Optical cable coupler

Abstract

The utility model discloses an optical cable coupler. The optical cable coupler comprises a main body and an upper cover which are detachably connected; the main body comprises a sealing groove, an optical cable winding mechanism, an optical cable inlet, an optical cable outlet and a fluid inlet; an optical cable enters from the optical cable inlet, is wound by the optical cable winding mechanism and then extends out from the optical cable outlet, and the fluid inlet is connected with a pressurizing device. According to the invention, the optical cable winding mechanism enables the optical fiber entering from the optical cable inlet to extend out from the plurality of optical cable outlets after being wound and spliced, so that the optical cable splicing part can still maintain the original curvature; therefore, the splicing quality of the optical cable is ensured, and the stable performance of the optical cable in the using process is ensured, so that the reliability and the safety of an optical cable system are improved on the whole.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of optical fiber fusion splicing technology, and in particular to an optical cable splicer. Background Technology

[0002] Electronic pressure and temperature sensors are widely used in reservoir monitoring. However, in the process of pressure and temperature measurement, problems such as large drift, low accuracy, and short lifespan exist in high-temperature environments, making it difficult to meet the needs of permanent downhole monitoring.

[0003] Fiber optic sensors are mechanical sensors without electronic circuitry. They offer advantages such as easy installation, small size, resistance to high temperatures and pressures, and strong anti-interference capabilities. Compared to electronic sensors, they have a longer lifespan and can be used in series to monitor the bottom hole pressure and temperature gradient of oil and gas wells in real time and over long periods. This provides accurate information for reservoir engineers to develop reasonable exploitation systems, and they are gradually being applied to oilfield testing.

[0004] After field application in multiple wells, it was found that the fiber optic testing system consistently exhibited short lifespan issues. Fault analysis and experimental verification revealed serious structural problems with the fiber optic cable splice protection device. During the well run, the fiber optic cable must be spliced ​​when connecting to the fiber optic sensor and passing through the packer. Because the cable is coiled on the roller, straightening it after running it downhole causes stress release in the internal steel tube, resulting in the inner steel tube causing the fiber to slide. Ordinary fiber optic splicing involves straightening the cable before splicing, largely neglecting stress release. This easily leads to fiber twisting or breakage within the splice protection device, causing data monitoring failure. Furthermore, the splice protection device cannot perform pressure testing; if water immersion occurs, it gradually increases optical signal loss, eventually leading to communication anomalies. Utility Model Content

[0005] Therefore, the purpose of this utility model is to provide an optical cable splicer that protects the connection point after the optical fiber is inserted, and at the same time allows for pressure testing of the inserted optical fiber.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides an optical cable splice, comprising a main body and a top cover, which are detachably connected. The main body includes a sealing groove, an optical cable winding mechanism, an optical cable inlet, an optical cable outlet, and a fluid inlet. The optical cable enters through the optical cable inlet, is wound by the optical cable winding mechanism, and extends out through the optical cable outlet. The fluid inlet is connected to a pressurizing device. It should be noted that the other end of the fluid inlet connects to the internal cavity of the optical cable winding mechanism.

[0007] More preferably, the optical cable winding mechanism has an 8-shaped structure, including a fork-shaped groove and an arc-shaped shielding wall; the fork-shaped grooves are interconnected, and the arc-shaped shielding wall is embedded in the end of the fork-shaped groove and connected to the fork-shaped groove.

[0008] More preferably, the inner surface of the arc-shaped shielding wall is engraved with grooves parallel to the upper edge of the shielding wall; the grooves in the right arc-shaped wall are successively lower than the grooves in the left arc-shaped wall from bottom to top, and the height difference is the diameter of the optical cable.

[0009] More preferably, the body and the top cover are connected by a set of threaded mounting holes arranged in an elliptical shape.

[0010] More preferably, the sealing groove is elliptical.

[0011] More preferably, a sealing ring is provided in the sealing groove.

[0012] More preferably, the upper cover has a protrusion at a position corresponding to the sealing groove.

[0013] More preferably, the optical cable outlet has multiple outlets, each outlet connecting to different paths, for allowing different fiber cores in the optical cable to extend into different paths.

[0014] This utility model provides an optical cable splicer that employs an optical cable winding mechanism to allow optical fibers entering from the cable inlet to be wound and spliced ​​before extending from multiple cable outlets. This ensures the original curvature of the splice is maintained. A fluid inlet is provided on one side of the main body, allowing for effective pressure testing of the optical fibers inside the winding mechanism. This pressure testing ensures the stability and reliability of the optical fibers during actual use. The overall structural design is simple and clear, guaranteeing both the quality of the optical cable splicing and the stable performance of the optical cable during use, thereby improving the overall reliability and safety of the optical cable system. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the main structure of the optical cable splicer provided by this utility model.

[0016] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the upper cover structure of the optical cable connector provided by this utility model.

[0017] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram showing the state of the optical cable splicer provided by this utility model after the optical cable has been placed.

[0018] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram showing the installation position of the optical cable splicer provided by this utility model.

[0019] In the diagram: 1. Main body; 2. Top cover; 3. Sealing groove; 4. Optical cable winding mechanism; 5. Optical cable inlet; 6. Optical cable outlet; 7. Fluid inlet; 401. Forked groove; 402. Arc-shaped shielding wall; 8. Oil pipe packer; 9. Oil pump; 10. Optical cable; 11. Perforated pipe; 1201. First pressure gauge; 101. First connector; 102. Second connector; 103. Third connector; 1202. Second pressure gauge. Detailed Implementation

[0020] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0021] like Figure 1 As shown, one embodiment of the present invention provides an optical cable splice comprising a main body 1 and a top cover 2, wherein the main body 1 and the top cover 2 are detachably connected; the main body 1 includes a sealing groove 3, an optical cable winding mechanism 4, an optical cable inlet 5, an optical cable outlet 6, and a fluid inlet 7; the optical cable enters through the optical cable inlet 5, is wound by the optical cable winding mechanism 4, and extends out through the optical cable outlet 6; the fluid inlet 7 is connected to a pressurizing device. It should be noted that the other end of the fluid inlet 7 is connected to the internal cavity of the optical cable winding mechanism 4.

[0022] The optical cable winding mechanism 4 has a figure-eight structure, including a forked groove 401 and an arc-shaped shielding wall 402. The forked grooves 401 are interconnected, and the arc-shaped shielding wall 402 is embedded in and connected to the end of the forked grooves 401. The inner surface of the arc-shaped shielding wall 402 is engraved with grooves parallel to the upper edge of the shielding wall. The grooves in the right arc wall are progressively lower than those in the left arc wall, with the height difference being the diameter of the optical cable. This results in the wound optical cable 10 exhibiting a spiral rising / falling shape, which avoids the accumulation and compression of the optical cable and reduces the bending effect caused by winding, thus better maintaining the flexibility of the optical cable. The optical cable outlet 6 is provided in multiple ways, and each optical cable outlet 6 is connected to different paths, so that different fiber cores in the optical cable can extend to different paths. After the optical cable enters from the inlet, it first spirals to the upper right and then spirals down to the upper left after passing through the forked groove. The spliced ​​optical fiber can form two strands at the forked groove, one strand extending from the left outlet and the other strand extending from the right outlet.

[0023] To improve the airtightness of the optical cable splice, preferably, the main body 1 and the upper cover 2 are connected by a set of threaded mounting holes arranged in an elliptical shape. The sealing groove 3 is elliptical. A sealing ring is provided in the sealing groove 3. A protrusion is provided on the upper cover 2 at a position corresponding to the sealing groove 3. When the upper cover is fastened onto the main body, the protrusion presses the sealing ring into the sealing groove, achieving a seal. The upper surface of the main body and the inner surface of the upper cover are both made of plastic metal. The plastic metal contact surface constitutes the first seal between the main body and the upper cover mating surface, and the elliptical sealing ring constitutes the second seal.

[0024] like Figure 4 As shown, the downhole production string includes various components such as tubing 8, packer 9, pumping unit, perforated tubing 11, and first pressure gauge 1201. When the fiber optic cable is laid downhole, some parts are attached to the outer surface of the tubing and perforated tubing, while others pass through the inside of the packer and pressure gauge. Therefore, when laying the fiber optic cable downhole, it is necessary to splice the fiber optic cables laid at each stage to form a complete, uninterrupted fiber optic cable.

[0025] The number and location of fiber optic cable connectors vary depending on the design of the downhole production string. In this embodiment, the first connector 101 is located on the upper part of the packer and is used to connect the fiber optic cable between the wellhead and the packer, and to the fiber optic cable passing through the packer. The second connector 102 is located on the body of the first pressure gauge 1201 and is used to connect the fiber optic cable that passes through the packer, reaches the upper part of the first pressure gauge 1201, and continues to descend after passing through the first pressure gauge 1201. The third connector 103 is located on the body of the second pressure gauge 1202 and is used to connect the fiber optic cable that passes through the first pressure gauge 1201, descends along the perforated pipe, reaches the upper part of the second pressure gauge 1202, and continues to descend after passing through the second pressure gauge 1202.

[0026] The steps to continue the connection are as follows:

[0027] All splicing work is completed at the wellhead using specialized welding tools. Taking the operation of the second splicer 102 in this case as an example, the splicing steps are explained as follows:

[0028] (1) After the tool string consisting of the perforated pipe and the second pressure gauge 1202 is lowered into the wellhead, the first pressure gauge 1201 is connected to the top of the tool string.

[0029] (2) Install the main body of the connector at the reserved position on the first pressure gauge 1201.

[0030] (3) Insert the upper end of the optical cable that passes through the first pressure gauge 1201 from bottom to top into the bottom end of the self-splitter, and insert the end of the optical cable from the pressure gauge sensor into the bottom end of the self-splitter.

[0031] (4) The optical cable inserted in step (3) is wound from bottom to top in the groove inside the shielding wall in the winding mechanism, so that the inserted optical cable occupies the lower half of the entire groove while leaving 5 cm of optical cable as a redundancy.

[0032] (5) Insert the lower end of the optical cable from the upper structure of the tube string into the top end of the self-splitter.

[0033] (6) The optical cable inserted in step (5) is wound from top to bottom in the groove on the inner side of the shield wall in the winding mechanism, so that the inserted optical cable occupies the upper half of the entire groove, while leaving 5 cm of optical cable as a redundancy.

[0034] (7) Strip the fiber cores of the two redundant optical cables and complete the fusion splicing with a special fusion splicing tool.

[0035] (8) After splicing, if the total length of the redundant part exceeds 5 cm, slowly move the optical cable coiled in the trench out in the opposite direction until the total length of the redundant part is between 4.5 and 5.5 cm.

[0036] (9) Tighten the upper and lower sealing ports and install the top cover of the connector to complete the connection.

[0037] This utility model provides an optical cable splicer that employs an optical cable winding mechanism to wind and splice the optical fiber entering from the cable inlet, allowing it to extend from multiple cable outlets while maintaining the original curvature at the splice point. A fluid inlet is located on one side of the main body, which can be connected to a hand pump. This allows high-pressure fluid to enter the installed splicer, enabling pressure testing of the optical fiber inside the winding mechanism. This pressure testing ensures the stability and reliability of the optical fiber during actual use. The overall structural design is simple and clear, guaranteeing both the quality of the optical cable splicing and the stable performance of the optical cable during use, thereby improving the overall reliability and safety of the optical cable system.

[0038] Obviously, the above embodiments are merely illustrative examples for clear explanation and are not intended to limit the implementation. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other variations or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is neither necessary nor possible to exhaustively list all possible implementations here. However, obvious variations or modifications derived therefrom are still within the protection scope of this invention.

Claims

1. An optical cable extender, characterized by, The application relates to a cable sealing device, which comprises a main body and an upper cover, and the main body and the upper cover are detachably connected; the main body comprises a sealing groove, a cable winding mechanism, a cable inlet, a cable outlet and a fluid inlet; the cable enters from the cable inlet, is wound by the cable winding mechanism and then extends out through the cable outlet, and the fluid inlet is connected with a pressurizing device.

2. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, The cable winding mechanism is in an 8-shaped structure and comprises a fork-shaped groove and an arc-shaped shielding wall; the fork-shaped grooves are cross-connected, the arc-shaped shielding wall is embedded into the end of the fork-shaped groove and is connected with the fork-shaped groove.

3. The optical cable extender of claim 2, wherein, The inner surface of the arc-shaped shielding wall is engraved with a groove which is parallel to the upper edge of the shielding wall. The groove in the right circular arc wall is lower than the groove in the left circular arc wall from bottom to top, and the height difference is the diameter of the cable.

4. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, The main body and the upper cover are connected through a group of screw type mounting holes which are arranged in an elliptical shape.

5. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, The sealing groove is elliptical.

6. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, A sealing ring is arranged in the sealing groove.

7. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, A protrusion is arranged on the upper cover and corresponds to the sealing groove.

8. The optical cable extender of claim 1, wherein, The cable outlet is provided with a plurality of cable outlets, each of which is connected with different paths and is used for making different cores in the cable extend to different paths.

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