Apparatus for and method of processing glass optical fiber, method of manufacturing and method of drawing optical fiber

• US 8,347,656 B2
• Filed: 08/31/2010
• Issued: 01/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Furukawa Electric Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Furukawa Electric Company Limited
• Inventors: Aoki, Yuta, Watanabe, Katsuhiko, Arima, Kiyoshi, Sato, Hirokazu, Taga, Yoshiharu, Suzuki, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Daniels, Matthew
• Assistant Examiner(s): HERRING, LISA L
• Application Number:
  US12/872,594
• Publication Number:
  US 20100319406A1
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• Field of Search: 654/30, 654/32, 654/33, 654/35, 655/33, 655/34, 655/35, 655/36, 655/37, 655/39
• US Class Current: 65/535
• CPC Class Codes: C03B 37/0216 Solving the problem of disruption of drawn fibre, e.g. breakage, start-up, shut-down procedures
• CPC Class Codes: C03B 37/032 for glass optical fibres
• CPC Class Codes: C03B 37/035 having means for deflecting or stripping-off fibres or for removing defective parts
• CPC Class Codes: C03B 37/16 Cutting or severing light guides G02B6/25

Abstract

An apparatus includes: an introducer to introduce a glass optical fiber that has passed a pulling mechanism pulling, to draw the glass optical fiber, one end of an optical fiber preform that has been fused by heating; a shredder including a casing connected to the introducer and a shredding mechanism to shred the glass optical fiber introduced by the introducer in the casing into glass optical-fiber pieces; a pipe connected to the casing of the shredder and to carry the glass optical-fiber pieces; and a suction unit connected to the pipe and to suction the glass optical-fiber pieces via the pipe.

Claims

1. An apparatus configured to process a glass optical fiber drawn from an optical fiber preform when drawing an optical fiber while fusing by heating and pulling by a capstan roller one end of the optical fiber preform, the apparatus comprising:

a guide configured to introduce the glass optical fiber that has passed the capstan roller,

wherein the guide includes;

a slidable cover including a notch configured to fit with the capstan roller;

a sliding mechanism that attaches the slidable cover slidably with respect to a main body of the guide; and

a fitting unit configured to restore the slidable cover to an initial position when the slidable cover has slid;

a shredding unit including a casing connected to the guide and a shredder with rotating blades configured to shred the glass optical fiber introduced by the guide in the casing into glass optical-fiber pieces;

a carrier pipe connected to the casing of the shredding unit and configured to carry the glass optical-fiber pieces;

a vacuum connected to the carrier pipe and configured to suction the glass optical-fiber pieces via the carrier pipe; and

a collector unit connected to the carrier pipe and the vacuum and configured to collect the glass optical-fiber pieces carried by the carrier pipe,

wherein the collector unit includes;

a cyclone configured to separate the glass optical-fiber pieces from a gas and particles that have been carried together with the glass optical-fiber pieces; and

a collecting container consecutively connected at the bottom of the cyclone and configured to accommodate the separated glass optical-fiber pieces, and wherein the vacuum is connected to a top portion of the cyclone via a suction tube.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shredder with rotating blades includes:

a rotating unit; and

a rotor configured to be rotated by the rotating unit and to shred the glass optical fiber by the rotation.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the slidable cover includes an impact relieving member made of an elastic material at an end facing the capstan roller.