Hybrid cable having both an optical fiber and a multifilament twisted and drawn element

Abstract

A hybrid cable includes an optical fiber and a multifilament twisted and drawn or swaged electrical conductor. According to one embodiment, the filaments of the multifilament twisted and drawn or swaged electrical conductor are twisted about the optical fiber and then drawn through one or more dies or swaged. In a second embodiment, a metal tube is drawn through one or more dies, an optical fiber is provided in the tube, and then the tube is drawn again with the optical fiber contained therein to result in a drawn filled tube having a central optical fiber. The drawn filled tube is then used a central filament and a plurality of conductive filaments are twisted and about the central filament and the twisted assembly is then drawn or swaged to result in a hybrid cable. In a third embodiment, a multifilament twisted and drawn or swaged cable is formed with a central filament harder than the surrounding the filaments. The central filament is subsequently withdrawn from the surrounding filaments and a twisted and drawn or swaged tube results. An optical fiber is then fed into or pulled through the center of the twisted and drawn or swaged tube to provide a hybrid cable. According to fourth and fifth embodiments, a hybrid cable is provided which includes at least one multifilament twisted and drawn or swaged cable and at least one optical fiber which are arranged parallel within a sheath.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.