Compact multicore fiberoptic device for sensing components of force
First Claim
1. A fiberoptic device for sensing axial and/or lateral components of force comprising:
- a movable reflecting surface onto which interrogation light beams are directed, wherein a position of said movable reflecting surface is responsive to at least one of said axial and lateral components of said force; and
an end-face spaced apart from said movable reflecting surface so as to form a gap therebetween; and
an optical fiber having a longitudinal axis and having a multiplicity of core regions for directing a multiplicity of said interrogation light beams, either serially or simultaneously, onto different locations of said movable reflecting surface;
said interrogation beams being directed toward said movable reflecting surface such that at least two of said interrogation beams are incident on said movable reflector reflecting surface from different directions from one another, portions of each of said interrogation beams being back-reflected from said movable reflecting surface into the same core region from which said portion emanated, andsaid back-reflected portions being related to at least one of said components of said force.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A multi-axis force sensor is compact in that it comprises a single strand of optical fiber and a single, movable reflecting element having a reflecting surface separated from a fiber end-face by a gap, and yet is capable of measuring axially and/or laterally applied forces with high sensitivity. The force to be measured causes the reflecting surface to tilt, translate or deform. The single strand of fiber is configured to have multiple cores that carry multiple optical interrogation signals through an end-face of the fiber to incidence on the reflecting surface. The cores are configured so that the propagation vectors of the interrogation signals, as the signals emanate from the fiber end-face, make non-perpendicular angles with that end-face. Furthermore, the cores are configured to capture a portion of the interrogation signals back-reflected from the reflecting surface. The amount of power coupled back into each core is a function of the position of the reflecting surface, which in turn is a function of the magnitude and direction of the applied force. A deformable casing to which the force is applied may surround the reflecting element, the gap and the fiber end-face.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A fiberoptic device for sensing axial and/or lateral components of force comprising:
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a movable reflecting surface onto which interrogation light beams are directed, wherein a position of said movable reflecting surface is responsive to at least one of said axial and lateral components of said force; and an end-face spaced apart from said movable reflecting surface so as to form a gap therebetween; and an optical fiber having a longitudinal axis and having a multiplicity of core regions for directing a multiplicity of said interrogation light beams, either serially or simultaneously, onto different locations of said movable reflecting surface; said interrogation beams being directed toward said movable reflecting surface such that at least two of said interrogation beams are incident on said movable reflector reflecting surface from different directions from one another, portions of each of said interrogation beams being back-reflected from said movable reflecting surface into the same core region from which said portion emanated, and said back-reflected portions being related to at least one of said components of said force. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A fiberoptic device for sensing axial and lateral components of force comprising:
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a light guiding optical element for carrying a multiplicity of interrogation optical signals and for emitting from an end-face said interrogation optical signals with propagation vectors having directions different from one another; and a reflecting surface spaced apart from said end-face, each of said interrogation optical signals emitting from said end-face being directed to said reflecting surface, wherein portions of each of said interrogation optical signals are back-reflected from said reflecting surface into said light guiding optical element, wherein said back-reflected portions are related to a position of said reflecting surface with respect to said light guiding optical element. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification