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:
May. 23, 1995
Filed:
Mar. 12, 1993
Robert C Moore, Roswell, GA (US);
James R Petisce, Norcross, GA (US);
Carl R Taylor, Lawrenceville, GA (US);
AT&T Corp., Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Abstract
The present invention continuously monitors the amount of curing radiation available for curing coating material on a moving optical fiber and includes a curing system having a radiation source capable of providing radiation energy for curing coating material on an optical fiber and a reflector system which redirects non-direct radiation back toward the article. An optical fiber which has been provided with a curable coating material is moved along a path of travel through a curing area. The coating material is cured by causing the radiation source to emit energy suitable for curing the curable coating material. The predictable average amount of light energy properly redirected by the reflector system toward the curable article is sensed as the curable coating material is being cured to obtain continuous in-process reading. The average radiation value is obtained by positioning three longitudinally aligned holes adjacent the fiber path and between the fiber and a radiation sensing device. Furthermore, the amount of the light energy available from the reflector system may be sensed at a location which is outside the reflector system to obtain a reference reading. The in-process readings may then be compared with the reference reading to determine the portion of the radiation available from the radiation source which is actually available for curing the curable coating material.