Optical coupler for connecting a light source to an optical transmission line
First Claim
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1. An optical coupler for coupling a relatively wide emission light source to an optical transmission line having a relatively small cross sectional area comprising:
- a lens structure that is transparent to light and is comprised of a core region having a first index of refraction and a shell region enclosing said core region and having a second index of refraction, the first index of refraction being greater than the second index of refraction;
means for mounting the relatively wide emission light source adjacent one side of said lens structure for impinging the light rays from the light source upon said lens structure, the light rays being refracted towards the optical transmission line by said lens structure; and
means for coupling the optical transmission line to the opposite side of said lens structure from the wide emission light source for receiving light.
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Abstract
An optical coupler for optically coupling an LED to an optical fiber includes a transparent spherical shell surrounding a transparent spherical core. The index of refraction of the core is greater than of the spherical shell. A surface is formed on the opposite side of the coupler for coupling the optical fiber to the optical coupler, and a cylinder is used to mount the optical coupler at a predetermined distance from the LED in an orientation maximizing the amount of light entering the optical fiber.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. An optical coupler for coupling a relatively wide emission light source to an optical transmission line having a relatively small cross sectional area comprising:
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a lens structure that is transparent to light and is comprised of a core region having a first index of refraction and a shell region enclosing said core region and having a second index of refraction, the first index of refraction being greater than the second index of refraction; means for mounting the relatively wide emission light source adjacent one side of said lens structure for impinging the light rays from the light source upon said lens structure, the light rays being refracted towards the optical transmission line by said lens structure; and means for coupling the optical transmission line to the opposite side of said lens structure from the wide emission light source for receiving light. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. An optical coupler for coupling a light source to an optical transmission line comprising:
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a first transparent shell portion having a first index of refraction and having outer and inner curved surfaces; a second transparent shell portion having a second index of refraction and having at least an inner curved surface, said first and second shell portions having oppositely oriented curvatures with said inner surfaces of said shell portions being disposed in a spaced apart opposing relationship; a transparent core having a third index of refraction and being disposed between said first and second shell portions, said core including first and second curved surfaces mating with said inner surfaces of said first and second shell portions, respectively, the third index of refraction being greater than the first and second indices of refraction; means for mounting the light source adjacent said first shell portion for impinging light rays from the light source through said first shell portion, through said core, and into said second shell portion; and means for coupling the optical transmission line to the second shell portion for receiving light that is transmitted by the light source. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. The method of optically coupling a wide emission light source to an optical transmission line comprising the steps of:
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mounting the wide emission light source adjacent a first transparent shell portion; impinging light rays from the wide emission light source on the first shell portion having a first selected index of refraction; refracting the light rays with the first shell portion in a direction towards a transparent core portion having a second selected index of refraction that is greater than the first index of refraction; refracting the light rays with the core portion to converge in a direction towards a second shell portion; optically coupling the end of the optical transmission line with the second shell portion; and introducing the converged light rays into the optical transmission line.
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Specification