Multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device and method

Abstract

The invention discloses a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device and method, and relates to the field of optical signal monitoring, in the device, an optical fiber beam splitter group and an optical fiber beam combiner group are arranged between a laser group and a photoelectric detector group so as to perform beam splitting and recombination on optical signals fed back by the laser group, and then the optical signals are transmitted to the photoelectric detector group; the photoelectric detector group is used for receiving the recombined optical signal and determining a binary multi-bit output signal according to a binary coding rule; different binary multi-bit output signals correspond to different working states of each laser in the laser group; the number of the photoelectric detectors in the photoelectric detector group is smaller than that of the lasers in the laser group. The application can reduce the number of used PDs and effectively monitor a large number of optical signals.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of optical signal monitoring, and in particular, to a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device and method. Background Art

[0002] Due to the limitations of physical effects such as mode instability effect, stimulated Brillouin scattering, and thermal lens effect, the output power of a single set of fiber lasers can only reach the order of ten thousand watts at most. To achieve higher-power laser output, a technology of multi-laser beam combination is usually adopted. Common spectral combination technology and coherent combination technology both require the use of narrow-linewidth lasers as combined sub-beams. Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) is one of the main factors restricting the power improvement of narrow-linewidth fiber lasers. When the SBS threshold is reached, pulsed light propagating in the opposite direction will be randomly generated in the fiber laser. If the light source is not turned off in time, the pulsed light with a high peak power will damage the fiber components, and in severe cases, it will even directly cause the laser to burn out. Therefore, the monitoring of SBS pulsed light is particularly important.

[0003] The pulse width of SBS pulsed light is of the order of microseconds. A common monitoring method is to connect the return light port of the laser to a high-sensitivity photodetector (PD), and then use devices such as an oscilloscope to monitor and analyze the characteristics of the return light in real time. When pulsed light with a high peak power is detected, an instruction to turn off the light source is issued to achieve the function of protecting the light source. However, in spectral combination or coherent combination, dozens or even hundreds of lasers are usually required for combination. If each laser is equipped with a high-sensitivity PD to monitor the SBS pulsed signal, then a large number of PDs are needed, consuming a large amount of cost. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this application is to provide a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device and method, which can reduce the number of PDs used and effectively monitor a large number of optical signals.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose, this application provides the following solutions: In a first aspect, this application provides a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device, including an optical fiber beam splitter group, an optical fiber combiner group, and a photodetector group; The optical fiber beam splitter group and the optical fiber combiner group are arranged between the laser group and the photodetector group to split and recombine the optical signals fed back by the laser group, and then transmit them to the photodetector group; The photodetector group is used to receive the recombined optical signal and determine a binary multi-bit output signal according to the binary coding rule; different binary multi-bit output signals correspond to different working states of the lasers in the laser group; wherein, the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is less than the number of lasers in the laser group.

[0006] In a second aspect, the present application provides a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring method, including: Calculating the number of photodetectors according to the number of lasers in the laser group; Based on the number of the photodetectors, determining the number of optical fiber beam splitters and the number of optical fiber combiners; Connecting the plurality of photodetectors, the plurality of optical fiber combiners, the plurality of optical fiber beam splitters and the plurality of lasers according to the multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device; Collecting the binary multi-bit output signals determined by the plurality of photodetectors to match the working states of the lasers in the laser group.

[0007] According to the specific embodiments provided by the present application, the present application has the following technical effects: The present application provides an optical fiber beam splitter group and an optical fiber combiner group between the laser group and the photodetector group, so that the optical signals fed back by the laser group are split and recombined by the optical fiber beam splitters and the optical fiber combiners and then transmitted to the photodetector group, so as to avoid the situation that one laser is directly connected to one photodetector. The present application receives the recombined optical signal by the photodetector group and determines the binary multi-bit output signal. Since different binary multi-bit output signals correspond to different working states of the lasers in the laser group, therefore, the working states of the lasers can be directly determined according to the binary multi-bit output signals obtained by the photodetector group, and the monitoring of the optical signals fed back by the lasers is realized. Through the above processing of beam splitting, combining and binary coding of the present application, a small number of photodetectors can be used to effectively monitor the optical signals fed back by a large number of lasers. Description of the Drawings

[0008] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required to be used in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can also be obtained according to these drawings.

[0009] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device in an embodiment of the present application.

[0010] Figure 2Schematic diagram of the multi-source optical signal integrated monitoring device when the number of photodetectors is 3. Detailed implementation manners

[0011] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0012] To protect the safety of the laser and its synthesis components, each laser needs to be equipped with a high-sensitivity PD to monitor the SBS pulse signal. Therefore, the present application provides a multi-source optical signal integrated monitoring device and method, which uses as few PDs as possible to monitor the states of all optical signals.

[0013] To make the above objects, features, and advantages of the present application more obvious and understandable, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementation manners.

[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, as Figure 1 shown, a multi-source optical signal integrated monitoring device is provided, including an optical fiber beam splitter group, an optical fiber combiner group, and a photodetector group; wherein, the optical fiber beam splitter group and the optical fiber combiner group are arranged between the laser group and the photodetector group to split and recombine the optical signals fed back by the laser group, and then transmit them to the photodetector group.

[0015] The photodetector group is used to receive the recombined optical signals and determine a binary multi-bit output signal according to the binary coding rule; different binary multi-bit output signals correspond to different working states of each laser in the laser group; wherein, the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is less than the number of lasers in the laser group.

[0016] In short, the present application re-splits and combines the optical signal feedback ends of the lasers through an optical fiber beam splitter and an optical fiber combiner, and then infers the states of the lasers from the states of multiple PDs according to a similar binary coding rule.

[0017] In a specific application example, the number of optical fiber splitters in the optical fiber splitter group, the number of optical fiber combiners in the optical fiber combiner group, and the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group are the same. The input end of one optical fiber splitter is connected to the optical signal feedback end of one laser; the input end of one optical fiber combiner is respectively connected to the output ends of multiple optical fiber splitters and the optical signal feedback end of one laser; the output end of one optical fiber combiner is connected to the input end of one photodetector; the output end of one photodetector is used to output one digital signal of the binary multi-bit output signal.

[0018] The present application also provides an application scenario. When the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is 3 in this application scenario, the number of lasers in the laser group is 6. As Figure 2 shown, it realizes the situation of monitoring 6 lasers through 3 PDs, and the connection relationships of each component are as follows.

[0019] The optical signal feedback end of the first laser is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner. When an optical signal appears in the first laser, only the first photodetector detects this signal. At this time, the PD state is marked as "1", and the second and third photodetectors cannot detect this signal. Correspondingly, the PD states are both marked as "0". Therefore, the obtained binary multi-bit output signal is 001, and the working states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as: the first laser is in an alarm state. In other words, an alarm optical signal appears in the first laser.

[0020] The optical signal feedback end of the second laser is connected to the input end of the first optical fiber splitter. The first output end of the first optical fiber splitter is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner; the second output end of the first optical fiber splitter is connected to the second photodetector via the second optical fiber combiner. The PD state marking process of the three photodetectors is the same as above. When the binary multi-bit output signal is 011, the working states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as: the second laser is in an alarm state.

[0021] The optical signal feedback end of the third laser is connected to the input end of the second optical fiber splitter. The first output end of the second optical fiber splitter is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner; the second output end of the second optical fiber splitter is connected to the third photodetector via the third optical fiber combiner. The PD state marking process of the three photodetectors is the same as above. If the binary multi-bit output signal is 101, the working states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as: the third laser is in an alarm state.

[0022] The optical signal feedback terminal of the fourth laser is connected to the second photodetector via the second fiber optic combiner. The PD status marking process for the three photodetectors is the same as above. If the binary multi-bit output signal is 010, the operating status of each laser in the laser group is characterized as: the fourth laser is in an alarm state.

[0023] The optical signal feedback terminal of the fifth laser is connected to the input terminal of the third fiber optic splitter. The first output terminal of the third fiber optic splitter is connected to the second photodetector via the second fiber optic combiner; the second output terminal of the third fiber optic splitter is connected to the third photodetector via the third fiber optic combiner. The PD status marking process for the three photodetectors is the same as above. If the binary multi-bit output signal is 110, the operating status of each laser in the laser group is characterized as: the fifth laser is in an alarm state.

[0024] The optical signal feedback terminal of the sixth laser is connected to the third photodetector via the third fiber optic combiner. The PD status marking process for the three photodetectors is the same as above. If the binary multi-bit output signal is 100, the operating status of each laser in the laser group is characterized as: the sixth laser is in an alarm state.

[0025] Through the PD status marking process of the above three photodetectors, when a certain laser generates an optical signal, the laser with an alarm can be located by the PD status marking of the three, so as to carry out further debugging, maintenance and other work on this laser. If the binary multi-bit output signal is 000, the operating status of each laser in the laser group is characterized as: all lasers are in a normal state; if the binary multi-bit output signal is 111, the operating status of each laser in the laser group is characterized as: multiple lasers are in an alarm state. In this case, all lasers need to be checked to determine which lasers are abnormal.

[0026] As described above, when the number of photodetectors is 3, the connection of each component and the characterization of the operating status of each corresponding laser. When the number of photodetectors is 4 or more, the correspondence between the binary multi-bit output signal and the operating status of each laser can be set one-to-one by technicians.

[0027] In an application example, the optical signal fed back by the laser group is a pulsed optical signal or spatial light. Specifically, the pulsed optical signal is split, recombined and encoded by splitters and combiners in the optical fiber; in addition to SBS pulsed optical signal monitoring, it can also be applied to other pulsed optical alarm situations, such as the monitoring of pulses generated by ASE. Spatial light is split, recombined and encoded by beam splitting lenses and beam combining lenses.

[0028] In an application example, among the binary multi-bit output signals, the digital signal 0 represents no light signal, and the digital signal 1 represents a light signal. The monitoring of the light signal achieved by the device of the present application can be: the monitoring of the state transition of the light signal from no light signal (0) to light signal (1); or it can be: the monitoring of the state transition of the light signal from light signal (1) to no light signal (0). For example, it is used to monitor the laser output state. When the light signal changes from light signal (1) to no light signal (0), an alarm can be given and the abnormal laser can be located. As for the "state transition from no light signal (0) to light signal (1)" or "state transition from light signal (1) to no light signal (0)", the change of the light on and off can be directly displayed through the optical fiber at the component connection. This process can be observed by the human eye or an optoelectronic sensor can be set for automatic monitoring and judgment.

[0029] In summary, the present application can split, recombine, and encode the light signals of multiple lasers, and use a small number of optoelectronic detectors to efficiently monitor a large number of sub-beams. The number of required optoelectronic detectors is exponentially related to the number of lasers. The more the number of lasers, the higher the benefit of this device.

[0030] Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiment of the present application also provides a comprehensive monitoring method for multi-light-source light signals. The implementation solution provided by this method to solve the problem is similar to the implementation solution described in the above device. Therefore, the specific limitations in one or more of the following method embodiments can refer to the limitations on the device in the above text and will not be repeated here. In an exemplary application, the comprehensive monitoring method for multi-light-source light signals includes step 100-step 400.

[0031] Step 100, calculate the number of optoelectronic detectors according to the number of lasers in the laser group.

[0032] Specifically, the implementation of step 100 adopts the following calculation formula: m = ; where m is the number of lasers in the laser group and n is the number of optoelectronic detectors.

[0033] It can be seen from the above formula that the present application can monitor lasers with n optoelectronic detectors. In actual applications, as long as the number of lasers is less than units and greater than units, n optoelectronic detectors can be set to ensure that all lasers can be monitored. Since the number of PDs is exponentially related to the number of lasers, the more the number of lasers, the more PDs can be saved and the higher the benefit.

[0034] Step 200, determine the number of optical fiber splitters and the number of optical fiber combiners based on the number of optoelectronic detectors.

[0035] Step 300: Connect the multiple photodetectors, multiple fiber optic combiners, multiple fiber optic splitters, and multiple lasers according to the multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device described above.

[0036] Step 400: Collect the binary multi-bit output signals determined by the multiple photodetectors to match the operating states of the lasers in the laser group. In the binary multi-bit output signals, the digital signal 0 represents no optical signal, and the digital signal 1 represents an optical signal.

[0037] In an application example, after step 400, the method further includes: performing laser positioning and alarming according to the operating states of the lasers in the laser group.

[0038] In summary, this application reduces the number of high-sensitivity PDs required, reduces the usage cost without affecting the pulsed light monitoring effect, and can locate the sub-beam corresponding to the source of the pulsed signal according to the coding.

[0039] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined arbitrarily. For the sake of concise description, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, it should be considered as the scope described in this specification.

[0040] In this article, specific examples are used to elaborate on the principle and implementation manner of this application. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method and its core idea of this application; at the same time, for those of ordinary skill in the art, according to the idea of this application, there will be changes in the specific implementation manner and application scope. In summary, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation to this application.

Claims

1. A multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device, characterized in that, The device includes an optical fiber beam splitter group, an optical fiber combiner group, and a photodetector group; The optical fiber beam splitter group and the optical fiber combiner group are arranged between the laser group and the photodetector group to split and recombine the optical signals fed back by the laser group and then transmit them to the photodetector group; The photodetector group is used to receive the recombined optical signals and determine binary multi-bit output signals according to binary coding rules; different binary multi-bit output signals correspond to different working states of the lasers in the laser group; wherein, the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is less than the number of lasers in the laser group.

2. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein The number of optical fiber beam splitters in the optical fiber beam splitter group, the number of optical fiber combiners in the optical fiber combiner group, and the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group are the same; The input end of one optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the optical signal feedback end of one laser; The input end of one optical fiber combiner is respectively connected to the output ends of multiple optical fiber beam splitters and the optical signal feedback end of one laser; The output end of one optical fiber combiner is connected to the input end of one photodetector; The output end of one photodetector is used to output one digital signal of the binary multi-bit output signal.

3. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device according to claim 2, characterized in that When the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is 3, the number of lasers in the laser group is 6; Among them, the optical signal feedback end of the first laser is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner; The optical signal feedback end of the second laser is connected to the input end of the first optical fiber beam splitter. The first output end of the first optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner; the second output end of the first optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the second photodetector via the second optical fiber combiner; The optical signal feedback end of the third laser is connected to the input end of the second optical fiber beam splitter. The first output end of the second optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the first photodetector via the first optical fiber combiner; the second output end of the second optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the third photodetector via the third optical fiber combiner; The optical signal feedback end of the fourth laser is connected to the second photodetector via the second optical fiber combiner; The optical signal feedback end of the fifth laser is connected to the input end of the third optical fiber beam splitter. The first output end of the third optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the second photodetector via the second optical fiber combiner; the second output end of the third optical fiber beam splitter is connected to the third photodetector via the third optical fiber combiner; The optical signal feedback end of the sixth laser is connected to the third photodetector via the third optical fiber combiner.

4. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the number of photodetectors in the photodetector group is 3, if the binary multi-bit output signal is 000, the working states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as: all lasers are in normal states; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 001, the working states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as: the first laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 011, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: the second laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 101, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: the third laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 010, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: the fourth laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 110, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: the fifth laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 100, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: the sixth laser is in an alarm state; If the binary multi-bit output signal is 111, the operating states of the lasers in the laser group are characterized as follows: multiple lasers are all in an alarm state.

5. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device according to claim 1, characterized in that The optical signal fed back by the laser group is a pulsed optical signal or a spatial light.

6. A multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring method, characterized in that The method includes: Calculating the number of photodetectors according to the number of lasers in the laser group; Determining the number of optical fiber beam splitters and the number of optical fiber combiners based on the number of the photodetectors; Connecting multiple said photodetectors, multiple said optical fiber combiners, multiple said optical fiber beam splitters and multiple said lasers according to the multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring device according to any one of claims 1-5; Collecting the binary multi-bit output signal determined by multiple said photodetectors to match the operating states of the lasers in the laser group.

7. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring method according to claim 6, characterized in that When calculating the number of photodetectors according to the number of lasers in the laser group, the following calculation formula is adopted: m= ； Where m is the number of lasers in the laser group and n is the number of photodetectors.

8. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring method according to claim 6, wherein The method further includes: positioning and alarming the lasers according to the operating states of the lasers in the laser group.

9. The multi-light-source optical signal comprehensive monitoring method according to claim 6, wherein In the binary multi-bit output signal, the digital signal 0 represents no optical signal, and the digital signal 1 represents an optical signal.

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