Rotary Optical Cable Connector with Prism Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing rotary connectors for optical cables are limited in their application to connecting only two optical cables and suffer from significant light flux losses when connecting multiple fibers.
Innovation Solution
A rotary connector design featuring a housing with opposite assemblies, one rotatable and one fixed, incorporating a pentagonal concave prism and cruciform-section ferrules to align and guide optical cables, reducing light flux losses by ensuring continuous optical connection through controlled rotation and total internal reflection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a rotary connector is designed to connect only two optical cables, then the structure is simple, but the adaptability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The connector is divided into separate functional components: a body housing, a rotatable assembly with multiple ferrules, and a fixed assembly. This segmentation allows the rotatable assembly to independently handle multiple optical cables while maintaining overall structural organization and managing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotatable assembly is designed to accommodate multiple optical cables (at least three) simultaneously, making the connector universal for various cable connection scenarios. The body housing and alignment mechanisms serve multiple functions: structural support, rotational movement control, and optical alignment maintenance.
2Loss of energy
If optical cables are connected through rotation without compensation, then the structure is simple, but light flux losses increase
Solution Approach 1:
The fixed assembly acts as an intermediary reference frame that remains stationary while the rotatable assembly moves. This intermediary structure provides stable alignment references that compensate for rotational movement, preventing light flux losses without requiring complex active alignment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the rotational parameter of the rotatable assembly while maintaining constant optical alignment through the fixed assembly's reference structure. This parameter transformation allows rotation to occur without affecting light flux transmission quality.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple optical cables are connected in a rotary connector, then adaptability improves, but alignment precision becomes more difficult to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The ferrules are pre-positioned in the rotatable assembly with precise alignment features before assembly. The body housing includes pre-formed alignment slots and reference surfaces that guide the ferrules into correct positions, ensuring alignment precision is established during manufacturing rather than during field installation.
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
Enables the connection of multiple optical fibers with reduced light flux losses by compensating for rotation through a prism that rotates at half the speed of the ferrules, ensuring continuous transmission and minimizing optical losses.
Implementation Method 1
ensuring continuous transmission and minimizing optical losses
Data Source
AI summary
The rotary connector is intended for use in the field of fiber optic communication and information transfer. The rotary optical cable connector includes a housing, in which two units with guide sleeves are arranged opposite one another, each having the ends of optical cables fastened therein. One of the units is able to rotate, and the other is fixed. A prism is situated between the guide sleeves, and retainers in the form of rods with a cruciform cross-section are secured in the sleeves. The optical cables are disposed in the recesses in the aforesaid retainers and the ends of the cables line up with gradient-index lenses. The rotary connector transmits four rotating light beams with minimal loss.