The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 17, 1980
Filed:
Oct. 02, 1978
Walter J Tomlinson, III, Holmdel, NJ (US);
Richard E Wagner, Fair Haven, NJ (US);
Bell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated, Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Abstract
A rugged, compact optical switch is disclosed which comprises a quarter-period graded refractive index (GRIN) lens (1); a rotatable reflecting surface (2.1) disposed at a first surface (1.3) of the GRIN lens at an angle to the first surface; an optical source (8) mounted at the second surface (1.2) of the GRIN lens on the lens axis; and a plurality of optical receptors 6, 7, 9, 10, 11 and 12 mounted at the same second surface of the lens, all at the same distance from the lens axis but displaced at a plurality of angular positions about the lens axis. Rotation of the reflecting surface about the lens axis couples light between the optical source selectively to optical receptors at the appropriate angular orientation. The switch is reciprocal in that the common optical source may be an optical receptor and the various optical receptors, optical sources. Typically, the optical sources and receptors are optical fibers.