Back to results
US 2004/0120682 A1Published application
Securing optical elements and optical devices
AssigneeCornining Incorporated
InventorsVenkata A. Bhagavatula, Sean M. Garner, James S. Sutherland
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Articles and methods for securing or aligning objects on substrates are disclosed. The articles and methods include a gripping element disposed on a substrate that includes a groove and flexible gripping elements. The articles and methods are particularly useful for securing optical fibers in arrays and manufacturing optical devices.
Claims33
An article for securing an optical element to a substrate comprising:
- a groove in a surface of a substrate, the groove adapted to receive the optical element;
- and
- a gripping element including at least a pair of flexible sidewalls defining a channel, the gripping element positioned to cooperate with groove to hold the optical element to the substrate.
A method of securing an optical element on the surface of a substrate comprising:
- forming a groove in a surface of the substrate;
- forming a gripping element on the surface of the substrate, the gripping element including at least a pair of flexible sidewalls defining a channel, the gripping element positioned to cooperate with groove to hold the optical element to the substrate;
- and
- inserting the optical element in the channel and the groove.
1 more element
A method of manufacturing an optical device including an optical fiber array comprising:
- inserting optical fibers in a plurality of generally parallel grooves formed in a substrate;
- and
- securing individual fibers in each of the grooves with a plurality of gripping elements, each of the gripping elements including a pair of flexible sidewalls positioned to cooperate with the grooves to hold the optical fiber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.