AWG Device Off-Center Positioning to Reduce Fiber Bending Loss
Solution Overview
Problem
Optical transceivers face challenges in maintaining optical efficiency and reducing fiber bending losses due to constrained housing dimensions, which limit the minimum bending radius of optical fibers, leading to signal attenuation and performance issues.
Innovation Solution
Positioning an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG) device off-center within the transceiver housing increases the bend radius of the optical fiber, providing additional tolerance for routing and reducing fiber bending losses, thus maintaining nominal performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the AWG device is positioned at the center of the transceiver housing, then the housing dimensions can be minimized, but the optical fiber bend radius becomes too small causing fiber bending losses
Solution Approach 1:
The AWG device is deliberately positioned off-center within the transceiver housing, creating an asymmetric layout. Specifically, the AWG device is located closer to one end of the housing rather than at the geometric center, which increases the available space for the optical fiber to bend with a larger radius without increasing overall housing dimensions. This asymmetric positioning resolves the contradiction by allowing sufficient bend radius while maintaining compact housing size.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the three-dimensional space within the housing more effectively by positioning the AWG device at a specific lateral offset from the center line. This dimensional adjustment creates additional routing space for the optical fiber in the lateral dimension, enabling the fiber to achieve a larger bend radius without increasing the housing length or width, thus resolving the space-constraint versus fiber-bend-radius contradiction.
2Productivity
If the housing dimensions are reduced to create smaller transceiver modules, then manufacturing cost and integration density improve, but the minimum bending radius of optical fibers is constrained leading to signal attenuation
Solution Approach 1:
By positioning the AWG device asymmetrically (off-center) within the housing, the patent creates an optimized spatial arrangement that provides adequate clearance for optical fiber routing. This asymmetric layout ensures that even in compact housings, the fiber can maintain a sufficient bend radius, thereby preserving signal transmission quality while achieving high integration density in smaller form factors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the positional parameter of the AWG device from a centered location to an off-center location at a specific lateral offset. This parameter change optimizes the spatial distribution of components, allowing the optical fiber to route with adequate bend radius within compact dimensions, thus maintaining both small form factor and reliable optical signal transmission.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for reducing optical fiber bending loss in an optical transceiver are disclosed. In an embodiment, a small form-factor (SFF) optical transceiver housing includes a demultiplexer device, such as an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG) device, having a longitudinal center line that is offset laterally by a distance Doffset from the longitudinal center line of the SFF optical transceiver housing. The lateral offset distance Doffset may advantageously enable an intermediate optical fiber coupling the demultiplexer with an optical coupling receptacle, such as an LC connector, to be routed within the SFF optical transceiver housing in a manner that avoids introducing bends that are less than a minimum bending radius associated with the intermediate optical fiber cable. Thus some embodiments of the present disclosure enable greater tolerance when routing an intermediate optical fiber within housings that would otherwise introduce bending loss by virtue of their constrained dimensions.