MACHINE-TO-MACHINE PLANT AUTOMATION USING 3D PRINTED FIBER SPLICING

• US 20150137398A1
• Filed: 11/19/2013
• Published: 05/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Perez, John Scott
• Granted Patent: US 10,436,983 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 264/1.25
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 11/0075 Connectors for light guides
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2075/00 Use of PU, i.e. polyureas or polyurethanes or derivatives thereof, as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2083/00 Use of polymers having silicon, with or without sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen, or carbon only, in the main chain, as moulding material
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2101/00 Use of unspecified macromolecular compounds as moulding material use of unspecified rubbers B29K2021/00
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2105/0058 Liquid or visquous
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2995/0018 having particular optical properties, e.g. fluorescent or phosphorescent
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 10/00 Processes of additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 30/00 Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 50/02 for controlling or regulating additive manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/2553 Splicing machines, e.g. optical fibre fusion splicer
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/2555 Alignment or adjustment devices for aligning prior to splicing

Abstract

A system may include a fiber distribution hub including a plurality of fiber-optic cables, wherein a particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables includes a machine-readable identifier; and a robotic device configured to access particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables. The robotic device may include a print head configured to splice together the particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables by three-dimensional printing of a silane material. A hand-held unit may also include a print head configured to splice together fiber-optic cables by three-dimensional printing of a silane material.

Claims

1. A device configured to splice together fiber-optic cables by three-dimensional printing of a silane material.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the device corresponds to a hand-held unit.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the device includes a robotic arm installed in a fiber-optic distribution hub.

4. The device of claim 1, comprising:

a plurality of cartridges, wherein a particular one of the plurality of cartridges includes a particular precursor material;

a print head configured to deposit the precursor material from the particular one of the plurality of cartridges; and

a pair of tracks configured to align optical fibers, wherein the device is configured to use the print head to print an optical fiber junction between the optical fibers while the optical fibers are aligned in the pair of tracks.

5. The device of claim 4, further comprising:

a mechanism to position a pre-mold inside the pair of tracks, wherein the pre-mold is configured to further align the optical fibers.

6. The device of claim 4, wherein the print head is further configured to use a stream of air to clean the optical fibers.

7. The device of claim 4, further comprising:

logic configured to;

control the print head to print the optical fiber junction between the optical fibers using the particular one of the plurality of cartridges;

control the print head to print a cladding onto the optical fiber junction using a second one of the plurality of cartridges; and

control the print head to print at least one protective layer onto the cladding using a third one of the plurality of cartridges.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the logic is further configured to:

select an index of refraction for the cladding based on a fiber transmission characteristic associated with the optical fibers.

9. The device of claim 7, wherein the optical fiber junction is printed using a chlorinated silane.

10. The device of claim 7, wherein the cladding includes:

a doped silica layer;

or

a metal layer.

11. The device of claim 4, wherein the print head is configured to move around the pair of tracks in a rotational motion.

12. The device of claim 4, wherein the print head corresponds to a first print head oriented in a first direction towards the pair of tracks, the device further comprising:

a second print head, oriented in a second direction towards the pair of tracks, wherein the second direction is opposite to the first direction.

13. A system comprising:

a fiber distribution hub including a plurality of fiber-optic cables, wherein a particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables includes a machine-readable identifier; and

a robotic device configured to access particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables, wherein the robotic device includes;

a print head configured to splice together the particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables by three-dimensional printing of a silane material.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the robotic device further includes:

a controller configured to;

move to a particular location in the fiber distribution hub;

identify the particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables based on the machine-readable identifier; and

select the particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables for splicing based on the machine-readable identifier.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the robotic device further includes:

a robotic arm configured to manipulate particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the controller is further configured to:

control the robotic arm to remove the particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to:

select another one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables; and

align the particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables with the selected other one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the controller is further configured to:

control the print head to print an optical fiber junction between optical fibers of the particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables and the other one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables, using a first one of a plurality of cartridges;

control the print head to print a cladding onto the optical fiber junction using a second one of the plurality of cartridges; and

control the print head to print at least one protective layer onto the cladding using a third one of the plurality of cartridges.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to:

identify a faulty section in the selected particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables;

remove the faulty section from the selected particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables; and

splice in a new section of fiber-optic cable into the particular one of the plurality of fiber-optic cables using print head.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to:

add a loopback section to the particular ones of the plurality of fiber-optic cables using the print head.

21. A method performed by a device, the method comprising:

aligning, by the device, a pair of fiber-optic cables;

selecting, by the device, a silane material; and

splicing together, by the device, the pair of fiber-optic cables by three-dimensional printing of an optical fiber junction using the selected silane material.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

cleaning, by the device, the pair of optical fibers with pressurized air.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein aligning the pair of fiber-optic cables includes:

aligning the pair of fiber-optic cables using a track.

24. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

adding a pre-mold between the pair of fiber-optic cables.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein splicing together the pair of fiber-optic cables includes:

printing the optical fiber junction using a first one of a plurality of cartridges, wherein the first one of the plurality of cartridges includes the selected silane material;

printing a cladding onto the optical fiber junction using a second one of the plurality of cartridges; and

printing at least one protective layer onto the cladding using a third one of the plurality of cartridges.