Fiber Optic Protective Box for Composite Structures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fiber optic cables embedded in core-stiffened composite structures are prone to breakage due to excessive bending and damaging contact at exit points, leading to low reliability and manufacturability issues.
Innovation Solution
A protective box is embedded within the composite structure, bonded to its layers, which houses the terminal end of the fiber optic conductor, providing a connector receiving zone with cushioning material to absorb strain and protect the cable from damage, allowing for a 'soft' egress and reducing the likelihood of breakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the fiber optic cable exits directly through the surface of the core-stiffened composite structure, then the structure remains simple and lightweight, but the cable is prone to breakage due to excessive bending and damaging contact at the exit point
Solution Approach 1:
The protective box is embedded within the core-stiffened composite structure, with the fiber optic cable nested inside the box. The box itself is nested between layers of the composite structure, creating a hierarchical protection system that shields the cable from external damage while maintaining structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The protective box acts as an intermediary element between the fiber optic cable and the external environment. It provides a transition zone with cushioning material that mediates the stress and bending forces, allowing the cable to exit the structure without being directly exposed to damaging conditions
2Ease of manufacture
If the fiber optic cable is allowed to take a sharp bend at the exit point, then the cable routing becomes simpler, but the strain increases leading to breakage
Solution Approach 1:
Cushioning material is placed inside the protective box before the cable is installed. This pre-positioned cushioning absorbs and distributes the bending strains and mechanical stresses that occur during cable installation and operation, preventing these forces from concentrating on the cable and causing breakage
3Reliability
If the protective box is embedded within the composite structure, then the cable terminal end is protected from damage, but the manufacturing process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The protective box is designed to be integrated with the composite structure during the manufacturing process. By preparing the box as a pre-fabricated component that can be embedded alongside the composite layers, the protection system is established before the cable installation, streamlining the overall manufacturing workflow rather than adding post-assembly complexity
Data Source
AI summary
A core-stiffed composite structure includes a plurality of bonded layers forming the core-stiffened composite structure, a fiber optic conductor embedded between two of the plurality of bonded layers, the fiber optic conductor including a terminal end, and a protective box embedded in the core-stiffened composite structure and bonded to one or more of the plurality of bonded layers, wherein the terminal end of the fiber optic conductor projects into the protective box.