US Government as Represented by the Secretary of the Army

USA as Represented by Secretary of the Navy

Sam DiVita

James C Lee

James E Lenz

Howard E Rast

Donald E Patterson

Leif Fredin

Robert O Savage

Robert J Fischer

John L Margrave

An optical fiber is releasably held in coil or skein form by a magnetized in film coating on the fiber. Adjacent convolutions are held together by a magnetic field to prevent unintended unravelling of the coil, but the fiber can be rapidly played out at high speed without rupture and with a constant release tension force. The magnetic field has a radial and axial component relative to the coil cylinder. A magnetizing apparatus is disclosed for magnetizing the film. A sensor feedback loop can dynamically adjust the reel-out drag force to dampen vibration modes during reel out which can cause tangle.

Magnetic optical fiber skein

Method of forming an optical fiber

A coating is provided for an optical fiber that inhibits abrasion or scraing of the fiber's surface. The coating is obtained by depositing a thin film of non-hydrogenated diamond-like amorphous carbon (a-C) onto the optical fiber using a laser ablation technique employing graphite as a target material.

Abrasion resistant diamond like coating for optical fiber and method of

An optical fiber is formed by continuously coating a precursor core filam with a glass-forming coating. The precursor filament is continuously moved from a storage reel through a stationary coating station. The filament is then moved through a stationary glass-forming station and is continuously processed to convert the coating to a glass, with the core either removed from the fiber during glass forming or becoming an integral part of the ultimate fiber during glass forming. The glass fiber is then moved continuously through a glass densification station and is densified in a continuous process. The fiber is thereafter provided with a protective coating as it moves through a stationary coating station and the completed optical fiber is continuously reeled.

Direct optical fiber glass formation techniques using chemically and/or

A method detects incomplete coverage of hermetic coatings applied to opti fibers during in-line optical fiber fabrication procedures as well as off-line applications. A fluorescent material surrounds the core region of the optical fiber prior to the formation of the hermetic coating on the optical fiber and energy is radiated in the optical fiber to propagate in the cladding mode. This causes an excitation of the fluorescent material to fluoresce in response to the propagated energy. An appropriately disposed detector detects levels of emitted fluorescence along the length of the optical fiber to indicate where the hermetic coating is incomplete or where pinholes in the hermetic coating are located. Optionally, the fluorescent material is located outside of the cladding layer, inside of the cladding layer near its outer surface or throughout the cladding region to fluoresce when excited by the propagated energy. Different wavelengths of radiation can be used which excite different fluorescent materials so that pinholes or incomplete coating coverage can be detected in hermetic coatings that have different chemical compositions.

Method for detecting pinholes and incomplete coverage of hermetic

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West Long Branch, NJ, United States of America

Sam DiVita