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US 2022/0019032 A1Published application
Optical device
Assignee3M Innovative Properties Company
InventorsMichael A. Haase, James M. Nelson, Terry L. Smith
Life of this patent
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Assignee3M Innovative Properties Company
InventorsMichael A. Haase, James M. Nelson, Terry L. Smith
Estimating the term…
A first optical device is adapted to couple to a second optical device along a coupling direction and includes two spaced apart pairs of leading and trailing pads, such that when the first optical device lands and slides on a landing surface of the second optical device to optically couple to the second optical device, and for each pair of leading and trailing pads, the leading pad prevents any debris on the landing surface from collecting on the trailing pad. Upon full coupling of the first optical device with the second optical device, the leading pads do not make contact with the landing surface. The first optical device may be, for example, an optical ferrule or a cradle having a recess adapted to receive an optical ferrule.
A first optical device adapted to couple to a second optical device along a coupling direction and comprising two spaced apart pairs of leading and trailing pads, such that when the first optical device lands and slides on a landing surface of the second optical device to optically couple to the second optical device, and for each pair of leading and trailing pads, the leading pad prevents any debris on the landing surface from collecting on the trailing pad, wherein upon full coupling of the first optical device with the second optical device, the leading pads do not make contact with the landing surface.
An optical ferrule comprising a plurality of pairs of wiping and mating pads such that when the optical ferrule mates with a mating optical ferrule comprising a plurality of pairs of wiping and mating pads, the wiping pads of the ferrule and the mating ferrule wipe the mating pads of the mating ferrule and the ferrule, respectively, and upon full mating of the ferrule with the mating ferrule, the mating pads of the ferrule and the mating ferrule contact one another.
An optical ferrule comprising a first protrusion disposed between a second protrusion and a leading end of the ferrule, the ferrule configured to mate with a mating optical ferrule comprising a first protrusion disposed between a second protrusion and a leading end of the mating ferrule, such that when the ferrule fully mates with the mating ferrule, the second protrusions of the ferrule and the mating ferrule make contact with and rest on each other, the first protrusions of the ferrule and the mating ferrule are disposed on opposite sides of the second protrusions, and the first protrusion of each ferrule faces a major surface of the other ferrule without contacting it.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.