Splice Protection Heater with Independent Heating Elements
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current splice protection heaters face inefficiencies in thermal protection processes, including idle time between splicing and protection operations, human error in heating element control, and inability to accommodate different heating times for various protection sleeves, leading to potential damage or breakage of fusion-spliced optical fibers.
Innovation Solution
A splice protection heater with individually openable and closable cover sections, clamper sections for gripping optical fibers, and detecting mechanisms (optical, magnetic, and mechanical) to automatically control the heating element's ON/OFF states, ensuring precise and timely heating without operator error, and allowing simultaneous processing of multiple fibers with varying protection sleeve requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual switch control is used for the heating element, then the operator has flexibility in operation, but human error occurs leading to forgotten ON/OFF operations and potential fiber damage
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically detects the presence of optical fibers and controls the heating element's ON/OFF states without requiring manual intervention. The detecting section identifies when fibers are placed in the housing part, and the control section autonomously manages the heating process, eliminating human error while maintaining operational simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The detecting section provides real-time feedback about the presence and state of optical fibers to the control section. This feedback mechanism enables the system to automatically adjust heating element states based on actual fiber placement, ensuring reliable heating control without manual oversight
2Productivity
If batch fusion splicing of multiple optical fibers is performed, then productivity increases, but idle time is induced while waiting for protection processing to complete
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables continuous processing by automatically managing multiple heating elements and detecting fiber placement in real-time. While one batch of fibers is being heated, the system is already prepared to immediately heat the next batch, eliminating idle time and maintaining continuous productive action
Solution Approach 2:
The detecting section continuously monitors for fiber placement before heating is needed. When fibers are detected in the housing part, the control section is already prepared to immediately activate the heating element, eliminating waiting time and ensuring seamless transition between splicing and protection operations
3Adaptability or versatility
If a single heating element is used for batch protection, then device complexity is reduced, but different heating times required for different protection sleeves cannot be accommodated
Solution Approach 1:
The heating system is divided into multiple independent heating elements, each capable of being controlled separately. This segmentation allows different heating times and temperature profiles to be applied to different groups of fibers with different protection sleeve requirements, enhancing versatility without requiring a single complex unified system
Solution Approach 2:
The control section dynamically manages multiple heating elements based on real-time detection of fiber placement and protection sleeve types. Each heating element can be independently activated with customized heating parameters, allowing the system to adapt to different protection requirements while maintaining manageable device complexity through modular control
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
The solution enables efficient, error-free thermal protection of fusion-spliced optical fibers by automatically controlling heating times and eliminating idle periods, ensuring standardized quality and preventing damage to unprotected fibers.
Implementation Method 1
heating element that heats, when current is supplied thereto, the protection sleeve covering the fusion spliced portion of the optical fiber
Implementation Method 2
heat shrinkable tube that shrinks in the radial direction when heat is applied thereto
Data Source
AI summary
A splice protection heater capable of quickly and efficiently performing a fusion process without an excessive heating time, a fusion splicer including the splice protection heater, and a fusion splicing method are provided. The apparatus has a heating part for heat shrinking a protection sleeve that covers a fusion spliced portion of an optical fiber, a plurality of heating elements that can individually heat a plurality of protection sleeves with different timings by being individually turned ON/OFF by switches, or a heating element turned ON/OFF by a switch. This apparatus may also be provided with detecting section that detects whether or not the protection sleeve is set on the heating element, and turns the switch ON/OFF.