Single-mode optical fiber with integrated heating for hydraulic seepage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional optical fiber seepage measurement technologies face challenges in hydraulic structure monitoring due to high production costs, voltage instability, and safety concerns, especially in remote and harsh environments, limiting their effectiveness and practicality.
Innovation Solution
A single-mode optical fiber with an automatic control heat source, featuring a five-layer arrangement including an inner protective elastic layer, heat insulation steel ring, inner-layer filling protection ring, elastic hard ring, and anti-seepage heat insulation hard sleeve ring, which incorporates a drainage water storage cotton sleeve and filter screens with through-holes of varying diameters to control seepage and temperature changes automatically.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If an external heating circuit is used to heat the optical fiber for seepage monitoring, then the optical fiber can maintain operational temperature, but the production cost increases significantly and safety hazards arise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the heating function directly into the optical fiber structure by integrating a heating wire within the protective layer, eliminating the need for separate external heating circuits. This merging of functions reduces system complexity while maintaining the temperature control capability needed for seepage monitoring operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The optical fiber structure becomes self-heating through the integrated heating element, allowing it to maintain its own operational temperature without requiring external heating equipment or complex control circuits. The fiber essentially serves its own heating needs through the embedded thermal source.
2Temperature
If an external heating circuit is used to heat the optical fiber, then temperature control is possible, but voltage instability and safety hazards occur
Solution Approach 1:
By merging the heating function directly into the optical fiber structure, the system eliminates the interface between external power sources and the fiber, removing the source of voltage instability. The integrated design ensures more reliable and stable electrical connections while maintaining temperature control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the heating function from the external circuit system and embeds it directly within the optical fiber structure. This extraction removes the problematic external heating circuit that caused voltage instability and safety hazards, while preserving the essential temperature control capability.
3Measurement precision
If conventional optical fiber layout plans are used for seepage monitoring, then some measurement accuracy improvement is achieved, but construction difficulty and layout cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The optical fiber structure is designed to be multi-functional, combining sensing, protection, and heating capabilities in a single integrated unit. This universality allows the fiber to adapt to various deployment scenarios without requiring complex custom layouts or specialized installation procedures, reducing construction difficulty while maintaining measurement accuracy.
4Temperature
If external heating circuits are used in remote water conservancy engineering, then heating function is provided, but safety measures are lacking and implementation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The optical fiber with integrated heating capability serves its own heating needs without requiring external heating equipment or complex installation procedures. This self-service approach makes the system easier to implement in remote locations where safety measures and infrastructure are limited, as the fiber is essentially self-contained and requires minimal external support.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enhances seepage detection accuracy, reduces temperature changes based on seepage flow rates, and improves safety and practicality in hydraulic seepage measurement, expanding the application range and engineering suitability.
Implementation Method 1
the gauze of the first filter screen and the gauze of the second filter screen are provided with through-holes having different diameters, which can control the flow of the seepage water
Implementation Method 2
a heat insulation steel ring, an inner-layer filling protection ring, an elastic hard ring, and an anti-seepage heat insulation hard sleeve ring arranged in sequence from inside to outside
Data Source
AI summary
A single-mode optical fiber having an automatic control heat source specifically produced for hydraulic seepage measurement, sequentially includes a single-core optical fiber, an inner protective elastic layer, a heat insulation steel ring, an inner-layer filling protection ring, an elastic hard ring, and an anti-seepage heat insulation hard sleeve ring arranged from inside to outside. The single-core optical is connected to a plurality of outer circular sheathing protection pipes respectively, the outer circular sheathing protection pipes sequentially pass through the inner protective elastic layer, the heat insulation steel ring, the inner-layer filling protection ring and the elastic hard ring and are connected to the anti-seepage heat insulation hard sleeve ring, each outer circular sheathing protection pipe is filled with a drainage water storage cotton sleeve, the drainage water storage cotton sleeve is connected to a second filter screen, and the second filter screen is connected to a first filter screen externally.