halves in staying together and further resist lateral bending moments. The outer profile of the support clip can be adapted to fit a variety of different connector configurations, and thus the support clip also serves as an adapter for the strain relief system.

Growing community of inventors

Westchester, IL, United States of America

Eric Walter