Optical Fiber Cable Assembly with Segmented Coating and Carrier Guide
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Solution Overview
Problem
Handling and positioning optical fiber cable assemblies are challenging due to the flexibility of ribbon cables and the need for additional protection, especially during system assembly and routing within opto-electronic enclosures.
Innovation Solution
The optical fiber cable assembly features a ribbon cable with a conformal coating applied to secure optical fibers, allowing for flexibility while maintaining their position, and a carrier system with guide members and securement structures to manage and organize optical fiber connectors, facilitating easier handling and assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conformal coating is applied to secure optical fibers in a ribbon cable, then the optical fibers are protected and retained in position, but the flexibility and ability to interleave the ribbon cables is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The coating is applied only to specific sections of the optical fibers rather than the entire length. The first section near the first end portion and the second section near the second end portion are coated to retain fibers in parallel arrays, while the middle section remains uncoated to provide flexibility for interleaving and handling.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the optical fiber have different properties: coated sections provide structural stability and fiber retention, while uncoated sections provide flexibility and ease of manipulation. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction between retention and flexibility.
2Ease of operation
If ribbon cables are made more flexible to facilitate handling, then ease of operation improves, but the ability to maintain parallel array configuration deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The ribbon cable is divided into coated and uncoated sections, where coated sections maintain the parallel array configuration and uncoated sections allow for flexible manipulation and routing.
Solution Approach 2:
The coating is strategically applied only where needed to maintain configuration stability, while leaving other sections uncoated to provide the necessary flexibility for handling and routing operations.
3Reliability
If additional protection is provided for optical fibers, then reliability improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of coating the entire fiber length, only critical sections are coated, reducing material usage and application complexity while still providing necessary protection and retention.
Solution Approach 2:
Protection is provided locally only where needed for fiber retention and structural integrity, rather than uniformly across the entire fiber, thereby reducing overall device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An optical fiber cable assembly has a first end portion of each of a plurality of optical fibers positioned in a generally parallel first array and a second end portion of each of the plurality of optical fibers is positioned in a generally parallel second array. Optical fibers along a portion of the length spaced from the first and second end portions are not retained in a parallel array. A coating is applied to at least a section of each optical fiber. A generally planar carrier of an optical assembly has a first guide member and a second guide member with a first cable assembly disposed within the first guide member and a second cable assembly disposed within the second guide member. Connectors of the cable assemblies are spaced from the carrier. A securement structure retains the cable assemblies within the guide members.